Breaking Up With Bread?

Are you a bread lover like me? As a kid I’d have it for breakfast, lunch and snacks. Ideally toasted with a thick layer of honey spread on top or a few slices of Gouda cheese.

When I spent the summers in Norway, I’d have it with my favorite Norwegian brown goat cheese, which was real comfort food for me. And who doesn’t like the bread baskets served at restaurants ready to dip into rich olive oil or slather with butter?

But I rarely eat ‘traditional’ bread anymore. Not because I stopped liking it, but because I don’t like how it affects my health. It provides minimal nutrition (high amount of simple carbohydrates and low fiber and protein). This is a recipe for insulin and blood sugar spike which will be followed by an energy crash and low energy. Did you know that wheat flour has the same glycemic index as table sugar? In addition, some people including me don’t tolerate gluten well and most gluten-free bread is even worse on the nutrition front. Think Udi’s gluten-free bread. Furthermore, most (USA-made) bread has many unnecessary ingredients such as preservatives, sugar and inflammatory oil (all you need to make bread is wheat flour, water, yeast and salt). Oh and if it’s not organic, it will have an invisible dash of glyphosate in it (thanks to grain crops being sprayed with Round-Up).

So unless it’s the occasional artisan organic sourdough bread, I go for one of the many healthier alternatives.

Here are three of my current favorites: 

Uprising Bread Cubes: This bread is free of refined grains, sugar and yeast (some can’t tolerate that well). It has a whopping 9 grams of fiber and 6 grams of protein per slice! And you can pronounce all of the ingredients. This is my go-to recommendation for all of my insulin-resistant and diabetic clients. Did you know that one in every two Americans is either insulin resistant or diabetic and many of them don’t even know it!

How I like it:
The Key is to toast it well. I toast it twice. Top with: Guacamole + hardboiled eggs, or cream cheese (Miyokos dairy-free cream cheese) + smoked salmon + red onions, or Norwegian goat cheese! (I heard they sell it at Whole Foods but I’m gonna pretend I can only get it in Norway). 🙂

Find Uprising Bread here

Jicama Wraps: This is such a great addition to our Taco Tuesdays, but it’s also a vegetable that doubles as a wrap for just about anything!

How I like it:
With Pesto + turkey or Hummus + cucumbers + broccoli sprouts.

Find it at Trader Joe’s in the produce aisle.

Cauliflower Thins: This is my latest great find from Trader Joe’s. What a great concept – A low-carb slice of ‘bread’ that doubles as a vegetable. It has cheese and eggs, so two thins provide 9 grams of protein!

How I like it:
Pizza sauce + parmesan cheese baked in the toaster for 6-8 minutes. And then a handful of arugula and fresh basil on top. Another option I like is with red pepper hummus + marinated artichoke hearts.

Find it at Trader Joe’s in the produce aisle.

If you like these tips, then I’ve got a lot more to share. Join my upcoming 21-Day Reset where I share all sorts of food hacks and upgrades to increase the nutrient density of everything we eat while we eliminate inflammatory food. This is not a full-on detox, but a very doable and effective reboot. Trust me, your body will love it!

Yours in health,

Linda