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When I was growing up, one of my favorite recipes was carrot cake. Sweet, moist carrot cake. Mmmmm, I can still taste how amazing it was when my Grandma Isabel made it from scratch. Last week I was in the mood to bake a similar sweet carrot cake like Isabel made… but it turned out more like a vegan bread than a cake. Probably because it was made in a loaf pan and used way less sugar and whole, fresh ingredients. So, we’re gunna call it carrot bread, k?
Baking this gluten-free bread recipe got me to thinking about how there are no rules when you are baking and cooking. It’s really whatever you make of it. You combine a bunch of ingredients and out comes a fabulous surprise. Writing your own recipe is a lot like writing your own prescription for your health.
What do I mean by this?
Well, over 6 years ago when I first became sick, I listened to every Western medicine doctor and took the steroids and water pills and so on… I didn’t listen to my body, I didn’t love it, I didn’t honor it. I didn’t ask my body what it needed.
Now, I listen.
I listen closely everyday and make sure I’m feeding my body the best quality ingredients and also using quality ingredients on my skin and around my home such as household cleaners and organic sunscreen, shampoo, hand soaps, etc. I tossed all the chemicals and toxic ingredients in my pantry as well as in my medicine cabinet and everywhere else.
I simplified my life.
Kinda like how I simplified this bread.
I used almond extract, ground cinnamon, fresh carrots and coconut flakes for a sweet touch along with chia seeds and water instead of using eggs. The recipe calls for 1 cup of sugar but if you’d rather not use that much, you can surely cut back on this measurement to your liking.
I was going for a mixture of carrot cake and zucchini bread in this recipe (minus the zucchini, obviously) but you get the picture, right? The look of a zucchini bread is so beautiful and moist – I feel like everyone loves it… I know my Uncle Mike is a huge fan (which reminds me I need to bake him a loaf soon)! Anyway, back to the recipe… carrot cake is one of those recipes that is so unique and I feel like it’s not as common as it was back in the early 90’s. This recipe is simply a healthier carrot cake – partially because it’s more of a bread and it doesn’t have icing and food dye on top.
Just like I simplified my carrot bread recipe, I’ve simplified my life. Now that I’m 30 life is a lot different from when I was 20 and 25 and even 28. It’s amazing how the older I get – I want to simply everything. Less ‘stuff’ in my apartment, less ‘wants’, less ‘needs’, etc….
I grew up fast getting sick almost a decade ago. Sometimes I feel like my 20s were a blur that I can’t even recall anything other than getting IVs and taking advice from doctors who really didn’t know what they were talking about. It made me realize that in order to simplify my life to the fullest, I needed to understand what was going on inside my body. Ya see, for so long I just relied on what the doctors said, how they transcribed by test results and CT Scans and biopsies. But then one day it dawned on me – why were my white blood cells 1.8 for the past 15 years and no doctor ever put up a red flag to tell me this was an issue?
Why?
I dunno.
I honestly don’t.
And who’s to blame here? Me? My doctor? Who?
It woke me up 6 years go and it made me take the time to learn about my body – to try to understand why my body was fighting me and why I wasn’t healing. I tried everything, read every book possible and I still do.
I’ve come a long way. And I’ve surely learned a whole lot more than if I just simply listened to my Western medicine doctors.
Was it more expensive?
Yes.
Is my life insanely expensive?
Yes.
My doctors don’t take insurance because they are specialists and my food is 100% organic and my Manhattan rent is a wad of money you don’t even wanna know about. Ha!
But that’s okay.
Because I’m happy. And I’m healing. And I know someone has put me through medical insanity for a reason.
I’m here to teach, to heal and to help all of you and everyone else out there suffering.
While I’m not as great as I felt when I was 23 – I’m getting there. Slowly but surely. I still have a long road ahead of me. But don’t we all?
Don’t we all have something in our lives that holds us back or upsets us?
I feel like we do… even if we don’t know it.
So, that brings me back to this gosh darn great carrot bread recipe because sometimes you just gotta simplify things.
Plus, it’s summer.
So go put on your fancy sunglasses and summer hat and pour yourself a glass of fresh iced tea.
O ya, and you may wanna put on the air conditioner because your kitchen is gunna heat up from baking this bread.
But, believe me… it’s worth it.
Just stick your head in the freezer for a few seconds and you’re all set.
Enjoy.
xoxo
Ingredients
- 3 Tbsp. chia seeds
- 9 Tbsp. water
- 1 cup sugar
- 2 cups carrots finely grated
- 1 ripe banana mashed
- 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 2 tsp. almond extract
- 3 cups Gluten-Free Cup 4 Cup Flour
- 1 tsp. baking soda
- 1/4 tsp. baking powder
- 2 Tbsp. coconut flakes
- 1 tsp. sea salt
- 2 1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon
Instructions
-
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
-
Combine chia seeds and water together in a medium bowl; mix well then let sit for 15 minutes.
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Combine sugar, chia mixture, carrots and banana in a large bowl; mix well to combine. Set aside.
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In a separate large bowl, combine remaining ingredients; mix well. Add sugar mixture to flour mixture; mix well to combine.
-
Transfer to 2 loaf pans.
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Bake for 1 hour or until bread is set.
-
Remove from oven; set aside to cool before eating
For those of you who aren’t familiar with this brand of gluten-free flour, here is a link to purchase the Cup 4 Cup Gluten-Free Flour. I just learned about it and tried it for the first time. The flour is used exactly cup for cup to regular flour.
