The Only Keto Bread Recipe You'll Ever Need 🤯
This keto bread recipe is the newest one in my collection. Use this low carb bread to fry up a toasty, gooey grilled cheese or pile it high with your favorite cold sandwich fixings.
This keto bread is great for just about everything you can think of. It toasts beautifully, is sturdy enough to hold a sandwich together, and can even be dried into delicious croutons for your next salad.
If you're looking for an alternative to almond flour, check out my 100% coconut flour bread recipe.
What's unique about this grain-free bread is the beautiful brown crust it forms on the outside. Once cooled, slice it to reveal the beautiful bread-like texture on the inside. Smear it with fresh butter or nut butter and enjoy it just as is.
Early Struggles
Before we go into WHY this keto bread recipe actually works, I want to share my early struggles. Over the past 30 months, I made recipe after recipe trying to make a loaf of bread that would work well for a sandwich only to have most of them fall apart. Even if they sliced well initially.
You see, normal wheat flour contains gluten which holds bread together and creates the beautiful texture of normal bread. But, when we eat a ketogenic diet, we omit wheat and grain completely. So, no more gluten. Which is great for our body, but so many of us miss bread!
Beware Of Storebought Keto Bread
There are many loaves of bread in the store (and recipes online) that call themselves a keto bread. However, when you look closely - they contain vital wheat gluten. It's a consensus among most keto experts that this ingredient should not be part of a keto diet as it can cause inflammation and disturb your gut microbiome. It may also cause you to sacrifice results and when we work this hard, we don't need a pesky little ingredient getting in between us and the results we're looking for.
Putting Vital Wheat Gluten To The Test Personally
In early 2020, I was at a local keto conference where there was a company selling "keto pizza". Noticing there was vital wheat gluten in the ingredient list, my mom and I decided to go ahead and test it out. That evening we ate two pieces of pizza for dinner.
The next morning, we both woke up puffy and our skin felt tight. Our hands, feet, and gut felt swollen and uncomfortable. And, even worse we struggled with brain fog and low energy for the entire day. These are all classic signs of a spike in inflammation.
Now, both of us had been gluten-free for well over 6 months. These symptoms would be almost impossible to detect if you're already eating gluten or haven't given it up. My advice is to avoid vital wheat gluten and any ingredient with "gluten" in the name when you're shopping for keto products or keto ingredients for recipes. Especially when it comes to keto bread and keto pizza crusts.
The challenge then becomes creating a "bread" without gluten. With this keto recipe, I took some inspiration from fathead dough which is the first recipe I'd ever run across that used cheese in bread. I tried many different ingredients and ratios and I'll share what worked and what didn't in this keto bread recipe.
Getting Creative With Keto Bread
My husband and I wanted a keto bread that would work for sandwiches of all kinds. This specific version started as a whacky, creative 'What-If" experiment... and it all started with inspiration from the fat-head dough...because I began with a mozzarella cheese base.
To create just the right texture, I married the cheese base with cream cheese. Added in eggs (because of the coconut flour I used so the result wasn’t too wet) and gelatin to give the bread more of a chew factor. Mixing the gelatin into the eggs creates the magic that holds this keto bread recipe together. Finally, I figured out the baking powder ratio to get a great rise that didn’t fall too much in the end (cheese is heavy!)
Can I Substitute or Omit _____?
What's interesting is that, when I tested removing the cream cheese or the gelatin or changed the number of eggs from this keto bread recipe... The results were different with each test. So, I strongly encourage you to follow the recipe EXACTLY.
Gelatin
The gelatin works in a few important ways in this keto bread recipe and the method we use to activate it is important. The gelatin acts as a binder, adds just the right amount of "chew" and creates texture in the bread. It helps mimic what gluten would do in a normal bread recipe and I consider it a critical ingredient here.
However, many have shared that they've been able to get great results using 1 tsp xanthan gum in place of the gelatin.
Coconut Flour
You can substitute the coconut flour in this bread recipe for equal parts psyllium husk powder with great results. The reason I've used coconut flour in this recipe is that it is highly absorptive. As the bread bakes, the cheese releases moisture and the coconut flour goes to work soaking up the extra moisture.
