Most of this information came from the Internet or books by Rita Bingham ("Country Beans" & "Natural Meals in Minutes"). In the "Country Beans" book you will find many recipes using bean flour. - Creamy Cabbage Soup uses white bean flour. - 3-Minute "Cream of Chicken" Sooup - white bean flour - "Instant Pea Soup" - flour from green or yellow split peas - Rita's Lentil Soup - lentil flour Basic Bean Information: 1 c. whole, dried, pinto beans = approximately 1 1/8 c. bean flour 1 c. water + 1/2 c. bean flour = 1 c. "instant" mashed beans (thick mixture) 2 c. water + 3/4 c. bean flour = 2-1/2 c. "fluffy" mashed beans The thick mixture can be used in place of cooked, mashed beans in patties, loaves, casseroles, desserts, and other food products calling for mashed beans. You can substitute pinto beans with black beans milled into black bean flour. General Recipe: Bring 2 c. water to a boil. Whisk in 1 c. bean flour. Cook and stir for 1 minute, until mixture thickens. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover pan and cook 6 minutes, stirring occasionally. This produces a fairly stiff bean mixture that is similar to commercial canned refried beans. Season to taste with your favorite seasonings including: salt cumin chili powder garlic bouillon meat or vegetable soup base powdered seasoning mixes For fluffy bean mixture: This type of bean mixture is lighter and has a creamier texture which works well for dips, burrito and sandwich fillings. Bring 2-1/2 c. water to boil, then whisk in 3/4 c. bean flour. Cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly, until mixture thickens. Reduce heat to medium-low, cover pan and cook 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. You can add Picante sauce to the "instant" refried beans. "INSTANT" REFRIED BEAN MIX (source: Country Beans) 1-1/2 c. pinto or black bean flour 1-1/2 t. chili powder 1/8 t. garlic powder (optional) 1/2 t. cumin 1-1/2 t. salt 1 t. instant minced onions (optional Mix and store in airtight container. To prepare, whisk 3/4 c. above mixture into 2-1/2 c. boiling water. Cook, while stirring, over medium heat for 1 minute, until mixture thickens. Reduce heat to low, cover pan and cook 4 minutes. Bean Flour Storage: Store bean flour in an air tight container, preferably in the refrigerator or freezer. Bean flour keeps 6 months. Other Uses: To cook bean flour soups in a microwave - whisk bean flour into seasoned hot water in a large microwavable bowl. Cook at full power for 1 minute, or until mixture boils. Stir well, then cook an additional 2 minutes. Bean flour soup in a pan - whisk navy bean flour into seasoned boiling water to make an almost instant soup or thickener in only 3 minutes. Bean flour combined with wheat flour = complete protein. Bean flour can be used in a recipe calling for flour by replacing up to 25% of the wheat flour with any variety of bean flour. Baby lima or small white beans are the mildest in flavor and the lightest in color and work well to increase the protein in baked goods if you need another use for bean flour. -Grainlady

