Sarah and I attended the Bread Communion at the Unitarian Universalist Church a few weeks ago. The idea of the service is that people bring bread that has familial or cultural significance and share both the bread and a few words with the congregation.

I brought whole grain challah from Peter Reinhart’s Whole Grain Breads. Here’s the bread before baking:

And this is afterwards:

It was 50% whole wheat, but it was as soft and satisfying as any challah I’ve had. I mentioned that challah always reminded me of my grandmother on my dad’s side, who served challah with most meals she made us.

Other breads included beignets from someone who was from New Orleans and skillet cornbread. The woman who brought it admitted that she usually used mixes but made this one from scratch as her mother always made it that way. Other yummy breads included pumpkin bread, chocolate spice bread and a couple breads from On the Rise and Stone Oven. Everyone had a good story for their bread, including one woman’s statement that the bread typifies them because they never have time to cook.

It was a beautiful service, and eating everyone’s food was a great avenue to community and sharing other people’s stories.