This is one of my favorite breads to make, partly because it’s so easy, but also because it’s healthy without sacrificing taste. Well, I guess that depends on your definition of healthy. I call it healthy because it has 10g of fiber per serving! Who doesn’t love fiber? It’s nature’s broom after all.
TMI?
Anyway, this is also one of Chloe’s favorite foods, she gave it two sniffs and, as we know from Chloe’s Food Rating System, that’s a very good review, probably an 8/10. So what I’m trying to say is this bread is easy, tasty, healthy and Chloe approved! What’s not to love here?
I adapted this recipe from Jo Cooks’s blog and used her Sunflower and Flax Seed Whole Wheat Cast Iron Bread recipe where I traded out the sunflower seeds for chia seeds. Yes, the same chia seeds you use to grow hair on your Chia Pet. That used to freak me out too since I was told as a kid that swallowing watermelon seeds would mean that a watermelon would grow out of your belly button, but I’ve tested this recipe multiple times over the last few months and nothing happened. We’re all safe.
During quarantine I was one of the many who got on the bread-baking-train, but instead of making sourdough (mostly because I couldn’t find the right flours—the grocery stores were like something out of a dystopian novel) I made no knead breads and focaccia (recipe coming soon!) which were delicious, but very bad for the waistline.
This recipe requires some thought in advance because the bread needs 12-18 hours to rise. Lots of time but minimal effort since you don’t knead it. Don’t be so kneady okay? Hahaha! I’ve been waiting to use that one! But seriously, don’t knead this bread, you’ll ruin it.
Recipe Notes:
Making Substitutions:
You can definitely change out the seeds for something else, of course. Pathetic choice in my opinion because you’re just going to miss out on all that healthy, delicious fiber! But that’s your prerogative…
Choosing a Pot:
Not everyone has a cast iron pot, I don’t! Instead, I use a stock pot that is oven safe and comes with a well-fitting lid. All you need is something that can go in the oven, has a lid and is big enough for your bread to expand while it bakes.
No Knead Chia and Flax Seed Bread
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Proof Time: 12-18 hours
Total Time: 13-19 hours
Yield: 8 servings
Ingredients:
2 cups whole wheat flour
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp salt
1 tsp active dry yeast
2 1/4 cup water
1/3 cup chia seeds
1/3 cup ground flax seeds
Instructions:
In a big bowl mix flour, salt, and yeast together. Then add chia and flax to the mixture.
Pour water into the bowl and mix with a spatula until it’s all incorporated.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest on your counter for 12-18 hours.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit and place your pot inside the oven until both the oven and pot are 425 degrees Fahrenheit.
Flour your work surface well and gently remove the dough from the bowl. Flour your hands and roughly shape it into a ball.
Remove your heated pot from the oven and drop the dough-ball into the pot. Cover with the lid and place it back into the oven.
Bake for 30 minutes with the lid on. Then remove the lid and bake for another 15-20 minutes until the bread is golden brown.
Remove and let it cool completely before taking the bread out of the pot.
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