Coconut Flour Part One - something that worked!

I really like to try new things. I don't always succeed, but, I will give myself a gold star for effort. 

I have been trying to find another companion for my baking cupboard. 

I use organic whole wheat flour for baking breads, cinnamon buns, pizza dough and the like. 

I like the taste, but I would really like to find something that has the most nutrients in it. ( Not that whole wheat flour is "bad", I just think there may be an alternative or something I can switch with every now and then)

There are a couple options that I am keenly interested in trying. One of whom I tried today and will share about in this blog!

Sprouted Wheat is the one I have been searching for and would REALLY like to try for my baking needs such as bread-- however Coconut flour is also an option and was very easy to find where I am from. 

The thing about switching from whole wheat to another flour is your other indredients involved in the recipe. There is a lot of tweaking that needs to be done with alternative flours ( I have found). Besides the fact that I am not a experienced baker, I have always found switching to be rather tedious and time consuming. This is why I don't spend too much time coming up with my own recipes. I find that they just end up a flop-- then I get mad because I wasted expensive ingredients. I am really getting mad for no reason though. Unless you have a recipe down --baking is an experience of trial and error :)

Whether you are  gluten intolerant --There are a myriad of flours to use out there instead of Wheat. 

You could be busy for years just trying things out. Here is a list of alternative flours. 

Amaranth

Arrowroot

Barley

Brown Rice

Buckwheat

Corn 

Cornmeal

Chickpea

Coocnut

Millet 

Potato 

and there are still more!

Today I tried coconut flour. I have been reading a lot about this tasty flour and wanted to give it a go. Mind you I started with cinnamon buns-- probably not the best thing. Put it this way. I messed it up. ( The cinnimon buns will be in Coconut flour Part 2 - something that didn't work ) 

I also tried a coconut flour bread though. And this came out much more successful-- despite a few things I would change I still think it is blog worthy. Plus you-- the readers can help make it even better!

Because nutrition and food are of my highest interest I will start off by telling you some of the benefits coconut  flour possesses. The list would impress and make the flour seem too good to be true. Here are some of its benefits:

The breakdown of Coconut flour looks something like this: 14% coconut oil, 58% dietary fiber. The remaining 28% is water, protein and carbs.

Very high in fiber. It competes with bran on the fiber scale.

Gluten Free

Naturally sweet. Which is good if you want to cut back sugar in your baking. 

It is reported it can improve digestion.

Low Carb ( if you are a low carbonator-- this is for you, I myself am not a follower of low carb lifestyles)

This list is pretty impressive for a flour. It almost seems like the perfect solution to many issues people struggle with including : carbs, and gluten. I myself do not worry too much about carbs. My eating philosophy is... eat as many fruits and veggies as possible, while adding legumes, raw nuts and grains. :D -- of course there are many people whose bodies cannot tolerate carbs ( or certain carbs )

The following recipe is taken from another website. I found it on a forum board and thought I would try it. Seemed like a simple recipe-- and it was. Overall I thought it turned out well. Try it out. Leave some feedback!

Ingredients

1/2 cup of Coconut Flour

1/2 Cup of ground flax

1tsp Baking soda

1/2 TSp Sea salt

5 eggs

1/4 cup of yogurt

1/2 cup of coconut oil or grapeseed oil

Directions 

1. Mix wet ingredients
2. Mix dry ingredients
3. Combine the wet and dry ingredients and let it sit for a couple of minutes
4. Pour the mixture into a greased loaf pan
5. Bake @ 350º F for 20 minutes

I hope you enjoy making this simple recipe! This bread has a really great texture along with being super moist. Lots of good fiber in this bread ;) 

Coconut Flour Part two- something that didn't work -- coming up!