Gluten-Free COOKING SCHOOL The Non-Scary Guide To Baking Gluten Free Bread 2013 Gluten Free Cooking School LLC 1 - Page
Disclaimer This information is not presented by a medical practitioner. This book is intended for educational and informational purposes only and is provided with the understanding that the author and publisher are not rendering medical advice of any kind. The content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or other qualified health provider before starting a special diet. This is especially important in the case of a gluten free diet, as the diagnostic tests for celiac disease may not be reliable once you begin a gluten free diet. Author and publisher claim no responsibility to any person or entity for any liability, loss, or damage caused or alleged to be caused directly or indirectly as a result of the use, application, or interpretation of the material in this book. Copyright Copyright 2013 Gluten Free Cooking School. All rights reserved. Publisher: Gluten Free Cooking School support@glutenfreecookingschool.com 205-538-0310 2 - Page
Where's the Good Gluten Free Bread? Picture this scenario. You want to make a loaf of gluten free bread. You've never made any before, but you've baked your own wheat bread for years. You think, This shouldn't be hard! I'll just use gluten free flour in the recipe that we like. And then you mix the dough and it looks all wrong. You knead, and knead, and knead, but the dough doesn't feel right. So you add more flour...and more flour...and it never feels quite right but you go ahead and bake it anyway. And then it just doesn't turn out well at all. And that's being kind. Should you through your hands into the air, cry over the wasted flour, and give up all hope? Absolutely, positively, NO! You can make amazing gluten free bread...and it's not hard. Now, gluten free bread is a completely different beast than wheat bread. It is. I will not argue that. But is completely different in a very understandable way. And, it's easier to bake than wheat bread do. But, before we get to all of that, let's cover the first questions that most people have/ Should I bake my gluten free bread or buy it? Thankfully, we now have many options for procuring good gluten free bread. You can buy gluten free bread at the grocery store, or bake it at home using a mix or your favorite recipe. The best option for you will depend on how much time you have, how much money you're willing to spend, and how picky you are about your bread. The Cost of Gluten Free Bread If you've looked at the price of gluten free bread and flours, you've already had the experience of a near heart attack. Yes, it is expensive! And, it's expensive because it takes a lot of extra work on the farmers and manufacturers part to make sure that the flour, dough, and bread stay gluten free until they get to your home. So, just accept that you're never going to buy a $1 loaf of bread again. 3 - Page
That being said, there are ways to make gluten free bread less dear. Store-bought bread is generally the most expensive, but you can sometimes find coupons for it in the store or online that make the price more manageable. Gluten free bread mixes are pricey as well, but they are often more widely available in stores than pre-baked breads and individual gluten free flours. Most of the time, homemade gluten free bread will win the cost competition. I just calculated the per loaf cost of my Finally, Really Good Gluten Free Sandwich Bread recipe and it came out to $3.01 per loaf, and that's for a pretty large loaf of sandwich bread. (I don't have a loaf handy, but I think it weighs around 24 oz. after it's baked). In comparison, a 12 oz. loaf of Udi's gluten free bread (which is one of the best pre-baked loaves) costs about $5.85. Finding Good Gluten Free Bread If you've tried gluten free bread and thought it was horrible, let me remind you (as many times as necessary) that it's not all horrible. I've eaten plenty of delicious gluten free bread since going gluten free. You just have to have a little patience and diligence to find it sometimes. The quality of store-bought bread is improving (thank God!!). Udi's and Rudi's are our favorite brands and you can often find them in the freezer section of large chain grocery stores or health food stores. Whole Food's gluten free bread is also good. Enjoy Life's GF bread was dry and crumbly when we tried it this winter. Against the Grain Gourmet makes a mean gluten free baguette! You can make an incredible variety of gluten free breads using mixes. There are so many GF bread mixes on the market right now, and they use a lot of different flours and recipes. You'll really be amazed at the different tastes and textures that you can get in gluten free bread. Finding a bread mix that you love is simply an exercise in trying different mixes and seeing what you like. The best gluten free bread that you will ever find though, is the gluten free bread that you make at home. (Homemade wheat bread was always better than the store bought loaves too, right?) Making gluten free bread at home is really not at all difficult once you have a good recipe and a little practice. Finding the Time for Gluten Free Bread Obviously it's faster to buy a loaf of bread. Store-bought bread wins this one hands down. However using a packaged mix cuts down on the time to some extent. Baking bread at home takes the most time, but later in the course I'll show you how to save time making GF bread at home if you're using a recipe. 4 - Page
