The idea of a bread that satisfies all the body’s nutritional requirements is fascinating to me. Ezekial bread is the first survival bread recipe to be documented and is backed up by the word of God!
The recipe is in the Book of Ezekiel (4:9), and was given to him to help the Israelites survive famine while being in exile for 390 days.When the ingredients are combined, it makes a complete protein similar to those found in milk and eggs. As luck would have it, if you own a bible, you already have the recipe.
“But as for you, take wheat, barley, beans, lentils, millet and spelt, put them in one vessel and make them into bread for yourself; you shall eat it according to the number of the days that you lie on your side, three hundred and ninety days.”
Some of the ingredients included in the following recipe are items we are storing in our long-term food pantry, so this is a great recipe you can use your preps with. Additionally, for versatility sake, you can get creative and use different types of beans for different flavors. For instance, there have been times when I did not have great Northern beans or kidney beans on hand, so I used lentils and pinto beans only and it came out delicious.
Ezekial Bread
Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups wheat berries
1 1/2 cups spelt flour
1/2 cup barley
1/2 cup millet
1/4 cup dry green lentils
2 tablespoons dry great Northern beans
2 tablespoons dry kidney beans
2 tablespoons dried pinto beans
4 cups warm water (110 degrees F/45 degrees C)
1 cup honey
1/2 cup olive oil
2 (.25 ounce) packages active dry yeast
2 tablespoons salt
Directions:
- Measure the water, honey, olive oil, and yeast into a large bowl. Let sit for 10 minutes.
- Stir all of the grains and beans together until well mixed. Grind in a flour mill.
- Add fresh milled flour and salt to the yeast mixture; stir until well mixed, about 10 minutes. The dough will be like that of a batter bread. Pour dough into two greased 9 x 5 inch loaf pans.
- Let rise in a warm place for about 1 hour, or until dough has reached the top of the pan.
- Bake at 350 degrees F (175 degrees C) for 45 to 50 minutes, or until loaves are golden brown.
For a different version, the grain ingredients can also be sprouted for a day or two, thoroughly dried and blended up in the mill. You can even reserve the water used to sprout the grains and warm it to add the yeast to.
Nice post Tess. I just happen to love Ezekial Bread! I prefer the sprouted kind…I feel that their is more nutrition that way.
This is my first visit to your site. Very nice! followed you on twitter too.
I like the sprouted version too. Either way, it is a delicious recipe. The first time I served it to my kids and told them that beans were ground up to make the bread, they were amazed.
From a new prepper’s point of view how would I bake something like this on a camping expedition?
I understand that the type of fuel, cooker, cooking cans/pans/etc will all have an effect on the time
I have seen a number of bread cooking videos on youtube and they all seem to cook until the right colour basis – would this be appropriate?
If you had the ingredients already milled, and had a dutch oven, then you could easily bake this while on a camping trip. I typically bake my bread by sight… when it’s golden brown, and sounds hollow when I thump it, then it’s done.
Jews don’t except yeast at all.
Less than 17 minutes must be from adding water to baking start.
The purpose: not to let yeast and other micros (that contaminate foodstuffs inevitably) to become active.
Salt: is 2 Tablespoons correct or should it be teaspoons? Seems like rather much. Waiting for your reply before i proceed. thanks.
It is two tablespoons. I know it seems like a lot, but you are making two loaves with this recipe.
Wow! Thank you for this recipe, never heard of it before. Just one question, I know that the dried kidney beans contain harmful toxins in the skin, (that is why you have to soak and boil them before using in other recipes).
Does the baking get rid of the toxins in the milled bean “flour”?
Also any idea what the original beans referred to in the Bible were?
Hi Jack,
Some kinds of raw beans, especially red and kidney beans do contain a harmful toxin (lectin phytohaemagglutinin) that must be removed by cooking. A recommended method is to boil the beans for at least ten minutes; undercooked beans may be more toxic than raw beans. Cooking beans in a slow cooker, because of the lower temperatures often used (176 degrees), may not destroy toxins. As long as the beans are heated to a high enough temperature, the toxins should be out of the food.
So are beans cooked in a crockpot or slow cooker safe to eat? Yes… if the beans are properly soaked and cooked. These tips are recommended in destroying these toxins and make the slow cooking process safe.
Soak the dried beans in water for at least five hours (some recommend soaking the beans for at least twelve hours)
Discard the soaking water which will contain leached out toxins
Rinse the beans and cover them with fresh water
Boil the beans (rapid boil) for at least ten minutes
It is then safe to add the beans to the slow cooker and proceed with the recipe
This is on my to-do list. Thanks for the reminder!
(I’ve seen recipes that don’t call for the grains and beans to be ground, giving the loaves a more meaty texture…).
The Sumerian descriptions of bread go back around 5000 years. With all due respect, that is far older than this. It is called bappir and was also used in the beer-making process. It’s not hard to make. They loved their bread and baked many varieties. Other Mesopotamian civilizations basically did the same things following them.
You might want to read “the hymn to Ninkasi”. It’s a Sumerian poem, and it describes bread. Ninkasi is the goddess of brewing.
Take care.
How would you alter this recipe to use the yeast you discussed in your survival food series?
Hi Robert,
Yes, if you wanted to add natural yeast to this recipe, you certainly could.
Thanks,
Tess