No Knead Oat and Seed Bread with Cardamom

This fabulous no knead Oat and Seed Bread is not technically 'bread', since it contains no flour or yeast. It is quick to mix and takes about an hour to bake when you fancy something healthy. It's also great if you are intolerant to gluten. As well as being nutrient dense, this bread is proper dense in the heavy sense of the word. Since it doesn't contain a raising agent, this bread doesn't rise at all. It is lovely and moist, but light it is not. It keeps well, toasts nicely, you can add your favourite herbs and spices to your own taste and, best of all, it is absolutely delicious. If you like a dense bread that feels like it's doing you good as you eat it and sits like a brick in your stomach keeping you full for hours on end, this is the bread for you.

This is a reader-supported site and I am an Amazon affiliate. That means that if you purchase a product or service using my one of my links, the company compensates me at no cost to you. I only recommend books, products and services I personally use. And this is Oat and Seed Bread with Cardamom, cooling on its loaf tin liner.

These kind of breads remind me of Ceres Health Food Restaurant in Eastbourne where I was a Saturday girl in the 80s. I then moved to London in my late teens and discovered Cranks Restaurant. The whole food dishes these places served back in the day felt unique and special to me. They could not be found in any other kind of restaurant and the addiction I developed to them has stayed with me for a lifetime. To this day I try to recreate the recipes I remember from those times.

Oat and Seed Loaf with Cardamom ready for the oven.

Variations

I am a cardamom lover so I include it in this recipe. You can add any herbs or spices that you like, and leave out cardamom completely if you don't enjoy it like I do. However do not leave out the ground linseeds (also known as flax seeds) or the psyllium husk. They are really important for binding the loaf together. If you're not familiar with these two ingredients, they're pretty easy to find these days and you don't have to buy vast quantities of them whilst you get used to baking with them. I also wouldn't leave out the salt as it adds flavour. I consciously haven't included anything sweet in this recipe but if you want to add sweetness you could add a couple of teaspoons of maple syrup or honey to the loaf, or some sweet dried fruits like raisins, or both.

The Importance of Cooling before Slicing

I'm a bit of a nightmare with bread. When it comes out of the oven smelling delicious, I have to have a slice warm. But not with this bread. The binders will only work once the loaf has been allowed to cool right down. Don't be tempted to cut it up when it's still hot as it will disintegrate.

Use of a Pizza Stone

I use a pizza stone for breads like this so the heat goes up into the bread as well as from above. It's optional, but I think it gives a better result.

No Knead Oats and Seed Bread with Cardamom

Ingredients

180g rolled oats

80g ground linseed (aka flaxseed - they are the same thing)

30g psyllium husk

30g chia seeds

50g pumpkin seeds

100g sunflowers seeds

1 teaspoon sea salt

Half teaspoon ground cardamom seeds

1 tablespoon raw cider vinegar

400ml hot water from the kettle for mixing plus an additional 50ml hot water for pouring over the loaf in the tin

A little olive oil to drizzle on the top (optional for a crunchier crust)

Some chopped fresh herbs for the top. I added rosemary in these images.

You will also need

A 1lb loaf tin. This needs to be a tin, silicon won't work well with this recipe.

1x loaf tin liner (really important, this baby will stick if you don't use one)

Large mixing bowl

Wooden Spoon

A Pizza Stone to ensure you are cooking the loaf from the bottom up as well as the top down (optional).

Method

Mix all the dry ingredients together in the mixing bowl with a wooden spoon.

Add the cider vinegar and 400ml of hot water to the bowl and mix really well until everything is incorporated. It will turn into a seedy lump.

Line the loaf tin with a line and add the mixture. Spread it out with the wooden spoon to fill the tin.

Pour the extra 50ml of hot water over the loaf. The water will sink down into the ingredients and will be absorbed. Then drizzle a little olive oil over the top and sprinkle with chopped herbs, if liked.

Preheat the oven to 180C/360F with the pizza stone in the oven, if using.

After preheating for at least 30 minutes, check all the water has been absorbed in the loaf tin. If there's any floating around, leave it for a bit longer.

Put the loaf tin on the pizza stone and bake for 60 minutes until golden brown on the top. I start checking it from about 55 minutes onwards as my oven can be a bit fierce.

When baked remove from the oven and leave to cool completely before lifting out of the tin in the liner.

Store in an airtight tin for a couple of days, then in the fridge. If you won't finish it within 3 or 4 days then slice it up and pop it in the freezer. It freezes beautifully.

Love Wholefood Recipes?

The Cranks Bible by Nadine Abensur. Since opening their first restaurant in 1961, Cranks have been pioneers of vegetarian cuisine and champions of organic produce. Here, celebrated writer and chef Nadine Abensur presents over 200 classic meat-free recipes from the Cranks kitchen.

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