Irish Soda Bread Muffins are fluffy, healthy whole wheat Irish soda bread muffins studded with orange zest and currants!

Whole Grain Irish Soda Bread Muffins are moist, mildly sweet muffins with currants and orange zest. They're an easy, healthier alternative for St. Patrick's Day! @FlavortheMoment

March is right around the corner, and I’m really getting excited about St. Patrick’s Day.  I’m not Irish, but that doesn’t matter to me. 

On March 17th, it’s always fun wearing green, drinking Guinness, and eating corned beef no matter what nationality you are!

I look forward to making a St. Patrick’s Day feast every year, which always includes corned beef and cabbage, and Irish soda bread in some form.

I love making Irish Soda Bread, but this year I created these Irish Soda Bread muffins for an easier, healthy option.  They’re low in fat, there’s no refined sugar and there’s plenty of whole grains.

And most importantly, there’s no kneading!

irish soda bread in muffin tins

Traditional Irish soda bread is very heavy, and I had a hard time deciding between making these muffins more dense like soda bread or lighter like a muffin.

I face tough decisions like this on a daily basis. 🙂

When I was testing the recipe for these whole wheat Irish soda bread muffins, I discovered that I enjoyed them more with a lighter texture.  

These are more like muffins than soda bread, so I’m including a variation in the recipe just in case you’d like them to be more traditional.

whole wheat irish soda bread muffins on wire rack

These healthy Irish soda bread muffins are mildly sweet with a minimal amount of coconut sugar, and some added sweetness from dried currants.  The orange zest really complements the currants, and are the two ingredients that make these muffins really special.

These muffins can be served for breakfast, snacks, or with your corned beef and cabbage.  

Slather on some butter, orange marmalade or honey, or just eat as-is.  They’re so delicious and so easy to make that I’ll be baking them up whether it’s St. Patrick’s Day or not. 🙂

Recipe Notes:

  • If you’d like these muffins to be dense like Irish soda bread, add 1/4 cup less buttermilk.  The batter will be thicker but the baking time remains the same.
  • Currants are smaller and much less sweet than raisins.  While you may substitute the currants with raisins, I think the currants make these muffins special.
  • I used a combination of whole wheat and all purpose flours.  You can substitute both with the same amount of whole wheat white flour without sacrificing texture.
  • The coconut sugar may be swapped out with your favorite sweetener.
front shot of irish soda bread muffins on wire rack

More St. Patrick’s Day recipes you’ll love!

Colcannon by Simply Recipes

Corned Beef and Cabbage

Guinness Beef Chili

Guinness Corned Beef Sliders

Irish Beef Stew

Sautéed cabbage

close up of irish soda bread muffins cut in half

Irish Soda Bread Muffins

Irish Soda Bread Muffins are fluffy, healthy whole wheat Irish soda bread muffins studded with orange zest and currants!
0
reviews

Leave a Review »

Ingredients

  • 1 cup all purpose flour
  • 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3 cup oil
  • 1 large egg
  • 1/4 cup coconut sugar may be substituted with granulated or brown sugar
  • 1 cup lowfat buttermilk
  • 1 tablespoon orange zest
  • 1/2 cup dried currants

Instructions 

  • Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a standard muffin pan with paper or foil liners and set aside.
  • Whisk the flours, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl until combined.
  • In a medium bowl, vigorously whisk the oil, egg, and sugar until frothy, about 30 seconds.
  • Add the buttermilk and orange zest and whisk until incorporated.
  • Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and stir until almost combined, then fold in the currants.
  • Divide the batter evenly between the muffin tins and bake on the middle rack of the oven for 12-15 minutes, or until the tops of the muffins spring back when pressed gently. Cool on a wire rack in the pan for 10 minutes, then remove and cool completely.
  • Serve and enjoy!

Notes

  • If you’d like these muffins to be dense like Irish soda bread, add 1/4 cup less buttermilk. The batter will be thicker but the baking time remains the same.
  • Currants are smaller than raisins and are less sweet than raisins. While you may substitute the currants with raisins, I think the currants make these muffins special.
  • I used a combination of whole wheat and all purpose flours. You can substitute both with the same amount of whole wheat white flour without sacrificing texture.
  • The coconut sugar may be swapped out with your favorite sweetener.

Nutrition

Serving: 1g, Calories: 169kcal, Carbohydrates: 24g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 7g, Saturated Fat: 1g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 6g, Cholesterol: 16mg, Sodium: 177mg, Fiber: 2g, Sugar: 10g

Nutrition is estimated using a food database and is only intended to be used as a guideline for informational purposes.

Did you try this recipe?Be sure to tag @flavorthemoments with the hashtag #flavorthemoments on Instagram so I can see what you made!

Sharing is caring!