Recreating classic recipes is my happy place, so you can imagine how happy this Keto Irish Soda Bread makes me. Tender and slightly sweet, and studded with sugar-free dried cranberries, it has all the nostalgia with none of the carbs.
Many people associate soda bread with St. Patrick’s Day. And this low carb version can be served alongside corned beef and cabbage for a traditional meal to celebrate the day. But with its crusty exterior and tender center, it’s delicious any time of year. I love it toasted for breakfast!
☘️ Looking for more St. Paddy’s Day ideas? Try Homemade Keto Irish Cream and Keto Reuben Casserole next!
What readers are saying…
“I make this EVERY year, along with Ina Garten’s version for my non keto/low carb friends, and yours is always the one I get the most compliments on. This year I am making baby soda breads in my giant muffin pan just to try something different for our St Patrick’s Day feast!” — Barbara
Why You Will Love This Recipe
- Classic flavor: Soda bread has a distinct flavor from the addition of sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) and buttermilk. This keto recipes mimics that with some heavy cream and vinegar.
- Wonderful texture: This rustic-style bread has a deliciously crusty exterior with a soft, tender center.
- Easy to make: The bread does take a while to bake, but the active prep time is only 15 minutes!
- Make ahead recipe: You can easily make a loaf and freeze for later.
- Gluten-free and low carb: Made with almond flour, this bread has only 3 grams net carbs per slice. Perfect for a keto diet!
Ingredient Notes
- Heavy cream: Lower carb than buttermilk, this gives the bread incredible tender.
- Apple cider vinegar: To replace the acid content of buttermilk.
- Keto flours: I use almond flour with a little coconut flour gives the bread the best consistency.
- Protein powder: In the absence of gluten, this helps the bread rise properly.
- Sweetener: A touch of brown sugar replacement gives a hint of sweetness.
- Baking soda: You can’t make soda bread without it!
- Sugar-free dried cranberries: Many soda bread recipes call for dried currents, so this is a lower carb option.
- Egg whites: I took my cues from the recipe by Ina Garten. Hers takes some egg to give the bread more structure. I utilized egg whites to make the bread a little lighter as well.
- Baking staples: Butter, salt.
How to Make Keto Irish Soda Bread
- Sour the cream: Combine the cream and vinegar together and set aside.
- Whisk the dry ingredients: Whisk together the almond flour, protein powder, sweetener, coconut flour, baking soda, and salt. Grate in the cold butter, then stir in the dried cranberries.
- Add the wet ingredients: Stir in the cream mixture and egg whites until the dough comes together.
- Shape the loaf: Transfer the dough a large baking sheet lined with a silicone mat. With wet hands, form into a high, round loaf. Brush with the melted butter. Use a sharp knife to cut a large X in the top of the loaf.
- Bake the bread: Bake 20 minutes at 325ºF, then turn off the oven and let sit inside for another 30 to 40 minutes.
- Let cool completely: Keto Irish Soda Bread is very fragile when it first comes out of the oven so let it cool completely to firm up.
Tips for Success
Make sure the butter is very cold so you can grate it into the dry ingredients. I love this trick for distributing cold butter throughout dough. I used it in my keto apple scones too, and it gives a more flaky consistency.
Chop the dried cranberries: If you decide to use them, it’s best to chop them up more finely. This gives better distribution throughout the bread, and makes it less likely to tear when you cut into it.
If the dough is very wet, work in some more almond flour or a bit of coconut flour. Some people have had trouble with the center not cooking through, or the bread spreading out too much. This usually means you didn’t have enough flour to offset the wet ingredients.
More Keto Bread Recipes to Try!
Keto Irish Soda Bread Recipe
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup (119 g) cream
- 1 1/2 tbsp (1.5 tbsp) apple cider vinegar
- 2 cups (224 g) almond flour
- 1/4 cup (27 g) unflavoured whey protein powder, (or egg white protein powder)
- 3 tbsp Swerve Brown
- 2 tbsp coconut flour
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 tsp (0.25 tsp) salt
- 1/4 cup (56.75 g) butter, chilled
- 1/3 cup (40.4 g) sugar-free dried cranberries, chopped (optional)
- 2 large (2) egg whites
- 1 tbsp melted butter , to brush the top
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 325ºF and line a baking sheet with a silicone mat.
- In a small bowl, combine the cream and vinegar. In a large bowl, whisk together the almond flour, protein powder, sweetener, coconut flour, baking soda, and salt.
- Grate the cold butter into the dry ingredients and stir to distribute. Stir in the dried cranberries, if using.
- Stir in the cream mixture and the egg whites until well combined. Transfer the dough to the prepared baking sheet. With wet hands, form into a high, round loaf. Brush all over with the melted butter.
