Native American Buckskin Bread

Back in my teaching days, I had a combination convection oven / microwave in my classroom that allowed us to do a lot of baking. Trevor's school doesn't allow ovens or even microwaves in classrooms, so there were quite a few history-related cooking projects that I wanted to do during my time with the fifth graders but couldn't. Buckskin bread is one example. 

Buckskin bread is vegan, named for the color of the finished loaf and not for any deer-related ingredients. It is a traditional food of many tribes of the Northwest and is like a dense biscuit. Native women would use plants including cattails, acorns, beans, chestnuts, or quinoa to make the flour, then the bread would be mixed with salt and water and baked over a fire. The modern version uses wheat flour and an oven.

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Buckskin Bread

Ingredients: 

• 2 c. flour
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 c. water

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F and grease a 9" pie pan. 
• Combine the flour, salt, and baking powder in a bowl. Mix in the water. 
• Press the dough into the pie pan. 

• Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until the top is a very light brown. 
• Turn the bread onto a rack to cool. 
• Slice into wedges to serve. It is good with savory toppings or sweet things like jam.