Amish Communion Casserole

Jump to Recipe

Communion is held once or twice a year in the Amish church.  It's a service that lasts several hours longer than a typical Amish service.  An Amish writer describes it like this:

Everyone does get a lunch break. Two tables are set and everyone takes turns to come eat starting around 11 o’clock until everyone is fed. The menu includes chicken noodle soup, bologna, cheese spread, peanut butter spread, pickles, red beets, hot peppers, jam, wheat and white bread, and four different kinds of cookies. The bread and cookies are all being brought in by women from our church.

Jump to:

• 🍲 Amish Communion Casserole
• 📋 Instructions
• 🖨️ Full Recipe

Amish Communion services take place in a member's home, as other Amish church services do. Communion services last nearly a day, or about six to eight hours. They focus on the rejuvenation of the community and its unified commitment to God. During the service, members confess their sins to one another and promise to live according to the Ordnung, a list of rules that governs each member's behavior and binds members together. In addition to consuming wine and bread for the act of Communion, services include a foot-washing ritual, preaching and a shared meal.

The meals served on Communion church days are similar to what is served on other church Sundays, but traditions develop from church district to church district.  This particular casserole is popular in a couple of Ohio Amish church districts as a "Communion Sunday" dish. Sitting in church for six or seven hours is a test of endurance, so that lunch break is probably extra appreciated, which means the meal has to be "extra good" and this Amish Communion casserole fits the bill. An Amish woman in Indiana gave me this recipe, she said it is often enjoyed as a potluck meal for the after-communion meal at her church.

Carmon Hacker, a friend of mine and an award-winning baker, took up my request to replicate the recipe and she said it was delicious, that even her sometimes finicky husband enjoyed it.  So we have a winner

The ingredients are very basic, with the bread being a great base. Most Amish would use homemade bread.

You can use wheat bread, white bread, or multigrain in this recipe.

Use 3 cups of cooked, diced chicken. Most Amish have a ready supply of home-sourced, fresh chicken.

You can use your choice of cheese, sharp Cheddar goes well. So does a Colby Jack. You could use some of Mexican cheese for a south-of-the-border flair if you'd like.

🍲 Amish Communion Casserole

• 12 slices of bread, cut into cubes
• 3 /4 cup celery, chopped
• 1 /2 cup onion, chopped
• 1 /2 cup bell peppers, chopped
• 1./2 cup mayonnaise
• 3 cups chicken, cooked and diced
• 1 /2 teaspoon poultry seasoning
• 1 /2 teaspoon salt
• 1 /4 teaspoon pepper
• 2 eggs,slightly beaten
• 1 cup milk
• ½ cup chicken broth
• 1 can cream of mushroom soup (diluted with half a soup can of milk to make it easier to spread)
• 2 cups shredded cheese of your choice (sharp or mild cheddar is recommended)

📋 Instructions

1. Put half of cubed bread in a 9 X 13-inch casserole dish.
2. Combine chicken, mayo, veggies, and seasonings.
3. Spoon chicken mixture over bread cubes.
4. Sprinkle remaining bread cubes over chicken mixture.
5. Combine eggs, milk, and broth and spoon over the casserole.
6. Spoon soup over the top, spread out, and bake at 325 for 50 minutes.
7. Sprinkle grated cheese over top for the last 10 minutes.

More Amish Church Meals:  

Amish Church Peanut Butter,

 5 Amish After-Church Carry-In Meals

Sunday Church Chicken Casserole

🖨️ Full Recipe