Happy St. Patrick's Week!

This is the family recipe for Irish soda bread. I'm publishing it here in part because it currently exists on a yellowed, torn scrap of paper ripped out of a reporter's notebook 25 years ago and every year I spend a frantic few minutes flipping through cookbooks until I find it. I thought it should be in a safe place.

4 cups flour
1 cup sugar
1 T caraway seeds
1 t baking powder
1 t baking soda
1 t salt
3/4 cup oil
1 cup raisins
1 cup buttermilk

Mix the above with a spoon and then knead briefly. Place in a greased 9-inch pie pan, and spread evenly.

Use a knife to cut a "Sign of the Cross" into the surface, marking four quadrants in the round loaf.

Bake for 60 minutes in a 350-degree oven, or until a straw tester comes out clean.

There are some variations. First of all you can use powdered buttermilk if you don't have the real thing.

Variation No. 1: Substitute one cup whole wheat flour.
Variation No. 2: Substitute chocolate chips for the raisins.
Variation No. 3: Substitute a tablespoon of bacon drippings for an equal amount of the oil.
Variation No. 4: Mix and match any of the above alternatives.