It’s not every church website that includes a bread recipe, but that was where my sister Patsy told me to look when I asked for the recipe for the Norwegian flat bread she shared with us one Sunday. I was intrigued. Almost every church I am familiar with has published a church cookbook at one time or another, and we own a good assortment of cookbooks from small and large churches.
However, I had never before seen a recipe on a church website. When I asked, Patsy explained that her Lutheran Church uses Norwegian Flat Bread for the Communion service, and members of the congregation take turns baking the bread. The recipe is on the site to make sure that the volunteers do it right.
It’s a remarkably simple recipe that produces a flavorful, slightly sweet quick bread that you will want to add to your recipes for an easy way to add fresh bread to a dinner…or for Communion.
INGREDIENTS:
1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
½ cup sugar
½ cup butter or margarine softened
1 cup boiling water
About 4 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup buttermilk
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 ½ tsp. salt
PROCEDURE:
Heat the oven to 400º.
In a large bowl combine the whole wheat flour, sugar, butter and water. Let this mixture stand until it has cooled, about five minutes.
Stir the buttermilk into the whole wheat batter. Put three cups of flour into a sifter. Add the baking powder, soda and salt and sift the mixture by thirds into the batter. Stir well after each addition. Stir in another half cup of flour and finish with enough flour to make the dough easy to handle. Turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until it is thoroughly mixed and smooth. Pat or roll it into a thick rectangle.
Divide the dough into eighteen to twenty pieces and form them into balls. Roll the balls into circles about four inches in diameter. Prick the tops of the circles with a fork and place them on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for about twelve to fifteen minutes until the breads are lightly browned.
Put them into plastic bags after they have cooled.
NOTES: Besides using these little loaves for Communion bread, you can turn them into tasty snacks and sandwiches. Warm the loaves for a few seconds on low power in the microwave, split them horizontally and fill them with whatever strikes your fancy. I like them spread with butter to accompany eggs and bacon for breakfast, and Jerri told me that her chicken sandwich was wonderful. They are really good with butter and jelly too.
Courage in the Kitchen 