Chia Seed Flour Banana Bread Recipe

I love to create new recipes and experiment with food. It makes being in the kitchen fun.  My latest experiment is with chia seed flour.  I decided to make a chia seed flour banana bread (with chocolate chips). I don’t know about you but I LOVE banana bread, I LOVE chia seeds, and I LOVE chocolate!  The combination seemed perfect to me.

A friend of mine gave me some chia seed flour as a gift. I can’t seem to find it locally so this is a real treasure to use. Chia seeds was a staple food of ancient cultures, providing many nutrients.  It is a rich source of omega 3 fatty acids, fibre, calcium, and protein.  This nutrient rich seed is also considered a complete protein because it contains all the essential amino acids.  Therefore, chia seeds are a great addition to anyone’s diet (providing you are not sensitive to seeds), especially vegans or vegetarians.  This is a good food to eat during a long low intensity workout or after a short high intensity workout.  I use chia seeds on almost every thing. I sprinkle it on cereal, salads, smoothies, yogurt, and use them in baking.  Experimenting with chia seed flour is a real treat for me.  Making a bread that is higher in protein, omega 3s, calcium, fibre, AND it tastes great means I’m lovin’ life.

Chia seed flour is surprisingly easy to use in baking.  The ratio to regular flour is 1:1 so there is no need to worry about screwing this part up.  Baking time is suggested to be 3% longer when using chia seed flour. However that depends on how much chia flour you are using in your recipe. For example, in the recipe below, I used 50/50 chia flour and whole wheat flour so my baking time did not need any adjustments.

Chia seed flour has a different consistency than other flours. It is thick, sticky, and gummy.  Don’t let it trick you into thinking your baked goods are going to turn out horrible. I first thought my bread wouldn’t rise, was going to be dense, and be dry as a bone.  In fact, it was the complete opposite and the bread turned out fantastic!  The best advice I have to offer is start by using smaller percentages of chia seed flour in your recipe. Try using 20% of chia seed flour and 80% of whatever flour your recipe originally calls for and go from there.

I personally wouldn’t use 100% chia flour in a banana bread because chia seed flour texture is gummy.  If you have ever eaten chia seeds, you will know they become gelatinous when wet. Imagine how chia seed flour would get if you used 100% of it in banana bread. Ewie gooey!

To read more about using chia seed flour in recipes, click here for an article written by Teri Gruss on the About. com website and click here for an article written by The Nutty Scoop blog.

Okay, so here’s what you’ve been waiting for – the recipe!  By the way, if you don’t have chia seed flour, just use 100% whole wheat flour.

Chia Seed Flour Banana Bread Recipe

1. Pre-heat over to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Mix ingredients in given order all in the same bowl (how easy is that?)

• 1/2 cup of softened butter (or 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce)
• 1 cup of coconut palm sugar
• 2 farm fresh eggs
• 3 mashed ripe bananas
• 3/4 cup chia seed flour
• 3/4 cup whole wheat flour
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• Optional – add 1 cup of organic chocolate chips and/or 1/2 cup of walnuts

3. Grease bread pan with coconut oil.

4. Put bread mixture in bread pan.

5. Bake for 45 minutes.

Let it cool, slice it up, eat it up!

Let me know if you try the recipe, with or without chia flour, and if you like the texture and taste.  Enjoy!