So, yes, you can also use almond flour but almond flour is not absorptive which will give you a wetter result. If you substitute with almond flour, use 7 Tablespoons in place of the 2 Tablespoons coconut flour.
Can't Find Whole Milk Mozzarella?
If you aren't able to get whole milk mozzarella, you can simply use half part-skim mozzarella and half cheddar cheese. This substitution works because cheddar is a lower moisture cheese. So, blending these two will work for this keto bread recipe.
It's possible other cheese blends will work as well, but I've only tested this ratio. If you test something that works, please comment below and let us know.
👩🍳 Tip for finding whole milk mozzarella: Check Sam's Club for a large pre-shredded bag of whole milk mozzarella. It is a red bag and is sometimes not with the other shredded cheeses.
We tested loaf after loaf to get just the right ingredients to make this recipe for us all to enjoy. So, I strongly encourage you to use the ingredients called for and follow the recipe exactly. After you've made it a few times successfully then have fun experimenting if you wish 🙂
Say YES To Bread Again!
Keto Bread That's Versatile: Make Keto Rolls or Biscuits
Just look at the texture of these keto rolls made with the same recipe. You can either drop the batter by the spoonful onto a greased cookie sheet or make formed keto rolls by refrigerating the dough before forming them.
To make formed rolls, allow the batter to chill in the fridge for 5-10 minutes until less sticky and easier to handle. Then, shape into balls and place on a greased cookie sheet. The rolls will spread as they bake, so if you want a taller roll, make sure they aren't squished down.
Then, bake in a preheated 350 degree (325-degree convection) oven for 20-25 minutes or until browned on the bottom and tops as pictured. Remove from the oven and allow to cool for 10 minutes and serve.
What Makes This Keto Bread Recipe Different?
As I mentioned, this low carb bread recipe begins with the cheese and cream cheese. These ingredients act as binders and provide the needed structure to allow the bread recipe to be substantial enough to use it for things like sandwiches. Once cooled, you can hold this keto bread horizontally and it won’t fall apart… Well, as long as you don’t slice it paper-thin!
I’ve also used gelatin as an extra binder and to give the bread a pleasant chew that was missing in early test versions.
Bread is one of the most difficult keto recipes that I’ve tackled in the kitchen. I have learned a lot in my experiments.
Storing Your Low Carb Bread
Store your keto bread or rolls in the fridge... they will keep for weeks in the fridge. Or, store in a freezer Ziploc bag or freezer-safe container in your freezer for up to three months.
Because of the cheese content, I wouldn't recommend storing your keto bread on the counter or at room temperature for more than 48 hours.
We like to make a loaf of this low carb bread, let it cool completely, and then slice it and package it into little packets of one and two-slice servings. We wrap these in saran wrap and then pop them in a plastic container and store them in the freezer.
This way, when Jeremy needs a keto sandwich, I just pull out a two-slice package the night before and throw something together for him as he heads out the door in the morning.
For me, I love toast, so I'll snag a one slice serving of keto bread right out of the freezer and pop it in the toaster. Sometimes I'll top this with one of my homemade nut-butters or just smother some fresh butter on top and enjoy it that way.
Ingredients for Keto Bread
There are a few specific ingredients you'll need to bake up this lovely golden loaf of low carb bread. I have organized them for you here so you can make sure you have what you need. Keep scrolling for the full recipe complete with nutrition facts.
- whole milk mozzarella
- cream cheese
- egg
- Gelatin
- almond flour
- coconut flour
- baking powder
Tutorial Video: Low Carb Bread
Check out my YouTube channel “Tara's Keto Kitchen”! You'll find a collection of most of the recipes I've developed for the ketogenic diet.
I share new videos and recipes every week. Subscribe so you're notified by YouTube when the recipes post.
Finally, the low carb bread recipe card. You can print this by clicking on the little print icon on the card below. You can also adjust serving sizes if you want to make a smaller or larger batch.
