I meant to write this post last week, but my free moments ended up being devoured by the UK press junket for Star Trek Into Darkness. I am a Sherlock nut, so there was no way I was going to miss the chance to see Benedict Cumberbatch up close and personal. He was, as expected, fantastic in both the film and the flesh 😉 

And so to the soda bread. It was one of those moments where you look in the fridge and see fruit in urgent need of use. I use blueberries a lot in bread but there were some strawberries skulking there too. Surely another form of berries would work OK? 

With nothing to lose, I threw both into a standard soda bread mix. There is something about the sturdiness of a soda bread that is so typically Irish, a hardy prospect to satisfy any carb lover. We eat it with an Irish breakfast, using it to mop up the runny yolk of an egg or the smears of bacon and sausage fat after a hefty plate of nosh.

I thought it could, therefore, cope with two juicy fruits and become a delicious breakfast bread. And so it transpired. Warm from the oven it was irresistible, and, when cold, it made for wonderful elevenses. Of course I buttered it. For some reason, we Northern Irish butter everything – rich tea biscuits and digestives (to make a sandwich), malt loaf, Jamaica Ginger Cake or whatever it may be. Don’t knock it until you’ve tried it!