Your Favorite Flour Blends

[Worriedtodeath]

OKay!!!!! I'm venturing into the make your own flour blend and cook with it. What is your favorite flour mix from scratch and what products do you use it to make??? I like premixes but so far most of them are really expensive and I think if I knew what made a great mix, I could figure out a way to make them much cheaper.

So far we love love love Pamela's pancake mix and would love to mix that from scratch. we can't have dairy anymore(we hated Namaste pancake mix) We like Namaste pizza mix and probably will continue to get that for pizza but would love to experiment with my own mix.

Used the gluten free pantry mix last night to fry with and that was pretty darn good!!!

But again the price I pay for those little bitty bags makes the cheap grocery shopper in me cringe!!!! So I think making up the mixes might be cheaper. At least I would like to see if it is but I still don't have a handle on all these non wheat flours. LIke what is the taste diffirence between sweet brown rice, white rice, and brown rice??? Potato starch and Potato flour?? Obviously Namaste and Pamelas are widely diffirent in ingredients because they tasted so different but I don't know enough to know what flour made the difference.

Anybody have a favorite recipe to use?? And what do you think it cost vs buying premade??

Thanks

Stacie

[RiceGuy]

Well, my first suggestion is to forget rice flour, accept maybe some sweet white rice flour, to use when you need a starchy flour in the mix. I found rice flours to generally be gritty compared to just about all others I've tried. The milling process has a lot to do with it, but even the best of the rice flours I tried aren't as good as the other types of flours I've been using. I do not notice any grittiness in any of the flours I use now.

Here is a list of a bunch of different flours:

Open Original Shared Link

I have never used a mix, so I don't know how they compare to what I've been using, nor do I know what sort of texture you prefer for a given type of thing. What I did was to try all the different kinds that I could, in a variety of blends. That way I'd know first hand what to use where. Buckwheat, millet and/or sorghum are my main ones for breads, though soy can help lighten things up, along with some of the more starchy types. Some bean flours work too, but it depends on the texture I'm looking for.

I started out by making a small amount of a blend. Like just enough for a small lump of dough. That way if it failed, I wouldn't be stuck with a big icky thing. I wrote down every blend, and made detailed notes of how it turned out. With each successive trial, I tweaked the recipe in whatever direction seemed logical, until I narrowed it down.

I think I'd suggest looking at the ingredients of a mix you like, look up the flours, and experiment with a few blend ratios. The bread recipes link on the left side of this page can help give you an idea of where to start with a ratio. This is what I used for a starting point. Also don't forget the guar or xanthan gum, where applicable.

Have fun, and let us know what happens!

[maddycat]

I found that the easiest way to try out some new flour blends and to start baking from "scratch" for me, was to get a few gluten free cook books. The two that I have used and like are Betty Hagman's, The Gluten Free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Foods and Jules E. D. Shephard's, Nearly Normal Cooking for Gluten Free Eating. Each of the books has their own "flour blends" that they use in the recipes in the book. I found that the Nearly Normal Cooking book to be easier to use as a beginner as there is only one flour blend that is needed for all of the recipes. It is fun to start experimenting!

Good Luck!

Marcia

[JennyC]

I make my own flour mix that I use in pretty much everything, except yeast bread. I think it's the feather light mix, but I'm nut sure.

1 cup corn starch

1 cup rice flour

1 cup tapioca flour

1 TBSP potato flour (I suspect this is optional. When I run out I'm not buying more.)

[dbmamaz]

I picked up a book called gluten -free baking basics, and she has several different mixes. However, I found I cannot tolerate tapioca, so I have to substitute something out for that. She recomends Authentic Foods superfine brown rice flour - i 'invested' in one bag from Amazon, but the shipping is more than the flour You can also get fine-ground rice flour at an asian market.

Now, I was so frustrated with all the flours and how hard it was to figure them out, that I finally did a test. I put together some sweetened rice milk and an egg, and then I mixed 1-2 TB of a single flour w enough liquid to make a crepe. I made a crepe with each flour I had and tasted it and took notes. That way, I had a better sense of what flavor and texture each one gives - at least to a pancake.

I believe there is a whole section on celiac.com articles about different flour blend recipes.

Good luck and happy cooking!

[PatBrown]

I love Jules Shepards flour blend.(recipe in her book).

[Jo Ann]

I find that it's good to keep an assortment of gluten-free flours on hand and mix as the individual recipe directs. Asian/Oriental markets have very finely ground rice flours, potato starch, tapioca starch, etc. They are also more reasonably priced. Many supermarkets are carrying gluten-free flours/products in the healthy nutrition section (i.e. Bob's Red Mill products). I use his sorghum and garfava flour, flaxmeal, and xanthan gum. If you want to use brown rice flour for the nutrition, Authentic Foods has the best because it is very finely ground. Check out the posts in this forum to find some good recipes (i.e. Flax Bread and French Bread). Go to the library and get some gluten-free cookbooks. I've invested in several, but only really like a few from each book. You can try the recipes in the library books and copy the ones you like. If you have any special questions, ask this forum and someone will be able to help you. I've been baking/cooking for our 15 yo grandson for 14 years and am still learning. There is so much more available today than when he was diagnosed at 9 mos. Some mixes are good, but are expensive. We like Pamela's mix, especially for chocolate chip cookies, and buy it in the large bag. Don't give up; we all feel a little overwhelmed at first, but it does get much easier. Good luck!

