Flax bread

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The initial idea for this was inspired by Soylent. I think the idea behind Soylent was to make the default meal a drink. I wondered what it would be like if the default meal was a piece of bread. I decided to see if I could make a loaf of bread such that I could get 40% of the calories from fat and have a significant amount of protein. I found an easy way to boost up the fat content and the protein content of my bread was to add a significant amount of flax seed meal.

Here is my recipe for flax bread. I think health wise there is something to be said for flax seeds and flax seed meal. The possible anti-inflammatory properties are worth looking into.

330 g water
1 tsp breadmaker yeast
200 g whole wheat flour
80 g white flour
50 g corn meal
100 g flax seed meal
1 tsp salt

I make it in a bread maker.

I like to start by mixing the yeast in cool water. I like to use water that has been standing at room temperature in a container for at least a day. This gives the chlorine that is typically found in city water supplies to a chance to dissipate. I put the water into the bread pan and sprinkle the yeast over the top. After around 5 minutes the yeast will have sunk to the bottom of the pan. At this point I swirl the mixture around until the yeast is evenly dispersed in the liquid.

Then I add the flour, the corn meal and the oil. I put the pan in the breadmaker and allow the breadmaker to premix the flour and corn meal with the liquid for around 5-10 minutes. This gives the gluten some initial stretching and gives the yeast something to feed on. Since I add no additional sugar, the natural sugar found in the flour and the corn meal feeds the yeast.

Then I add the flax seed meal and the salt and run the breadmaker using the whole wheat setting.
Something interesting about this kind of bread is how long it lasts. It stays relatively soft and moist for a fairly long time -- as long as a week, even if left out in the open. This may be because of the flax seed meal. I think it may have molecules that hang on to water and help keep it moist. For example flax has significant amounts of secoisolariciresinol diglucoside.  It looks like this:

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All of those little OH and HO bits can form hydrogen bonds with water. That makes the molecule hydrophilic, meaning it likes water.

The other interesting thing about this bread is that it tends not to get moldy. So I think that the flax seed meal may have a natural preservative effect.

Enjoy!