This cashew bread is the first grain-free bread recipe I tried when I first learned about baking with nut flours. I adapted it from one of my favorite SCD cookbooks by Kendal Conrad.
It reminds me of Challah and Brioche, which are both rich breads that can be used for things like sandwiches, croutons, and french toast. This recipe bakes a bread that is slightly sweet, very moist, and kind of in between a yeast bread and a sweetbread.
You can use a food processor or a dry container with your high speed blender or Vitamix to grind the cashews into cashew flour. And then you can add the remaining ingredients to finish blending the batter.
This recipe makes one small loaf, so I recommend increasing the batter or bake more loaves at one time. You can use see the amount of ingredients needed to double or triple the recipe by using the measurement slider in the recipe below: Just click on the number of servings to use the slider.
This recipe is based on the recipe from the wonderful cookbook, Eat Well Feel Well, by Kendall Conrad.
Cashew Brioche Bread
Ingredients
- 3 cups raw cashews unsalted
- 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 3 large eggs separate yolks and white
- 1/2 tablespoon apple cider vinegar or other milk vinegar or lemon juice
- 1 cup yogurt dairy or dairy-free
- 1/2 cup apple juice
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 300°F/150°C on a convection setting. It bakes faster in a convection oven, but a regular oven setting will work as well.
- Line your loaf pan with parchment paper, unless it's non-stick.
- Grind the cashews in a food processor or high-speed blender to create cashew flour. You may have a few small grains of nuts left, but try to get it as fine as possible without turning the flour into cashew butter.
- Blend the salt, baking soda and cashew flour together in bowl.
- Add the egg yolks, vinegar, yogurt, and apple juice to the flour mixture, and blend well.
- Beat the egg whites and salt until stiff peaks form.
- Fold egg whites into the dough batter.
- Pour the batter into the loaf pan and bake for about an hour or so. Smaller loaves will bake faster. The smaller loaves may take a bit less time, and the larger loaf may take a bit more time.
- To test if the bread is fully baked, insert a skewer, or something similar, into the center of the bread. It should come out clean.
- Cool, slice, and enjoy. Store at room temperature, covered, for a few days, or in the refrigerator for a week. Kendall says it can also be stored in the freezer for about 3 months.
Hi Erica,
I used this recipe to make stuffing for Thanksgiving and it was delicious! In fact, in won a taste test against gluten stuffing! I cubed and lightly toasted the bread prior to making the stuffing. I was wondering, how much salt do you call for? It is mentioned in the process but not the ingredient list. I have been guessing with a teaspoon.
Thank you for flagging that! It was lost in the new recipe format. Just added the 1/2 teaspoon of salt. 🙂
Hi Erica!
I used this recipe to make stuffing for Thanksgiving and it was delicious! In fact, in won a taste test against gluten stuffing! I cubed and lightly toasted the bread prior to making the stuffing. I was wondering, how much salt do you call for? It is mentioned in the process but not the ingredient list. I have been guessing with a teaspoon.
It says add salt baking soda…. I do not see an amount for the salt.
Hi! I can’t have apple juice, no sugar, no carbs. What do you think would work good to substitute for the apple juice? Almond milk or coconut milk, I don’t know. Thanks.
what kind of yogurt do you use? plain or vanilla??
I use plain, but vanilla is good too
Can I use cashew butter instead of the cashew nuts, and if so, how much cashew butter should I use? Thanks!
I haven’t measured it in cups, but you can weigh the equivalent in grams that is in the recipe and it should work.
Perhaps the thing my son misses most on SCD is challah on Friday nights. I have been looking for a substitute and this may be it! Can’t wait to try it. Thank you. Ingrid
It is very much like challah in texture and somewhat in taste – it has a sweetness to it. Best, Erica
Hi! I have some store bought cashew meal. Do you think I should still use 3 cups ? Maybe a bit less? Thanks!!
Sounds like it’s about the same. The most accurate measurement would be to weigh it, but this recipe is somewhat forgiving, so I think you should be ok.
Just made this using Trader Joe’s Cashew Meal. I didn’t have a scale so used approximately 3 cups of the flour, which looked like it left about 1 oz left in the 16 oz bag.
This recipe is great! Really glad to find an alternative to almond flour recipes.
It cooked well in two small pans in my non-convection oven–I’d worry that one large loaf would scorch on the outside before being done. I love how crusty it is and already enjoyed a couple pieces warm from the oven with a raspberry chia jam. Thank you!
You used 3 cups of the tj’s cashew meal and it turned out well?
I baked this bread for an hour and a half before the toothpick came out somewhat dry. The crust is wonderful – nice and crispy. The center was still wet, but not soggy. I zap mine in the toaster and eat with a little honey, butter or jam.
I subbed buttermilk for the yogurt.
I have a vita mix but not the dry container. It was difficult to grind the cashews all at once. Next time I will do that in 3 batches. Also, took blending all the ingredients at high speed in the vita mix to get a uniform batter. Thank goodness for the 2 horsepower motor!
I recently eliminated wheat from my diet to see if it would help with the bloating I have been experiencing. So this bread has been great for the transition. Thanks so much – I prefer it to other grain-free recipes I’ve tried.
