Holy bread
June 26, 2010 • Category: Sweet Pastries
It may seem strange to some of you not familiar with the Near East to be eating holy bread as a snack, but here it is sold in grocery stores as well as used in religious service; I am starving, having spent all day driving around; I walked into the grocery store in town, which also doubles as internet café and video rental joint and was stopped dead in my tracks by the sight of bags and bags of this holy bread, the fragrance of rose water and mahlab wafting through and calling me.
I am inDeir el-Qamar, a required stop-over for buses filled with tourists visiting the Chouf mountains and our family’s summer retreat; deir meaning convent and qamar meaning moon (the convent or monastery of the moon).
My cousin Andrew is landing later tonight from London; and I am going to attend a party organized by the local Greek-Catholics of this town; (this small town of about 5000 counts churches of every denomination, mosques and probably a synagogue).
This is a recipe I posted already here.
INGREDIENTS:
- 6 cups of flour
- 1 1/2 cups of sugar
- 4 tablespoons of butter, soft (optional)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons of dry yeast, 1 teaspoon of salt
- 2 teaspoons baking powder
- 6 pebbles of mastic, ground with a teaspoon of sugar in a marble mortar (optional)
- 1 teaspoon mahlab (can substitute ground anise, or cinnamon)
- 1 cup of milk
- 1/8 cup orange blossom water
- 1/8 cup of rose water
- 1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
METHOD:
- Proof the yeast in 1/4 cup of water warmed at 110F and a dash of sugar.
- Mix the flour with the sugar, mahlab, ground mastic, nutmeg, dash of salt and baking powder.
- Add the rose and blossom water in a small container. Measure the milk and let it sit at room temperature or make sure it is not too cold. Ideally, you want it at 110F.
- Place the flour mixture in a mixing bowl and add the yeast, milk and rose water mixture and mix the dough until smooth. Let it rest one hour.
- Divide the risen dough into small balls. Let them rise 2 hours.
- Shape the balls into flattened disks and let rise one hour.
- Sift a thin layer of flour on the disks and press the mold firmly on each disk.
- With a toothpick, poke each disk 5 times all around to help prevent it swelling up while baking. (5 times to symbolize Christ who was nailed 5 times to the cross)
- Let the disks rest and preheat the oven to 400F or you can also use your gas grill, making sure the disks are placed on a heavy-bottomed sheet.
- Bake the bread for 10 minutes or so until golden.
NOTE: This bread is called qurban in Lebanese, pronounced urbane.
Comments
33 Comments • Comments Feed
Gloria says:
Dear, I love your bread! never I seen before, look nice! thanks by sharing, gloria
On June 26, 2010 at 11:14 am
Sue says:
I’ve been away for awhile but I’ve been keeping up with your posts. You have one lucky family! Your apricot jam and the shrimp on phyllo look delicious. Everything does. I really love the photos in this post. They pull at my heart strings and I’m not sure why – maybe I need to take a visit. Look forward to more of your posts. 🙂
On June 26, 2010 at 11:39 am
Monique says:
Hi,
I have just discovered your website, and I love it!!!! Thank you for the wonderful recipes, and all the memories they bring to me (sorry for my English… I speak more French).
Monique
On June 26, 2010 at 11:59 am
Priya says:
I have never heard and seen this bread, looks great..
On June 26, 2010 at 12:30 pm
Mallika says:
This qurban looks very good! Love that spiced combo of mahlab and rose water. Looking great!
On June 26, 2010 at 12:32 pm
Barbara says:
Love traveling with you, Joumana. The holy bread looks divine and the floral flavors must be wonderful. Very interesting bread recipe; I’ve never seen anything like it.
I am picturing you in your photos! Such fun!
On June 26, 2010 at 1:00 pm
Ivy says:
Joumana, this bread looks like “artos” (meaning bread in Greek) or “prosphoro” (meaning offering) the bread used for Holy communion. I am a bit confused by Greek-Catholic, as Greeks are Orthodox. Is there a community of Greeks who are Catholic?
Can someone go to Chouf mountains by teleferique? I remember seeing a documentary with a very beautiful trip by teleferique going up to the mountains and the scenery was very beautiful.
On June 26, 2010 at 1:06 pm
marina says:
j’aime beaucoup ces pains et l’eau de rose doit donner un parfum très subtil…
j’ai un tampon presque identique en bois pour marquer le pain..Bonne soirée.
On June 26, 2010 at 2:04 pm
radia-recettes says:
merci pour ce voyage et ses photos magnifique, ton pain est merveilleux , j’aime beaucoup la recette, bisou chef joumana
On June 26, 2010 at 2:11 pm
Katerina says:
We make holy bread-we call it artos- either and take it to church for the priest to bless it and then we give it to the people who attend the ceremony. I love mahlepi as we call it and I use it in tsoureki which is kind of sweet bread.
On June 26, 2010 at 2:59 pm
FOODESSA says:
Joumana…you’re certainly taking full advantage of taking in everything I can only assume you’ve been missing;o)
What a charming area you’re galivanting around.
