Hi Wellness Seekers!
I have something special for you today that I’ve been wanting to share with you for months and months! A few years ago I began experimenting with the simple techniques of soaking, sprouting and dehydrating as a way incorporate healthy foods into my diet that are traditionally difficult to digest such as nuts and seeds.
After months of solely dehydrating nuts I stumbled upon an invaluable cookbook that inspired me to step up my creativity and begin to create flatbreads and crackers that could satisfy my cravings for wraps, bread and toast! From there on my dehydrating experiments were forever changed and now today I have created a series of my own flatbread recipes inspired by this cookbook that serve as staples in my daily diet. But the miraculous part is that these flatbreads are not only incredibly satisfying and versatile but they are more flavorful that most bread you can find in the commercial space. By no means am I saying these taste like bread, but they are an amazing gluten-free, dairy-free, sugar-free and vegan vessel for those who need an alternative due to dietary restrictions (i.e. Crohn’s disease, celiac disease, lactose intolerance) or for those simply looking to lower their carbohydrate intake.
Now some of you may be daunted by the use of new kitchen appliances but I can not stress enough how easy dehydrators are! You set it and forget it…well mostly..depending on the recipe. The most work required is gathering the ingredients, processing them and spreading them on the dehydrator trays. But once you do the recipe a few times it will become second nature to you and the taste will make it well worth it. I have not yet experimented with making these in the oven, but I will look into that for those that don’t wish to begin dehydrating..but you really should!!
Kitchen supplies need:
Dehydrator– Below is a link to the one I personally use at home. I highly recommend it!
Nesco Snackmaster
Non-stick dehydrator insets:
Non-stick Insert Trays
Fruit Roll Sheets– these are also non-stick and can be used for flatbread but the above trays dry the flatbreads faster
Food processor
bowl and spatula
Food processor magic!
It’s very important to flip the flatbread halfway through dehydrating because it won’t dry evenly if left on one side for the whole time. The dark green spots in the far left photo are the areas of the flatbread that were still wet once I flipped the pieces over.
This is what your final product should look like!
My favorite way to eat this flatbread is spreading on my homemade wild alaskan salmon salad and topping it with sunflower seeds or a mixture of sautéed vegetables…delicious. For added crispness I recommend lighty toasting the flatbread before serving!
Serves 12
1 hrPrep Time
20 hrCook Time
21 hrTotal Time
Yields 12 Pieces
Save RecipeIngredients
- Kale, roughly chopped, 4 cups
- Spinach, roughly chopped, 4 cups
- Raw Cashews, 1 cup, soaked ( can skip soaking if short on time)
- Raw Sunflower seeds, 1 cup, soaked (can skip soaking if short on time)
- Almond Flour, 1 cup
- Ground Flaxseed, 1/2 cup
- Fine Sea Salt, 1/2-1 tsp
- Garlic Powder, 1 tbsp
- Nutritional Yeast, 1.5-2 Tbsp ( may substitute grated romano/ parmesan if not vegetarian/vegan)
- Dried Basil, 1 tbsp ( May substitute fresh Basil for a stronger flavor!)
- Dried Oregano,1 tbsp
- Black Pepper, to taste
- Optional: Hemp Seeds, 1/4-1/2 cup (If you would like added protein!)
Instructions
- Two to three hours before preparing the flatbread mixture place the cashews and sunflower seeds in individual bowls and cover with filtered water. If short on time you can skip this step. Soaked nuts and seeds process more easily and this leaches out phytic acid, an enzyme inhibitor which makes nuts and seeds more difficult to digest.
- Before beginning have all measured ingredients ready as I highly recommend adding portions of all ingredients in batches during the processing. For simplicity, create a spice mix by combining all the seasonings above into a small bowl that you can incorporate into the mixture little by little. This way you avoid shaking several different spices into the processor.
- Place the chopped kale in the food processor. Process until finely ground. Remove from processor.
- Place the chopped spinach in the food processor. Process until finely ground. Pour the chopped kale back into the processor.
- Add in a 1/2 cup of the cashews, sunflower seeds, almond flour, flax seed and half the spice mixture and process until just incorporated.
- Add the remaining cashews, sunflower seeds, almond flour and spice mixture and process until well incorporated.
- Taste your mixture and if too bland add more of each spice until you are satisfied with the taste.
- For more texture, do not process until entirely smooth but rather stop when you can still see chunks of the cashews and sunflower seeds.
- Pour the mixture into a bowl and using a spatula spread onto dehydrator trays. It is important to evenly spread the mixture so it dries evenly. I recommend not spreading it too thick or thin-1/4 inch is ideal so the flatbread is sturdy enough to carry a spread or a couple toppings, but not too thin that it won't be brittle and crumbly. Over time you will discover the perfect thickness that meets your texture preferences!
- Before turning on the dehydrator use a butter knife or pizza cutter to score the flatbread into equal sized pieces.
- For the first two- three hours of dehydrating set the temperature to 155 degrees. Then lower it to 115 degrees. The total time for dehydrating will depend on the dehydrator and the amount of humidity in the air but generally this flatbread will take anywhere from 12-20 hours. You can leave the dehydrator running overnight. The only step you need to remember is to flip the flatbread halfway through the dehydrating process so it can evenly heat on both sides.
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