Super-nutritious, flourless bread, made from oats, seeds and nuts. Baked in a muffin tine, they are naturally gluten-free and vegan.
I am getting this post in just under the wire this gorgeous spring Sunday, not because I have any hesitation in sharing the recipe, but because it’s been a breathless day, zigzagging from one activity to another.
Thank goodness I started the day with two of these oat, seed and nut mini breads. Better still, I topped them with velvety slices of avocado and a few sprinkles of flaky sea salt.
Oh heavens, this is superstar food by every measure, from the toasty nut and seed flavor and nubby, toothsome texture to wrapping it all up with some seriously empowering nutrition. They satisfy every bread craving and then some, but without the refined wheat flour (or any flour, for that matter) or yeast, nor any complicated preparation.
The key to the success of these mini breads is a combination of super seeds (sunflower, chia and flax), oats, and whole psyllium husk. I’ve said it before, but I’ll say it again: if you make gluten-free, grain-free, or vegan dishes, especially baked goods of any kind, then you need to make the acquaintance of psyllium husk; I am confident you will become the best of friends. It works, hands down, as one of the best egg replacers, especially when you cross over into the sometimes tricky territory of egg-free & gluten-free baking. Trust me.
When you add the psyllium to the oats and seed mixture here, it forms an extra thick dough within a short time. Next, scoop the dough into prepared muffin tin cups, bake, and in no time, you have a batch of these versatile, satisfying super-bread.
Eat them with plain or with any topping (sweet or savory) that you crave. It took all of my willpower to limit myself to one bite for the shot below.
- ⅔ cup sunflower seeds (preferably roasted or toasted)
- ⅔ cup rolled oats
- ⅓ cup coarsely chopped whole almonds
- 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal
- 2 tablespoons whole psyllium husks
- 2 teaspoons chia seeds
- ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
- ¾ cup warm water
- 1 tablespoon virgin coconut oil, melted
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup
- In a medium bowl, stir together the sunflower seeds, oats, almonds, flaxseed meal, psyllium husk, chia seeds and salt. Stir in the warm water, coconut oil and syrup until blended. Let mixture stand, at room temperature, for 30 to 60 minutes (mixture should be very thick and stiff).
- Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease 8 cups of a standard muffin tin.
- Evenly divide the batter/dough between the prepared cups, smoothing tops so they are level.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 20 minutes. Remove tin from oven and lift pucks out of their cups; place breads on edges of cups (see photo below the recipe).
- Return tin to oven and bake for 20 to 25 minutes longer until deep brown at edges and tops. Transfer breads to a rack and cool completely.
Tip: After the first 20 minutes of baking, take the breads out of their cups and set them on the cup edges, as shown below. Place back in the oven to bake as directed. This keeps the pucks for getting too dark, plus it helps cook the centers of the breads overall.
We don’t have gluten free oats in Australia. Would you recommend quinoa or some other flake to replace them?
Quinoa flakes are a perfect option, Jan!