This chia almond low carb bread recipe has a texture just like whole-wheat bread and can be baked as a loaf or as rolls. A perfect everyday grain free bread, this easy recipe is gluten free, Keto and delicious with sweet and savoury toppings. No eggy taste!
Sandra: "This is the first low carb bread that tastes great and is like actual bread. I love it."⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
Since I first published this recipe in August 2018, this bread has become a firm reader favourite with hundreds of five-star reviews like the one above.
Together with my almond flour bread, it is one of the most popular recipes on my website. That's why I have decided to give the post an update with step-by-step photos and more details.
I am so happy with this bread - it might just be my personal all time favourite. The texture reminds me of whole-wheat bread. It is soft, with a tender crunch in the crust.
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Can you eat bread on a low carb diet?
Yes! As long as it is a grain-free, low-carb bread.
When I first went low carb, I thought I had to give up bread forever as grains are off the menu. Wheat and other grains contain easy-to-digest carbohydrates that the body converts into glucose (=sugar). Eating grains provides a short-term energy boost and will spike your blood sugar - whether you choose a white loaf or a "healthy" whole-wheat one. Shortly after, your insulin levels plummet and you'll feel hungry again.
As Dr Willam Davis writes, 2 slices of whole-wheat bread raise blood sugar higher than 6 teaspoons of table sugar. Read his book Wheat Belly, in which he explains in detail why we should ditch wheat and other grains - it's an eye-opener.
So much for the bad news. The good news is, there are plenty of bread recipes using grain free flours. These will not spike your insulin levels the way regular bread does AND they taste absolutely delicious.
Ingredients
Let's talk ingredients! Here is what you need to make a delicious keto-friendly bread that does not taste eggy at all.
Quark - The Secret Ingredient
The secret ingredient in this low carb bread recipe is quark.
Quark is a German cooking cheese, which is made by heating soured milk until it curdles. It is available in larger supermarkets in the UK and Northern Europe. In the US you can get it online or in delis/natural food stores.
Why does quark work so well in this recipe?
Recipes using almond flour can result in a crumbly, dry texture because of the lack of gluten. The quark makes up for this and gives this low carb loaf a wonderfully moist bread-like texture.
Any other benefits?
Yes! Quark makes this recipe also less heavy than other grain free bread recipes, because you use it in place of fats such as butter or coconut oil. With almond flour or almond meal containing plenty of healthy fats on its own, you still get that lovely low carb long-term energy boost.
If you have difficulties sourcing it, you can replace the quark with Greek yoghurt. This will alter the taste slightly, but it would still work well.
Other Ingredients Needed
Eggs. The eggs should be large and room temperature. This helps the bread rise better.
Almond flour and coconut flour. Both almond flour and almond meal (or ground almonds) work in this recipe. The added coconut flour further improves the bread-like texture and taste.
Psyllium husk provides an extra dose of fibre, which we all need for well-functioning digestion. It gives the bread more substance and that whole-wheat taste. Check what kind of psyllium you have - if you want to use psyllium powder, use only 1 ½ tablespoons as opposed to the 3 tablespoons stated for the crushed husks.
Chia seeds. You can use black or white chia, whichever you can get hold of. These awesome superfood seeds are not only packed with nutrients, but they also act as a binder. That's why you only need 3 eggs for this bread. Other low-carb bread recipes use as many as six eggs. Fewer eggs = zero eggy taste!!!
In addition to the above, we're using baking powder, a pinch of salt and sunflower seeds. The sunflower seeds are optional. Any other seeds would work just as well - sesame seeds or pumpkin seeds, for example.
See the recipe card for full information on ingredients and quantities.
Instructions
Below are the basic steps to make this bread. Scroll down to the recipe for a detailed method.
Step 1: In a large mixing bowl, blend the eggs and quark with an electric mixer until smooth.
Step 2: Add the almond flour or ground almonds, coconut flour, baking powder and salt. Blend until fully combined.
Step 3: Add the chia seeds and psyllium husks. Add the optional sunflower seeds if you're using them.
Step 4: Fill the dough into the loaf tin and let it rest for 15 minutes so the psyllium and the chia can absorb the liquid. Sprinkle more sunflower seeds over the top.
Step 5: Bake the bread for around 45 minutes or until the top is lightly browned and a knife inserted comes out clean.
Let the bread cool fully before slicing. It is fragile while hot and firms up as it cools.
Expert Tip
I used a small loaf tin (18 x 9 cm / 7 x 3.5 inch) with a volume of 450 ml. It is about half the size of regular loaf tins. Low carb breads tend to be extremely filling as they are nutrient-dense, that's why this smaller size is just perfect.
Variations
If you want to use a full-size loaf tin, double the recipe and increase the oven time by around 15 minutes.
If you do not have a small loaf tin and don't want to double the recipe, you can make Keto rolls instead. Let the dough rest until the chia and psyllium have absorbed all moisture before you attempt to handle the dough!
For an even fluffier and lighter bread, separate the eggs. Whisk the egg whites until stiff, then fold them in last.
Storage
Store the bread in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days or in the fridge for up to 5 days.
Can you freeze this bread?
Absolutely! I like to pre-slice my loaves and store them in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Then, I pop each slice straight from the freezer in the toaster. This is meal planning the German way - we were brought up on bread and I just NEED to know I can have a sandwich when I feel like one!
Ready to try out more keto bread?