Your Assignments: Finding the right gluten free bread option for you will be a balancing game. Once upon a time we only ate gluten free bread that I baked at home. Now that we're traveling, we've been using more mixes. When we visit our families at the holidays, we often buy pre-baked gluten free bread at the grocery because it's the most convenient option. If you're new to gluten free: Don't get discouraged! Based on what you've just read, figure out whether buying bread, baking from a mix, or baking bread from scratch makes the most sense for you. And then start small; try one bread and see if you like it. If you don't, it's not the end of the world. Find another option and try it. If you've been gluten free for long time: I want you to try something completely new this week. If you always bake your bread from scratch, try using a mix or buying a pre-baked loaf. If you've always bought your bread, try baking is instead. Why should you do this? Because there is still so much that we can all learn about gluten free baking! If you make great gluten free bread from scratch, try a mix that uses flours that you don't normally use and see if you can pinpoint what differences that makes in the bread. Try a few different store-bought loaves and study the ingredients. What does that recipe do differently than you normally do? Does it change you idea of what gluten free bread can be? 5 - Page
Are Bread Mixes The Way To Go? In this chapter we're going to delve more deeply into the issue of whether it's best to bake bread from scratch or to use a mix. Baking bread scares a lot of people, especially baking bread from scratch. For that reason, a lot of people on a gluten free diet use bread mixes. However, I think there is real value from a cost perspective, as well as from a culinary perspective, in baking your own gluten free bread from scratch. The Pros of Using A Gluten Free Bread Mix If you have a bread machine and a gluten free bread mix, you can pretty much take yourself out of the bread making equation. You dump the mix into the machine, add a few ingredients, turn the machine on, and then,in a couple of hours, you (hopefully) have a delicious loaf of gluten free bread. Baking bread with a mix is definitely the easiest of the home baking options. There is very little measuring involved. You only have to buy one mix, not three or four different flours. The yeast comes in the mix and you, generally, do not have to proof it. Mixes also make it very easy to try a lot of different types of gluten free bread and get a feel for what you like. The Cons of Using A Gluten Free Bread Mix While baking with a mix is easy, it also means that you're stuck with the recipe that the bread mix makes. Why is that a bad thing? It's a bad thing because sometimes mixes don't always turn out exactly right. If you're baking from a recipe, you can always just tweak the recipe to make it work better. But when you're using a mix, you don't know how much of each ingredient is used, which makes it more difficult to figure out what is going wrong. And, if the manufacturer included too much of an ingredient, you can't take it out. If you have multiple food intolerances it can also be difficult to find a mix that will work for you. Mixes often use corn starch, potato starch, rice flour and xanthan gum - all of which are problematic for quite a few people. I find that it's easier to handle multiple intolerances when I 6 - Page
bake from scratch. I can find a good recipe that works for most of my intolerances, and then make substitutions as needed. The cost of gluten free bread mixes is another con, at least for me. The dry ingredients for my Finally Really Good Sandwich Bread recipe cost about $2.35 per loaf. Most gluten free bread mixes cost at least twice that much. What do I use? Both! I used to be completely anti-mix. However, now that we are traveling constantly and have very little storage space. I have learned to appreciate the convenience of a flour mix. However, I still love baking bread from scratch and when we settle down in a city for a while, then I buy individual flours and bake my own bread from my own recipe. It really does come down to figuring out which option works best for you given