Due to the numerous requests on my blog, Facebook and email, I also decided to experiment with making sandwich rolls that did not contain flax this evening. I know that some of you either can not eat flax or simply don't care for it. These no-flax rolls turned out good. I will be honest though and tell you that I still prefer my Sesame Seed Sandwich Buns made with golden flax...but these are good too. So, if you are one of the many that have asked me for bread or rolls without flax...these are for you!
I decided to try out my new USA mini cake pan to bake these in. I usually use my muffin top pan for sandwich buns and it makes perfectly shaped thinner sandwich buns, but I wanted to see if I could make a thicker roll using this pan since the wells are deeper which would make them bake "up" and not "out" like the others. They turned out nice and thick (at least 1 inch thick, maybe a little thicker). So, if you are looking for a thicker sandwich bun or roll...this pan works great. I snapped a few photos of my simple chicken salad sandwich as well as the rolls. I've included the recipe for my flax-free Low Carb Sandwich Rolls below. If you are unable to find ground chia seeds, you can simply grind whole chia seeds in a coffee grinder or spice grinder until powdered like flour. Each of these thick rolls contain about 6 net carbs. Enjoy!
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| Fresh out of the oven |
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Low Carb Sandwich Rolls (No Flax)
Ingredients:
1/4 cup coconut flour, sifted
1-1/4 cup blanched almond flour
1/2 cup ground chia seeds
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon sea salt, or to taste
3 tablespoons granular Swerve Sweetener
4 large eggs
1/2 cup buttermilk
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium sized bowl, mix first 7 ingredients together with a whisk to help break up any lumps.
In a small bowl, beat eggs, buttermilk, olive oil and vinegar together. Mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients until combined and a dough is formed. Dough will be thick and slightly sticky.
Lightly spray a 6-well mini cake pan (for thicker rolls) or a nonstick muffin top pan with olive oil or coconut oil spray. Using a 4-tablespoon size retractable scoop, divide and scoop dough into 6 equal sized rolls in pan. Using slightly moistened finger tips, gently pat down and smooth dough to form patty-sized circles in the wells or muffin cups. Bake for about 20-22 minutes, or until lightly browned and done. Cool and slice in half with a sharp serrated knife.
*Note: Rolls can also be baked on a parchment paper lined baking sheet (shaped and smoothed with moistened fingertips).
Hi GGC,
ReplyDeleteAbout a week ago I tried substituting the flax in your "regular" sandwich buns with half the amount of ground chia. The buns were good, but just a tad dry. Perhaps I just baked them a bit too long, but I thought next time I might try using slightly less chia. Looks like that's what you've done in this recipe with your chia/almond flour ratio. Looking forward to trying it. I'm one of those who should reduce flax in my diet, so I'm looking for ways to do that.
Hi CyberSis,
ReplyDeleteI do think that chia is more absorbent than flax when used in recipes and can't really be substituted for flax "cup for cup". You probably could reduce it a little more if you wanted to. Hope this ratio works better for you...if not, scale it back a little more (or reduce coconut flour by a tablespoon or so). I'm trying to experiment more with chia because there does seem to be quite a few that either can't eat it or don't care for it. Hope you are enjoying your summer. Can't believe it's already August! :-)
something is wrong with ur site. u r a wheat/grain/gluten free n yet there r theses recipes of wheat n grain when yu click on ur recipe box. also wanted 2 Email u but cant s ur contact will not let me write.
ReplyDeleteHi there,
ReplyDeleteThe "Recipe Box" you are talking about are not all my recipes -- it is a site that contains some of my recipes and millions of other people's recipes, too. If you click on the link beside it "My Recipes"...that will take you to MY recipes. I have been wheat and grain free for a little over 2 years (since July 2012). I post almost every day so there are hundreds of my grain free recipes under the heading "My Recipes". Hope that helps! :-)
Whenever you post a recipe with flax, I have been subbing either ground chia or ground sesame seed, or a mixture of the two. So far I've had pretty good luck!
