Traditional Irish Soda Bread

It has long been a tradition in the Hayes-Bohanan house to have mashed potato casserole on St. Patrick's Day. This easy-to-prepare dish is simply mashed potatoes mixed with cooked spinach in a casserole dish, and topped with cheese. Bake at 425 for 20-25 minutes until the cheese is golden and bubbly. This year, after hearing this story on NPR, James suggested we have some traditional Irish Soda Bread with dinner. I had made what I believed was Irish Soda Bread before, but it turns out I was very wrong indeed. The stuff with raisins, and icing, is not real soda bread. I followed the recipe for the Traditional White Soda Bread which required getting my fingers sticky with dough. The instructions call for putting the dough in a round cake pan, and putting a second cake pan on top. I almost used the lid from my indespensible cast iron skillet instead, but I am glad I didn't. The bread rose quite a bit and would have stuck to the lid. This turned out fabulous in my convection oven. A great addition to our meal, right from the oven.