your current circumstances and your goals for baking gluten free bread. If you want really great quality and flexibility in ingredients, then you'll be better off baking from scratch. If you want convenience, a dump and bake option, or just have limited access to individual gluten free flours, then mixes may be your best option. Your Assignment: In this assignment we're going to use gluten free bread mixes to help us begin the process of demystifying gluten free bread. Below are a few popular gluten free bread mixes and their ingredients (copied from Amazon sales page or the companies website). Your assignment is to go through the ingredient lists and classify the ingredients in each mix into the following categories: flour, sweetener leavening, flavor enhancer (e.g. salt), and binding agent (e.g., xanthan gum) You'll probably have to do some research on some of the ingredients. When you're done, you'll be well on your way to possessing a great cheat sheet for gluten free baking substitutions. When you're done, you can check your answers against mine. 7 - Page
The Gluten Free Pantry Favorite Sandwich Bread: White Rice Flour, Brown Rice Flour, Potato Starch, Skim Milk, Whey, Corn Starch, Brown Sugar, Guar Gum, Salt and A Packet of Yeast. Pamela's Pantry Gluten Free Bread Mix: Sorghum Flour, Tapioca Flour, Sweet Rice Flour, Brown Rice Flour, Organic Natural Evaporated Cane Sugar, Chicory Root, White Rice Flour, Millet Flour, Honey and Molasses; Rice Bran, Sea Salt, Xanthan Gum, Yeast Packet. Bob's Red Mill Homemade Wonderful Gluten-Free Bread Mix: Garbanzo bean flour, potato starch, corn starch, white sorghum flour, tapioca flour, turbinado sugar, fava bean flour, xanthan gum, active dry yeast, potato flour, sea salt, guar gum, soy lecithin. Manufactured in a facility that also uses tree nuts and soy. Schar Naturally Gluten-Free Classic White Bread Mix: Corn Starch, Rice Flour, Dextrose, Vegetable Protein (Lupine), Psyllium Seed Husk Powder (Vegetable Fiber), Hydroxypropyl Methylcellulose, Salt may Contain Soy Chebe All Purpose Bread Mix - Manioc (tapioca) flour, modified manioc starch (100% manioc), iodine-free sea salt, cream of tartar, sodium bicarbonate. King Arthur Flour Bread Mix Gluten Free: Specialty flour blend (rice flour, tapioca starch), tapioca starch, potato starch, sugar, emulsifier (rice starch, polyglycerol esters of fatty acids, mono and diglycerides of fatty acids), salt, xanthan gum. Produced in a dedicated gluten-free, allergen free* manufacturing facility. * Free of the 8 most common food allergens. 8 - Page
Myth: Bread Machines Are Required For GF Bread One of the more frequent questions that I get from readers who are starting a gluten free diet is, "Which bread machine should I buy?" There are a ton of choices and it can be rather overwhelming to try to sort through the option. The cost of bread machine does not make the decision any easier. I'll make things easier for you though: You don't have to have a bread machine! Knowing what I do now, if I were to have refurnish my kitchen, I wouldn't buy a bread machine. But I thought you had to have a bread machine! Nope! The most important thing in gluten free bread baking is getting the consistency of the dough right. In order to do that, I need to mix the dough well and be able to adjust the amount of liquids. I can do those things better when I mix the bread by hand. Now, I could bake the bread in the oven or bread machine once I have it mixed (and I've done both many times). But why go to the extra expense? If I were to refurnish my kitchen, here's what I would buy: a good loaf pan, a good baking stone, a decent hand mixer, a baking thermometer, and an oven thermometer, and a digital scale. That's all you need for baking delicious gluten free bread! If you're still unsure, here are the pros and cons of using a bread machine to bake gluten free bread. Pros of Using A Bread Maker it's less scary than baking bread in a loaf pan you turn it on and then it beeps when it's done - no thinking you can program it to start baking at a certain time (if you don't use milk or eggs in the recipe) bread machine pans are not as long as standard loaf pans, so the bread rises higher 9 - Page