About those breads…you just gave me an idea…How about stamping the ‘His’ and ‘Hers’…do you think that would be marketable??? Alright, sorry…no disrespect of course…just poking a little fun;o)
Very interesting recipe including one of my favourite aromas of orange water.
Keep having yourself a great time.
Ciao for now, Claudia
On June 26, 2010 at 3:33 pm
Sarah Galvin (All Our Fingers in the Pie) says:
Your pictures are beautiful. I am so envious of your trip. Thanks for sharing.
On June 26, 2010 at 4:58 pm
Rachana says:
Such a gorgeous looking bread! Thanks for sharing!
On June 26, 2010 at 5:57 pm
SYLVIA says:
This bread reminds me of Choreg, an Armenian Easter bread, a sacred tradition during the Easter week. made with aromatic mastic gum and mahleb, the seed of the black cherry, that’s used in ground form, the bread is great with coffee or tea. I will try it with orange and rose water next time.
Joumana, I love the mountain that you are visiting, surrounded by woods of comforting evergreen, It looks so peaceful.
On June 26, 2010 at 8:52 pm
Sushma Mallya says:
Perfectly baked and yummy bread, thanks for sharing
On June 26, 2010 at 10:59 pm
Devaki says:
Oh Joumana – How I love this bread! It is on my to make list. Thank you for taking me on a journey with you through your country 😉
Ciao, Devaki @ weavethousandflavors
On June 26, 2010 at 11:19 pm
grace says:
hey, when you’re hungry, you’re hungry! the rose and orange blossom waters must add so much to this special bread.
On June 27, 2010 at 4:07 am
Sasa says:
Oh no, hungry in the car with no snacks! Dangerous…I love how you post so many things I’ve never even heard of, it shakes me out of my jaded complacency ;P
On June 27, 2010 at 5:46 am
yasmeen says:
Beautiful sites.The bread must smell so good with that hint of blossom water 😀
On June 27, 2010 at 7:30 am
Magdalena says:
The bread is very nice, as are the pictures.
I have heard about mahlab, but I have never tried it 🙂
On June 27, 2010 at 1:19 pm
Lentil Breakdown says:
What a charming town! More pics like these, please!
On June 27, 2010 at 1:44 pm
citronetvanille says:
Jolie recette de petits pains, d’après la liste d’ingrédients, ca doit être un peu sucré, non? j’essaie de m’imaginer leur parfum, et je crois que l’eau de fleur d’oranger doit vraiment leur donner une petite touche très agréable. Superbes photos!
On June 27, 2010 at 5:46 pm
shayma says:
carbs- i love them in all forms- and why not have them as a treat? and what a gorgeous place you are in, Joumana- a crossroads of all the major religions- that truly is the beauty of Lebanon. x shayma
On June 27, 2010 at 8:01 pm
The Gypsy Chef says:
Joumana,
I’ve been remiss in my reading and am only now catching up. This bread is beautiful. I love the mold. Your pictures are absolutely beautiful and intriguing. I need a trip to Lebanon and Cyprus.
I have everything to make these except…mastic. I’ll be shopping tomorrow.
Pam
On June 27, 2010 at 8:26 pm
joudie's mood food says:
Hey Joumana, this bread looks very interesting. I lovet he print on it aswell. I have never seen it before like this. You look like you are having a real enjoyable trip around Lebanon! Enjoy it!!!!
On June 28, 2010 at 2:34 am
Suman Singh says:
never had this kind of bread..sounds interesting and delicious recipe to me..enjoy reading your post..thanks for sharing this!
On June 28, 2010 at 12:06 pm
TastyTrix says:
I remember this recipe! What an amazing & beautiful place … your posts just make me want to visit more and more.
On June 28, 2010 at 2:56 pm
Amber @Almost Vegan says:
I love the little symbol stamped into the dough. All in all it sounds like a great snack!
On June 28, 2010 at 3:13 pm
Mimi says:
Such a beautiful place, thank you for sharing your trip. The bread sounds really delicious.
Mimi
On June 28, 2010 at 10:31 pm
Tangled Noodle says:
This holy bread is new to me and it looks so delicious! I see you have substitutes for mahlab but mastic is one ingredient that I’m not sure where I’ll find here. It would certainly be worth the effort to find it and try this!
On June 28, 2010 at 10:32 pm
A Canadian Foodie says:
What a beautiful village in the photo… I get so inspired in such places. It is truly amazing to walk where so many before us have passed. Beautiful. Would love to see more.
🙂
Valerie
On June 29, 2010 at 6:36 am
Dhoolly says:
When I moved to Lebanon a few years back, I first lived down the “Hôtel Dieu” part of town. I used to grab some of those in the morning in the Bakery in front of my bulding, and it would just make any morning beautiful.
Yeslamo idayki!
On February 2, 2012 at 7:19 am
Joumana says:
@Dhoolly: Tekram 3einak!
On February 2, 2012 at 7:45 am