You’ll love this perfect paleo bread! A grain and gluten free loaf that’s soft and great for sandwiches or toast! Made with almond flour, poppy seeds and dried herbs.
The phrase I get most often when I discuss grain free eating is “That sounds great, but I could never give up bread!” The good news is that you don’t have to give up soft, fluffy bread when you’re not eating grains or gluten.
After much testing, I’ve finally created the perfect recipe! The loaf is free from grains and actually tastes delicious! It’s nothing like those cardboard-like breads you find at the stores.
In fact, I’m here to let you know that you can have toast, sandwiches, and a side of bread and butter (make that clarified butter) with soups if you are following a Paleo friendly diet.
Bonus: it’s freezer friendly and perfect for easy prep month.
Why You’ll Love This Paleo Bread
- It’s Paleo-friendly. Made with almond flour and a mixture of seeds, this nut flour bread is grain free and gluten free, making it a great sandwich bread choice on the Paleo Diet.
- No need to let the bread proof! This quick bread recipe is perfect because it needs no time to rise and doesn’t contain yeast (see more of my yeast-free breads here). Simply mix up the ingredients, pour into a pan, and bake. Doesn’t get any easier than that!
- It keeps well and can be frozen. Forget paleo breads that are stiff and tasteless, this bread stays soft for days and even tastes great after freezing.
- It’s comfort food, without the digestive issues. For whatever reason you’re following a grain free diet, this recipe uses low inflammatory ingredients that won’t slow you down and cause you to feel sluggish like typical gluten-containing breads.
Note:
If you are following a healing diet, such as AIP (autoimmune protocol), you will want to avoid nuts/seeds, grain, and eggs. Not to worry! My grain free naan bread recipe made with cassava flour is AIP friendly and is perfect for sandwich wraps or pizza crust base!
Recipe ingredients
- Almond flour: The base ingredient in this paleo bread recipe, almond flour provides a grain free and gluten free foundation for the dough. It has a smooth and slightly nutty flavor.
- Tapioca flour or starch: This starchy gluten free flour helps to thicken the bread dough for a denser texture. Tapioca starch is a great substitute.
- Baking soda: Is used for leavening, meaning it helps the dough to rise when baking. As a result, no yeast is needed for this recipe!
- Flaxseed meal: Also known as ground flaxseeds, it becomes thick and gelatinous when mixed with liquids, so it’s a great binder for baking. Not to mention, flax seeds are high in omega-3 fatty acids!
- Eggs: Eggs are a liquid binder for the paleo bread ingredients, and they help create a fluffy and light texture. (See recipe card for how to make this bread extra light and fluffy).
- Oil: Cooking oil is the liquid base, helping to incorporate all of the dry ingredients while also providing healthy fats. A neutral oil works best; I use olive oil, but a naturally refined oil such as coconut or avocado oil will work as well.
- Vinegar: A touch of apple cider or white vinegar provides an acid and a touch of flavor to the dough.
- Poppy seeds: Poppy seeds add flavor and texture to the dough, which are high in fiber and manganese.
- Kosher salt: Salt not only adds its own flavor to bread, it helps to bring out the flavor of other ingredients.
- Spices: In addition to salt, we’re adding black pepper and other optional spices like rosemary, Italian seasoning, and dried garlic. Get creative with the dried herbs and spices, and add your favorites!
- Seeds for topping: A mixture of seeds like pumpkin, hemp, and poppy seeds give the perfect crunchy texture when sprinkled on top of the loaf before baking.
Recipe video
Check out this video to see exactly how to make the dough for this fabulous paleo quick bread!
INSTRUCTIONS
- Preheat oven and prep pan. The first step to making nut and seed bread is to preheat the oven to 350°F and lightly grease a 9x5 inch loaf pan with parchment paper.
- Mix the wet and dry ingredients. Combine the wet ingredients in a small mixing bowl and then the dry ingredients in a separate bowl. Then slowly pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, mixing until they’re well combined.