"Healthier" is so subjective....so you'll have to define that for yourself. Yep, you can use coconut oil. I use it all the time in baked goods. Without a peek at the entire recipe you could probably start with reducing the amount by 25%. When I first started using coconut oil (in the 90's) the label suggested you could generally reduce the amount of vegetable oil in a recipe by 25% if you substituted it with coconut oil, and get the same results. If a quick bread recipe calls for 1 cup of fat/oil I'll generally reduce it by 50%, but more reduction than that and I may need to add something like flaxmeal, chia seeds or chia seed gel, unsweetened applesauce, agave nectar, or kefir/yogurt/buttermilk, to help maintain moistness. Low-fat or fat-free baked goods tend to dry more rapidly. Your other option is to choose low-fat recipes. ZUCCHINI LEMON BREAD (Note: I have also used this recipe for muffins and reduce the baking time.) 1 c. all-purpose flour (I substitute freshly-milled spelt) 1-1/3 c. whole wheat flour 2 t. baking powder 1/2 t. baking soda 1/4 t. salt 1/4 t. ground ginger 1/4 t. ground nutmeg 2 large eggs 3 T. vegetable oil 1 c. sugar (I use 3/4 c. palm sugar or 1/3 c. agave nectar) 2 T. lemon juice 1 c. packed shredded zucchini (1 med. zucchini) 1 T. grated lemon peel 1. Heat the oven to 350-degrees F. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan. 2. In a large bowl, mix both flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ginger, and nutmeg. 3. In a medium-size bowl, beat the eggs, oil, sugar, and lemon juice until well blended. Stir in the zucchini and lemon peel. 4. Add the zucchini mixture to the flour mixture, stirring just until moist. Spoon the batter into the prepared pan. 5. Bake for 45 to 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Set the pan on a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. Turn the bread out onto the rack and cool completely. Makes 16 slices. Per slice: 148 cal, 3g pro, 26g carb, 4g fat, 27mg chol, 143mg sodium. I make this recipe a lot in the summer when zucchini are plentiful. MICROWAVE ZUCCHINI BREAD RING (source: Pillsbury \- Summer\-Sational Side Dishes) 2 T. dry bread crumbs (I use almond flour.) 3/4 c. Pillsbury's BEST All Purpose or Unbleached Flour (I use spelt) 3/4 c. Pillsbury's BEST Whole Wheat Flour 3/4 c. sugar (I use palm sugar or 1/4 c. agave nectar) 1 t. baking soda 1 t. cinnamon 1 t. salt 1/4 t. nutmeg 1/8 t. cloves 1/2 c. milk 1/2 c. margarine or butter, softened (I use 1/4 c. coconut oil) 1\-1/2 c. (1 medium) shredded zucchini\* 2 eggs Grease 6\-cup microwave\-safe ring mold.\*\* Sprinkle evenly with bread crumbs. Lightly spoon flour into measuring cup; level off. In medium bowl, combine flour and all remaining ingredients. Blend at low speed until moistened. Beat 2 minutes at medium speed. Pour into greased and crumb\-coated ring mold. Place in microwave oven on inverted microwave\-safe plate. Microwave on MEDIUM for 10 minutes, rotating 1/2 turn halfway through cooking. Rotate pan 1/4 turn. Microwave on HIGH for 2 to 5 minutes or until toothpick inserted near center comes out clean and bread begins to pull away from sides of ring mold. Set stand directly on counter top 5 minutes; unmold onto serving plate. 16\-servings TIPS: \*If zucchini is very moist, drain on paper towels before using. \*\*A 2\-quart microwave\-safe casserole can be substituted for ring mold. Place heavy\-bottom drinking glass, 2 to 2\-1/2 inches in diameter, in center of casserole. Nutrition: 150 calories, protein\-3g, carbohydrates\-19g, fat\-7g, cholesterol\-27mg, sodium\-190mg, potassium\-80mg Hope that helps you out... :\-) \-Grainlady

The pulp will still be just damp enough to pack together, kinda' like clay, but still crumble under pressure. You shouldn't see any visible moisture if pressed. What is left? Fat, protein, fiber, and much of the nutrition. I like to dry nut pulp at a fairly low heat - 125-degrees F and under. It dries fairly quickly and works in nearly any recipe that calls for almond flour. I dry it on the fruit roll-up sheets. I usually make it finer after it's completely dry by placing it in a mini food processor (if necessary - not all recipes require fine almond flour, but most do). You could also place it in a bag and roll it with a rolling pin into a finer flour just by rolling the clumpy mixture. You can also use raw pulp and make a number of things like "cereal", crackers, snack foods, and a whole lot of other interesting things. Many will be dehydrated at a fairly low temperature - especially if you follow RAW food recipes - and raw foods recipes are a great resource. Some of the recipes I've gleaned, and you can find these and more on-line: -Almond Pulp Freezer Fudge -Almond Pulp Crackers -Raw Almond Pulp Cookies -Almond Pulp Crunch -Homemade Almond Butter (but you need a high-speed blender like a Vitamix) -Almond Pulp Breakfast Power Bread -Cinnamon Peanut Butter Almond Pulp Crackers The link below is a great place to find recipes using almond flour. Honeyville Grain Almond Flour is superior to homemade, but homemade is soooooooo much cheaper. -Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: Elanas Pantry

I mainly make homemade kefir and use it in breads these days instead of buttermilk, but in the past I've also used powdered buttermilk - with a twist. BUT, most bread recipes that call for milk or milk powder in a recipe, you can also use buttermilk - either powder or reconstituted. My twist... I use a small amount of reconstituted buttermilk to make a version of "homemade buttermilk" that is thick, rich, and tangy - more like the commercial version. Plain old reconstituted buttermilk is rather insipid and completely UN-like commercial buttermilk. How to: (source: Natural Meals in Minutes - by Rita Bingham) You can make "homemade buttermilk" with reconstituted powdered milk or regular milk - your choice. Place 1/2 c. buttermilk (commercial or reconstituted powdered buttermilk) into a quart canning jar. Fill the quart with milk (of choice) and stir well. Let stand (WITHOUT a lid) in a warm place (about 80-degrees F) until clabbered, about 12-18 hours. [Grainlady note: I place the jar in my oven with the light on - as far from the light as possible - which is usually around 80-degrees F.] When clabbered, stir and refrigerate. Bonus: You can use "homemade buttermilk" as a starter culture for your next batch. It's best if you use it within two weeks after it was made for best results. This recipe works great for even smaller amounts of buttermilk than a quart. I've included the link for SACO powdered buttermilk recipes below. They have a lot of good recipes that might help you out. I keep #10 cans of powdered buttermilk in storage and I've used some of these recipe. -Grainlady Here is a link that might be useful: SACO powdered buttermilk