Hi Amie –
Love this recipe. Is there a way to make this without the sugar? Might not be as good but we are sugar free in the house (outside of fruits, etc). Thanks – Sean
Thanks Sean, yes you can use Stevia in the Raw baking stevia because it’s cup for cup for sugar! Hope that helps. Enjoy!
Thanks Amie. I haven’t used Stevia before but I’ll try it!
Cup 4 Cup contains milk powder, is that not considered dairy?
Thanks Mandy. Yes their flour does contain dairy so if you have a dairy allergy or intolerance, then I suggest avoiding it. Have a great night!
Oops someone already pointed that out…
I think it is showing because I put it as my NAME! Haha! So that is where I see my email showing up. Otherwise I see it doesn’t show.
I’m so glad I could make your night. 🙂 I love those moments on this journey!
Dear Amie,
I just discovered your blog today, as I was searching for ways to cope with the Fodmaps diet. You write beautifully, create beautiful recipes, and have a wonderful things to say about coping with chronic illness. I have been sick for 15 years and have also been diagnosed with many things like you have. Just wanted to say that your blog is a great find and I will be following it from now on! Thanks for your gift to the world.
Awe; thank you so much Emily; you just made my night darling! Enjoy and sending you a HUGE HUGE hug. Hang in there and enjoy the sunshine tomorrow.
xoxox
Shoot! Would you be able to edit my comment to show my name and not my email address? Brain fog!:P
No worries- your email doesn’t show up for anyone to see!
Thank you for the recipe..The recipe sounds very healthy and I like that! It looks so moist and delicious-going to try 🙂
Thanks Jocelyn!!
Tasty gluten-free loaf!
Awe; thank YOU!! xoox
Hi, I looked up the Cup 4 Cup flour and it contains milk ingredients, so it is not dairy free and not vegan. Have you tried this with any other flour blends? Looks amazing but working to go totally dairy free around here. Thanks! 🙂
Oh Amie, this is right up my alley. So proud of you and how far you’ve come on your healing journey. xoxo
Thanks Maggie; you are so kind. Miss you and sending you a huge hug!
xooxoxo
This means so much to me coming from you!!
Just wondering if you noticed that the Cup 4 Cup flour has milk powder in it, so technically the bread is not vegan, not trying to be picky just and FYI. I love the recipe though and I think I will try it with a different flour mix.
Thanks Jodi; I did just realize that. Thanks so much for letting me know!
INSPIRATION! You are awesome Amie and I love everything about this post. I am definitely going to make this bread, although I may try and go 100% zucchini (unless you think that would be a total mistake). Thank you for all of this 🙂
Awe thank YOU Mikelle! So great to hear from you. xoox Enjoy!!
Ahh, this reminds me of the chocolate chip carrot bread my Mom used to make! 🙂
Thanks Evan!!!
So many great recipes call for banana but unfortunately 15 minutes after eating banana I get a whopper migraine. Do you think I could substitute applesauce or something else for the banana? I’m not very good at figuring these type of things out myself and since my Celiac diagnosis it’s been frustrating. Love your website! It has been a great help to me. Thank you so much!
Thanks Lyn; sorry to hear abut your allergy to bananas. You can try the applesauce but I haven’t used anything else other than bananas for this. Let me know how it turns out!
So sorry, I take it back. Reread the flour description and I got it now!
Wow, I just found your blog, and really resonate with your story. I was pretty sick in my 20s, and had no idea that doctors are so incredibly clueless. It took me until MUCH later to figure out what I needed to do for myself. And I won’t tell you how long, but LONG. I think I finally now feel better than I did in my late teens before I was sick, because despite an ongoing condition, or because of it, i treat myself really well. So, despite the condition that I still live with I am much more vibrantly healthy in other ways! And more importantly, I love carrot bread/cake anything with carrot and spices. I’m making this pronto. But the recipe has two amounts for the flour, is it 3 or 4 cups?
Thanks Laura; so GREAT to hear from you! Hope you enjoy this recipe. I love this new gluten-free flour and hope you have a great week! xoox
Like I always think, simplicity is serenity! This recipe looks easy to make. Your bread looks awesome without the use of yeast? In most cases, do most gluten free breads not use yeast?
Jen,
This particular brand is Cup 4 Cup sold in Williams Sonoma and online. No yeast is needed. Enjoy!
I have a dumb question. Can I use flax seeds instead of chia seeds? And can I use almond or oat flour instead of 4 Cup GF flour? I have everything else! LOL
Dianne,
Never a dumb question! Check out my Egg substitute page for the egg subs. This Cup 4 Cup is a brand of flour and it’s not regular gluten-free flour so I don’t think it will work to sub oat flour.
Enjoy!
Hi! I’ve been vegan for a few years but my hubby was recently diagnosed as celiac so I am new to the GF scene. Which GF cup for cup flour do you use/recommend? I see so many different ones on the market and their makeups are vastly different. Do you have a fave? Thanks! Just working hard to sort out this new way of cooking!
What oven temp. are you baking your bread? Also how many eggs would you use instead of chia seeds and water?
Thank you; I baked this at 350 degrees F. My egg substitute page can help you with the eggs!
This bread looks awesome, Amie! I’m glad you are feeling better and better. You are a tough lady and before long will be back to your old self!
Awe; thanks Laura!!!