📖 Recipe
Keto Bread "The Only Low Carb Bread Recipe You'll Ever Need"
Ingredients
- 4 cups whole milk mozzarella (452 grams) or half shredded cheddar and half mozzarella
- 4 ounces cream cheese (113 grams)
- 4 large eggs
- 2 Tablespoons gelatin (14 grams)
- 2 ½ cups almond flour (280 grams)
- 2 Tablespoons coconut flour (28 grams)
- 4 teaspoons baking powder (18 grams)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- In a microwave safe bowl, microwave mozzarella and cream cheese until melted, stirring to combine.
- In a large mixing bowl whisk or blend together eggs and gelatin until foamy. Mix in melted cheeses.
- Add almond flour, coconut flour and baking powder, blending until completely combined.
- Grease your loaf pan with coconut oil or butter. Then, pour batter into a standard sized loaf pan and spread it out until the top is even.
- Bake for 20 minutes then reduce oven temperature to 325 degrees and bake for another 30 minutes. Top will be deeply golden and browned when done.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool in the pan for at least 60 minutes. This allows time for the cheese in the bread to cool and set. Then, turn out the loaf onto a cutting board to slice and enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
✍🏻 Other Keto Recipes
Have you had a similar experience? You find a recipe online and get really excited about how it looks in the picture. Then, you make it and have to toss out the whole thing because it's either soggy, dry, eggy, gummy or the taste is strange. Yeah...me too. In fact, these types of struggles inspired me to start Tara's Keto Kitchen!
We've rounded up a few more low carb bread recipes we think you'll enjoy here on the website. You can also use the search functionality at the top of the website or click the "Keto Recipes" link you see on the banner to go to different categories to explore.
We love to hear from our readers, so drop us a comment below. Happy baking 🙂
Pattie says
Do you store in at room temperature or in the refrigerator?
Nikki Ramos says
I store the bread in the refrigerator 🙂
Diane says
Does this bread need to be refrigerated?
Nikki Ramos says
I store the bread in the refrigerator.
Anonymous says
Is that net carb 2.59 is for one slice?
And Im so much confused about flaxseeds about its nutritional values
Googling it gives many different values 🙄,Can you just clarify 🙏and also chia seeds, do carb value changes depending on package? But all flaxseed same right?but all Flaxseed are same right?
Nikki Ramos says
For flaxseeds, the best thing to do is follow the information on your packaging. It will list your nutrition facts.
Check out this video as well for more information on counting the net carbs: https://youtu.be/r0G3HiQwr3I
Lesli says
The only place I can find the whole milk mozzarella is meijer
Anonymous says
I will be making this bread from now on, tried the flaxseed, no it's not for me. This is the best so far. Thank you
Peter Piper says
I make this recipe using yeast and it's scrumptious! Light and airy and holds together well; no crumbs when I cut it. Very nice!
Shawn says
Made it according to the recipe and it came out perfect. I will be making rolls the next time. Thank you for this recipe.
Savanah says
My experience was nothing like the video. The cheese never liquified so it was a huge gooey mess that I had to use a kneading paddle in my Kitchenaid mixer to finish mixing and that wasn't anything like the video. It's in the oven, so fingers crossed that it bakes into bread!!
Janelle says
Hi Savanah - thanks for reaching out! How did the bread turn out?
Martine says
Ce pain est bon. Ras le bol des pains noirs aux graines
Un reproche : Encore trop humide. Grillé ça devrait le faire.
K campbell says
Love this bread first time making and it came out perfect! Next will try it as rolls! Best keto bread I’ve had or made!
Alex says
This bread tastes great although I can't get it to have a bread texture with the little holes. Anyway it is great for sandwiches.
Just one question, the nutrition numbers are they per slice or the whole loaf? I can't find it on cronometer but it can be because I'm not a gold member. Thank you for creating this recipe.
Anonymous says
What is a serving?
Stephanie says
This bread is amazing, the favorite of my husband. Once I couldn´t get gelatin powder so I replaced it by Agar agar powder and the result is the same.
Edgar Martinez says
I love it Thanks for sharing your recipe.