Soft & Light Grain-free Bread

Just what the name says! Soft & light, satisfying & nourishing, this lovely little loaf is studded with seeds & packed with goodness. It’s soft & springy when fresh, slices like a champ, toasts beautifully & even freezes well. I love the simplicity of this recipe – mix everything in a big bowl then bake it. No waiting round for yeast to rise, no blender or blitzing, just the enjoyable art of mixing by hand.I’m loathe to call this a Paleo loaf (as I know some primal eaters dodge buckwheat & psyllium, while others  include them in their diet) but I’m happy to call it grain-free.

This makes a smallish loaf, so feel free to double the recipe for your big loaf tin. For this smaller version, I use a 11 x 23cm silicon loaf tin.

 

½ cup buckwheat flour

½ cup almond flour

1.5 tsp gluten free baking powder

¼ cup tapioca or arrowroot flour

1 tsp salt

½ cup LSA * (or options below)

½ cup sunflower seeds (plus extra to scatter on top)

1.5 Tbsp psyllium husk

1 free range or organic egg

2 Tbsp olive oil

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

1.5 cups water

any extra seeds to decorate the top, like pepitas/pumpkin seeds or buckwheat groats

* LSA is a ground mix of linseed, sunflower seed & almonds, which you can make yourself or buy pre-made. LSC (chia instead of almond) works well too. Or you can simply use ½ cup of ground flax/linseed instead. If you want to grind your own linseed, use a fierce bullet or high speed blender – a food processor won’t cut it.

Grab a big bowl and preheat your oven to 200C. Add the dry ingredients: buckwheat flour, ground almonds, tapioca or arrowroot flour, LSA (or flaxseed), salt, sunflower seeds and baking powder. Mix super-well, or even use a whisk to ease out any tapioca lumps.

Make a well in the centre and beat in the wet ingredients: egg, psyllium, oil, vinegar and 1.5 cups of water. It’s a very wet mixture! Keep stirring, making sure all wet & dry components are fully incorporated. Stir, stir, stir, then transfer your wet batter to your loaf tin, either greased or lined with parchment.

Sprinkle with seeds of your choice (I used roughly 1 Tbsp of each) then bake for 40 minutes. Allow to cool in the tin for five or ten minutes before cooling on a rack.

Slice before freezing. Enjoy!