Cast Iron Blessing/Cleansing Bread
I shared pics of my grandma’s blessing bread last year during the Autumn Equinox and meant to publish the recipe too…just procrastinated awhile. So.
Here it is! It’s a super simple no-hand knead bread! In my family Pagan tradition growing up, the term “blessing” was interchangeable with “cleansing” and that’s the purpose of this bread- it’s meant to bless/cleanse yourself before a ritual or when you think you’re hanging onto too much negative energy! Think a deeper purification than a bath- since you’re gonna eat it! Important magical aspects of this recipe: -The cast iron skillet itself: iron is good for warding off negative energy and entities. You could make this bread in the oven instead, but keep in mind it’ll be a little less potent (but I understand not everyone has a cast iron skillet large/deep enough for a round of bread!) -rosemary: a classic herb in witchcraft for purification and cleansing. -garlic: for protection (and flavor- my grandma fucking loved garlic in pretty much everything) -sea salt: also for purification and cleansing
The bread itself is meant to be pretty basic because my grandmother thought that would promote the cleansing ability of the three correspondences, but do feel free to slather it in butter or toast some cheese on slices if you like that!
Ingredients: -1 package dry yeast (I used those easy quick-rise packets because I don’t make bread constantly enough to have a bunch of yeast on hand) -2 cups warm water (test with the inside of your wrist- if it’s too hot or cold for you, it’s too hot for your yeast! Yeast is a precious baby and must be treated gently!) -1 tsp sugar (also known as “yeast-food”!) -½ tbsp kosher salt -4⅓ cups flour -¼-½ tsp garlic salt -dried rosemary (topping) -sea salt (topping) Directions: 1.) In a standup mixer (or in a large bowl), combine the packet of yeast, warm water, and bit o’ sugar. Let that yeast hang out in that bath for a bit and eat that yummy sugar until it starts foaming. This is happy yeast. Happy yeast makes happy bread. 2.) In a large bowl, sift together the salt and flour. Now add it to the yeasty water little bits at a time. You can use a dough hook attachment on your mixer or just a tough spoon (wooden is my fav). Be careful to add that flour slowly!
3.) After it’s all combined, cover the dough with a cloth and let it rise for about an hour. You can slip it into a larger bowl of warm water to help it rise if your kitchen is a bit chilly! 4.) Grease the skillet and gently put that delicate dough into it, shaping it to fit (you can use two or three skillets/batches if needed). Cover and let rise for another 30-ish minutes. 5.) Spread some olive oil over the top of the dough and sprinkle with the garlic salt, dried rosemary, and some sea salt if desired (you can skip this if you’re trying to go lower sodium, there’s plenty of salt in the bread and garlic salt to get the benefits!).
6.) Bake at 400 degree oven, in the skillet, for 16-18 minutes or until the top is a golden brown color. I let mine cool in the oven as well (i.e. turn the oven off and leave the skillet in until it’s cool enough to remove without an oven mitt). 7.) Enjoy! Visualize that cleansing energy as you eat it! It’s great for pre or post rituals and offerings!
I made this!!! (My first time baking bread)
