Grain/Gluten-Free Wrap

I have been reading a book called WHEAT BELLY, recently and finally decided to try some of the simple recipes it contains.  The doctor who wrote the book is a big fan of ground flax seed, and lately so am I. I have been eating it cooked as well as raw and find that it often makes a good substitute for flour.

Since I have given up gluten, I haven't had much bread at all... a few slices when visiting my sister-in-law and her family last month... and a few days ago we stumbled upon a line of gluten-free Silver Hills breads in a new local market.  And at a reasonable price, too.

But I haven't had any wraps or tortillas so this recipe from WHEAT BELLY really intrigued me, and I decided to try in on Sunday at noon.  It has a few simple ingredients, and after making it I can see lots of possibilities for varying the flavor so will be doing more  experimenting with it.  I will give it to you as I made it up.

The recipe calls for coconut oil and I did use that... but the finished product has a bit of a coconut taste so next time I am going to use either olive oil or an olive oil-canola blend, instead of the coconut oil.  I don't dislike the taste of coconut oil, but I think it just doesn't suit this finished product.

And even though the outcome is a good sized 'wrap' it is a bit brittle so I opted to just fold it over instead of actually trying to roll it.  The texture is pleasing and overall, I would give it a thumbs up.  It is good enough to keep working with, certainly.



Grain/Gluten-Free Wrap
Makes 1 serving.

• 3 Tbs ground flax seeds
• 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• Dash of salt
• 1 Tbs coconut oil, melted
• 1 Tbs water
• 1 large fresh egg

1. In a smallish bowl, mix together the ground flax seeds, baking powder, garlic powder, and salt.
2. Stir in the coconut oil and blend well.
3. Add the egg and water and mix till combined.
4. Coat a flat microwave-safe plate with non-stick spray, or a spritz of a cooking oil
5. Pour the flaxseed mixture onto the plate and spread thin.  It will be about 9 or 10 inches in diameter.
6. Microwave on HIGH for 3 minutes then remove and allow to rest at least 5 minutes. It will firm up a bit as it cools.
7. Gently remove from the plate and flip over to fill with desired ingredients.

Per serving.
Weight Watchers P+= 9.
Calories 312; Protein 12g; Carbohydrate 7g; Fat 28g; Fibre 6g.

That seems like a very high calorie count for a lunchtime wrap... I filled mine with a couple of red lettuce leaves and 2 thin slices of lean ham.  It was really satisfying, and I think that next time I could easily use only half and save the other half in the refrigerator for lunch the next day. 

If I were to have it at dinner time, I would load it up with more protein and veggies.

I am going to try making it with 2 Tbs of egg white, instead of a whole egg.   That will lower the calorie and fat count significantly, and the P+ to 7.  When I do that, I will publish another post to share the results.

This raw mixture probably could have been spread out a bit thinner.

Cooked and resting.  No color change of course, because the mike doesn't brown things.

Filled and folded and ready to enjoy!



Printable Recipe

Irish Wheat-Free Potato Bread

Since my experiment in giving up wheat began just over 2 weeks ago, I have not had a single slice of bread!

I have had a few rice cakes, a few rye crackers, and a few corn chips, and I have enjoyed several kinds of protein pancakes, some banana loaf made with almond flour, and even some grain-free crepes made with coconut flour and ground flax seeds... but not a bagel, or a wrap or an English muffin.

I have been scouring the internet looking at blogs that feature gluten-free and wheat-free recipes, looking for a bread recipe.

I found one on a site called Wheat Free Recipes From Ireland that uses mashed potatoes as the base, and some non-wheat flour... actually combinations of several of your own choosing... so decided to try it.

It tastes very good and will likely fit the bill for now as I can spread La Creme Cow or Laughing Cow cheese on it... or a bit of jam and butter if I like... but it doesn't rise like real bread.  It is quite coarse and I think it would make a nice muffin actually.

Here is how I made it up.  Next time, I am going to add some baking powder to see if that lightens it up a bit.

Irish Wheat-Free Potato Bread
makes 1 loaf cut into 16 slices

• 3 oz mashed potato
• 1 egg
• 1/2 cup fat free milk
• 2 Tbs olive oil 
• 1/2 tsp of salt
• 1 teaspoon of sugar (optional)
• 2 oz brown rice flour
• 4 oz oat flour

1. Preheat the oven to 430° F.
2. Prepare a loaf pan by lining it with parchment paper and then coating the 2 ends with a non-stick spray.
3. Mix all the ingredients together well and then place batter in prepared loaf pan.
4. Bake for 40 minutes.
5. Allow to cool for a few minutes then lift loaf out of pan with the parchment paper, set aside and let loaf cool before cutting into 16 slices.

