Communion Bread

This recipe is adapted from the communion bread recipe at Grace & Glory Lutheran Church in Goshen, KY.

 

Preheat oven to 375°.

Dry Ingredients:

2 ½ cups whole wheat flour

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

2 teaspoons salt

Using the “scoop-and-pour” method to measure the flours, sift the flours and baking powder into a bowl.  Add salt and combine the dry ingredients.  Set aside.

 

Wet Ingredients

2 Tablespoons extra-light olive oil (NOT extra-virgin; use olive oil for sautéing and grilling)

3 Tablespoons honey

3 Tablespoons mild molasses

2 cups hot tap water

In another bowl, combine the wet ingredients.  Pour into the dry ingredients and mix to moisten.

Scoop out a portion of the dough onto a floured surface and roll it out to about ¼ inch thickness.  Using pot lids, cut out circular loaves of appropriate size.  Using a knife with a rounded edge, gently score the surface of the loaves to facilitate breaking off rectangular pieces when served.

Move the scored loaves onto greased baking sheets and bake at 375° for about 4 mins.  Remove the loaves from the oven and brush lightly with more olive oil, then return to oven to bake for another 4 mins.  When done, remove from oven and gently transfer to cooling racks.  Repeat these steps until all of the dough has been used.

When cooled, the loaves may be frozen and stored for up to 3 or 4 weeks.

Notes:

  1. Don’t confuse olive oils; extra-virgin olive oil may burn when used for cooking.
  2. The dough is very sticky and takes some practice to work with.
  3. If you have silicon baking mats, you might roll the dough and cut out the loaves directly on the baking mats, then just lift the mats onto a baking sheet for easy transfer to the oven.
  4. Score the loaves into rectangular pieces that are large enough for dipping into the chalice without people getting their fingers wet; an inch long is a pretty good rule of thumb.