- Use a sharp knife to cut a large X in the center of the loaf. Place the baking sheet on the second highest rack in the oven and bake 20 minutes, until the outside is turning golden brown.
- Turn off the oven and let the bread sit inside until the top is firm to the touch and not spongy, another 30 to 40 minutes.
- Remove and let cool completely before cutting into slices.
Notes
Nutrition
Frequently Asked Questions
Coconut flour would require changing the entire recipe, so I recommend using sunflower seed flour instead. You can use it 1:1 to replace the almond flour.
This Keto Irish Soda Bread does not rely on the sweetener for consistency so you can change the sweetener. Do keep in mind that allulose will make it darken much faster and the outside may almost taste burnt. You can also leave out the sweetener entirely, if you prefer.
This bread is great with anything! I like mine lightly toasted with a little butter. It’s only mildly sweet so it also goes well with soups and stews.
Nutritional Disclaimer
Please note that I am not a medical or nutritional professional. I am simply recounting and sharing my own experiences on this blog. Nothing I express here should be taken as medical advice and you should consult with your doctor before starting any diet or exercise program. I provide nutritional information for my recipes simply as a courtesy to my readers. It is calculated using MacGourmet software and I remove erythritol from the final carb count and net carb count, as it does not affect my own blood glucose levels. I do my best to be as accurate as possible but you should independently calculate nutritional information on your own before relying on them. I expressly disclaim any and all liability of any kind with respect to any act or omission wholly or in part in reliance on anything contained in this website.
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I absolutely love this bread! I first made it in January and have made it every week since then! It is easy to make and so tasty! Thanks for posting!
will this soda bread work in thanksgiving dressing/stuffing?
Absolutely!
Your question was last November. How’d it go? I’d be concerned it would be too sweet to go along with turkey (pork, on the other hand, would be good).
I made this for St. Patty’s day. Man, was it ever good! Even my non keto family loved it. It is so quick and easy to make…hard to believe something so easy can be so good. It is nice for year round, not just St. Patty’s day.
Truly amazing! I used to bake traditional Irish Soda breads for a local gourmet store and always used caraway seeds. I made this version, also using caraway seeds and it was so delicious, it was difficult to keep to 1/12th! I’ve made this bread several times and still can’t believe how delicious it is. This is a true Winner, Carolyn!
Hi, the soda bread is delicious. Everyone loved it. However, it is very crumbly. I made it twice and both time same result. Do you have any idea why or is that something I can add to make it less crumbly?
Thanks in advance for your help.
I think you over baked it, if it was crumbly.
I’m thinking maybe add some wheat gluten(if you’re not allergic) or psylium seed husk powder or xanthan gum to eliminate crumbliness(is that a word, lol??).
This was delicious! It came out more moist and tender than I expected, held together well after it cooled, and had just the right amount of sweetness. I couldn’t find dried cranberries, so I subbed chopped dried cherries and–Wow! They were great! This recipe’s a keeper. Thank you!
So glad it worked out!
This is fabulous and a real treat with a cup of tea!!! Thank-you so much for the recipe. Do you think that this can be made with allulose in order to avoid the sugar alcohols?
Probably!
OMG!!! This was amazing!!! I’m so excited, it came out great!!! Thank you so much for a great recipe!!!
Great to hear!
Let me just say, this is amazing! Your recipes are always good but man, this is spot on! Made exactly as written. Came out PERFECT!
Thank you again for your time and money experimenting, perfecting and passing on these amazing recipes!
Patrice
PS- I used the egg white protein powder you give as an option to the whey protein powder. And 1/2 the sugar, I used lankanto brown. Just wanted to be transparent to what I did, both were your options given so I still consider that as made as exactly as you wrote it. Lol. Perfection!
Great to hear!
I do not have whey protein powder, can I use and extra egg white?
Thank you for this wonderful recipe!
Extra egg whites will throw off the liquid/dry ratios and your bread won’t cook through properly.
I can’t believe how delicious this turned out! However, my bread did not bake thoroughly and I accidentally had my over at 350°.
Hi! My local grocery store has a version of Irish soda bread that has a very coarse sugar sprinkled on top. I love that! Do you know of any coarse ground keto sugars that could possibly be used on top?
Thank you!
No, i don’t.
I made this today. Mine spread a lot more than yours. I used carton egg whites. Wondering if that would cause the difference? Can I add a little more coconut flour or bake it in a cake pan. Than you,
Phyllis
It definitely can affect it since the proteins are more broken down in carton egg whites. Experiment a little with your ideas!
Can the protein powder be omitted?
Not if you want your bread to rise properly. 🙂
Could you use a Paleo baking blend?
Since I don’t bake with it, I really can’t guide you. I suspect it won’t bake the same way.
I made this and LOVED IT❣️ Will definitely make again 😊