may 14...bread blessing

Bread is normally used in most rituals as a gift along with wine or juice.  I've never made it but it did sound interesting.

Need:
3 cups flour
1cup milk
1 tsp olive oil
3 tsp of sugar
1 pkg of dry active yeast
and a bowl

blend all the ingredients together into the bowl, blessing each as you add it by saying:

Dear Lady, bless this flour,
Dear Lady, bless this milk,
Dear lady, bless this olive oil,
Dear lady, bless this sugar,
Dear lady, bless this yeast.

Mix all the ingredients with a spoon until they form a ball that you can work with your hands.  Add more flour if its too wet, and add milk if it is too dry.  Knead the ball until it resembles clay.  As you knead it, say:

Dear lady, bless this bread.

Next, put the dough into a baking dish and put it in a warm place to rise.  once the dough has risen to 2 or 3 times its size, put it in an oven preheated to 350 degree. Bake it for 40-50 minutes.  Before you eat the bread, say:

Wheat from the earth,
Milk from the Mother,
Together with the living power of yeast,
They bring to me this healthy feast.
By earth, air, fire, and water, Blessed Be!!

The most important thing to remember when making bread is that the yeast is a living entity.  As such, it must be fed and giving an environment that is conductive to its well-being.  It feeds on sugar and it likes an environment that is warm.