Sodena Pitka

Ingredients

• 500 g plain flour
• 300 g Bulgarian yogurt
• 1 tsp bicarbonate of soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• 3 tbsp sunflower oil
• 50 ml milk

Steps

1. 1
   Stir the bicarbonate of soda into the yogurt and leave it for a minute. It will foam up, and that reaction is what lifts the bread.
2. 2
   Beat the salt, sugar and oil into the foaming yogurt, then stir in the milk.
3. 3
   Sift in the flour a little at a time, mixing as you go, until you have a soft dough that just comes away from the bowl. Do not knead it hard — this dough wants brief handling.
4. 4
   Shape the dough into a round on a floured surface and set it in a lightly oiled tin or on a lined tray.
5. 5
   Dust the top with flour and score a cross about a centimetre deep, so the loaf opens as it bakes.
6. 6
   Bake at 200°C for 25-30 minutes, until the crust is golden and the loaf sounds hollow when tapped underneath.
7. 7
   Cool on a rack for at least 15 minutes. Soda bread cuts badly while hot and is best eaten the day it is baked.