I've been playing around with a recipe of Centaura57 (member here) and have after several experiments, come up with a bread I'm really liking a LOT! And it's so EASY to make! Probably the particular brand of NOW protein powder I use, but when made by the original recipe, mine came out very dry. The major change in my version below is the addition of chia gel for moisture and elasticity. More resembles commercial sandwich multi-grain bread now. Great texture, not crumbly at all, not bitter to me like some flax buns I've made. Usually have to FORCE myself to finish a sandwich made with flax, as they make me feel like I'm eating grass or sawdust. Not so with THIS bread. I scarfed down the tuna sandwich pictured below with no problem at all. And chia is very filling (like flax) so this sandwich will “stay with you” longer than many. Some of my blog readers tell me it holds up to packing up lunchboxes with mustard overnight for school or to take to work and it doesn't fall apart on them!


Tried baking one adding glucomannan powder, but that didn’t resolve the dryness issue. Again, that's probably my brand of protein powder.

I decided to use olive oil rather than coconut (don’t like CO in non-dessert baked goods). I always grind my chia seeds up in a coffee grinder so they are not so big and visible in the final product. My gel is 1 part ground seeds to 9 parts liquid. Any leftover gel will keep in the refrigerator in that lidded jar for about a week.

I used one of those sliced bread-shaped containers used for kids lunchboxes to cook mine in, but any square or round shallow 1" deep glass baking dish will work. Given the minute amount of chia seeds in this, 2/9 of 1 T., I wouldn’t think this bread would be a problem on Induction. My thanks to Centaura57 for the inspiration for this recipe. This is a bread I’ll be making often! I plan to try a cinnamon/sweetener/butter breakfast version and a garlic bread version for my next Italian food. I see lots of possibilities on the horizon for this bread. I usually make 2 at a time and store in the refrigerator. I can get two ½" thick slices or three thinner slices for breakfast toast out of this recipe.

INGREDIENTS:

1 large egg, beaten
1 tsp. olive oil
½ Tbsp. chia gel (1 part ground chia seed : 9 parts water)
½ Tbsp. water
pinch salt
¼ c. whey protein powder, unflavored, unsweetened (I use NOW brand)
½ tsp. baking powder
¼ c. flax meal (preferably golden, but I would use dark for rye version)

OPTIONAL: pinch each of caraway seed, onion powder (for rye version)

DIRECTIONS: In a small mixing bowl, beat the egg. Add oil and chia gel and stir well. Add remaining ingredients in order listed. With rubber spatula, scrape batter into a flat microwave dish that is at least 1″ deep. Microwave on HI for 1 minute. Since microwaves vary (I use a 1200 watt unit), you might check at 1 minutes and then add more time if needed, to be safe. Cool and tip onto cutting board. Slice laterally into two thinner slices.

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 1 serving of 2 slices. Entire recipe contains:

346 calories
24.2 g fat
10 g carbs, 7.8 g fiber, 2.2 g NET CARBS
31.5 g protein
558 mg sodium
447 mg potassium
10% RDA Vitamin A, 13% B6, 27% b12, 29% calcium, 46% copper, 38% iron, 40% magnesium, 41% manganese, 75% phosphorous, 42% selenium, 47% thiamin and 22% zinc.

I'm also presently experimenting adding a little dissolved yeast to the batter to see if I can introduce the flavor and smell of yeast to this bread.

Where do you buy chia gel? If grocery store, what section?
Thanks

I doubt the average grocery store carries chia seeds. I have ordered them from Netrition.com http://www6.netrition.com/cgi/advanced_search.cgi ). Their flat-rate shipping of $4.95 is a good deal, so I just wait until I need a lot of low-carb stuff and place a big order all at once. Many health food stores carry chia seeds and I suspect Whole foods or Trader Joes might carry also. I've seen them for sale from some on-line pharmacy vendors, too. Don't remember where, but maybe VitaCost or VitaminShoppe?

When you get the seeds, I like to grind mine in a coffee grinder, but that's not absolutely necessary if you don't mind seeing them in the finished baked product. Just soak 1 part seeds in 9 parts water in a jar. Shake several times until it thickens up. The leftover gel keeps well in the refrigerator for a week.

That sodium should read only 278 mg. Sorry about that. My eyes jumped up to the phosphorous entry on the fitday chart.

I modified my recent Individual Chia Bread recipe to come up with a bread VERY similar to what most of us ate growing up......white bread that comes in a cellophane wrapper at the store.

This is my latest experiment with microwaveable sandwich bread and it made an outstanding tuna sandwich today. Not as filling as my last chia bread recipe. That one was almost too filling with the chia AND flax. This “white bread” version has a much softer texture, too. It’s not crumbly at all either. I eliminated the flax meal from the other recipe and opted for almond flour instead.

This quick bread is suitable for all those who have reached the nuts and seeds rung of the Atkins OWL carb ladder. If you are Paleo-Primal but occasionally allow yourself protein powders, this would be OK for you as well. To make your chia gel, mix 1 part ground chia seed with 9 parts water and shake several times intermittently over 10-15 minutes. It will thicken right up. Store leftover gel in the fridge for about 1 week.

I'll begin to test cooking this in larger batter amounts in a conventional oven in the future to see how that comes out to give the surface a browner look, like a real crust.


INGREDIENTS:

1 large egg, beaten
1 tsp. olive oil
½ T. chia gel (made using 1 part ground chia seed : 9 parts water)
1½ T. water
pinch salt
2 T. whey protein powder, unflavored, unsweetened
¼ c. almond flour
½ tsp. baking powder

DIRECTIONS: In a small mixing bowl, beat the egg, olive oil, chia gel and water together until smooth. Measure the dry ingredients on top and stir to blend well. Pour into square baking dish that is at least 1″ deep. Microwave on HI for 1 minute. Center will be dry to the touch when it is done. Cook few seconds longer if needed. Tip out onto cutting board and cool a few minutes. Slice laterally as evenly as possible into two slices and enjoy any way you would normally use sliced white bread!

NUTRITIONAL INFO: Makes 2 slices. Entire recipe contains:

358 calories
26.4 g fat
8.1 g carbs, 3.3 g fiber, 4.8 g NET CARBS
32.4 g protein
454 mg sodium
217 mg potassium
27% RDA Vitamin B12, 10% A, 33% calcium, 29% iron, 53% phosphorous, 22% riboflavin and 29% selenium