Seriously Good Keto Bread

Sandwiches are back on the menu!

I'm super excited about this one!

You don't have to look any further for a low-carb, grain-free, keto/paleo bread that you actually want to eat and can even toast and make into a sandwich!  This bread is not overly "eggy".  The addition of flax meal gives it the texture of a grain bread, and "dual insurance leavening agents" (baking powder and meringue) make sure it is not overly dense.  I hope you enjoy it as much as I did with the first bite once I got it where I wanted it - I actually did the happy dance.  I now cannot be without this bread.

I have included some tips for beginners on the successful whipping of egg whites into meringue, which is an integral part of the success of this recipe.

A stand mixer makes this bread a snap.  You can do it without, but I highly recommend investing in a stand mixer if you don't have one.  They aren't cheap, but when you consider how long they last (like forever) they are an amazing value.  Mine is about 25 years old now, and it still works the way it did when it was new, and believe me, it has been used heavily over those 25 years!

At any rate, I hope you enjoy the recipe.

Making a shorter loaf is necessary to ensure the bread isn't dense

Chef J's Keto Bread

Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients

4 eggs - separated *see tips on this
1/4 tsp cream of tartar
1 1/2 cups extra fine almond flour
1/4 cup golden flax meal
3 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp sweetener (I use xylitol)
4 Tbsp melted butter (or oil of your choice)
1/2 tsp raw cider vinegar

Avocado oil cooking spray

Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 350 F degrees.
2. Prepare a standard size loaf pan by lining it with parchment and spraying with avocado oil cooking spray. **see my easy technique on lining a loaf pan with parchment.
3. Separate eggs and whip egg whites to soft peaks.  *see tips on this, following procedure instructions.
4. Sift all dry ingredients together in a  medium size bowl and combine thoroughly with a fork.  Almond flour especially likes to clump - and since you don't want to over-mix the final batter, sifting it through a medium strainer is a good way to break the clumps up ahead of time.  Baking powder is also notorious for clumping, especially if you live in a humid climate, like we do.  The golden flax meal can just be stirred in as it probably won't fit through the strainer.
5. Once the melted butter has cooled, mix it with the vinegar and egg yolks in a small bowl.  I use a 2 cup measuring cup to melt the butter and mix the yolks and vinegar right in the same container.
6. Add the butter/yolk mixture with about a 1/2 cup of the soft-peak meringue (beaten egg whites) to the dry ingredients and combine thoroughly.  Fit the stand mixer with the paddle attachment and mix all ingredients together with the remaining meringue on medium speed just until thoroughly combined.  DO NOT OVER-MIX!!!  This goes quickly on medium speed.  Mix for about 4-5 seconds; scrape the bowl; mix for about 4-5 seconds more.  If mixing by hand, carefully fold ingredients together just until combined.
7. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan.
8. Bake for about 40 minutes in the preheated oven - until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Avoid opening the oven to peek until at least 35 minutes have passed.
9. Allow to cool undisturbed in the loaf pan.
10. Slice and enjoy!  Store in plastic in the refrigerator.  This bread reheats very nicely.

Grain-free bread that can actually be grilled and toasted!

Grilled up nicely with a little Havarti

*6 Tips for successful, stable meringue

1.  Be sure all the equipment that will come into contact with the whites is absolutely clean and dry, even a small amount of fat will cause the egg whites to not whip properly.  This even goes for any oil that may be on your hands.
2. I use three bowls to separate my eggs.  One for the whites (my stand mixer bowl), one for the yolks, and a third which is used to separate them one at a time.  The reason being, that again, even a tiny amount of fat will cause the whites to fail when it comes to whipping.  This includes even a tiny amount of yolk; the yolks are mostly fat so if you accidentally break a yolk and a bit gets into the egg white, it will only be in the third bowl - not all the whites you have already successfully separated and set aside.  If this happens, use that egg for a different project altogether and grab another clean bowl to continue separating.
3. The egg whites should be at room temperature for the ultimate whip-ability.  I add the egg whites to my stand mixer bowl (any metal bowl will work) and set it in a larger bowl in a small amount of warm tap water for a while to take the chill off refrigerated eggs quicker and be able to speed the whole process along.  I usually do this first and swirl it occasionally while I prepare my pans and assemble the other ingredients.
4. The addition of cream of tartar with help to stabilize the tiny bubbles of air encased in protein (essentially what meringue is) which is important to the success of  this bread.  These tiny air bubbles will expand when the air is heated while the protein simultaneously cooks and sets also due to the heat, and lead to a fluffier product.  If it isn't stable, the meringue will fall and the loaf will be too dense.
5. Whipping the egg whites a a slower speed will also develop smaller bubbles, leading to a more stable meringue.  This is exactly the opposite of whipped cream - which likes to be whipped at high speeds.  I always whip my meringue at a medium-low speed.  Scrape the sides every so often to be sure it is uniformly whipped and you don't miss liquid whites that can get stuck on the sides and bottom.  Un-whipped, liquid egg whites can cause your whipped meringue whites to become undone.
6. Don't over-mix the final batter.  Even following all these tips, the meringue is still delicate until it has been cooked.  Over-mixing will pop all those tiny bubbles we worked to achieve and lead to a dense flat product.

**Lining the loaf pan with parchment

Center the loaf pan on a half sheet of parchment.  Mark the corners.

Cut from either side of each corner of the parchment in to meet at each corner you marked.

Spray well with a non-gmo spray such as avocado or coconut.  You can also brush the oil on with a pastry brush.