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to your new "chocolate" recipe! 16
That's great Darlene - glad that mixture or blend is working out for you! :-)
ReplyDeleteJust curious what are the reasons others cannot have flax? I love the taste and wonder if there are allergies or other reactions to this ingredient. Thanks and love the new recipe too!
ReplyDeleteHi Ken,
ReplyDeleteI, too, love flax (particularly the golden flax). Believe it or not, some people just plain don't like it...others it upsets their stomachs (from the high fiber, etc.)...and it is also not good for some females with certain conditions due to its estrogen-like effects. I like both of the sandwich rolls (with and without the flax). My personal favorite is probably the one with the flax...I think its the closest tasting to "regular bread". Glad you are enjoying the new recipe too! :-)
Made these today and they came out great. I used buttermilk powder reconstituted in water for fresh and they were moist, flavorful with just butter. Even better with cream cheese and bacon as a sandwich. Wonderful recipe GGC!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Leah -- so glad you enjoyed them! Great tip on the buttermilk powder also! :-)
ReplyDeleteHi GGC,
ReplyDeleteI have a question about the pans you use for baking. Do things come out easier with them? My muffin pans are difficult to work with in that I have to pry things out even if I have coated them with coconut (or whatever) oil. As always, I enjoy your recipes and posts! Leslie
Hi Leslie,
ReplyDeleteThe USA Pans I use for baking are amazing. I have never ever used such a nonstick pan before. If you aren't sure about them and want to try them out fairly inexpensively, pick one up at a Bed Bath & Beyond and use a 20% coupon if you have one. I went from one of their pans to at least a dozen and have actually tossed some of my older bakeware because they still stuck (like you are experiencing). Check out the brownies that I just posted yesterday -- so many recipes tell you to line the pan with either foil or parchment to overhang so when they cool you can lift them out to cut nicely. I lightly sprayed the bottom of my 8" square pan and once they cooled, I literally removed the entire pan of brownies to a cutting board completely intact and perfect. I have never owned a pan that I could do that with before! It would be worth your while to pick one up locally to try. If you don't like it, I'm sure they would take it back. Thanks! :-)
That is a great idea and I happen to have some 20% off coupons hanging on my fridge! I will try one and see how I like it. Thanks (:
ReplyDeleteGreat Leslie! Let me know how you like the pan when you try it. I've become obsessed with them! ;-)
ReplyDeleteMade a half recipe of these new sandwich rolls last night and I love them! It made 4 good-sized rolls that I was able to split open and eat with our chili lime chicken patties i got at T J's. I had one toasted this morning with cream cheese and liked it that way too! Yum! I will definitely be making these again! Thank you!
ReplyDeleteHi SLB,
ReplyDeleteThanks. So glad you are enjoying the rolls. I enjoyed them with cream cheese as my bagel this weekend! :-)
Hi GGC,
ReplyDeleteI made this recipe tonight and the rolls turned out great! The flavor and texture are perfect. This time I ground *black* chia seeds in the Magic Bullet. There was no subtle "unusual" flavor, like what I got with the white seeds ... so either the other time was a "fluke" or the seed color *does* make a difference. I baked them on a baking sheet and the rolls held their shape nicely. I didn't tamp them down, just shaped them *very* lightly (after dropping them from an ice cream scoop they didn't need much shaping.) I'm tempted to try them in the bagel pan sometime. :-)
Hi CyberSis,
ReplyDeleteYay! That's good to know. I have both the white and the black chia and never thought that they might taste differently. Also, I wonder if they could go rancid? I know that several years ago (before going grain free), I used to add a couple tablespoons of ground flax to oatmeal in the morning and one particular time I had the most grotesque taste you could imagine. I tasted a pinch of my golden flax "plain" and I can't tell you how awful it was. I didn't use much of it so it took longer to use a bag. Also, I didn't keep it refrigerated...which I have since started doing! Regardless...glad they turned out better for you this time. I'm thinking about adding some stuff to them soon to see how that works. I thought about putting them in a bagel pan too...but it's just so easy to plop them, smooth slightly and bake...LOL. I bet they would do great in the bagel/donut mold pans though. :-)
Hi GGC,
ReplyDeleteI thought of rancidity, too, but these seeds are fresh, just opened, and have a "best by" date of April 2016. I understand that the whole seeds are shelf-stable at room temp because of their high anti-oxidant content. But the pre-ground ones aren't as stable, I suppose because the oils are exposed to the air. A couple of years ago I had some pre-ground chia, which I would add to cereal, and such, and had no trouble with rancidity. I did keep it in the freezer, though, and used it up within a couple of months. Some things can still get rancid even in the freezer, though ... I've had that happen.
