Raspberry and Pear Loaf

Hey friends, it’s been a little while but I am back with a new recipe for you all. Today we will be making a raspberry and pear loaf. This recipe is completely GF, vegan and refined sugar free, so it is suitable for almost any hungry tummy. Serve this recipe on its own, warmed with a little bit of vegan butter, or cold with some coconut yoghurt, mixed seeds and some maple syrup.

If you’re new to working with flax meal the thing to know is that it will make your baking very ‘gluggy’. Do not be alarmed, this is exactly what we want. We are working with flax meal and banana to replace the need for a traditional ‘egg’.

Gluten free baking is very different when considering cooking times, compared with normal wheat flours and self raising flours. That’s why it is best that you follow the time line in this recipe very carefully and most certainly allow the loaf its 1 hour and 20 minutes in the oven. We are cooking it on a lower heat so that it cooks perfectly from the inside, without burning the outside.

Make sure to check what type of oven you have before starting, a conventional oven will need a higher heat (20 more degrees) than a fan forced oven, so just keep that in mind.

Let’s get into it!

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Raspberry and Pear Loaf

Serves: 10
Time: 1 hour 45 minutes

What you will need:

5x9 Inch loaf tin, mixing bowls, measuring utensils, wooden spoon, baking paper.

Ingredients:

1.5 cups (375ml) almond meal
1.5 cups (375ml) buckwheat flour
1 tsp (5ml) bicarb (baking) soda
2 tsp (10ml) baking powder
pinch of pink Himalayan salt
1 medium overripe banana, mashed
1 tbsp (20ml) of ground flax seed meal (linseed meal)
1/3 cup (80ml) pure maple syrup
2 tsp (10ml) apple cider vinegar
1 cup (250ml) of warm water
1/2 tsp coconut oil
2 ripe pears roughly chopped
1 heaped cup of frozen raspberries (kept in the freezer until the very last minute)
1/2 cup almond flakes

Method:

1. Preheat your oven to 160ºC fan forced, or 180ºC conventional.

2. Begin by adding all of your dry ingredients (almond meal, buckwheat flour, bicarb soda, baking powder and salt) to a large mixing bowl and stir. Create a well in the dry mix and set aside.

3. In a separate bowl mash the banana very well and add in the flaxseed meal, maple syrup, apple cider vinegar and warm water. Stir well and set aside for 5 minutes.

4. Prepare a bread tin by rubbing the coconut oil over all sides and base of the tin. Cut a long strip of baking paper to line the base of the tin, so that it runs up the two ends and over the edges. These will act as ‘wings’ to later help you remove the raspberry and pear loaf from the tin.

5. Add the wet mix to the dry mix and begin to combine with your wooden spoon. Once the flour is fully mixed, gently fold in the pear. Remove the raspberries from the freezer and gently fold in as well, working quickly so that the raspberries do not ‘bleed’.

6. Pour the batter into the bread tin and with your wooden spoon push into all corners. Bang the tin on the bench a few times to knock out any bubbles. Design the top of your loaf by firmly pressing in the almond flakes. Place into the oven for 1 hour and 20 minutes, checking after 45 minutes.

7. Remove from the oven and set aside on a metal cooling wrack for 15 minutes. Lift the loaf out by using the wings and wait a further 10 minutes before cutting. Serve with vegan butter or coconut yoghurt and any other goodies you like.

I hope you enjoy this recipe my friends, and I would absolutely love to see your creations, tag me at @stephsanzaro on Instagram.

Happy cooking xx