Cauliflower and Buckwheat Bread – Gluten, Grain, Dairy, Starches, Nuts, Gums, Yeast and Sugar Free

Fresh cauliflower and buckwheat flour bread is another recipe in the fruit/vegetable puree series. It is probably the best loaf bread so far in this series, taking into consideration the short list of ingredients, free of practically everything that goes into quality gluten free bread recipes and the simplicity of this bread preparation, both making the batter and baking itself. Significant points to remember are very few. The choice of baking tin and baking regime are the most important. The best baking loaf pan is a middle size, narrow one. The best baking regime is without using the fan. The batter, if prepared completely in food processor, is quite runny, which together with no fan baking regime, gives the bread the best chance of substantial raising, resulting in typical bread loaf shape.

The loaf on the photo above is baked from the batter when dry ingredients are mixed with wet by hand, and on the photo below the process of batter preparation is done fully in food processor. For some unknown reason the same ingredients, fully mixed in food processor, make the batter more liquid, while if wet and dry ingredients are mixed manually, the batter has thicker texture, close to that of the dough.

The principal advantage of this recipe is the use of fresh cauliflower, without its preliminary cooking, which makes the process of batter preparation very fast and simple. Fresh cauliflower texture with more fibre and less moisture, compared to apple and any cooked vegetable puree, demands extra liquid to be added to the original base recipe in this series. Water works fine, but it may be substituted by other liquids to add nutritional value.

Ingredients:

• 150g of fresh cauliflower
• 2 large eggs (108-112g without shell)
• 130g buckwheat flour
• 10g flaxseed meal
• 1/2 tea spoon ground cumin (2g), can be substituted by any dry or fresh herb or spice mix of your choice (rosemary worked well)
• 4-5g sea salt
• 6g baking powder
• 30ml water
• sesame or any other seeds for the crust (optional)
• butter or oil for the baking pan

Preparation:

The most simple and easy way to prepare the batter is to use food processor all the way through.

• preheat oven to 170C no fan
• grease baking loaf tin (I used my favourite heavy 20cm x 10cm narrow loaf tins)
• mix well all dry ingredients: buckwheat flour, flaxseed meal, salt, cumin, baking powder
• blend cauliflower florets into fine crumbs

• add eggs

• blend together until the mixture triples in volume, 4-5 min on high

• add dry ingredients
• process the mixture for 1-2 min until it nearly comes together, it will be very thick
• add water and blend until all ingredients are fully combined and the batter has an even consistency

• pour the batter into prepared greased tin

• lightly tap baking tin on a surface for the batter to spread and become level
• dip spatula in oil and make a line in the middle of the batter, the line will close, but the oil in it will allow the batter to open during baking, forming a nice crust and prevent spontaneous cracking of the crust everywhere

• sprinkle with sesame seeds
• bake in preheated 170C no fan oven for 55-60 min, check the loaf with a wooden pick, if it comes dry the loaf is ready

• rest the loaf on a wire rack

• contrary to other gluten free breads that have to be rested until fully cooled down to avoid wet texture inside, this bread can be cut when it is still warm, not hot though

I can assure you that this bread does not have to be freshly frozen to keep its soft texture. It can be kept at room temperature for the second or even the third day (if it lasts that long, it is a small loaf). This bread does not need to be toasted to be eaten, either warm, or completely cold. The crust is pleasantly hard, the inside is dense, but very soft and chewy. I have only one problem with this bread, all other recipes with buckwheat flour have to wait for their day in my kitchen, my quite substantial buckwheat flour storage is practically all used up.

I am not alone in my passion for buckwheat flour. Please check these recipes – buckwheat flour and puree bread and here and buckwheat flour and puree scones. They are just amazing and give many more options to bake simple, easy, delicious and nourishing bread.