Cooks and bakers of Metafilter, lend me your bindings...

November 22, 2019 3:05 PM

I want to make a slice or small cube snacks out of seeds - pumpkin, sunflower, chia etc - but I don't want to use sugar, honey, syrup or other carb-heavy ingredients. What else can I use to bind the seeds into something I can mix together, bake for a bit, then cut into cubes?
posted by Thella to Food & Drink (15 answers total)

Egg whites?
posted by exceptinsects at 3:23 PM on November 22, 2019 [5 favorites]

Low-carb/keto recipes for granola bars list binders like Sukrin syrup clear, and DIY low-carb 'sugar syrup,'honey syrup', or 'maple syrup.'
posted by Iris Gambol at 3:28 PM on November 22, 2019

Peanut butter? Maybe?
posted by Sassyfras at 3:32 PM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Melted chocolate: Trader Joe's has Montezuma's Absolute Black at a grand total of 8 net carbs per (normal-sized) bar, no playing around with sugar alcohols even.
posted by teremala at 3:38 PM on November 22, 2019

Gum Arabic?
posted by jamjam at 3:39 PM on November 22, 2019

Almond butter. Lower carb than peanut butter I believe.
posted by KMoney at 4:15 PM on November 22, 2019

A combination of coconut and tapioca flours might fit the bill, with a bit of nut butter/avocado and cocoa for fat and flavor. I've seen canned pumpkin used as a low-carb binder as well.
posted by Sheydem-tants at 4:30 PM on November 22, 2019

If you soak chia seeds they make a sticky goo. I wonder if you can use that.
posted by advicepig at 5:38 PM on November 22, 2019 [1 favorite]

Dates are a common binder, but I don't know if the carb/sugar profile is too much for your requirements.
posted by curious nu at 7:38 PM on November 22, 2019

I think a nut butter matrix is a good idea, but since neither almond nor peanut are drying oils, the mixture might not set up well enough in the oven to be cut into little cubes. But walnut oil is a drying oil, and a mixture of almond or peanut butter and some proportion of walnut butter might give you the consistency you're looking for.
posted by jamjam at 8:03 PM on November 22, 2019

use this recipe. The eggs and flax hold it together esp if you grind up some of the flax, and the nuts make it tasty and filling.
posted by fingersandtoes at 10:09 PM on November 22, 2019

I make a baked oat slice that is held together with nothing more than ripe mashed banana.
posted by Trivia Newton John at 10:55 PM on November 22, 2019

I now see you asked for low carb... my apologies.
posted by Trivia Newton John at 10:56 PM on November 22, 2019

How about dates? Purées dates are very sticky and a common binder. They’re full of fiber.
posted by bq at 11:15 PM on November 22, 2019

If you soak chia seeds you can use them as a binder themselves, you don't need anything else to bind.
posted by hazyjane at 12:09 AM on November 23, 2019