it doesn't heat up your house in summer, like the oven does Cons of Using A Bread Maker you have less control over the entire process your bread will have a hole in the bottom from the blade bread machines are expensive it doesn't warm up your house in winter, like the oven does But I really want a bread machine! If you're dead set on buying a bread machine, here's what you need to know. First off, don't buy a used bread machine or take a hand-me-down from favorite aunt. You need a bread machine that has never seen a grain of wheat flour. (You might need to read that sentence again if it didn't sink in totally.) Here are the other features that I'd look for: A bake setting with only one rise since gluten free bread only needs to rise once Good mixing capabilities - gluten free bread dough is more like a batter and it needs to be thoroughly mixed for 3-4 minutes. The knead cycle on some bread machines just doesn't get the job done. The ability to program a custom cycle would be awesome - that way you can control the length of the knead, rise, and bake times. Alright, You've Convinced Me! What Should I Buy Instead? Okay, here's what the minimum equipment you need to bake gluten free bread, and to bake it well a set of mixing bowls (small, medium, and large) a hand mixer (it doesn't have to be fancy) 2 loaf pans - (1) 8.5 x 4.5 and (1)10 x 5 10 - Page
a baking stone a digital scale (for measuring ingredients accurately) an oven thermometer (to make sure the oven is the correct temperature) and a baking thermometer(to determine when the bread is done) This is probably not the list of equipment that most bloggers would tell you that you need. But, if you want to have the highest probability of success, this is the equipment that will help you make the best gluten free bread! There aren't any assignments for this lesson. But, if you haven't studied the bread ingredient lists from the last lesson, you need to get to work. The next couple of lessons are all about the ingredients that go into gluten free bread, with a special focus on bread that will work if you have multiple food intolerances. 11 - Page
What Is Gluten Free Bread Anyway? Gluten free bread seems so mysterious. I've talked to plenty of people that have been gluten free for years and are afraid to bake a loaf of bread. Today I want to address one of the biggest fears that may be keeping you from baking your own gluten free bread. Don't stop reading if you're already a great gluten free baker. You'll learn something in this post too. The #1 fear that keeps people from diving headlong into gluten free bread baking is the fear of the unknown. Fear of the unknown usually pops up when someone contemplates baking bread for the first time. (Though it sometimes is sneaky and doesn't surface until after their first failed loaf.) It's typically expressed with comments such as "I've never made bread. I have no idea where to start." or "I made a loaf and it turned out horribly. I've no idea what to do next." So, let's demystify gluten free bread. The 7 Ingredients in Gluten Free Bread Gluten free bread contains 7 basic ingredients - flour, liquid, salt, fat, yeast, binding agents, and sugar. Ingredient #1 is Flour: The largest ingredient in gluten free bread is flour, and in gluten free baking we use a mixture of different GF flours. The reason for this is that it takes a mixture of different flours to approximate a bread texture that is similar to wheat bread. There are so many gluten free flours to choose from, and a mixture of 3 or 4 should be sufficient. You can use grain flours (like rice or sorghum), starch flours (such as corn or tapioca), bean flours (like garfava or soy), and nut meals (like almond or pecan). There's no one secret flour mix that makes the perfect loaf of gluten free bread. There is a secret though, and I'll tell you what it is. 12 - Page
The secret to making a good loaf of bread is to know the flour to liquid ratio for the flour mix that you are using. If you're baking bread with wheat flour, it's simple - the ratio is 5 parts flour to 3 parts water. But, with gluten free bread, the ratio depends on the flour mix that you are using. Some gluten free flours can absorb much more water than others. If you use super-absorbent flours (like masa harina and coconut meal) and don't add enough liquid, then you'll end up with a stiff dough that won't rise. Likewise, if you use less absorbent flours (like almond flour) and add too much water, then the dough will be too thin and won't have the structure that it needs to rise. Unfortunately, there's not a handy chart to tell you what the flour to liquid ratio is for the different combinations of flour. But, you can tell when the flour to liquid ratio is right just by looking at your dough. (How do you learn what the dough is supposed to look like? Patience, grasshopper. We'll talk about that later.) Ingredient #2 Is Liquid: Liquid is the next required ingredient in bread. Most recipes will use water or milk. Milk makes the bread more rich. Non-dairy milks are fine, but I generally just use water - unless it's a special occasion bread, like my Pascha (Easter) bread. Ingredient #3 Is Yeast: Active Dry yeast or Rapid Rise yeast will both work. Rapid Rise is best for bread machine because it does rise more quickly. The amount of yeast that you use is not set in stone and depends on your altitude. If you use more yeast, the bread will rise more quickly. If you use less yeast, the bread will rise more slowly. A super-fast rise is not good though, and generally results in a loaf that falls in the oven. It is possible to make a great yeast-free gluten free loaf bread, but it does require special techniques to make a dough structure will work with baking soda or baking powder. Ingredient #4 Is Salt: Bread tastes bland without salt. If you find a gluten free bread recipe to be less than flavorful, increase the salt. It really is as simple as that. Ingredient #5 is A Binding Agent: Binding agents are key to getting gluten free bread to work. Xanthan gum is probably the most common binding agent, but in the last few years more gluten free bakers have begun using guar gum, chia seed meal, flax seed meal (and other seeds). 13 - Page