Per serving of 1 slice.
Weight Wathers P+ = 2.
Calories 71; Protein 2g; Carbohydrate 9g; Fat 3g; Fibre 1g.

Stir all the ingredients together till well-blended.

Place dough in loaf tin lined with parchment paper for easy removal.

Cut into slices after cooling for about half an hour.

Printable Recipe

Gluten-Free Almond Flour Banana Loaf

I have been dipping my toes into the world of gluten-free and wheat-free and trying some recipes using almond flour, or almond meal.  This gluten-free almond flour banana loaf is my first attenmpt at altering a given recipe, and it is baking in the oven, smelling wonderful as I type this post.

I have been experimenting with eliminating wheat from my diet this past week.... after reading a book called WHEAT BELLY, written by a cardiologist named William Davis, that really spoke to me.  I won't go into all the details but there was enough of  'me' in that book to give up wheat, at least on a trial basis.

I have been looking at wheat-free and gluten-free recipes on the internet and today went searching for a banana bread recipe.  I found some ripe bananas on sale this morning at a local market for 39 cents a pound and couldn't resist buying a few.

The banana bread recipe I found is on a blog called Comfy Belly.  I read through the ingredients, and found that I had most of them in my cupboard, or good substitutions.  And, I read all the reviews, too.  Do you do that when you are thinking of trying a new or unusual recipe?  I always like to see what other people have to say about it... which is why it is so nice for you to comment on my recipes if you have tried them.

Anyway, I didn't want the sugar in the syrup it called for, and I wanted a bit less fat... so I am going to give you the recipe as I made it up, but do check out Comfy Belly.  There are lots of great ideas there and it is nicely organized and presented, too.

Gluten-Free Almond-Flour Banana Loaf

• 2 Tbs sugar free syrup
• 2 Tbs coconut oil, melted
• 2 eggs
• 2 ripe bananas, mashed
• 2-1/2 cups almond flour
• dash of salt
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 cup dark chocolate chips

1. Preheat the oven to 310° F.
2. Line a loaf pan with parchment paper and coat with non-stick spray.
3. Peel the bananas and mash them in a large bowl.
4. Add the eggs to the bananas and beat with a spoon till frothy.
5. Add the syrup and oil to the banana mixture and stir till combined.
6. Mix the almond flour, salt, and baking soda together in another large bowl. Set aside a few of the chocolate chips for topping and then stir the remainder into the dry ingredients.
7. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well.
8. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan and spread it evenly.
9. Then sprinkle the reserved chocolated chips over the top.
10. Bake for 45 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the centre comes out clean.
11. Let cool in pan for a bout 20 minutes, then turn out and let cool completely before slicing.

The whole recipe has an intimidating N.I. when viewed with the eye of a Weight Watcher:
2181 Calories; Protein 75g; Carbohydrate 113g; Fat 179g; Fibre 35g.  That is a whopping 62 P+!

But, taking a deep breath, I realize that the number of P+ per serving is going to depend upon how many slices are cut.

Here are a couple examples to guide you.

Each of 16 slices:
136 Calories; Protein 5g; Carbohydrate 7g; Fat 11g; Fibre 2g.
WW P+ = 4.

Each of 12 slices:
182 Calories; Protein 6g; Carbohydrate 9g; Fat 15g; Fibre 3g.
WW P+ = 5.

So it is up to me and to you as to how many P+ we need to budget for this treat.

After taking the loaf out of the oven and letting it rest in its pan for the full 20 minutes... I had to go for a little walk... I lifted the edges of the parchment paper and it came right out of the pan.  What a good idea that is...  and after cutting it in half and then those in half again, I realized that 1/16th would be a generous treat. 

Naturally I shared with The Captain and we both ended up eating 2 of them each while they were still warm.  Lovely!  And no sugary 'let's eat the whole thing' cravings ensued.  Hurray!

The rest went into the freezer for another day... but you can bet I will be making this again and doing some more tinkering with the recipe and ingredients to add berries and perhaps some nuts.

Mash bananas in a large bowl.

Add eggs and beat till frothy, then add the rest of the wet inredients and mix well.

Combine the dry ingredients, setting aside a few chocolate chips for the top.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix well.

Place batter into prepared loaf pan and sprinkle the reserved chocolate chips over the top.

Bake for 45 minutes... the kitchen smelled wonderful!

Let the loaf rest for 20 minutes in the pan, then remove to cooling rack and allow to cool a bit longer to make it easier to slice... if you can wait!

It is soft and crumbly and a bit hard to slice while still warm.

I like the outside edge the best!  I am a big crust fan.  So tasty, but not too sweet.

Printable Recipe

Have you baked with almond flour or almond meal?  Any good tips or ideas to pass along?