[mamasaidso]

Today I went through all my white rice flour, made two loaves of bread that went into trash, used six extra large eggs and pretty much my whole day and still didn't come up with a loaf of edible bread. Pamela's is great, but I am looking for a loaf of white bread that tastes like white bread. So far, I am very frustrated and wondering how I should approach this bread making. I would like a flour blend that I can have made up on those busy days when there just isn't much time. My daughter loves a peanut butter sandwich as she is flying out the door for college classes and I would love a slice of white bread in toaster with butter and jam. Please help me find a solution to this. I am so frustrated right now. I have heard pros and cons on Betty Hagman. Don't really like bean flour bread and trying to keep this as simple as possible. My daughter just had her gall bladder out and going easy on the fiber right now til she heals. We are recently diagnosed for celiac and trying to stay on gluten free diet, but this bread issue is a tough one. I know we will get there. Thank goodness for you all and your support.

[Darn210]

I use Annalise Robert's flour blend. It uses the Authentic foods superfine ground brown rice flour. It's expensive but now that I've tried it, I won't go back. The shipping is outrageous but they do have some stores that carry it. I'm lucky to have a store not too far away so that I don't have to pay shipping.

6 cups superfine ground brown rice flour

2 cups potato starch

1 cup tapioca flour/starch

I use this for EVERYTHING except for bread.

I also use one of her flour blends for bread which has Millet flour, Sorghum flour, Corn starch, Potato Starch and Tapioca flour/starch. This has a pretty good flavor. I did not care for the bean flours in a bread. I also did not care for the rice flours in a bread.

Here's a list of the retail stores that sell Authentic food items:

Open Original Shared Link

[Jo Ann]

Mamasaidso,

Don't give up! One of the best white bread recipes we've found is posted under Fabulous French Bread on this site. It's a Bette Hagman recipe and can be found in her "More from the Gluten Free Gourmet". I did not have much luck with her other bread recipes, but this one has been great both times I made it. I don't have a French bread pan and make it in a regular 9x5 loaf pan letting it rise to the top of the pan and baking it about 55-60 minutes (covering it with aluminum foil once the top gets brown). Our grandson is 15 and thinks all bread should be white. Another good recipe I found on this website is posted under Most Delicious Bread I've Ever Made. It is a flaxseed bread and can be found at:

hhtp:www://recipezaar.com/19096

This is more nutritious and makes a whole wheat-like bread. Breads seem to be the hardest to make with the gluten-free flours, but more good bakers are coming up with more good recipes. Good luck!

[BIZABET]

I've been using B. Hagman's 4 flour bean mix for all my cake and cookies recipes. The basic recipe is 1 part Sorghum flour 2 parts Garfava and 3 parts each tapioca and cornstarch. The x gum is adjusted based on the recipe. I still have to adjust the recipe--usually adding a couple of teaspoons of dried egg white, and maybe a pinch extra leavening. You may also need to reduce any liquid. I've found that unlike wheat flours, which you spoon lightly into the cup and level off, this stuff clumps and leaves air gaps--meaning there's actually less flour in the cup than you think, so I tap it a bit to settle the flour into the cup before leveling. Bread recipes are another animal. Maybe a different world completely (there's a bread recipe just posted on this site a few days ago that everyone is raving about) I"m still working on a loaf that has some spring, raises to a height suitable for sandwiches and doesn't require a chemistry degree to make. My poor mother is having a time of changing 60 years of baking habits. She has a tendency to leave out things or change proportions based on how a wheat flour would react and to quote dad, she makes a lot of doorstops.

And yes, bought mixes are outrageous.

[Darn210]

And yes, bought mixes are outrageous.

Agreed . . . but . . . just recently, I figured out how much I was spending to make a "Pamela's pancake" knock-off versus buying in bulk through amazon. Cost-wise, I think it'll be cheaper for me to buy it there - unless I was willing to buy ALL the ingredients in the recipe in bulk and I'm not willing to do that!! Plus, I like the way the real Pamela's handles versus my knock off recipe. So just keep in mind that buying in bulk can save you a lot of money if you've got the space for it. And certainly don't do it until you know if you like the product or not.

[ChicoYaYa]

I realize not everyone will think this is a great solution, but I decided I didn't like the cost of those little bags of specialty flours, coupled with the fact that I could not know how long they had been sitting on the shelf. So, I bought a new grain mill from BlendTec and some sorghum, buckwheat, and quinoa from AzureStandard.com. (Already have millet, rice, amaranth on hand.)

I have been making a blend of:

2 cups sorghum

2 cups quinoa

1 cup rice

1 cup millet

1 cup amaranth

1 cup buckwheat

The fresh flour has a pleasant smell, and makes me eager to bake. I like having it all premixed because I think having the various little bags in my freezer is a nuisance. So far, I have used it successfully for muffins, pancakes, cookies, brownies, and cornbread.

I have tried the bean blends and other than pizza dough, did not care much for the slight beany taste coming through to my baked goods.

I also do put a small amount of coconut flour in my pancake mix, along with ground flaxseed and ground chia seed, more for the nutritional value they add, but it also thickens the batter if you let it set for a minute or so.

[CarolX]

I use this mix for all my baking - I think it is a modification of someother mixes I found.

1 lb rice flour

1lb tapioca flour

1 lb bean flour

1 lb cornstarch

4 packages of unflavored gelatin

I also find that doubling the eggs give a better texture to the recipes.

Hope this helps.