Applesauce Millet Bread (Vegan, Oil-Free, GF)

Vegan, oil-free and gluten-free applesauce millet bread is lightly spiced, faintly sweet, and so satisfying for breakfasts or snacks. Make the batter in a blender (with ease) and bake up a firm, fragrant loaf that is wonderful plain or toasted.

Gluten-Free Oil-Free Vegan Applesauce Bread

Applesauce, a workhorse in vegan baking (often used an egg replacement in a host of baking recipes), takes on wholesome depth of flavor when combined with millet to create this golden loaf.

Each slice is very filling, not too sweet, and mildly spiced.

Recipe Benefits

• Gluten-free
• Vegan (egg-free & dairy-free}
• Xanthan gum-free
• Oil-free (e.g., no olive oil, coconut oil or other vegetable oil)
• Nut-free
• Flourless (see my notes for using millet flour in place of whole millet)
• High in fiber
• Minimal ingredients
• No added starches (e.g., tapioca starch, potato starch)
• Fast & straightforward to prepare
• No yeast

Ingredients for Vegan Applesauce Millet Bread

The exact amounts of each ingredient are indicated in the recipe card at the end of the post.

• Unsweetened applesauce (jarred or kitchen-made)
• whole millet (raw)
• whole psyllium husks (not psyllium husk powder)
• coconut sugar (or the sweetener of your choice)
• vanilla extract
• lemon juice (or any light-colored vinegar, such as apple cider vinegar)
• ground cinnamon
• baking powder, baking soda, and fine sea salt (or table salt)

The gluten free bread recipe also uses plain water (I use filtered tap water).

Sweetener Options

An equal amount of brown sugar, or the granulated sweetener of your choice, can be used in place of the coconut sugar.

Liquid sweetener can also be used. If using a liquid sweetener, decrease the total amount of water in the recipe by 2 tablespoons (30 mL).

Step by Step Instructions

Note that the complete instructions are also in the recipe card below.

Step One: Preheat the Oven and Prepare the Pan

Preheat the oven to 325F (160C). If your oven has a convection setting, I recommend that youdo not use it for this bread. This bread needs to be baked using the regular (radiant) heat. More about this in the FAQS at the end of the post.

Spray a 9×5-inch (22.5 x12.5 cm) loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray. Alternatively, line with nonstick parchment paper, or lightly oil/grease the pan.

Step Two: Blend Most (but not all) of the Ingredients

Place the millet, applesauce, water, coconut sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla in a blender (a high-speed or regular blender).

Blend on high speed, stopping once or twice to scrape down the sides of the blender container, until the millet is completely broken down and the batter is smooth. Pour the batter into a large bowl.

Step Three: Whisk in the Remaining Ingredients

Stir the psyllium husks, baking powder, cinnamon, baking soda, and salt into the batter until completely combined. Use a spatula or large spoon rather than a whisk (the batter thickens quickly and will clump on the whisk).

The batter will seem loose, at first, but within a minute or less it will become a thick dough (from the absorption of liquid by the psyllium husks).

Why Transfer the Batter to a Separate Bowl?

As I mention above, the bread batter becomesvery thicksoon after the psyllium husks are added. This makes it difficult to scrape the batter out of the blender and into the pan. It also makes a major task to clean out the blender.

Scraping the thickened batter out of a mixing bowl, by contrast, is quick and straightforward. The same holds true for the cleaning.

Step Four: Place Dough into Pan

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top with a rubber spatula or the back of a spoon.

Step Five: Bake the Bread

Bake the bread in the preheated 325F (160C) oven for 90 minutes until risen and the surface of the bread is a deep golden brown. A tester inserted near the middle of the bread should come out with only a few moist crumbs attached. The corners of the bread should be pulling away (slightly) from the pan.

Transfer the pan to a cooling rack. Cool the bread in the pan for 15 minutes.

Step Six: Remove from Pan & Cool

Remove the loaf of bread from the pan (slide a butter knife around sides, as needed, to assist the release). Place the loaf on the cooling rack and cool completely.

