Mezonot: The Blessing on Grains

The brachah of mezonos applies to foods baked with rice flour. The after brachah is borei nefashos. Reply

Generally, if a dish is made of dough as its base, then it only has one blessing -- mezonot. Reply

If it's sweet (i.e. more sugar and flavoring than typical bread), then it would still be mezonot. Reply

Yes, that's right :) Reply

Granola is made of rolled flat oats. According to most opinions, since the oats remain whole, they retain their status as a plant, and the correct bracha should be ha'adamah (Vezot Habracha p. 284). Some opinions say that they should be mezonos. Each person should ask their own Rav. Reply

Not necessarily. Please see this article chabad.org/743800 for more information about rice. Reply

The Shulchan Aruch 208:2 rules that mezonot and hamotzi may only be made on products of the five grains. As such, a bagel made with cassava flour, tapioca starch, and potato starch will be shehakol. Reply

Shehakol is the blessing for things that do not grow from the ground. The blessing for produce of the ground is Ha’adamah.

The reason we do not say ha’adamah is because these foods provide a unique form of sustenance, so they were given a special blessing. Reply

Corn is Haadama.

There is an uncertainty about rice, therefore it is best to only eat it in a meal where one has already washed for bread and said Hamotzi. Reply

The Shulchan Aruch 208:2 rules that mezonot and hamotzi may only be made on products of the five grains. As such, anything that is gluten free without oat flour is shehakol. Almond flour cakes would be shehakol as well. Reply

Hello Devorah,

There is indeed a conflict, as with many matters in Jewish law. The Shulchan Aruch (Orach Chaim 168) rules that if bread is made from fruit juices rather than water, than the proper blessing is mezonot.

Many rely on that opinion in matters of mezonot wraps and bread.

However, there are many authorities who disagree, stating that the spirit of that rule was meant to apply only to more snack-like foods that are sweeter, not imitation bread made with fruit juices. Additionally, they require most of the liquid to be fruit juices, without counting juice from concentrate.

On top of that, many authorities write that if the mezonot bread is being used as a meal, then it does not make a difference how much fruit juice is used; the blessing is always hamotzi.

Since there are so many differing views and cases, one should always ask their personal rav what to do and what blessing to make. Reply