- Pour in a pan and bake. Pour the dough batter into the loaf pan and sprinkle the top with the seed toppings. Then you’ll cover the pan with foil and bake for about 20 minutes, before removing the foil and baking another 15-20 minutes or until you can insert a knife into the loaf and it comes out clean.
- Cool and serve. Let the bread cool in the pan for about 10 minutes after baking and then transfer it to a cooling rack before serving in slices.
Storage and Freezing
We usually make a loaf of this bread once per week, slicing pieces as we need them. I find this keeps the bread soft because not as much of it is exposed to the air. However, you can also pre-slice the loaf once the bread has cooled after baking.
- Room temperature (counter top): 4-5 days
- Refrigerator: 1 week
- Freezer: 3 months
Nutty bread recipe variations
The variations are truly endless! Below are a few fresh flavor ideas to make this recipe your own.
- Test out different nut flours: While almond flour is my favorite gluten free flour for bread, you can try substituting with other nut flours like walnut, cashew, or chestnut flours. For accuracy, weigh the your flour. NOTE – I do not recommend substituting with coconut flour as it will absorb too much of the wet ingredients.
- Switch up the seeds: Step outside the box and use different seeds like sunflower, hemp, and sesame seeds both within the bread and on top for a crunchy crust.
- Have fun with herbs: The most delicious way to make this bread unique to you is to get creative with herbs! Try out dried oregano, sage, or your favorite herbal blend.
More paleo-friendly bread recipes
I hope you enjoy this nutty bread recipe! Check out my other alternative flour recipes, like gluten free potato bread or this vegan bread recipe.
Print
Nut and Seed Paleo Bread
- Total Time: 45 minutes
- Yield: 12 slices 1x
- Diet: Gluten Free
Description
This paleo bread is soft, nutty and great for sandwiches. Wholesome, low carb, and freezable. Make a loaf in under an hour to enjoy anytime!
Ingredients
Wet Ingredients
- 5 large eggs (see notes)
- 1/3 cup olive oil (see notes)
- 1 tsp white or apple cider vinegar
Dry Ingredients
- 1 1/3 to 1 1/2 cups blanched almond flour (145 g)
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- dash of black pepper
- 1 tsp spice(s) of choice – OPTIONAL (garlic, rosemary, Italian, etc.)
- 1 tsp poppy seeds, plus extra for topping
- 3 tbsp tapioca flour/starch
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/4 cup flaxseed meal or ground chia seed
For Topping
- Pumpkin seeds
- hemp seeds
- poppy seeds
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan and line with parchment paper. Set aside.
- In a small bowl, whisk eggs, oil, and vinegar.
- In a large bowl, add the dry ingredients and whisk to combine. Add the wet ingredients to dry ingredients and mix thoroughly.
- Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and top with pumpkin, hemp, and/or poppy seeds.
- Bake covered with foil for 20 minutes, then uncover and continue to bake for additional 15-20 minutes or until golden and knife inserted into center of loaf comes out clean.
- Remove from oven and let bread cool in pan for 10 minutes before turning out onto cooling rack.
- Slice if desired, then wrap the loaf in foil or plastic wrap and store in airtight container. Keeps well in fridge for up to 7 days or freeze for up to 3 months.
Notes
- For extra fluffy bread, use 6 eggs and 4 tbsp tapioca starch.
- Neutral flavor oil works best. i.e olive oil, naturally refined coconut oil, or avocado oil
- Prep Time: 10 min
- Cook Time: 35 min
- Category: bread
- Method: oven
- Cuisine: American
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 slice
- Calories: 175
- Sugar: 0.6 g
- Sodium: 180.1 mg
- Fat: 12 g
- Saturated Fat: 5.8 g
- Carbohydrates: 3.5 g
- Fiber: 1.5 g
- Protein: 5.2 g
- Cholesterol: 77.5 mg
Keywords: paleo bread, sandwich bread, gluten free, grain free, low carb
Did you try this bread recipe? If so, let us know how it turned out by leaving a star rating and comment below. And as always, feel free to comment and ask questions if you need substitutes!
Cheers,
LC
This post was originally published on August 15, 2016. The recipe was re-tested and a video was added for republishing on March 15, 2021.