These binding agents give the dough the elasticity and strength that it needs to rise. The amount of binding agent that you need will depend on the recipe and the flours that you use. Eggs are a common binding agent (and they add liquid and fat as well), though it's rarely used by itself. Three large eggs seems to be the perfect amount for me. However, you can also use an egg replacement powder or other binding agents (like flax eggs) Ingredient #6 Is Fat: Bread does need a little fat, which is usually added in liquid form. Olive oil, vegetable oils, melted butter, or melted coconut oil will all work, so choose the one that's the best fit for your diet. Ingredient #7 Is Sugar: Sugar helps the yeast to grow and makes the crust more brown. If sugar is a problem for you, you can leave it out or use honey or agave nectar. If you leave the sugar out completely, the bread will rise more slowly, but it will still rise. So there you go: flour, liquid, salt, fat, yeast, binding agents, and sugar. That's not so hard, is it? You can do this! In the next chapter we'll talk about putting everything together and you'll be able to actually start making your own bread. 14 - Page
Gluten Free Bread In 3 Simple Steps Remember the 7 ingredients that make up gluten free bread? Say 'em with me: flour, liquid, salt, fat, yeast, binding agents, and sugar. In this chapter, I'm going to walk you through how these ingredients should be combined if you want to make delicious gluten free bread. There are three steps to baking bread. Only three - see this is NOT scary! In the first step you make the dough, then you let the dough rise, and then finally you bake the bread. Step 1 - Make the Dough - When you mix the dough, you should start by proofing the yeast. To proof the yeast, you gently stir the yeast and sugar into 1 cup (8 oz) warm water (make sure that it's between 105 and 115 F) and then let it sit. After several minutes the mixture should become bubbly/foamy. This indicates that the yeast is doing its thing. After your yeast is proofing, measure and mix the flours. I highly recommend using recipes that give the flour amounts by weight. Buy a digital scale and use it! Add the other dry ingredients (usually salt and any dry binding agents) to the flour. In a separate bowl, mix the eggs, oil, and any remaining liquids together. Finally, add the yeast/water mixture and the egg/oil mixture to the flour mixture. Mix it very well - at least 3 to 4 minutes with a mixer. In case I lost you there, you mix up the bread in 3 bowls. The first bowls contains one cup of water, the sugar and yeast. The flours and other dry ingredients go in the second bowl. Eggs, oil and any remaining liquid ingredients go in the third. Mix up each bowl separately, and then add the two bowls containing liquids to the bowl containing the flour. Now that everything is altogether mix it with a hand or stand mixer for a minimum of 3 to 4 minutes. 15 - Page
Step 2 - Let the Dough Rise - The Non-Scary Guide To Baking Gluten Free Bread To get ready for the 2nd step (dough rising), grease a loaf pan with some sort of solid fat (butter, shortening and solid coconut oil all work) or line it with parchment paper. Scoop the dough into the pan and set it in a warm place to rise. I like to set mine on the back of the stove with the oven turned on the lowest setting. Hot air from the oven vents near the back of the stove and creates a toasty place for the bread to rise. The dough needs to rise until it is near or even with the top of the pan. Don't let it get any higher than that. But if it does, stir the dough (which will cause it to fall) and let is rise to the top of the pan again. And pay attention this time =) The length of time required for step 2 will vary each time you bake bread because the rising time depends on the temperature of your home. Step 3 - Bake the Bread - The last step is to bake the bread. Be sure to preheat your oven to the temperature specified in the recipe. I like to put a baking stone in the oven when I preheat it. Then I place the loaf pan on top of the baking stone and the baking stone helps maintain the even temperature that the bread needs. (Modern ovens can be somewhat