I love using Oat Flour in my baking (especially as a Gluten Free Alternative) and I wanted to tell you why! In just one serving of oat flour, which is less than half a cup, you receive almost 200% of your daily intake of Manganese. You’ll also get, 41% of your daily intake of phosphorus, 34% of your daily intake of magnesium, and about 20% of your daily intake of copper, iron, and zinc. Additionally, high levels of Vitamin B1, B12, and folate are found in oat flour.
Other Health Benefits of Oat Flour
1. Oats Contain Beta-Glucan
This is a soluble fiber that is able to help reduce your LDL (bad cholesterol), reduce your blood sugar, increase how full you feel, and promote the grown of healthy gut bacteria along your digestive tract helping to regulate your bowels
2. High in Anti-oxidants
Oat flour is very high in a mix of anti-oxidants including avenanthramides which is only found in oats and is known to help lower your blood pressure by increasing nitric oxide which in turn helps to improve blood flow in the body
4. Reduces Risk of Heart Disease
This is because the soluble and insoluble fibers in oat flour help make sure that blood is able to flow properly through vessels and the heart at all times.
Other Reasons Why I use Oat Flour
Besides from all of the nutrition it packs compared to other flours I use Oat Flour because it lends to a soft and fluffy texture I like the nutty flavor that it adds to recipes (similar to a whole wheat flour but with more nutrients). It is also naturally gluten free so a great alternative in baking (just make sure to read your labels because some oats are cross contaminated so make sure it is labeled certified gluten free if you have an intolerance).
How to substitute
Oat Flour has a higher moisture content, if you are substituting it for whole wheat flour or regular flour you will need to add more – typically about 1 1/3 cups for 1 cup. You can substitute 25%-30% of the flour in a recipe and you should not need to alter any other parts of the recipe. If you are substituting it for all of the flour you will also need to add more baking powder or yeast depending on what you are baking.
How to Make
You can simply grind your oats in a food processor or a high speed blender – I find my Vitamix grinds them better than my food processor. 1 1/4 cups oats will give you about 1 cup of oat flour. Store extra in the refrigerator or freezer because it can go bad.
Where to Buy
You can buy it in most stores or on amazon.