My son and I love the taste of this bread, however it comes out wet(moist) in the center. I have made this twice with the same result. The picture looks a bit drier than mine. When I cut it the bread bends over a bit. I’m in Florida. Should I change something about the recipe. I know altitude can affect baking. Or is it just me? also the measurement for salt is not included. Please help! My son if a very picky eater and he loves this bread, I just need it to have a better consistency (more bread like).
You can try baking it longer at a slightly lower temperature to bake through the middle. Or, you can reduce the amount of moisture (liquid) in the yogurt by using dripped yogurt (or Farmer’s cheese). Hopefully one of those should fix the moist center. Also, make sure to blend the ingredients well and get stiff peaks with the egg whites step.
How many cups of cashew flour is needed? I already have flour from Trader Joe’s.
I’m not sure of the cups amount since I haven’t measured it, but I just added the ounces and grams to help you.
Do you think this would work with flax or chia goo instead of eggs?
I’m not quite sure, I’d have to test it, but it’s quite possible.
its in the oven and looking really good and fluffy like it was alive,i said a prayer as im not a very good backer.
I mixed the wet ingredients well before i added the dry and I think that gave it more fluff and the cider just before I put it in the oven but before the eggwhite,dying for bread.I paid a fortune for the nuts sso Im making sure this is a success.Thank you for your fantastic and inspiring site, its keeping me on the straight SCD road to health.xxx
Thanks. Hope it all turned out well!
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe.. I am very much grateful, i love bread and i keep on looking for a healthy substitute and so far this is the best i’ve ever found.
I tried this recipe on this blog, really like brioche, but I also tried this recipe with blanched almond flour, add water with honey instead of apple juice , and add 3/4 cup water with honey instead of the
Yogurt This was one of the best bread ever .
I am flowing SCD diet, but addition to this diet I am also have migraine headache , so I can’t eat ANY KIND of cheese, white, yellow, wine, chocolate , citrus Fruits , coconut oil, and any herb for inflammation . I am much much better today than I was 8 months ago , but I have long way to go, and with your recipes you making it very easy on me. Thank you.
Thanks Yael! So glad you’re seeing progress.
i have made this bread before! thinking of making it again tonight! it was so good we ate half the loaf right out of the oven and 1/2 in the morning!
I substituted unsweetened almond milk for the yogurt and a water/honey mix for the apple juice. Worked like a charm, though I’ll need to titrate the water to make up for the added moisture from the nut milk. Still, it’s extremely good.
Also, I recommend cashew pieces and not whole cashews as they are about 25% less per pound than whole nuts.
Thanks for this awesome recipe! Next step is to make a bunch of loaves and freeze them 🙂
Nice! thanks for sharing your subs. Great tip on the cashew pieces. They do get expensive.
thank you so much for sharing this recipe with us! My children just had their first almond-butter-and-homemade-jelly sandwiches since we started GAPS seven months ago. What a lovely treat!! My hopes were not high (after several disappointing tries at GAPS biscuits, rolls, etc), but we all ended up really enjoying this recipe and will definitely make it again – I’m so excited to have this as an option for school lunches this fall as well!
Great to hear! sorry about the slow reply 🙁
I don’t see why not. Let us know if you try 🙂
would this work with cashew milk yogurt?
looks great..
Brilliant thanks! I will try butter ghee and see how it works. tried a couple of recipes from this site and my son loves the food! :c)
Hi, this looks great! could we substitute the yoghurt for coconut milk? my son cannot tolerate any casein… Just wondering whether it would work.
I’m not sure as I haven’t tried it yet. Butter or coconut oil might be a better bet since it’s thicker.
Erica, what a wonderful recipe – thank you!! I made this a couple of days ago and I am thrilled. I have tried a lot of gluten-free high-protein bread recipes, but this has to be the best! It’s great toasted, untoasted, and for sandwiches – I can see myself making it over and over. Love your website and look forward to trying lots of your other recipes!
So glad it worked out well. It is a special bread recipe.
This sounds absolutely delicious – I’m going to make it soon using coconut milk as suggested by someone else. Have read books by Bruce Fife on coconuts – interesting and informative.
HI! I made this last night. how’s the texture inside supposed to be? Mine came out very soft and “wet” so I left it longer in the oven…is that how is supposed to be? other than that the flavor is very good!
Yes, leave it in longer if it’s soft and wet. I use the convection setting on my oven for recipes that call for a longer time baking – but just add more regular baking time to it. You can also toast the slices if they’re still too moist.
Thank you! I toasted the slices and it was really good!
I could not find the cashew flour in our city but I got the organic unsalted cashew though. Do you think I just need to grand them finely. or I need to soak them and then grand them? Is there any preparation to convert my cashew to flour?
Thanks alot
I don’t have cashew flour either – I used unsalted, unsoaked cashews, so no worries.
I am wondering if I did not want to use apple juice should I use water or even milk? If you leave the liquid out altogether does it change the consistency of the bread to much? I really want to get some cashews and try this!
weirdly enough – when I accidently left it out it did not change it from what I could tell, except that it was a bit less sweet. But every baking experience varies a bit with this recipe, so it could be somewhat drier without the apple juice except that I may have left it in the oven a bit longer. I wouldn’t add anything though.