frenetic with their temperature regulation). Bake the bread until it reaches an internal temperature of 210 degrees. You'll need a thermometer to determine this. You can buy one at most grocery stores for a relatively low price and it takes all the guesswork out of determining whether the bread is done. After you take the bread out of the oven, remove the bread from a pan and let it sit on a cooling rack for at least 15 minutes before cutting. If you don't, you'll squoosh the bread when you cut it. That's it! That's gluten free bread baking in a nutshell. You can totally do this! Your assignment: If you've never baked a loaf of gluten free bread, then I want you to start this week. I've included a couple of recipes in in this ebook and I want you to bake one of them (or any other gluten free bread recipe that you've had your eye on). 16 - Page
The challenge for those of you who are already successfully baking gluten free bread is a little bit more difficult. Since you already know what your bread dough should look like, I want you to make your usual gluten free bread recipe, but using a different flour mix. You can make up a flour mix, or buy a packaged one. But, use the new flour mix and then add the liquid in the recipe gradually so that you can stop when you've added enough. Weigh the flours and liquid if you can, and see what the flour : liquid ratio is. If you have the time, go back and bake your usual gluten free bread too and weigh the flours and liquid for that as well. Now you have two flour:liquid ratio measurements. Give some thought to what those two measurements can tell you about the flours that you're using. 17 - Page
Baking Bread When You're Gluten Free + Before we get to the recipes, we're going to talk about baking bread when you have additional food intolerances in addition to gluten - intolerances such as corn, rice, xanthan gum, eggs, or dairy. Most gluten free bread recipes contain one or more of these ingredients, and I often hear from readers who are trying to find a bread recipe that works for their specific situation. If you have multiple food intolerances then you're not always going to be able to find the perfect recipe for your dietary needs. But I'm going to show you a strategy for taking a recipe and altering it so that it works for you. Once you've learned this strategy you can use it to make recipe alterations in all sorts of other recipes. Your imagination is the limit =) How To Adjust a Recipe To Work For You! Let's get started. You'll need the following items so that you can do the exercise along with me. Piece of paper Pen or pencil A gluten free bread recipe. You can use mine, or if you've found another GF bread recipe that is closer to meeting your dietary requirements, feel free to use that one. You'll also need your notes from the flour mix exercise where you listed the various components of gluten free bread. (It's back on page 8, if you skipped over it at first.)if you haven't done that exercise yet, you can either go back and do it, or use my notes which you can download in this handy PDF. Step 1: First, list the common ingredients in bread across the top of your page: flour, liquid, salt, fat, leaven, binding agents, and sugar. Now look at the gluten free bread recipe that you've chose and, underneath each heading, list the ingredients from the bread recipe that fall into each category. 18 - Page
Step 2: What you have before you is a bread formula. Unfortunately it's not a formula that works for you, so go through and circle or highlight the ingredients that are problematic for your diet. These are the ingredients for which we need to find suitable replacements. Step 3: Grab the list of ingredients that you made in the flour mix recipe assignment and look at the choices you have for replacing the problematic ingredient. You need to find a replacement ingredient that works for YOUR diet for each of the ingredients we circled above. Finding a suitable ingredient may take some research, especially if you're unfamiliar with some of the replacement options. And remember not all of the potential replacement ingredients are on this list. If you don't find something on there that works for you, open up your internet browser and do some research. Once you've found a potential replacement, write your new customized bread formula at the bottom of the page. Step 4: Now it's time to try the recipe. Just follow the instructions that came with the recipe, or the basic instructions that I gave you in 3 Simple Steps To Gluten Free Bread. Take good notes while you bake. Treat this as an experiment and document everything accordingly - mixing times, temperature, rising times, oven temperature, baking times, etc. Step 5: Now your bread is done and it's time to evaluate your results. Hopefully, it's wonderful. But even if it's not, finish up your notes by adding your observations of the final product. 19 - Page
