Flours for baking, any recommendations or research?

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  • posted by Alipally
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    I’ve tried making pancakes, from the BSD recipe book, with ground almonds and they fell apart. Coconut flour helped, but I wondered about other flours? I went to my local wholefood shop and they have a dazzling array of them, including quinoa flour and carob flour, both of which are low GI, I believe. Does anyone know of any good low-ish GI flours, other than almond, which is way too expensive. I know chick pea flour is low carb.

    These were the flours they stock, if anyone has info on what GI they are or whether they are low key carb, I’d be grateful:
    Quinoa
    Polenta
    Maize meal
    Soya
    Brown rice
    Buckwheat
    Carob
    Semolina
    Tapioca

  • posted by Pancita
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    Hi there,

    I’ve made buckwheat pancakes, not unlike Breton crepes I suppose; they are wonderful, but I don’t think buckwheat is “on plan” if you have blood sugar issues. In terms of “proper BSD” I think all those flours are off limits.

    If you’re doing this for weight loss only and have some off-plan meals or days, then a few pancakes of any kind, or indeed a bit of whatever you fancy, is okay once in a while. That’s certainly been my attitude throughout, and although it’s not made me any friends on the Facebook group 😮, it’s still allowed me to improve my health immensely.

    Best wishes,
    P xx

  • posted by Esnecca
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    None of them are low carb. Some are complex carbs and theoretically not as bad for you because they are digested more slowly, but for me quinoa and brown rice cause an insulin reaction just like durum pasta and white rice do. Chickpeas are the same. Very high in carbohydrates, like most legumes, albeit less likely to bring on a blood sugar spike because they’re high in fiber and take longer for the body to digest.

    I haven’t tried pancakes because I didn’t much care for them when I did eat white carbs, but I’ve had most success making breads and muffins using a combination of almond flour, flaxseed meal, oat fiber and lupin flour. The lupin flour and oat fiber I bought online. The other two are pretty easy to find in shops these days.

    Good luck!

  • posted by Alipally
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    Many thanks to both of you. I used to make my pancakes with buckwheat, but will try your idea, Esnecca. I’ve never heard of lupin flour, but I can see it’s easy to buy online. Oat fiber is called oat bran in the UK.

    I’m doing the diet for weight loss and general health, and I like pancakes for brunch, so I will invest in these flours, I think.

    By the way, I have tried to find a flaxseed grinder unsuccessfully. I have tried an electric pepper grinder and a sesame seed grinder. Do you have any suggestions, Esnecca?

    Pancita, I have been doing it as a 5:2 diet and now I do 4:3., And I have lost eleven pounds in just over eleven weeks , so it has been great so far and I have been careful on non diet days not to have bread, cakes etc, but I am now starting to branch out a bit and I’ve made my first loaf of spelt and rye, using the recipe from the recipe book. So looking forward to a slice today, the first in over two months!

    All the best to you both for your continued health,

    Allipally

  • posted by Luvtcook
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    Allipally, I do (or did before BSC) a lot of low carb baking and really like using the almond flour, but it has to be super fine. If it is a bit coarse and called almond meal, it wont work as well. A lot of the low carb sites call for a tiny bit of coconut flour added in as it absorbs the liquids better and gives a tighter product. I prefer the almond flour and ground flax recipes more.

    Favorite sites are Sugar Free Londoner, All Day I Dream About Food, Low Carb Maven, lowcarbology, and I Breath Im Hungry. Lots of low carb baking ideas on those.

    My favorite flax seed grinder is this one : the Epica. Nice big bowl and the cup can be removed to wash. Hope these work for you.

    https://smile.amazon.com/Epica-Stainless-Removable-Strongest-Efficient/dp/B01I20TMGC/ref=sr_1_18?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1510497437&sr=1-18&keywords=coffee+grinder

  • posted by Alipally
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    Thank you so much. I’ll look into the sites, invest in almond flour and try the Epica grinder. What a mind of information you are.
    Alipally

  • posted by Luvtcook
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    Alipally, whatever question you have SOMEBODY on this site will probably have the answer. It is a very generous and supportive lot. Lots of “been there done that” to draw from.

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