It’s not bread; it’s mythology. A nutty sandwich bread that contains absolutely no flour, Ezekiel 4:9 takes its recipe from a Bible verse that reads: " Take also unto thee wheat and barley and beans and lentils and millet and spelt and put them into one vessel and make bread of it. " In 1945, Leon, a baker at Rainier Natural Bakery in the Pacific Northwest, read that verse and said " Uh, okay, " and Ezekiel 4:9 bread was born. Leon’s recipe calls for the six grains and legumes to be soaked in water and sprouted. He adds yeast and salt, and voilà: a bread that’s high in protein (similar to that in milk and eggs), low in carbohydrates (that means you, Atkins dieters), easy to digest, and full of vitamins, minerals, and fiber. No sugar, no preservatives, no shortening, no cholesterol. And it tastes good, too.

A few years ago, after a half-century of keeping Leon’s recipe to itself, Rainier sold it to the exceedingly energetic Food for Life people, who expanded the line-up (Cinnamon Raisin Sprouted Grain Bread, Genesis 1:29 Sprouted Grain Bread), trademarked the catchphrase " The Live Grain Difference, " and got it into the freezer section at Bread & Circus. That’s right — the freezer section. (How else would you store a bread with no artificial colors, flavors, or preservatives?) It toasts beautifully, and you never have to worry about using up the loaf before it goes bad.

One could even call it inspired.

Available for $2.99 at local Bread & Circus stores.