Did you like the taste of the bread? Did you like the texture? Did the bread rise well? Did the crust brown? If something doesn't turn out how you like it, how do you know how to fix it? First, look back at your notes from the baking process and see if that gives you any clues. It may not at this point, but as you study bread making more, you may read through these notes later and see a connection between something that happened in the baking process and how the bread turned out. Second, spend some time studying the art and science of bread making. There are many variables in the process that can affect the results. Not all of the problems that you'll face can be blamed on the gluten free flours. Don't be overwhelmed. (I know it's overwhelming!!) Isolate one problem at time and explore that. If the bread is not rising well, start with that. Again, treat this like a science experiment, because that is what it is. Create an hypothesis about why the bread is not doing X. Find a solution to rectify that problem. Then, test your hypothesis. Keep taking good notes and documenting your results. This is a process, but you'll get there. Why am I not giving you all of the answers? You may be wondering why I don't just give you a recipe that will work for you. And the answer is that it would take many hours and many loaves of bread to develop and test gluten free bread recipes that covered the full range of possible food intolerances. When you add to that people's individual preferences for certain ingredients rather than others the task becomes practically impossible... for me. But it's not impossible for you to concoct your own customized bread recipe that works for your needs. In fact it's quite possible when you follow an organized strategy for developing that recipe. So that's what I've given you =) 20 - Page
Make Your Own Bread Mix The key to staying gluten free is to make being gluten free as easy and tasty as possible. One of my tricks is to keep a stash of gluten free bread mix in the freezer. It only takes 2 minutes to grab a bag of flour, mix in the liquid ingredients (handily noted on the bag), and pop the dough into the bread machine. Even better, my husband can do it too, so bread making is not "my" responsibility. (This only works if he remembers that you showed him the new stash of bread mix in the freezer!) I've talked a lot about the pros and cons of store-bought mixes. If you need the convenience of a mix, but for whatever reason cannot or do not want to use a store-bought mix, then this is a great way to make gluten free bread completely from scratch as quickly as you can make a storebought mix. Just set aside a few hours one day to prep the mixes, and then you'll be set for several weeks. And, if you're thinking that it would be easier to pick up a bag of bread mix at the store, you're probably right. But it wouldn't taste nearly as good, and that's more important than being easy. If you'd like to make your own stash, grab your favorite gluten free bread recipe and follow along. How to Make Homemade Bread Mix First, mix up a large batch of the main flours in your gluten free bread recipe. In this picture I'm making my gluten free flour mixbecause that's the main ingredient in my favorite gluten free bread recipe. The recipe calls for 2.5 cups of flour (or 12 oz), so I need to mix up 20 cups of flour mix (or 96 oz) in order to make 8 bags of bread mix. It takes a little bit of math to figure out how much of each flour to use. The ratio of flours in my bread mix is 3:3:2:1, so 9 parts in total. If I make 1 part = 5 oz, then the entire batch of flour will weigh 45 oz. Obviously, that's not enough. 21 - Page
Since 90 oz. of flour would not be quite enough either, I'll set 1 part to = 11 oz. Now, I can easily see that I'll need 33 oz of flour #1, 33 oz, of flour #2, 22 oz of flour #3, and 11 oz of flour #4 You can determine the ratio, by cup or weight, of any flour mix if you have the recipe for it. Then just use the mathematical exercise above to figure out how much of each flour you need to make a big batch. The math is much easier if you use weight measurements, and when you're working with this much flour it's just easier to weigh the flour than to try to remember how many cups of flour you're already measured out. I always lose count around the 5th cup! Now, measure enough flour for one loaf of bread into each plastic freezer bag. I used a quart size bag. My gluten free recipe calls for two and a half cups (12 oz) of my All Purpose Flour Mix, so I just measure that amount of flour into each bag. 22 - Page
