Rethinking the Bread Basket: Flourless Nut and Seed Bread (Vegan and Gluten Free!)

I’ll go ahead and put it out there: I am a bread snob.  When the bread basket arrives at my table, I don’t indiscriminately reach for a piece and start buttering her up.  This has frequently elicited looks from my my dining mates, sometimes even comments.  “Whatchin’ your carbs are ya?”  Or “what, you don’t like bread?” (Which of course is an underhanded way of saying “whatchin’ your carbs are ya?” I speak judgmental fluently, don’t you worry.)

No, I don’t think carbs are evil.  And my digestive system has always done just fine with gluten.  I just don’t understand the urge to fill up on stale bread or plain white dinner rolls.  No taste, no nutritional benefit… so what’s the point?  Simply put: I like good bread.

Good bread comes in many forms.  Fresh baked lavash with hummus and babaghanoush.  Flaky buttermilk biscuits topped with homemade apple butter.   Herbed ciabatta dipped in olive oil and pesto.  A well executed corn bread with… well, anything.  And while a classic crusty baguette has its time and place (say, to sop up the delightful remnants of moules frites or seafood cioppino), my usual preference is for the dense and hardy, graced with nuts or whole grains.

Enter this beautiful loaf.  I’ve never had anything quite like it.  It’s dense and moist and full of rich nutty flavor.  And while it’s certainly not a low calorie food, I’d take the extra calories from protein and fiber rich nuts and seeds over the empty calories in white bread any day.

Not only does this bread contain no wheat gluten, it’s completely flourless.  “But how does a bread with no flour hold together?” you ask.

Psyllium seed husk, one of nature’s most absorbent fibers, acts as a binding agent in the bread, holding all of the raw ingredients together sans flour.  Psyllium seed husk also has a great deal of health benefits, and is frequently used as a natural dietary supplement.  In addition to regulating the GI tract (in both directions, if you get my gist), it is also established to decrease the risk of coronary heart disease.  Basically this stuff will hold together your bread and your body.

(Having trouble finding Psyllium seed husk?  I found it very cheaply here).

If you aren’t sold yet (how are you not sold yet?!) the recipe for this bread is incredibly flexible.  With the exception of the psyllium husk, you can substitute almost any of the ingredients, so long as you do it in the proper ratio.  Honey or agave can replace maple syrup; ghee can replace coconut oil (although the coconut oil does impart a lovely flavor); hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans… any nut you want can replace the almonds.  And with no kneading and limited dishes required, this bread takes very little time.  Basically, you own the bread, the bread doesn’t own you.

I certainly wouldn’t pass this bread up in a bread basket, I can tell you that!  I would imagine this bread would be good bread paired with just about anything, but it sure went perfectly with this Garlicky Vegan Feta.  Check back tomorrow for that recipe!

Flourless Seed and Nut Bread

From My New Roots

Ingredients:

• 1 cup sunflower seeds
• ½ cup flax seeds
• ½ cup almonds
• 1 ½ cups rolled oats
• 2 Tbsp. chia seeds
• 4 Tbsp. psyllium seed husks (3 Tbsp. if using psyllium husk powder)
• 1 tsp. fine grain sea salt (add ½ tsp. if using coarse salt)
• 1 Tbsp. maple syrup
• 3 Tbsp. melted coconut oil
• 1 ½ cups water

Directions:

1.  If you have a flexible silicone loaf pan, use that.  If you do not, cover a regular loaf pan with parchment paper.  I used the latter method, and it worked beautifully.

2.  In a large bowl, combine all dry ingredients, stirring well.  Whisk maple syrup, oil and water together in a measuring cup.  Add this to the dry ingredients and mix very well until everything is completely soaked and dough becomes very thick.

3.  Transfer to loaf pan and smooth out the top with the back of a spoon.  Let sit out on the counter for at least 2 hours, or all day or overnight. To ensure the dough is ready, it should retain its shape even when you pull the parchment paper or the sides of the loaf pan away from it it.

3.  Place loaf pan in the oven on the middle rack, and bake at 350°F for 20 minutes. Remove bread from loaf pan, place it upside down directly on the rack and bake for another 30-40 minutes.  Bread is done when it sounds hollow when tapped. Let cool completely before slicing.

Makes 1 glorious loaf

Nutrition in 1/10 of loaf: 256 calories, 19g carbs, 19g fat, 8g protein, 2g sugar, 7g fiber

Johanna