I featured this very special bread in a recent newsletter –and its the one recipe I get asked about most. Can a bread be life-changing? When it’s wheat free, and packed with nutty, seedy goodness, sometimes it can.
So to make this delicious, and utterly easy-to-make loaf, easier to find and bake, I’ve shared it here. You should definitely go visit the source, to get all the notes and story behind it. Sarah Britton’s wonderful food blog My New Roots is full of nutritional know-how and sensational recipes. And like me, she hates labels. The only labels she prescribes to is ‘whole food lover’. I can live with that.
Here it is, The Life-Changing Loaf of Bread
Makes 1 loaf
Ingredients:
1 cup / 135g sunflower seeds
½ cup / 90g flax seeds
½ cup / 65g hazelnuts or almonds
1 ½ cups / 145g 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 (for sugar-free diets, use a pinch of stevia)
3 Tbsp. melted coconut oil or ghee
1 ½ cups / 350ml water
Directions:
1. In a flexible, silicon loaf pan 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 (if the dough is too thick to stir, add one or two teaspoons of water until the dough is manageable). 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 sides of the loaf pan away from it it.
2. Preheat oven to 350°F / 175°C.
3. Place loaf pan in the oven on the middle rack, and bake 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 (difficult, but important).
4. Store bread in a tightly sealed container for up to five days. Freezes well too – slice before freezing for quick and easy toast!
Because this bread is so dense you don’t need a lot of it to feel really satisfied. The only change to the original ingredients that I make, is to substitute the coconut oil with olive oil. Ghee is also good. I just find cooked coconut oil can be overpowering in this recipe. I love it used in raw dishes and stir fries etc.