Slice it Thick or Thin

This is a sturdy bread, so feel free to slice it thick, thin, or anywhere in between.

What is the Texture & Taste of the Applesauce Millet Bread?

Texture:This is a hefty applesauce bread; it is more like sandwich bread than cake. One slice makes a filling breakfast or snack.

Taste:The bread has a fragrant smell and flavor or cinnamon and vanilla, with the subtle fruitiness of applesauce. This is a mildly sweet applesauce bread. If you prefer a sweeter loaf, feel free to up the amount of sweetener. Conversely, lower the amount of sweetener, as you prefer.

FAQ

• How should I store the Vegan Applesauce Millet Bread?Store the cooled bread in an airtight container at cool room temperature for 2 days, the refrigerator for 1 week, and the freezer for up to 6 months.
• Can I use millet flour in place of whole millet?Yes! Here is what you need to do to make the substitution:
  • (1)Use the same weight (not volume/cups) of millet flour in place of the whole millet grain. Specifically use 2 and 3/4 cups (400 grams) of millet flour to replace the 400 grams of whole millet. For the most accurate results, I strongly advise weighing the millet flour for an exact weight replacement.
  • (2)Do not add the flour to the blender Whisk the millet flour, psyllium, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda and salt in the large bowl. Blend the applesauce, water, lemon juice and vanilla in the blender until smooth. Add the applesauce mixture to the flour mixture, stirring until blended.

• Can I use different gluten-free grains (e.g., buckwheat or sorghum) or gluten-free flours (e.g., brown rice flour, buckwheat flour, sorghum flour, or a gluten free flour blend) in place of the millet?I do not recommend it. The proportion of wet and dry ingredients, as well as the quantity of psyllium husk, is particular to this combination of grains. For the reliable results, stick with the ingredients and proportions listed.

• What kind of millet do you use?In the U.S. and Canada, there is one millet available, labeled “millet.” It is proso millet, also known as common millet, hog millet, broom corn, yellow hog, hershey and white millet.
  • North American manufacturers do not specify the type of millet on packages (just “millet”), but various sources indicate that the only millet grown for human consumption in the United States isproso millet. If you have the choice of several millets in your country, opt for proso millet.
• My oven has a convection setting. Should I use it for this bread?No, I do not recommend it. Convection ovens are wonderful for many types of recipes, but not every recipe. Convection ovens excel at quick, crisp cooking. They are not the right choice for long slow baking, and that is what this unconventional bread needs.
  • Convection ovens (or the convection oven setting) can force the outer layer of this bread to rise and separate from the inside of the bread. This will lead to several results: (1) a big bubble under the surface of the loaf; (2) a gooey middle and bottom; and (3) a hard outer crust.
  • This bread needs the moderate, radiant heat of a conventional (not convection) oven.
• My bread came out gooey in the middle. Why?The bread should not be gooey at all. But if it happens, possible reasons are as follows:
  • Baking in a a convection oven instead of conventional oven. See the section above explaining why this makes a huge difference.
  • Inaccurate measurements. Even if you have been baking since forever, it is possible that you mis-measured. It is straightforward to get distracted for a split second–it happens to everybody! If you measured using cups, I urge using a scale next time around. You will love using the scale to measure once you start.
  • Oven temperature is inaccurate.I regularly check my oven temperature setting using an inexpensive oven thermometer. Check to make sure the oven is accurate before baking. If the oven is too hot, it can force a faster rise to the bread, leading to a bubble under the top of the loaf.
• Can I Use Something Other than Whole Psyllium Husks?No, for this recipe it must be whole psyllium husks. Other gelling agents, such as flax seeds, flaxseed meal or chia seeds, will not work as direct substitutes (they might work, but it would involve some experimenting to determine their efficacy).
  • Note, too, that I have not tested the recipe with psyllium huskpowder. Readers have commented that psyllium powder does not work in many of my bread recipes that call for whole psyllium husks. For the reliable results, I recommend sticking with whole psyllium husks.

Happy baking!