This keto coconut flour bread has a wonderfully light and fluffy texture. A really easy nut free low carb bread recipe that's perfect for sandwiches. With its soft and gently sweet crumb it reminds me of brioche bread. No eggy taste!
Table of contents
Bread is one of the things people miss most when they start a keto diet, including myself. I went without my beloved sandwiches for months when I started eating low carb and let me tell you, I was miserable. Lettuce wraps are fun on occasion, but not on a daily basis!
Once I began baking my own low carb bread, sticking to this new way of eating - and enjoying it - has been a pleasure. Over the years I have come up with plenty of awesome keto bread recipes. If you want them all in one handy place, check out my Keto Bread Made Easy Cookbook!
I'm super proud of this coconut flour bread recipe. It tastes just like the soft, sweet white bread called "milk bread" we used to get on Sundays when I was a kid in Germany. Milk bread is similar to brioche or chollah bread.
But unlike its wheat bread "cousins", this keto recipe contains just 0.9g net carbs per slice!
Ingredients for coconut flour bread
Let's take a look at the 5 main ingredients in this coconut keto bread:
Coconut flour - This gluten free and nut free flour is made solely from dried and ground coconut flesh. A little goes a long way - coconut flour absorbs a lot of liquid and expands considerably!
Eggs - The air bubbles in the stiff egg whites are the secret to the fluffy texture. And you'll be happy to know that despite the amount of eggs, there's no "eggy" taste. How? Because we're only using 2 of the egg yolks. Egg whites taste neutral, while the yolks contain the egg flavour.
Whey protein powder - The whey helps give the bread a super fluffy wheat-like texture. It is my secret ingredient in white bread recipes.
Butter - Coconut flour recipes can taste dry without a healthy amount of fat in the mix, that's where the butter comes in.
Plain yoghurt - The yoghurt assists with an even better rise and a balanced texture.
Benefits of coconut flour
The great thing about coconut flour is that it is considered nut free (as coconut is technically a fruit). I do love almond flour, but I know that many people just cannot tolerate it. Coconut flour is the perfect alternative!
Coconut flour is also high in fibre, which may be beneficial for stable blood sugar levels and aids digestion. Read more about the benefits of coconut flour here!
How to make coconut flour bread
Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Take your time with this - it should take about 3-4 minutes.
In a separate bowl, beat the 2 egg yolks, the yoghurt, melted and cooled butter and room temperature water for about 2 minutes until pale and fluffy.
Now add the dry ingredients - ½ cup coconut flour, whey protein powder, baking powder and salt- alongside ¼ of the stiff egg whites. Beat with the mixer until just combined.
Using a spatula, fold in the remainder of the egg whites until you have a smooth dough. Don't overmix!
Fill the dough in the prepared loaf pan and bake for about 35 minutes or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
Low carb bread is fragile while hot and firms up as it cools down. Never attempt to slice it until it is fully cooled!
If possible, let the bread cool on a cooling rack so that all the sides cool equally and air can circulate around it. If you let bread sit on the kitchen counter or a chopping board, the bottom section of the bread will turn moist.
By the way - here's a great use for the leftover egg yolks. Make a batch of The Best 5 Minute Keto Mayonnaise, Sugar Free Custard or Keto Rice Pudding!
Tips for perfect keto bread
New to low carb keto bread baking? Don't miss this section!
Beat the egg whites until very stiff - This is the secret to a fluffy texture in this bread. Really, really take your time to create sturdy air bubbles. This will also prevent your bread from collapsing after baking.
Room temperature ingredients - The eggs and the yoghurt should be room temperature. If your dough is cold, it can prevent the bread from rising.
To warm up fridge eggs quickly, pop them into a bowl of hot tap water for 3 minutes.
Fresh baking powder - Test the freshness by putting a little gluten free baking powder in a glass with warm or hot water. If it fizzes, you're good to go.
Bread pan size - Breads using coconut flour are nutrient-dense and filling. That’s why I use a small loaf tin (18 x 9 cm / 7 x 3.5 inch, 450ml volume). It is about half the size of regular loaf tins and if you're planning on baking low carb bread regularly, it's well worth purchasing one.
You can use a full size bread pan, however, your bread will turn out wider and flatter. It should be possible to double the recipe if you prefer, just ensure to increase the baking time accordingly. I would go for about 1 hour, placing aluminium foil over the top after 35 minutes to avoid excessive browning.
Use a scale - If possible, measure all ingredients with a food scale. US measuring cups are notoriously inaccurate - especially for ingredients that expand a lot, such as coconut flour.
If you do use measuring cups, pour the coconut flour in rather than scoop to avoid compacting.
Recipe Variations
Dairy free bread: To make a dairy free version of this bread, replace the whey with a dairy free protein powder such as egg white powder. In addition, use coconut oil instead of the butter and coconut yoghurt instead of the yoghurt. (I have not tested this yet myself).
No whey protein: You don't HAVE to use the whey protein powder, even though I think it enhances the texture of the bread. If you decide to leave it out, also leave out the 2 tbsp water.
