Buttery Walnut Flatbread

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~ raw, vegan, gluten-free, paleo ~

The title of this recipe may indicate that there is butter within the flatbread… this isn’t the case.  The reason I used the word, buttery, is because the walnuts lend that flavor to the recipe.

But that isn’t all…  walnuts are, in fact, the most abundant source of Omega 3 (in the form of Alpha Linoenic Acid or ALA) outside salmon and oily fish.  Omega 3 is crucial for brain health and development.  So that old wives tale about walnuts with their wrinkly brain-like appearance… being brain food?  It is spot on if you ask me.   I don’t know about you, but I could use a brain booster every now and then. :)

Another fascinating thing that I learned about walnuts is that they are full of melatonin, which an important hormone produced by the pineal gland – crucial in promoting healthy sleep.

Have you ever noticed that walnuts can taste bitter?  This bitter/astringent taste is a result of the tannins and the paper-like skin surrounding the nut kernel.   I find that soaking and dehydrating them washes out that bitter flavor.

Roasting is a technique that also helps to remove this bitterness, but since we are aiming to create mostly raw recipes here,  I opt to soak and dehydrate them, well, for that reason and others.

Bitterness can also be a sign of a nut gone bad. Due to their high-fat content, walnuts should be placed inside an airtight container and kept in the refrigerator or freezer to avoid them turn rancid.  Most importantly, ALWAYS taste test nuts and seeds before adding them to a recipe.  A rancid nuts = a rancid tasting recipe. Yukka.

One last thing before I unleash you into the kitchen… I used the almond pulp as the base of this flatbread, and I highly recommend its use.  It gives the recipe an airy, light texture, and great structure.  You might ask if you can use whole nuts instead… I haven’t tried it myself because we love the way this recipe turned out… but you are welcome to experiment.  It will, however, make the flatbread much denser in texture.  Enjoy!

Ingredients:

yields 20 flatbreads (1/4 cup each)

• 2 1/2 cups raw walnuts, soaked & dehydrated
• 1/2 cup ground golden flaxseed
• 1/4 cup hemp seeds
• 1 tsp Himalayan pink salt
• 2 cups moist, packed  almond pulp
• 1/2 – 1 cup water

Preparation:

1. In the food processor, fitted with the “S” blade, process the walnuts down to a small cornmeal size.
   • Be careful that you don’t over-process the walnuts; it will cause too much of the oils from the nuts to be released.
2. Add the ground flax, hemp seeds, and salt.  Pulse together and place it in a medium-sized bowl.
3. Add the almond pulp and 1/2 cup of water.  Mix well with hands.
   • If the batter feels too dry and crumbly, add a few more tablespoons until it is moist enough to stick together.
   • I used 1 cup of water, but it depends on how much moisture is left in your almond pulp.
4. To create the flatbread, I created 1/4 cup-sized balls of dough.
   • Place the dough ball in between two teflex sheets or wax paper and with a rolling pin, flatten out into a long strip or whatever size, shape, and thickness you want.
   • I do two balls at the same time, spaced about 2″ apart.
5. Fold the teflex sheet over, laying the rolled-out cracker into the palm of your hand and then gently peel the teflex sheet off.  If you rolled it too thin, it would be hard to get off.
6. With the flattened dough now sitting in your hand, cup your hand as you turn it over and lay the dough on the mesh sheet.
   • By cupping your hand a bit, it causes folds or ripples in the dough.
   • You can skip this process and just lay them flat on the mesh sheet.
   • I like creating that “cooked appearance” but creating lumps and bumps as though the heat bubbled the dough.  Silly, perhaps, but fun.
7. Sprinkle extra hemp seeds and coarse sea salt on top of each cracker.
8. Dehydrate at 145 degrees for 1 hour, then reduce to 115 degrees (F) for 6-10 hours or until dry.
9. Store in an air-tight container for 1-2 weeks.
10. For more fun ideas on how to use this recipe, check out the following links;  Raw Sweet Pea & Brussels Sprout Crostini and Raw Sweet Pea and Brussels Sprout Dip Flatbread Tower.

• Hemp seeds don’t require soaking. Click (here) to learn more.
• What is Himalayan pink salt, and does it matter?  Click (here) to read more about it.
• Learn how to grind your own flax seeds for ultimate freshness and nutrition.  Click (here).

Tags: Almond Pulp, Dairy Free, Dehydrated, Gluten Free, Refined Sugar Free, Soy Free, sugar free, Vegan