The Standards: Gluten-Free Low-Carb Flat Bread

By Bethany Klug

Here’s a delicious bread option for people who looking to eat low-carb and gluten-free. It’s never failed to please our bread-loving guests. Plus, no one will never know they’re eating vegetables.

I like the diversity Brazil nuts bring to the diet. Most people, if they eat many nuts at all, eat almonds, cashews and roasted peanuts. Roasting causes the fats to go rancid in short order, so I consider roasted nuts, including peanuts, a treat unless you roast them and eat them right away. Nuts are a perfect balance of protein, complex carbohydrates and healthy fat. They are rich in the monounsaturated fat oleic acid which promotes healthy cholesterol, blood sugar and insulin levels. Brazil nuts are no exception. Nuts are an excellent source of minerals. Brazil Nuts contain high levels of the mineral selenium, essential for thyroid health, as well as copper, magnesium and manganese. Minerals are required to clean up oxidative stress, produce energy and make neurotransmitters. This may be the reason so many people feel better when they switch from mineral-depleted fast and processed foods, to eating mineral-rich, whole unrefined foods.

Almonds work well instead of Brazil nuts in this recipe. Simply soak them for 8 hours and drain before using.

I like to spread the dough with a rubber spatula, then smooth the surface and edges with an offset spatula, available where baking supplies are sold. Coconut oil melts at 76°F. Simply place the jar in warm water to melt it.

Gluten-Free Low-Carb Flatbread

1 3/4 cups water

1 cup raw Brazil nuts

1/4 cup olive or melted coconut oil

1 cup diced butternut squash or carrot

1 cup golden flax seeds, ground in coffee grinder or high-speed blender

3/4 cup or one handful dried fruit, or pitted olives, chopped into 1/4 - 1/2-inch pieces (optional)

Blend water, brazil nuts, oil and veggies in high-speed blender until smooth. Pour mixture into mixing bowl. Add ground flaxseed a bit at a time, stirring until a dough-like consistency is reached. Stir in dried fruit or olives if desired.

Spread dough onto a Teflex dehydrator sheet or silicone baking mat. Spread evenly to the edges using a spatula.

Dehydrate at 145°F for 4 hours, then at 115°F for 9 hours. Flip the bread after 4 to 7 hours. Alternately, bake on the warm setting of your oven for 8 hours flipping halfway through. Because the temperature of the warm setting can vary from oven to oven, check progress frequency. This bread should be firm, yet moist. Cut into 12 to 16 pieces. Refrigerate unused portion and warm at 145°F for 15 - 30 minutes in a dehydrator or toast lightly before serving.

HealthSpan, the holistic medicine practice of Dr. Bethany Klug, is offering some excellent classes this summer to help you reduce your toxic load and add some quick, easy and delicious dishes to you weekly repertoire. Learn more at www.HealthSpanKC.com

Bethany Klug, DO created HealthSpan out of a deep wish: for everyone to experience vibrant health. We go beyond the conventional pill-for an-ill approach to educate and inspire you so you can successfully make positive steps toward greater health and wellbeing. Learn more at www.healthspankc.com or 913-642-1900.