Make it sweet: In my opinion, this low carb coconut flour bread is a great basic recipe for flavour experiments. You could add 1-2 tsp cinnamon or 1-2 tbsp powdered sweetener as well as sugar free extracts such as vanilla extract or coconut extract.
Make it rustic - Top it with sesame seeds or poppy seeds, or add crushed sunflower seeds or flaxseed to the batter!
Get it to shine - For a shiny crust, brush the top of the bread with an egg wash before baking.
More low carb bread recipes
Almond Flour Bread - The most popular bread recipe on Sugar Free Londoner, which contains almond flour and psyllium husk powder plus a pinch of xanthan gum. It tastes similar to whole wheat bread.
Everyday Low Carb Bread Recipe - This is the first keto bread recipe I used yoghurt in. Make sure you check it out - it gets rave reviews.
Flaxseed Bread With Coconut Flour - Another coconut bread that has a more rustic flavour thanks to the flax seed. Works as a focaccia bread and as a loaf.
Gluten Free Keto Focaccia Bread - A yeast bread with virgin olive oil and rosemary that has oodles of flavour.
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Coconut Flour Bread
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Equipment
- 7.5 x 3 inch loaf tin (1 lb volume)
Ingredients
- 6 egg whites large, room temperature
- 2 egg yolks
- ½ cup / 60g coconut flour sifted
- 4 tbsp / 24g whey protein powder
- 1.5 tsp baking powder
- pinch salt
- ¼ cup / 60g plain yoghurt or Greek, room temperature
- ¼ cup / 55g butter melted, then cooled
- 2 tbsp water lukewarm
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 180 C / 350 F and line a small bread pan (1 lb volume) with parchment paper.
- Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form. Take your time with this - it should take about 3-4 minutes.
- In a separate bowl, beat the 2 egg yolks, the yoghurt, butter and water for about 2 minutes until pale and fluffy.
- Now add the dry ingredients - coconut flour, whey protein powder, baking powder and salt - alongside ¼ of the stiff egg whites. Beat with the mixer until just combined.
- Using a spatula, fold in the remainder of the egg whites until you have a smooth dough. Don't overmix to ensure you're keeping in the air bubbles!
- Fill the dough in the prepared loaf pan and bake for about 35 minutes until golden on top or until a skewer inserted comes out clean.
- Let cool completely before cutting.
Notes
Nutrition
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Guido says
I have tried twice now to make this bread, second time with half the amount of butter to make the bread less oily however on both occasions the bread is only 1 inch in height. Can you tell me how to get this bread mixture to rise? I'm considering adding twice the amount of baking powder? The taste is good by the way!
Katrin Nürnberger says
The key is in beating the egg whites until they are very stiff, and then folding them into the batter carefully so the air bubbles do not pop and the dough retains lightness. You can try using more (fresh!) baking powder if you wish, but getting the egg whites to stiff peaks is essential. Hope this helps!
Lucy says
I like this bread a lot. It was soft and fluffy. Will definitely make it again.
Katrin Nürnberger says
So glad you like it!
DT says
Always a fan of the many wonderful recipe creations you share with us but this one, not so much. At least, my expectation of what this would be like as bread fell short. I have tried/baked many different types of low-carb bread but to me, this resembled cake.
I followed the recipe exactly and baked according to instruction .. all went fine .. but the texture of this reminded me of a pound cake. This wasn't bread and I tried toasting it and it was just toasted pound cake. (If I added sweetener, it could be pound cake LOL) I will repurpose this into a dessert with strawberries and cream, so not all is lost! Perhaps I over-processed one of the steps to get me to this assessment. It's still lovely though, the crumb is cake-like delicate, just not bread (IMO). Still a fan from Canada!
Katrin Nürnberger says
Coconut flour has a slightly sweet taste and yes, this is not a rustic bread. You may prefer my coconut flour bread with flaxseed!
DT says
Appreciate the suggestion! I will give that one a try 🙂
Caroline says
Can you use Psyllium husk instead of whey powder?
Katrin Nürnberger says
I would use less psyllium than whey if you want to give that a go. It's very absorbent.
2hot says
Hi Katrin, I am going for nut-free so this recipe is good to go. Can I use egg white powder instead of fresh egg white? if yes , what is the steps to prepare it?
I intend to double up to make into muffins. Possible?
Katrin Nürnberger says
I have never used egg white powder instead of egg white, so I don't know what the amount would be. However, if you make muffins, I bake them for about 25 minutes.
Andrea says
It looks so good, thank you. I want to try it. Can I replace the whey protein powder powder for almond flour? I know you said it can be omitted but I wonder if that would change the size of the bread.
Katrin Nürnberger says
There is not that much difference in terms of size. However, I found that the rise is better with the whey protein powder. The bread without the whey was flatter on top. It should work replacing the whey with almond flour, but it also may change the texture, making the crumb more "rustic".
Seanan C Aubouin says
Have you ever tried using egg white protein powder instead of whey in the recipe? Would you recommend trying? Thanks 🙂
Katrin Nürnberger says
Hi there, I have not tried it myself. But egg white powder is the common substitute for whey. However, as I point out in the post you can also omit the whey and also leave out the water. That I have tried and it works well.