How to make organic bannock bread

This recipe is a supplement to the story ‘Healing garden’ nourishes Aboriginal Vancouverites

Bannock is a quick bread that doesn’t require yeast. It is a post-contact food (similar to Irish Soda Bread) that that was picked up and embraced by Aboriginal cultures across Canada as European settlers came in to first peoples’ respective territories and brought their flour and sugar.

Preheat Oven to 400 degrees (F) Grease a 6” by 6” baking tin.

Measure the following ‘Dry’ ingredients into a mixing bowl:

• 2 cups organic whole wheat flour
• 2 cups organic un-bleached white flour
• ½ cup organic sugar
• ½ cup organic quick rolled oats
• 2 Tbsp baking powder
• ¼ salt

Measure and whisk together the following ‘Wet’ ingredients:

• 1 organic free range egg
• 2 Tbsp grapeseed oil
• 2 cups of cold water

1. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and, using a fork, mix the ingredients together without kneading or over mixing the dough.
2. Incorporate the flour into the wet ingredients or vice versa just until the point that the dry and the wet ingredients are mixed together, but do not over mix or you’ll have a tougher product.
3. Pour into greased 6×6 tin and place in a 400 degree oven.
4. Bake for 40 minutes, until the top of the bread sounds hollow when you tap it or knock the top.
5. When the cracks are dry and the bread light or golden brown, take out of the oven.
6. Butter the top of the bannock you have just completed baking.
7. Turn upside down onto a drying rack.
8. Cover with a clean tea towel and let cool on a drying rack for 20 minutes before slicing.
9. Use a knife to pry the bread out of the pan.
10. Serve up with butter or margarine and a low sugar fruit/berry compote or jam. If you’re not eating the bannock within 24 hours, freeze the loaf to eat another day.

Note: if you double this recipe, bake in a 9 x 13 greased baking pan. You will get about 16-18 slices out of the double loaf, depending on how thickly you slice.

Recipe courtesy of Mary Holmes, garden project coordinator. It was originally developed by Ron Plowright and Chef Maleah.