Hi CyberSis,
ReplyDeleteNo...doesn't sound like rancidity is an issue with your chia. I need to make sure my ground chia is refrigerated or frozen! I had NO idea it could become rancid in the freezer...yikes! Guess I better start baking away with my open bag of ground chia...LOL :-)
I had to jump in and tell you how GREAT these rolls are!!! Thank you for another great recipe!!!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much Roberta! So glad you like them and hope you enjoy using them for a variety of things! :-)
ReplyDeleteThis is the first time I've baked with chia and I think the texture is better than with flax....less slippery tooth feeling.
ReplyDeleteI made some brownies recently using just flax and will be interested to see how it is improved with chia.
Next time I will not tamp them, though. A little thicker would hold up better to a sandwich.
I also baked them another 5 minutes to get a little color.
These rolls are delicious and I am throwing out the low carb biscuit recipe I tried recently.
Hi Judith,
ReplyDeleteSo glad you are enjoying the rolls made with chia. Now that you know how they turn out, it's easy to tweak them to make them perfect for you! Also, if you ever want to try a good biscuit recipe...to enjoy as a biscuit (not sandwich roll)...try my cheddar black pepper biscuits OR my buttermilk biscuits. They are great for breakfast! :-)
Here's the link for the cheddar-black pepper biscuits: http://www.gourmetgirlcooks.com/2013/06/sunday-bruncheggs-bacon-easy-cheddar.html
Here's the link for the Buttermilk Biscuits! http://www.gourmetgirlcooks.com/2014/02/buttermilk-biscuits-2-improved-served-w.html
I don't make "bread" too often, but when I do this is the recipe I use. If I were to buy buttermilk, I would use a little and the rest would go to waste. So, I just add two tablespoons of vinegar to 1/2 cup milk, let it sit a few minutes and add that instead of buttermilk. I don't put in the vinegar that the recipe calls for, because it is in my "buttermilk."
ReplyDeleteThat's great Janie! So happy you are enjoying them. :-)
ReplyDeleteGreat site!!!! Husband and I have been totally grain free for 2 weeks although we have been low carb and low gluten for years(but junk grains-but no longer). In answer to questions about avoiding flax... In my case, I have very sensitive lower GI, life long IBS (greatly improved going grain free), and any mild medications that help people to go or to slow them down affects me DRASTICALLY. For me a small amount of flax is like taking the solution one takes to clean out before having a colonoscopy. I am not exaggerating either. Thank you so very much for all your work, valuable information, and sharing.
ReplyDeleteHi geekgranny,
ReplyDeleteDo you have the same reaction to chia seeds, too? If not, I also have some bread recipes and sandwich rolls that use chia instead of flax. I know that not everyone can handle the fiber load that some of the alternative baking ingredients contain (flax, chia, psyllium, coconut flour, etc.). Hope you can find a few new recipes here to try (without flax, of course)! ;-)
Could I possibly use greek yogurt instead of buttermilk? or maybe almond milk instead of buttermilk? or wpuld this not suffice?
ReplyDeleteHi Mishi,
ReplyDeleteYogurt should work okay and you can use almond milk to make a dairy free version of buttermilk. Simply add 1-1/2 teaspoons white vinegar to your almond milk to give it the acidity to help with the rise. :-)