Lentil bread is definitely my super healthy nutritious go-to snack any time and I often have a slice or two for breakfast or brunch, pre or post-workout. Packed with protein and remarkable nutrition. It is filling and it takes me a long way.
I make this all throughout the year, it is a fantastic dish for a work snack, work lunch, working from home quick lunch, to take to a picnic, garden party or in a container to snack after gym. These are just a few ideas.
We are in the process of re-doing our kitchen from scratch and this is definitely my kinda snack to tuck in. It was such a saviour. Easy to make as long as you have an oven to throw this in for 40 minutes.
I sometimes soak more lentils than I need and the extra soaked lentils will almost always end up in a delicious recipe like this.
We do love lentils in general and a good lentil recipe and feel free to browse around my site to find quite a few delicious red lentil recipes like this Brown And Green Lentils With Portobello Mushrooms Salad or this Red Lentil Dhal With Coconut Milk And Quail Eggs.
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🥘 Ingredients
There are only a few ingredients that are needed for this delicious vegetarian lentil bread dish. You will need :
- lentil - these have to be soaked for at least 1 hour or even overnight
- dill - is a versatile herb and works well in this recipe
- feta cheese - gives the dish a lovely lift
- yoghurt - helps with the fermentation process
- soda bicarbonate and baking powder - help this bread to get a fluffy texture
- red peppers - these enhance the flavours and gives that nice speckles of colour
- olives - just love the addition of the olives in this dish - it works really well
- eggs - these help with binding
- spring onion or scallions - you may shallow fry those for extra flavour if you wish
- cheddar cheese - such a lovely addition - you may even double the quantity if desired
- sesame seeds - to sprinkle over but you may add some toasted ones to the recipe
- chilli flakes - oh yes, I would never skip those - add as much or as little as you wish
- salt - only go for it if you like your salt but remember, feta cheese and olives add saltiness to this dish
- olive oil - I sometimes do add this, sometimes I do not
See the recipe card below for exact quantities.
📖 Substitutions
- Lentil - You may use any lentil type you like ( green, yellow, red, black (beluga) green mountain lentils. Any lentil types you have in hand, you like and are used to eating will all do a great job in this high-protein bread.
- Fresh Herbs - use flat parsley and/or thyme, oregano if you like. Dried herbs are great too.
- Make it Vegan - just substitute the eggs with a tablespoon of chia seeds and the dairy ingredients (yogurt and feta) with plant-based ones.
- Cheddar cheese - parmesan cheese makes a great sub - it is as delicious
🌶 Variations
- Spicy - add chili pepper flakes while cooking to imbue heat into the dish, or long peppers for extra flavor
- Add finely chopped mushrooms - even more protein? Yes, please!
- Kid-friendly - add some crushed potatoes or some chips to one side - also drop the chili flakes as kids don't deal well with spices
🔪 How To Make Lentil Bread
Here are some process shots to show you how to make this super easy and quick lentil bread recipe.
Step 1: Wash, and soak (for at least one hour) the lentils.
Step 2: Puree the lentil in a food processor.
Step 3: Combine some of the ingredients (soaked and pureed lentils, yogurt, eggs, oil, salt, pepper, baking soda, soda bicarbonate and cayenne pepper/chili flakes) into a larger glass bowl and mix until homogenized.
Step 4: Add the remaining ingredients (mainly the chopped ones) olives, spring onion or scallion, crumbled feta cheese, grated cheddar cheese, dill and finely chopped red pepper. Give it another mix and it is ready to go to the oven.
😉 This is what the lentil bread mix looks like before going into oven-proof tins and getting into the oven.
Step 5: Pour the mixture into the two greased bread loaf tins. sprinkle the sesame seeds over and place them into the preheated oven. Bake at 180C/350F for 35 to 40 minutes until golden brown, just like these beauties here.
Pro Tip: Keep an eye on this whilst in the oven so it does not burn. You may add 2-3 tablespoons of flour/tapioca flour for a gluten-free option if you wish but I do like it nice and moist.
👪 Serving Suggestions
- This dish is great to have as a snack whenever you feel hungry. For me, a slice of this bread, just like the one shown above, makes that perfect snack to have at teatime when the sugar cravings kick in.
