Flours are concentrated foods, usually very rich in carbohydrates. If they are refined, they hardly contain fiber and other nutrients, such as proteins, vitamins or minerals.

For example, in the case of cereals, milling eliminates a large part of the fiber, proteins, B vitamins or vitamin E. That is why flours provide a large number of calories per serving and few micronutrients.

Excessive consumption of products made with flour, especially refined flour, is related to obesity, diabetes, inflammation and cardiovascular disorders. That is why it is advisable to base your diet on whole foods that preserve the entire range of nutrients.

Flours are not necessary

A diet without flour does not mean without carbohydrates. Carbohydrates are necessary and should provide the majority of calories in the daily diet, according to the consensus among nutritionists, but they can be obtained from whole foods such as brown rice, quinoa, rolled oats, sweet potatoes, potatoes, legumes (including soy products), fresh peas, fresh corn and, of course, fruits.

The feeding is completed with all kinds of vegetables, nuts and seeds, olive oil, dairy products and eggs, and if you do not have a lacto-ovo vegetarian diet, with fish and meat, preferably poultry.

Therefore, by making your menus with natural whole foods you can achieve a healthy and quality nutrition, without resorting to flour or ultra-processed products. In fact, it is a great option if you want to maintain or reduce body weight and inflammation.

Ideas for cooking without flour

The truth is that we have grown and are surrounded by a wide range of products made with flour. You just have to look at the window of a cafeteria or the hundreds of products that fill the aisles of supermarkets.

However, it is not necessary to completely give up the preparations that you like, since You can modify them to prepare them with natural, whole and very healthy foods. You will win!

Flourless breads

You can make delicious and nutritious breads without flour. It is not about replacing wheat flour with similar ingredients, but rather recreating the recipes taking advantage of the qualities of other foods.

Dare to discover how quinoa bread is made, a bread rich in protein to gain muscle; buckwheat bread, which has the lowest glycemic index; express flax bread, an anti-inflammatory food to make at home with only two ingredients; pumpkin bread, very easy and delicious; bread with almond flour, rich in protein, gluten-free and very satiating; or express oatmeal bread with only two ingredients and ready in two minutes.

Cakes and muffins

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There are many recipes that mix fruits, such as banana, apple or dates, with eggs, flaxseed, yogurt, rolled oats, yeast, chopped or ground nuts, grated coconut or cassava to achieve different textures and flavors. It is another type of pastry that can achieve spectacular results.

Just try this delicious flourless chocolate cake high in protein; a banana bread or muffins without flour or sugar; apple cake or apple pie in the airfryer without flour; a pumpkin cheesecake without oven, flour or sugar that you can eat without regrets or even a raspberry cake.

He cloud bread It is a very recipe simple and tasty to get you started in the world of flourless breads because they are very light and spongy. You only need 3 eggs, 3 tablespoons of Greek yogurt and 1/4 teaspoon of baking powder.

Beat the whites with yeast until it foams and in another bowl, mix the yolks with the yogurt. Then gently fold the beaten egg whites into the yolk mixture, without losing too much air. Place tablespoons of the mixture on a baking sheet covered with parchment paper, forming small circles. Finally, bake for half an hour in the oven preheated to 150º C.

Cookies

Making cookies without flour is possible. You can mix rolled oats with ripe bananas or peanut butter with coconut sugar and egg. They can also be made with chopped nuts and egg.

In general, in cookie recipes you can replace flour with oat flakes, although the texture will be different. If you wish, you can put the flakes through the blender to crumble them. They do not need to become flour. You can also replace the flour with chopped or ground nuts.

In this recipe for coconut and lemon cookies you don’t even need oats and they are delicious.

Pizza

You can even make a pizza without flour. One option is to make it with pumpkin and oats. Another is the popular cauliflower base pizza or broccoli.

To prepare it you need 4 cups of grated cauliflower, 1 egg, half a cup of grated mozzarella or parmesan, half a teaspoon of oregano, half a teaspoon of salt and 1/4 teaspoon of garlic powder (optional).

Steam the shredded cauliflower for about 5 minutes, until tender. In a bowl, mix the well-drained cauliflower with the egg, grated cheese, oregano, salt and garlic powder.

Then, spread the mixture on a baking tray lined with baking paper, bake at 200 ºC until the edges are golden brown, add the ingredients of your choice (mushrooms, bell pepper, basil, etc.) and bake again for an additional 5-10 minutes.

Even easier is to cut zucchini or eggplant lengthwise into slices and use them as bases for mini pizzas.

Italian pasta without flour

In a spaghetti dish, these can be substituted for raw or lightly cooked strips of zucchini (zoodles). You just have to sauté them with olive oil and garlic and add your favorite tomato sauce.

You can use a spiralizer to prepare spaghetti from many vegetables, such as:

• carrots, Try it with soy sauce, ginger and sesame.
• Cucumber, with dill, yogurt and lemon.
• Beetwith goat cheese and walnuts.
• sweet potato, with paprika and garlic powder.
• Pumpkin, with garlic, mushrooms and spinach.
• Turnips and radishes, with mustard and honey vinaigrette.

Crepes, pancakes and waffles

With only egg or mixed with yogurt, banana or other fruits you can quickly make some flourless crepesalthough there are many other options.

You can also make delicious pancakes with quinoa. You just need to soak 200 g of quinoa for at least 6 hours, mix with a little water and salt, and cook in a pan greased with a little oil.

There are many more possibilities. In a very original recipe to prepare carrot waffles, the grated vegetable is mixed with cheese, egg, parsley and garlic to obtain a delicious dough.

Thickeners

To thicken a sauce, you can use other options instead of flour, such as arrowroot, a puree or a vegetable cream. You can also use agar agar powder or flakes, or crushed flax seeds.