Gluten Free Seed Bread

A few years ago our family decided to go gluten free as an experiment. We had been suffering from recurring sinus infections and migraines. After reading about the genetic modifications in modern day wheat and the path it has taken to become resistant to pests and even chemical weed killers such as Round-up, I knew it was the culprit in many of our health issues. We experimented with removing just wheat from our diets and we were completely surprised with what happened to our health. Not only did we stop getting sinus infections and migraines, we stopped craving sugar and carbohydrate heavy foods. My kids stopped asking for those orange colored fish crackers and started asking for things like nuts, veggies and yogurt for their afternoon snacks.

One of the biggest things I felt like I missed when I gave up gluten was a good bread. I tried every recipe known to man-kind and every packaged mix for sandwich bread out there. I even bought a special bread machine with a gluten free setting on it. It works great and I love it. The bread comes out fluffy and delicious, but it tastes like a potato bread and it doesn't suffice when you want to have a slice of a full flavored bread with a smear of butter.

When I found this recipe for a gluten free seed bread I was skeptical. I didn't want to buy a ton of ingredients only to be disappointed by the results. I was pleasantly surprised when I tasted this bread. It had a depth of flavor that I had not previously found in any other gluten free bread and it was very moist. It has the density of a banana bread so it's wonderful sliced up thick with a nice helping of fresh butter or a soft goat cheese. This is the first gluten free bread that I have tried that didn't leave me longing for my "wheat filled" breads of yesterday.

As for the extensive ingredient list, I was able to find all of the ingredients in the bulk section of Whole Foods so I only purchased the quantities I would use for one loaf. If you are unable to access a Whole Foods, Amazon carries many of the ingredients at more discounted price than a health food store. I've linked them below for easy access.

Gluten Free Seed Bread
Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup steel-cut oats
• 1 cup plus 1/4 cup buttermilk, divided
• 1 cup teff flour
• 1/2 cup flaxseeds
• 1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds
• 1/2 cup roasted, unsalted almonds, coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup roasted, unsalted pumpkin seeds (pepitas)
• 1/2 cup walnuts, coarsely chopped
• 1/4 cup flaxseed meal (or grind 1/4 cup flaxseeds in a spice mill)
• 1/4 cup whole psyllium husks
• 2 tablespoons chia seeds
• 1 tablespoon Diamond Crystal or 1 3/4 teaspoons Morton kosher salt
• 3 tablespoons pure maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon instant or active dry yeast
• 1/4 cup olive oil

Directions:

1. Mix oats and 1 cup buttermilk in a small bowl. Chill overnight to rehydrate oats.
2. Whisk teff flour, flaxseeds, sunflower seeds, almonds, pepitas, walnuts, flaxseed meal, psyllium husks, chia seeds, and salt in a large bowl.
3. Combine maple syrup and 1 cup warm (not hot, ideally about 100°) water in a small bowl. Sprinkle yeast over and let stand until yeast is beginning to foam and smells bready (if it doesn’t foam after 10 minutes, get new yeast). Stir into dry ingredients along with oil and remaining 1/4 cup buttermilk. Add rehydrated oats and stir until combined (if using old-fashioned oats, add them along with 1 cup buttermilk).
4. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm spot until dough has puffed slightly (it won’t rise like non-gluten-free dough, but if you poke your finger into it, it should feel less dense than before) and there may be some subtle cracks across surface of dough, 11/4–11/2 hours.
5. Stir dough gently to deflate, then transfer to an 8x5" loaf pan (dough should reach to about the top of pan and this is fine!). Cover with plastic wrap and let dough rise again until domed slightly, 1–11/4 hours.
6. Preheat oven to 350°. Bake bread until top is dark brown and springs back when pressed and an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center registers 190°, 60–75 minutes. Let cool in pan slightly before slicing.
7. Do Ahead: Bread can be made 2 days ahead. Let cool, then wrap in plastic and chill in fridge, or freeze up to 2 months.