I have plenty of coconut and almond flour bread recipes on the blog. Check out my rustic Paleo bread with seeds, this soft fluffy flaxseed bread or this lusciously chewy-crunchy low carb garlic bread.
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Recipe
Everyday Low Carb Bread
from Sugar Free LondonerNote: The servings slider only changes the first amount in each line and not any subsequent amounts. Please make your own calculations where necessary.
Ingredients
- 250 g / 1 cup quark (use Greek yoghurt as an alternative)
- 3 eggs
- 1 cup / 100g almond flour/meal or ground almonds
- 2 tbsp / 12g coconut flour
- 3 tbsp / 18g psyllium husks 1 ½ tablespoon if using psyllium husk powder)
- 3 tbsp / 30g chia seeds
- ½ tbsp / 6g baking powder
- ½ tsp / large pinch salt
- 2 tbsp / 15g sunflower seeds optional
Instructions
- Line a small loaf tin (450ml capacity) with parchment paper.
- In a bowl, mix the eggs and quark with an electric mixer until smooth.
- Add the almond flour/ground almonds, coconut flour, baking powder and salt. Mix until fully combined.
- Last, add the chia seeds and psyllium husks. Add the sunflower seeds if you're using them.
- Fill the dough into the loaf tin and let it rest for 15 minutes so the psyllium and the chia can absorb the liquid. Sprinkle sunflower seeds on the top.
- Preheat the oven to 170 Celsius / 340 Fahrenheit.
- Bake for around 45 minutes or until the top is lightly browned and a knife inserted comes out clean.
Linda F
Love the recipe! I used half almond yogurt and half coconut yogurt. Kept it dairy free. This will be my go to bread recipe. Thank you. Linda
Katrin Nürnberger
Good to know that it works well like this! I had a reader try with soy yoghurt and that did not yield a good result. Thanks for letting me know 🙂
Jitka
Great!
Mira
I followed every single detail and step to make this bread. The bread looked same as the one shown on the picture but tasted like nothing! I don't know how have I ended with such a bad result as I did all as per the receipt and I have bought my organic ingredients specially for this ..
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi Mira, if you add a little more salt next time you may prefer the taste 🙂
Bonnie
Hi Katrin,
This is my first time actually baking keto/low carb bread. Your recipe is the least intimidating I've seen, and you answered all my questions in your notes already. I did everything as written, making sure to leave the Greek yogurt and eggs out until they were at room temp before I began mixing. Used a 8.5"x4.5" tin though cause I could not find a 7"x3.5" one. Still rose more than I thought it would. Thanks a million! Love your blog.
Katrin Nürnberger
Success! Glad it worked out well!
Jane Khoo
Thank you so much for the great recipe and it is the BEST for its texture, no eggy smell and texture is great!!!
Suitable as savoury sandwich or to spread healthy stuff eg. black sesame, peanut butter etc. Cheers to your health and energies!!
Katrin Nürnberger
Now you made me remember how much I like black sesame!!!
Grace
Best bread ever!! I made this today exactly like the recipe except I switched out the sunflower seeds for the everything bagel seasoning. It was fantastic. No eggy taste!! The flavour was very neutral which is exactly what I want. My loaf pan was larger so didn't turn out at high as yours but that's okay.I think once I can get my hands on more quark I will attempt to make bagels!! Thank you so much!!!
Katrin Nürnberger
That sounds delicious!
Nat
Hi Katrin! Thanks for the recipe. Can I use Xanthan Gum instead of psyllium husk? If so what would be the ratio ?
Many thanks
Katrin Nürnberger
No, I would not do that. Psyllium is very absorbent and xanthan gum is not. Your dough would end up being too wet. You could use flax instead, but even then, I think you'd have to increase the amount.
Liezel
i would love to make this as i have started keto and really miss my morning toast and cheese 🙁
i would like to know if i can use Aplro Nature unsweetend yogurt instead of greek yogurt. would it work or do you rather then reccommend ricotta.
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi there, if you have both I'd use a mix of both half and half, that would be the closest in consistency to quark.
Rhonda
Ricotta?
Katrin Nürnberger
I haven't tried it. But it could work! Ricotta is a bit firmer than quark and also higher in fat.
Liezel Boonzaier-Lacquaye
i actually just made it with the Alpro. Baked it as per time. It is cooked but feels wet. not raw but still wet. i think the Aplro yogurt is not the same texture as quark and makes the batter a bit wetter. i will try it tomorrow toasted and see.
Katrin Nürnberger
Oh, that's good to know. That's a shame. You could try to stick it back in the heated oven for another 10 minutes, covered with aluminium foil so the top does not burn. But I guess toasting should help too.
Gayle
Strain it overnight to get some of liquid out. Much easier than trying to adjust flours
Katrin Nürnberger
That's a great tip!
Luz
hi, I am wondering if this recipe can be divided into 12 dinner rolls? Do you think that would work? Or is this just a loaf recipe?
Katrin Nürnberger
Hi, I think the dough should be firm enough to form rolls. It's a little sticky but wetting your hands might make this easier. You would have to reduce the baking time to 20-30 minutes.
Pia
Hi!
When I have used coconut flour earlier I find that it has a very sharp stingy aftertaste ( although I have not found anyone who shares my view when googling). Can I exchange it for more almond flour?
Katrin Nürnberger
You could try to sub it for 4-6 tbsp of almond flour (5-6 if it's coarse, 4 if it's fine).