Almost all my life, I have eaten white bread or well even just any kind of bread! I LOVE bread! And then when I was diagnosed with PCOS and Endometriosis, I learned the truth – Bread was horrible for my body! I might as well eat a sandwich of sugar! Click here to read more about my personal story of why I started eating a lowcarb highfat diet.
Since then I’ve tried to bake with other ingredients then white flour. And sometimes it’s a great succes, and other times not so much… It takes some time and patience to learn the ropes of baking without ordinary flour, but it is SO worth it! It has made an incredible change in my health! No more, excuse me, horrible constipation followed by a day of diarrea, or terrible gas. Yes I know, it’s glamorous stuff here at Naturemama!
All kidding aside, if you’ve been in the vicious pain-in-the-stomach-circle, you know how terrible and painful it is! I was just so happy to find that I could do something myself to alleviate my pain. So out with all the regular flour – and in with all these wonderful natural flours instead.
Why fat-reduced?
What all these flours have in common is that they are ground from a natural source, for example almond flour is actually finely grounded almonds. You can make this yourself as well, but the brand-made is sometimes fat-reduced, meaning it is more “dry” and therefore better can absorb the liquid when you bake. This means that you get a more firm baked good as a result.
If you’ve ever baked anything lowcarb you’ll know that sometimes it tends to lean toward sogginess…
When you buy flours that are fat-reduced, it helps avoid sogginess in your lowcarb baking!
The following links are affiliatelinks. Read more about my advertising policy here!
Flours
Coconut flour has a sweet smell and taste and is simply brilliant for lowcarb and glutenfree baking! Like almond flour it’s very rich in fiber and a little goes a long way! You’ll rarely use more then a couple spoonfuls in any given recipe.
Psyllium Husk powder are great fibers that help keep lowcarb baked goods together and give structure. It’s also great to add to yoghurt or likes to alleviate constipation!
Compared to the almond and coconut flour, sesame flour has a more salty taste and it therefore a great addition to use in your non-sweet Lowcarb recipes, like breads and crackers.
Other LowCarb baking supplies
Erythritol is great in that regard that it resembles sugar, has 0 calories and has a GI of 0! It does though have a tendency toward a cool-like taste that can be a bit off-putting. One way to get around this is to simply ground it in your coffee grounder or whatever kitchen gadget you have that resembles. This breaks down the cooling & crystalizing effect of the erythritol.
This is without a doubt, my favorite sugar substitute! It is as close to brown sugar as you can come with out any weird aftertaste or calories! Perfect for baking or even whenever you need to add a little sweet taste. I use this on my morning yoghurt, in my coffee, pancakes, waffles and any kind of baked good I make!
These Steviadrops consist of: Cleaned water, natural aromas and Stevia. 4 drops are equivalent to 1 teaspoon of sugar. I always keep vanilla, toffee and chocolate as flavors. Be sure and keep them in your fridge! A great way to flavor water, yogurt, oatmeal, smoothies, coffee, and pretty much anything you can think of!
Yacon syrup is a delicious syrup recovered from the yacon root that grows in the Andes Mt.s. What’s so special about the yacon root, is the way it stores it’s carbs; it changes them into fructooligosaccarides, which can’t be processed by the human body. Because of this it has a GI of only 3!!! Unfortunately it is incredibly expensive!!! But if you can afford it, it is a great luxurious addition to your lowcarb pantry!
Coconut palm sugar is a great alternative to regular sugar. There are pro’s and con’s though.
Pro’s: Taste, naturalness, GI of 35 and it actually contains some nutrients.
Con’s: It affects your bloodsugar, contains a lot of carbs and high amount of fructose (approx. 50%).
I use it in my baking, but only in small amounts and not on a daily basis. But honestly when eating lowcarb, you should generally keep the use of sweetners to a minimum!