Next, take each additional dry ingredient and add it to each bag. For example, I add 1 Tbsp of yeast to each bag, and then 3 tsp. of xanthan gum to each bag, and then the sugar, and then etc. It's very important to pay close attention during this step because it's really hard to tell the difference between 1 tsp. of xanthan gum in a bag and 2 tsp. of xanthan gum in a bag. (No need to ask how I know this!) Now you can close each bag, lay it flat, squeeze all of the air out and seal. The reason that you need to get most of the air out is that it makes it much easier to write the recipe on the bag. The bread mix will be in the freezer and should stay fresh for at least 6 months. Using a Sharpie, write the name of the recipe and the amounts for the wet ingredients on the bag. I love this part! If you do this, you won't have to find your recipe when it's time to make bread. Just add the ingredients that are listed on the bag! You can also write any additional directions, if you (or any other bakers) will need them. 23 - Page
Stack the bags in the freezer and forget about them till you need them. Be sure to tell everyone of baking age in your family about your stash, so that they can bake you bread in your time of need. (This is particularly handy if you've just had a baby or an illness in the family.) When you're ready to bake a loaf of bread use this homemade bread mix just like you would a store-bought mix. Add the liquid ingredients, mix the dough, let the dough rise, and then bake it. Or, just add follow your bread machine's instructions as to the order in which dry and wet ingredients should be added, set the machine and enjoy your gluten free bread a couple of hours later. - 24 - Page
It's Time To Bake A Loaf of Bread!!! Today's the day you've been waiting for. It's time to bake a loaf of gluten free bread! If your brain started making excuses after you read that last sentence, write down all of the reasons that your brain is saying you shouldn't bake a loaf of bread yet. If you don't have all of the equipment that you need, then make a plan to get that equipment. If you don't have all of the ingredients that you need, put them on your shopping list. Once you've taken care of all of the reasons that are not fear related, burn the list. Fear is not a good reason for not baking bread! Set Your Expectations The first thing that you need to know for today is..that you don't know everything about baking gluten free bread. And that's okay. You won't truly know how to bake bread until you've baked many loaves and messed up at least a few of them. I still mess up loaves of bread, because I'm still trying new things. So if today's bread doesn't come out just right, chalk it up to a learning experience. Start by reading through the recipe below, make any alterations that you have to for other food allergies/intolerances, and then bake a loaf of bread. Watch the dough carefully throughout the entire process. Take notes about what you observe; detail is good. These notes will be invaluable as you learn about baking bread and experiment with different bread recipes. Okay, enough talking! Time to get started. 25 - Page
Finally! Really Good Gluten Free Sandwich Bread The recipe for the flour mix is further down. INGREDIENTS: 1 Tbsp. bread machine yeast 1 Tbsp. sugar 12 oz. water (1.5 c) (105 degrees or a little less than hot) 11 oz. (approx 2.5 c) Gluten Free Cooking School's all-purpose gluten free flour mix 2 tsp. xanthan gum 1 tsp. salt 3 eggs (or 9 Tbsp. water and 3 Tbsp. ground flax seed) 1 ½ Tbsp. oil 1 tsp. cider vinegar INSTRUCTIONS 1. Start by combining the yeast and sugar in a small mixing bowl. Add the water while gently stirring the yeast and sugar. Let this mixture sit while you mix the rest of the ingredients bubbles and foam should form if the yeast is happy. 2. Combine the flour mix, xanthan gum and salt in the largest mixing bowl and stir well. 3. In a third bowl, whisk the eggs, oil and vinegar until the eggs are a bit frothy. By this point the yeast mixture should be foamy, so you can pour the two liquid mixtures into the flour mixture. Blend the dough with a mixer for 4 minutes. Bread Machine Directions: Scoop your dough into the bread machine and smooth the top of the dough. Bake the bread using the gluten free setting, or a setting that only uses one rise. Since your bread has already been mixed, you can leave the bread machine blade out. Conventional Oven Directions: Scoop the dough into a 10'' x 5 greased loaf pan. Allow the dough to rise in a warm area until is is about 1 inch from the top of the pan. Then bake at 375 degrees for 50 60 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the loaf is 209 degrees F (assuming low elevation). 26 - Page
Gluten Free Cooking School s Gluten Free All-Purpose Flour Mix This is the flour mix that I created when I first started seriously experimenting with gluten free baking and it's still my favorite. INGREDIENTS: 210 g (approx. 1.5 cups) brown rice flour 195 g (approx. 1.5 cups) corn starch or tapioca flour 110 g (approx. 1 cup) sorghum flour or garfava flour 55 g (approx. 1/2 cup) masa harina 27 - Page