Although – on second thought, I do like the idea of milk. Let us know if you try it.
I made my first batch of this recipe this week, and it turned out super tasty! Thanks so much for posting this. I think I need to experiment with it, though. The bread is so delicate that it’s difficult to pick up, and I end up eating it with a fork. 😉 I’ll try baking it a little longer next time (I used the single large loaf option, and I don’t have a convection oven).
This is the first bread-like thing I’ve had since adopting the SCD, and it was truly lovely to have that experience back. Thank you!
Yes, bake it as long as you can. Either with a convection oven to bake it more through, or at a lower temperature for a longer amount of time (to prevent the outside from burning).
oh my goodness!! I can not wait to make this! tomorrow perhaps!
I can’t do dairy right now, so I substituted coconut milk for the yogurt, and it came out just right. I just had a warm slice with strawberry fruit jam, and it was delicious!
I used my food processor the whole way through (except for whipping the egg whites, of course), and it worked out well. Just made the cashew flour, then added in the other stuff and continued to process. This is a great recipe, and I didn’t feel like it was overly complicated, even making the cashew flour myself first. Thanks for sharing it!
Thanks for sharing your subs!
Good bread option. I topped up the 2½ cups of cashews I had on hand with some blanched almonds. 4 yr old devoured a slice with our spaghetti for dinner, 7 y old had two slices toasted and buttered with coconut sugar and cinnamon for breakfast. It’s almost like hand held french toast that way! Thanks for sharing.
LOVELY recipe. We have had such a rainy summer here in Czech! It’s been so depressing. Crazy how different weather is…there seems to be no happy medium this summer! Thanks for this recipe! I might try it soon. 🙂
How many cups of cashew flour does three cups of cashews make? (Should I be able to find cashew flour… I’m not sure my sub-par food processor could get them fine enough!)
good question – which I don’t know the answer to. I suspect it’s a bit less than 3 cups.
Weigh the ingredients, gound or whole cashews, it’s the same weight.
I buy excellent quality gluten free flours, including cashew flour, sproued flour, and more, from Nuts.com. Fast service, too.
“Sprouted Super Flour”
made this this evening. turned out great!
Good to hear!
I waw wondering if you think any other nut could be used and if sour cream can be used instead of yogurt.
I suspect you could use another nut but the flavor will vary. And yes to sour cream – yogurt and sour cream are easily interchanged in recipes.
There is nothing more wonderful than fresh homemade bread. This looks amazing!
this looks BEAUTIFUL! i’ll bet it would be even more delicious made into french toast!
can’t wait to try, erica. thanks again for another great recipe!
One more thing–I too used my Vitamix and my food processor!! Worked really well. Thanks for the tip.
I stumbled upon your site via Mark’s Daily Apple last week. I specifically got on it last night to see if I couldn’t find a better bread recipe than the one I have been using. The cashew bread was just posted–i happened to have everything i needed (vanilla yogurt…which I wasn’t sure about but used anyway) so I made it on the spot. I just wanted to tell you this was just about the best thing I have ever eaten. It is soooo moist and delicious. My kids (ages 5 and 7) both love it. Thank you sooo much!!!!
Fantastic! I was wondering about the vanilla yogurt – I make that as well. Good to know. thanks!
Same here – althought soaking cashews takes about 2 hours (at least that’s what I’ve found). I like this link for more info: http://www.raw-food-living.com/soaking-nuts.html
Ok thanks! I’m just now learning about the benefits of soaking nuts and was curious how it translates into my scd baking. I don’t have the time right now to experiment so I’ll just follow as is 🙂
I am very grateful that you shared your recipe! Even as hot as it is here in NC I think I would sweat any day to make this! I had been searching my mind trying to come up with a grain-free bread and this is absolutely perfect for my boys. A big thanks!!!
You’re welcome. Hope they like it!
I didn’t. I thought about it, but Kendall also uses unsalted raw cashews, so I’ve been doing it that way since the first time I tried it. I imagine it would work. I’m also curious to know if cashew butter would work.
Do you soak your cashews first?
I soaked mine and it turned out well but took almost 2 hrs to cook as a whole big loaf. And was really moist (didn’t put any apple juice b/c of the moisture from soaking). If you soak them I might stick with the smaller loaves or do “dinner rolls” in muffin pans or something for time’s sake. But was really good!!!
Awesome recipe!
Interesting recipe! I’ve been using cashews a lot in my baking and love using them. Baking has been no problem where I live in Oregon – we have barely hit the 80’s this summer. Thanks!
Looks yummy. It’s not hot here, I would turn on my oven to bake this bread.
Wow, that looks incredible! I’ve been dabbling with gluten- and grain-free bread recipes this week, so this is right up my alley!! But yeah, it IS hot, so my plan is to bake late at night an hour or more after the sun goes down.
Thanks for this recipe, I love the minimal ingredients. I have the dry Vitamix container, now I need some cashews. 🙂