Good morning, everyone, and Happy Halloween!
The doodle is costumed (Han Solo; I must resist bragging about the felt vest and pleather holster I constructed, as well as my mad hot glue gun skills, to make this happen) and off to school; my costume today is clown, made possible by a sudden bout of allergies that have me bright nosed and sneezing with hilarious force.
In the spirit of this haunting day, my recipe du jour is bread. Because bread is terrifying.
For example, a participant in my spin class recently confessed that she is afraid of bread. She’s been reading horror books at night, all of which detail the misery and havoc it causes to any and all. It can make adults and children quadruple in size, deform their bellies, make them vulnerable to other ailments and poisons. At worst, she confided, bread kills.
I was so shaken by her tale of doom that I went home and ate two pieces of toast.
They were made from this loaf: my Oat & Walnut Blender Bread.
Bread shouldn’t be a four letter word. Especially since it’s five letters :). I eat bread every day (most typically slathered with nut butters or some variety of homemade hummus) and you can, too. If I don’t replenish with carbohydrates after spin class or a long run, I am for more frightening than bread can ever be. Just ask my husband and son for eye-witness accounts!
True, not all breads are created equal, but such is true for almost every food category. I love making small batches of breads and muffins to control what goes in. However, I am also impatient, so fast and easy are key.
This loaf is ideal. It is perfection with both sweet and savory toppings or fillings, can be sliced thick or thin, is packed with wholesome goodness, and, perhaps best of all, can be assembled and ready to bake in roughly 3 minutes!
If you’ve made my Blender Oat Muffins, this recipe will look familiar. I used a similar formula–oats, nuts, water–but with some important changes.
I wanted this loaf to be savory, with a deep, full flavor similar to a whole wheat yeast loaf (I have in mind one that my mother used to make). I accomplished this with a few tweaks:
-Cut the amount of sweetener
-Use unsulfured blackstrap molasses for the sweetener
-Add flaxseed meal, both for a rich “grain” texture to complement the oats (it also adds extra body and structure; important since this is a full-size loaf instead of small muffins)
-Swap in toasted walnuts for the nuts (Walnuts have great umami flavor; adding to the savory goodness of this bread. The toasting is optional, but it adds so much if you have the time).
Mission accomplished!
In parting, dear readers, be brave on this, the spookiest day of the year.
Bake a loaf. Eat a slice. Vanquish your fears. Cheers!
Print
Oat & Walnut Blender Bread {vegan + flourless}
- Prep Time: 3 mins
- Cook Time: 40 mins
- Total Time: 43 mins
- Yield: 21 slices (7 per loaf) 1x
Description
Quick, easy, and nutritious oat and walnut bread, made in minutes with a blender. It is oil-free, gluten-free & flourless, but 100% delicious and versatile.
Ingredients
- 2 cups rolled oats (certified glutenfree as needed)
- 1/2 cup toasted walnuts
- 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal
- 2 tablespoons unsulfured blackstrap molasses
- 1–1/2 cups water
- 1 teaspoon vinegar (cider vinegar or white vinegar)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 375F. Grease 3 small (I used 5 inch by 3-inch) loaf pans (or line with parchment paper & grease or spray the exposed sides).
- Place all of the ingredients into a blender (food processor will work, too); blend until smooth. Spread batter evenly in prepared pans (it will come close to the tops).
- Bake in the preheated oven for 25 to 30 minutes until browned and a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.
- Cool in pans set on a cooling rack for 15 minutes. Remove loaves from pans and cool completely.
Notes
Sweetener: An equal amount of maple syrup, or honey (if not vegan) can be used in place of the molasses. It will result in a lighter-colored bread.
Nuts: Other nuts, such as pecans, almonds or cashews, or seeds, or pepitas (green pumpkin seeds) can be used in place of the walnuts.
Storage: Store the cooled bread in an airtight container at room temperature for 2 days, the refrigerator for 1 week or freezer for 6 months.
- Category: Bread
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 51
- Sugar: .2 g
- Sodium: 140 mg
- Fat: 2.7 g
- Saturated Fat: 0.14 g
- Carbohydrates: 7.2 g
- Fiber: 1.1 g
- Protein: 1.5 g
- Cholesterol: 0 mg
Instead of using 3 smaller pans could it be made in a lager loaf pan so I could achieve a full size sandwich bread?
Hi Elaine,
I tried this (several times) in a full size pan with unsuccessful results (it rose, it fell, and the center was gooey). For sandwich slices, I slice the mini loaves lengthwise. 😊
Can I cook this in one normal loaf pan to make a sandwich loaf?
Hi Sarah,
Alas, this does not rise properly in a larger loaf pan.
Thank you for sharing this recipe; I am bookmarking it as I am running out of my regular batch of GF bread, and your instructions only require a half hour of baking! (extreme heat over here in France, and no A/C but thankfully a working oven in the basement ^^). I am glad you mention unsulfured molasses. Sulfites have caused my husband a lot of health issues so we avoid them like the plague! Not sure I can find them in my neck of the woods, so I will use honey instead. I will also have to use rice vinegar instead of regular vinegar because of the sulfite issue.
Sounds good, Joelle!I completley understand re: the sulfites, I have a friend who has to avoid them in everything. Oh my goodness, the HEAT in France! Stay cool, friend!
Hello,
This recipe looks too good to be true 🙂 Do you know if granulated erythriol would work instead of themolasses/honey? It would be like using regular white/brown sugar. Thank you!
Or would leaving out the sugar entirely work as well?
I think that the bread would be better without erithrytol–use pumpkin or applesauce instead.
Hi Hana,
Yes, that should be ok. But you will need to add some extra liquid–about 2 tablespoons. Keep in mind that the molasses is adding a lot of flavor, as well color to the bread. The bread will be less browned and may need an extra flavor boost. You might want to consider skipping the sweetener and using something like 2 tablespoons applesauce or pumpkin instead 🙂
Can I use two eggs instead of the flaxseed meal?
That should work well, Nicole!
I can’t have flax seeds! Can I just use two eggs instead?
Yes! Decrease the liquid by about 1/2 cup/.
Sounds yummy! Any suggestions for replacing the oatmeal to make it Paleo friendly?
Hi Pat! It is still a blender bread, but pretty different and still has the wonderful toasted walnut flavor of this one: Here are the ingredients:
6 large eggs
3/4 cup water
1 tablespoon vinegar
12 ounces chopped, toasted walnuts (about 2-3/4 to 3 cups)
1/2 cup coconut flour
3 tablespoons flaxseed meal
2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
Prepare pan as described in the recipe in this post, but only preheat to 325F. Place all ingredients in blender and blend until completely smooth. Coconut flour can vary in dryness, so if it is too thick, add a bit more water. Spread in pan as directed and bake for about 1 hour! This will lighter in color than the oat-cashew bread, but you can add 2 tablespoons of coconut sugar to darken it ad add that something-something that this bread has from the molasses. All the best, Pat!