- It is lovely having this with some extra protein like this nice Creamy Cucumber, Fennel & Yogurt Dip a tzatziki type of dip/ side dish that pairs well with this amazing lentil bread. With a warm slice of this healthy lentil loaf and a dollop of that yoghurt dip, it's plain heaven.
- It makes a fabulous party dish, perfect to share as little squares or made as mini muffins or mini cupcakes.
💭 FAQs
Once it has cooled, if any is left ;-), store in an airtight container refrigerated. Ideally sliced or cut into chunks as it is easier to grab and go. These can be refrigerated for 2-3 days.
Yes, I am sure this freezes well and the best practice for using it after freezing will be to thaw it in the refrigerator overnight. Take out the required quantity and thaw rather than the whole thing.
Yes, this can be reheated in a pre-heated pan by placing the slice or slices in a hot nonstick pan with or without a drizzle of olive oil. It is entirely up to you. Please do remember to add the slices to the pan when this is hot, this is important to avoid or reduce them sticking to the pan.
🍞Other Bread Recipes to Consider...
Please leave a 5-star 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page. Thanks for stopping by!
📋 Healthy Lentil Bread - Flourless
Ingredients
- 2 cups red lentils dry quantity
- 200 g feta cheese made into crumbs
- 10 sprigs dill fresh
- 6 spring onions / scallions
- 1 cup Greek yoghurt go for any 5% up fat
- 1 handful olives chopped
- 4 medium eggs or 3 large
- 1 pinch chilli flakes
- 50 ml olive oil 5-6 tablespoons
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper freshly ground
- 1 teaspoon soda bicarbonate (small teaspoon) 1/2 U.S. teaspoon *
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 100 g cheddar cheese grated
- 2 tablespoons sesame seeds
Instructions
- Wash and soak the red lentils for at least one hour. * See Recipe Notes for more
- Sieve the lentils once soaked (no need to rinse) and puree these in a food processor.
- Transfer the pureed lentils into a bowl and add the eggs, soda bicarbonate, baking powder, yoghurt, olive oil, black pepper and salt (if adding any). Mix well until homogenised.
- Add the remaining ingredients, the chopped olives, spring onion/scallions, chopped pepper, crumbled feta, grated cheddar, dill, and chili flakes. Add most of the sesame seeds and keep a few to sprinkle over.
- Prepare two small bread loaf baking tins * by greasing those with some butter or olive oil. Pour in the tins equal amounts of the mixture. Sprinkle the remaining sesame seeds on each loaf.
- Transfer into the oven and bake at 190C or 375F for 35-40 minutes until golden brown.
- Serve warm or cold as a snack or a main with a salad as a side. See other serving suggestions above.
Notes
- No need to worry. If you have little time for soaking the lentils and you do not have at least one hour, soak these for as long as you can in hot water. This will speed the soaking process a little.
- It is entirely up to you and your taste but I never really do for this dish because the feta cheese, the cheese, and the olives add sufficient (for me) salt. I'm not too fond of anything salty but if you do like your salt, add a pinch or two extra.
- Add a teaspoon of each - the European teaspoons should be shaved and not heaped, and for the U.S. cooks, only add 1/2 teaspoon as the teaspoon over there is quite a bit bigger.
- Do not worry if you do not have loaf tins, you can use any oven-proof dish whether that's round, rectangular, or any shape you have or prefer. I have made this in my larger square ceramic dish and a couple of times in my oval dish. You may also use a single dish but it will have to be larger so the bread doesn't end up being too thick to cook especially in the middle part.
Susie says
This looks delicious. It’s in my oven as I’m typing this.
A couple of notes: the printed recipe doesn’t have the oven temperature, so I came to the website to look it up. That’s when I saw that red peppers are missing from the printed recipe too.
I’m sure it will taste great, regardless. I’m looking forward to checking out your other recipes!
Ramona says
Hi Susie, thanks for flagging the bits missing out - I will look into it now and amend it for better clarity. Thanks again and please do let me know how you liked it 😉
Jamie says
I love how this lentil bread is so full of flavor and fiber! It's so great to have on hand as a healthy snack!
LaKita says
I've never thought to use lentils in bread making and this recipe has certainly made me change my mind! So good.
Tristin says
What a great bread to eat after working out! So full of plant protein. This is a great recipe!!
Ramona says
Indeed! Thanks so much, dear Tristin.