ESSENE BREAD
What is Essene Bread?
It is how bread was made before they developed a Flour Mill. Essene Bread was made in ancient times by the Essene's. The Essene's were a Jewish religious group that flourished from the second century BC to the first century AD and are credited with the technique and basic recipe for our Essene Bread.
If you are interested in more information on the Essene gospel it is on our sister site www.essene.co.nz
Why is Essene bread so good for you?
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It is a nutrient dense enzyme rich raw food
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It is very low Carb and the Carbs are high quality - not junk Carbs
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It is very low Gluten – the grain actually digests up to 47% of it’s own Gluten in the sprouting process, and no Gluten is added
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It has a low GI – meaning slow release energy. It is a good choice for diabetics and many do eat it.
The Essene Bakery, New Zealand’s exclusive producers of Essene Bread unfortunately had to close in late 2022 due to supply chain shortages of the ancient purple wheat variety that was such a large part of the business.
The unique character of Essene Bread made it a long process of trial and error to get the technique right. Rory will tell you that making this bread is not a science, it is more like an art form. You need to understand the grain and its needs.
Essene bread can be made with Rye and Spelt, so instead of just saying 'goodbye' we have chosen to offer a tutorial and teach this special bread making technique to keep the knowledge alive for future generations.
Bread, the way it used to be made
Essene Bread is a simple yet very wholesome and highly nutritious food made from 100% sprouted grains and water – nothing else. Essene Bread contains no yeast, salt, flour or added oil.
While Essene Bread does contain gluten (because it is made from wheat and rye) the enzymes necessary to break down gluten are activated during the sprouting process so are a part of the nutritional content.
Breads made from flour do not contain these enzymes. The sprouting process changes the starch into maltose and other enzymes that are readily assimilated by the body. This makes it an ideal food for people with food allergies and is recommended for all blood types (The Eat Right Diet by Dr. Peter D'Adamo). The bread is cooked at very low temperature until it forms a crust and remains very moist inside unlike normal flour milled breads.
Essene bread is a Low Glycemic Index (low GI) food with a high nutritional value giving your body sustained energy over time. 100 grams is all that is needed as a meal serving.
How to eat Essene Bread
Making Slices adds total versatility to your meal options because they do not crumble. They can be sliced in half and topped with your favorite toppings, or toasted and sliced in half to add your favorite toppings.
These are some of our favourite toppings:
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Poached Egg and mineral rich salt
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Avocado smashed with a drizzle of balsamic and mineral rich salt
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Cottage or Feta cheese and tomato with a little mineral rich salt
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Organic butter and Almond Butter (omg…this is so yum !!)
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Butter and Honey
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Yoghurt and Fruit with chopped chunks of bread....divine !!
The traditional Cob Loaf can be broken into small pieces, heated in a pot with a little water and eaten as a porridge or cereal with toppings like your favorite milks (almond or soy if you’re not eating dairy), yoghurts (coconut), and fruit. The Cob can be difficult to slice without crumbling so if you like to eat your bread toasted or as a slice with a topping you might be better to order the Slices. The Slices can still be crumbled or chopped into small pieces and served the same way making them really versatile.
How to store Essene bread
Your bread needs to live in the fridge as there is no preservative in it. Even though it has a good shelf life ‘fresh is best’ so freezing what you are not going to eat in the first week or two is going to give you the best results.
Slices – if you freeze these individually they are a quick meal. One slice is two meals, so cut in half lengthwise before adding your favourite toppings.
Cobs- in the true tradition of “Come break bread with us” – this bread is made to be eaten in a ‘chunk’ or a ‘wedge’ with other food and soup. When fresh it will cut into long slices and can be eaten with butter, or nut butters, or any topping of your choice.
If freezing – pre slice, or cut cake wedges and place wax paper between. If it crumbles after defrosting make porridge with it, or eat in chunks.
What is the benefit of doing our Essene
bread making Tutorial ?
Essene bread is not like other breads. It is traditionally made with only sprouts and water, however you can adapt this by adding spices, salt and other ingredients. We add no other flours, or fillers and will show you how to make really nice bread in the traditional manner. It sounds simple however as we found out when we took it on there are many challenges that go with making a nice bread that is tasty to eat, especially with our modern refined palates.
In the gospel of John they sprout the grain, mash it between rocks with a bit of water, form a flat bread and then put it on a hot rock with a cloth over it.
When Rory and I first tried to make this bread it was a bit rough and ready (a bit like this) and it did not taste that great, in fact it was down right awful !
In our tutorial we will be sharing with you all the tricks and challenges we have faced in our time as The Essene Bakery. We have put together PDF downloadable files with all the relevant notes you need, and then filmed 5 or 6 short videos for each stage so you can see for yourself what the process is like, and how to make your daily bread.
Our tutorial will cover:
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What grains to use
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What equipment you need
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How to sprout your grain
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Best options for mincing the grain
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Mixing and making your dough
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Most critically - how much water to add and how to know when you have the right consistency
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Tricks to making and forming your loaves and slices
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Ongoing email support. You can email us at any time for help if you are having a problem.
We hope you will join us for a small one off price, and keep the magic of Essene Breadmaking alive for future generations.
With our gratitude and thanks.
Rory and Lee-Ann