Nutty and Light Quinoa Bread Recipe

 Author: Wendy Polisi

Equipment

• 9 x 5 Loaf Pan

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups warm water 
• 2 ½ tablespoons honey or maple syrup
• 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
• 1 ¼ cups toasted quinoa flour*
• 1 cup tapioca starch
• 1 cup cornstarch organic/non-GMO
• 1 tablespoon xanthan gum
• 1 ¾ teaspoons fine sea salt
• 2 eggs lightly beaten OR flax eggs 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds + 6 tablespoons warm water
• 2 tablespoons melted coconut, avocado or olive oil
• Sesame seeds optional

Instructions

1. Lightly grease a 9 x 5 loaf pan.
2. If using flax eggs in place of eggs, combine 2 tablespoons ground flax seeds with 6 tablespoons warm water. Mix well and set aside. (Skip this step if using eggs.)
3. In a small bowl combine warm water and honey or maple syrup. Sprinkle yeast on top and stir gently. Set aside for 5 to 10 minutes, until it begins to foam.
4. In a large mixing bowl, combine quinoa flour, tapioca starch, corn starch, milk powder, xanthan gum and sea salt. 
5. In a separate bowl combine yeast mixture, beaten eggs and oil. Add wet mixture to the dry ingredients and beat for 3 minutes at medium speed.
6. Transfer to the prepared pan and use a spoon dipped in cold water to smooth the top. If desired, sprinkle with sesame seeds. 
7. Cover with a damp cloth and allow to rise for 1 hour.
8. Place a small pan on the bottom rack of your oven. Preheat oven to 180C. 
9. Add 1 cup of water to the pan in the bottom of your oven and then place the loaf in the oven on the middle rack. 
10. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes. Allow to cool in the pan for 5 minutes and then turn out into a wire cooling rack. Best stored in the refrigerator.

Notes

Tips for Making Quinoa Bread

• The dough for this bread will be much wetter than the dough for a traditional bread that has gluten. You will want to use the blending paddle on your stand mixer rather than the dough hook. It is normal for the dough to be sticky.
• This bread is best straight from the oven but may be frozen to keep longer. Make breadcrumb, toast, or croutons from a loaf that is left out longer than a day.

*How to Make Quinoa Flour

Yes! It takes about ¾ cup of whole quinoa seeds to make a cup of flour. To make quinoa flour, rinse the quinoa well and toast on a parchment lined baking sheet for about an hour at 250 degrees to dry out.

Grind in a clean coffee grinder, pulsing on and off. You can also make quinoa flour in some high speed blenders and food processors.

For best results, make sure you grind the flour long enough so that it is very fine, resembling the texture of regular flour.