What is Coconut flour?
Coconut flour is a soft flour produced from dried coconut meat. It is a natural byproduct of coconut milk production. It can be used as a gluten-free and protein-rich alternative to traditional grain-based flours.
Benefits of Baking with Coconut Flour
- Rich in protein, fiber and fat
- Good source of lauric acid, a saturated fat thought to support the immune system and the thyroid. Like most healthy fats, lauric acid also promotes good skin health.
- Good source of manganese helps you to better utilize many nutrients including choline and biotin, vitamin C and thiamin. Manganese also supports bone health, nervous system function, thyroid health and helps to maintain optimal blood sugar levels.
Important Things To Take Care When Baking With Coconut Flour:
- You cannot substitute coconut flour for wheat or other grain-based flours at a 1:1 ratio.
- Coconut flour is extraordinarily absorbent and very little coconut flour is needed to successfully produce a recipe.
- In baked goods, you generally want to substitute 1/4 cup to 1/3 cup coconut flour for 1 cup grain-based flour. You will also need to increase the number of eggs. In general for every one cup of coconut flour you use, you will need to use six beaten eggs in your recipe in addition to approximately one cup liquid such as coconut milk.
- If you are frying or sauteing and need to dredge meats or vegetables, you can use coconut flour in an amount that is equivalent to wheat flour.
- Coconut flour is clumpy. To produce a fine-textured result, the coconut flour must be thoroughly beaten with the other ingredients in your recipe.
- Coconut flour is dense and can also be dry. To reduce dryness, make sure you’re using plenty of eggs and you can also add cooked, pureed or mashed fruit or vegetables to your baked goods to increase the moisture.
Healthy Recipes Using Coconut Flour
Coconut Crepes
Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- 2 tablespoons coconut oil
- 1 tbsp maple syrup
- 1/4 teaspoon almond extract
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
- 2 tablespoons of sifted coconut flour
- A pinch of nutmeg
- A pinch of cinnamon
- 1/3 cup coconut milk
Instructions:
- Use a whisk to mix the eggs, coconut oil, maple syrup, almond extract and salt together.
- Stir in the coconut flour and spices, then the milk. You should have a thin batter ready to pour.
- Heat a small frying pan over medium heat.
- When hot, melt a tiny blob of butter or coconut oil.
- Pour a scant ¼ cup of batter in the pan and tilt the pan to spread a thin layer of batter.
- Cook 1-2 minutes, or until bubbles start forming on your batter.
- Flip the crepe and cook the other side for 1-2 minutes more or until done.
You can serve them with Greek yogurt, berries or a filling of your choice!
Chocolate mud cake
Ingredients:
- 250g butter
- 250g Dark chocolate
- 5 eggs
- 1 1/2 cups caster sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla paste or essence
- ½ cup strong black coffee
- 2 cups ground almonds
- ½ cup coconut flour
- ¼ cup dark cocoa
- 2 1/2 tsp baking powder
- ½ cup milk
- 1 1/4 tsp baking soda
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 180c.
- Line the base and sides of a 27 cm spring form cake tin with parchment paper. Set a rack just below the center of the oven.
- Add the broken up chocolate and butter to a bowl and melt it slowly in a double boiler.
- Once its cool, sift the ground almonds, coconut flour, cocoa and baking powder and stir well to combine all ingredients very thoroughly.
- Add the eggs, sugar and vanilla and whisk it for 5 minutes until thick and pale.
- Add the previous chocolate mixture and combine.
- Add the almond mixture to the wet mixture along with the coffee, and fold gently until combined with no lumps.
- Warm milk and add baking soda. Add this to the cake mixture and stir to combine evenly.
- Pour the mixture into your cake tin and bake in the oven for 1 hour 15 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
Coconut Flour Bread
Ingredients:
- 1/2 cup coconut flour
- 1/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 5 or 6 eggs
- 1/2 cup coconut oil/ unsweetened almond milk/diluted coconut milk
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Sift together the dry ingredients and slowly add the wet ingredients into the dry and stir until very smooth.
- Grease a small bread pan and fill with batter. Bake for 40-50 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
