Ingredients

4 cups cake flour
1 tablespoon baking soda
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1 cup dark raisins
1 tablespoon caraway seeds
1 cup cold milk

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Prepare a baking sheet by spraying it lightly with cooking spray or lining it with parchment paper.

Sift the flour, baking soda, sugar and salt together into a large bowl. Using a pastry cutter or two knives, cut the shortening into the dry ingredients until it resembles coarse meal. Add the raisins, caraway seeds and milk. Mix the dough until just combined; avoid overmixing as this will cause the dough to toughen.

Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and press into a ball. Form the dough into two equal loaves, or cut into 16 equal pieces to make rolls. Dust with flour and with a sharp knife lightly score an "X" across the top of each roll or loaf.

Bake the soda bread until it is lightly browned and sounds hollow when tapped on the bottom, about 8 to 10 minutes for rolls and 25 minutes for loaves. Wrap the bread in a tea towel directly after you take it out of the oven. Cool the soda bread in the tea towel on a wire rack before serving.

It can be held at room temperature for up to 2 days or frozen for up to 4 weeks.

Makes 2 loaves or 16 rolls.

Nutrition information per 2.5-ounce serving: 210 cal., 4 g pro., 41 g carbo., 4 g fat, 520 mg sodium, 0 mg chol., 1 g fiber.