gluten-free Flour Mixture "emergency"

[lonewolf]

I do a lot of baking at Christmas, but we're snowed in and I'm out of potato starch and tapioca starch to go with my brown rice flour. I have about 2-1/2 C of my normal flour mix, but I need 7 C for my gingerbread house recipe. I have brown rice flour, cornstarch, garbanzo flour and xanthan gum. I hesitate to use much garbanzo flour because the gingerbread is usually delicious and I'm afraid that the bean taste would come through.

Has anyone had any luck with rice flour and corn starch? Should a try a bit of bean flour too? Any advice?

[Slackermommy]

That is a tough one...only because you need so much flour. I might suggest making cookies instead and decorating those? A gingerbread house needs to stand, and I am not sure if you use mostly cornstarch and brown rice flour if that will work.

Let us know what happens, if you find that something works.

Good luck!!!!

[purple]

I think making gingerbread "people" cookies would be fun for a switch. Or cut your recipe in 1/2, add in your other flours to make 3 1/2 cups and make mini houses. You can frost them to a milk carton or other container if need be.

[JNBunnie1]

I do a lot of baking at Christmas, but we're snowed in and I'm out of potato starch and tapioca starch to go with my brown rice flour. I have about 2-1/2 C of my normal flour mix, but I need 7 C for my gingerbread house recipe. I have brown rice flour, cornstarch, garbanzo flour and xanthan gum. I hesitate to use much garbanzo flour because the gingerbread is usually delicious and I'm afraid that the bean taste would come through.

Has anyone had any luck with rice flour and corn starch? Should a try a bit of bean flour too? Any advice?

In most recipes, you can swap corn, potato, tapioca, and arrowroot starch one for one. Cornstarch is the most versatile, I think you'll be safe.

[lonewolf]

Thanks for the responses. There are some Christmas traditions that can't be broken and this is one of them. We always make a nice sized house and have some dough left over to make cookies to decorate. I think I might try to make a batch of cookies with the rice flour and corn starch first before I try making the house. I "glue" the pieces onto cardboard from cereal boxes (with icing) before putting the house together, so it doesn't have to be strong enough to stand on its own. And the roads are clearing a bit, so maybe I'll be able to get out before tonight and get some of the flours I need.

[JNBunnie1]

Thanks for the responses. There are some Christmas traditions that can't be broken and this is one of them. We always make a nice sized house and have some dough left over to make cookies to decorate. I think I might try to make a batch of cookies with the rice flour and corn starch first before I try making the house. I "glue" the pieces onto cardboard from cereal boxes (with icing) before putting the house together, so it doesn't have to be strong enough to stand on its own. And the roads are clearing a bit, so maybe I'll be able to get out before tonight and get some of the flours I need.

I say try it with the corn starch, you might be pleasantly surprised. Of course, the more different flours the better.

[Takala]

Do you have any nuts you can run thru the blender to make nut meal ? I almost always put some in any baking I do, and I keep bags of almonds in the fridge for this. Otherwise the rice with the cornstarch should work fine as long as you add the xanthan gum. I'm not a supertaster so I don't get any bitter taste with bean flour, but if you do add any, make it a small amount. It might work because gingerbread is so intensely flavored.

Another thing you could do, if you have any potatoes around, is cook some and mash them and add them to the dough as a substitute for potato flour.