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Celiac.com 11/19/2022 - Gluten-free bread making the first few times is an incredibly frustrating experience that begs the question—is it really worth it? After my many trials I must say—yes it is definitely worth it! We are now able to make excellent bread that we can all enjoy. Being able to make bread allows my kids to take a sandwich to school, the fact that the bread is good (and looks good) is equally important to them. Since they cannot eat the hot lunch at school due to its “gluten in every bite” nature, it is important to have the option of sending a sandwich the children like (and will eat). Other kids taste the bread and like it, and say hey this gluten-free diet is pretty good! The benefits to these exchanges are priceless. It took awhile to get to this point but one day I was lucky enough to meet Lee Tobin. He gave me a recipe (originally developed by Barbara Emch) and I had success! I then began to shape this recipe to accommodate the various alternative flours stocked in my pantry. The recipe is fool-proof and it tastes great—especially with teff, amaranth, or buckwheat flour. In this class you will learn how to make a perfect loaf of bread. I will review alternative flours and why I use them. You will learn the tricks for successful gluten-free bread making, and how to change the template recipe for your own specific needs. Why Use Alternative Flours? My experience has been that these flours simply make superior gluten-free bread. Additionally, many celiacs struggle with weight gain after diagnosis and find their diet may lack important nutrients. As you adjust to the gluten-free diet it is a good time to understand how your body uses the food you eat. Simple carbohydrates are quickly digested and are broken down into simple sugar glucose. When the cells in your body need fuel they use this glucose. Extra glucose is converted into glycogen. If your body already has enough glycogen stored up, the glucose is turned into fat. The typical American diet is overloaded with simple carbohydrates and the celiac diet is no exception. Complex carbohydrates not only take longer to digest but they provide slow consistent energy. You feel full longer and your body doesn’t feel the wide fluctuations of blood sugar swings. Beans, whole grains, nut butters, oatmeal, soy, sweet potatoes, and vegetables are complex carbohydrates. They provide needed vitamins, minerals, fiber, and consistent energy. Many celiacs lack B vitamins, calcium, iron, and other nutrients—why not get them from your baked goods and reap the benefits of complex carbohydrates? We try to incorporate the alternative flours in most of our baking. When making sweet breads, cookies, bread, pizza crust, biscuits, and bread sticks I try to substitute about 1⁄2 of the flour called for in a recipe with a healthier alternative flour. Our favorites are teff, amaranth, brown rice, and buckwheat. Quinoa and millet flours can be substituted in the same fashion. Be sure you buy from manufacturers who provide pure, gluten-free flour— from the field all the way to the package. In our family we treat corn, carrots, potatoes, and white rice as if they were sweets (i.e. sugar = excess weight gain). They are all simple carbohydrates as are most of the products made from them (chips, cereal, snacks). Here is a quick overview of the various healthy gluten-free flours and their attributes: Amaranth contains more calcium, folic acid, Vitamin A, C, and E than most grains. The flavor is similar to that of graham crackers without the sweetness. Bean Flour is a light flour made from garbanzo and broad beans. Brown Rice Flour is milled from unpolished brown rice, and has a higher nutrient value than white rice flour. Much higher than white rice in protein, fiber, zinc, folic acid, B vitamins, calcium and vitamin E (15 times the vitamin E as white rice). Buckwheat is the seed of a plant related to rhubarb. It is high in fiber, iron, and B vitamins, and is great in many baked goods including pancakes and waffles. Millet is a small round grain that is a major food source in Asia, North Africa, and India, and is a rich source of B vitamins. Nut Flours are high in protein and, used in small portions, enhance the taste of many baked goods. Finely ground nuts added to a recipe increases the protein content and allows for a better rise. It is a great substitute for non-fat dry milk powder in gluten-free recipes. Quinoa (keen-wah), a staple food of the Incas, is a complete protein containing all 8 amino acids as well as a fair amount of calcium and iron. It is high in some B vitamins and folic acid. Soy Flour has a nutty flavor, and is high in protein and fat. Teff is always manufactured as a whole-grain flour, since it is difficult to sift or separate. It is a good source of protein, calcium, iron, fiber, and B vitamins. The changeable elements in the recipe are: Eggs: If you cannot tolerate eggs use Egg Replacer from Ener-G Foods (see also: flax seed egg replacer in section below) and be sure to use the almond flour instead of the non-fat, dry milk powder. The almond flour adds a great deal of flavor which could be helpful when you can’t use eggs. If you read the nutritional label for almond flour it might scare you as the grams of fat are high, remember this is good fat and there is fiber—both of which slow down sugar absorption in your body, which in turn helps control weight gain. The dry milk powder is high in sugar. Oil: Vegetable oil is typically soybean oil and some people are sensitive to canola oil so safflower oil is a good alternative. Sugar: Try turbinado sugar, a raw sugar that has been steam-cleaned. It has a delicate molasses flavor. Flour: Four cups of flour are in the recipe. The proportions of flours used can be changed around until you find what is right for you. Dry Milk Powder: As seen above in the eggs section I now prefer to use almond flour instead of dry milk powder. The bread turns out much more flavorful and has a wonderful texture. Flax Seed: This seed has many health benefits such as high-quality protein, fiber, B and C vitamins, iron, and zinc, anti-cancer properties, omega-3 fatty acids, and many other benefits. To use as an egg substitute grind 2 tablespoons flaxseed and add 6 tablespoons boiling water, let set for 15 minutes then whisk with a fork—this mixture will replace 2 eggs in a recipe. A clean coffee grinder works well to grind the small flaxseed. Cookware: It’s a good idea to have the proper cookware in your kitchen. You must have a heavy-duty stand mixer like the Kitchenaid mixer, as it will properly aerate the batter, producing a lighter bread with a fine crumb and more height. You should also have a good quality loaf pan. Temperature: In addition to knowing your oven temperature (buy a cheap oven thermometer), realize that when the temperature of your home is warm, bread will rise quicker. Humidity: Gluten-free flour absorbs moisture from the air so be sure to keep it sealed in its packaging and tightly cover any mixing bowls rather than allowing them to sit uncovered for any period of time. The moisture the flour absorbs from the air will affect your recipe. Amaranth Bread Recipe Makes one loaf. Feel free to substitute the amaranth flour with teff, buckwheat, or quinoa flour. Ingredients: 3 large eggs (egg-free option see note below) 1⁄4 cup vegetable oil 1 teaspoon lemon juice 1½ cups amaranth flour 1½ cups tapioca starch flour 1 cup fine brown rice flour 2/3 cup instant non-fat dry milk powder (dairy-free: substitute with finely ground nuts or almond flour) 2 teaspoons xanthan gum 1 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons ground flax seed (optional) 1½ tablespoons active dry yeast 4 tablespoons sugar 1 1⁄4 cups warm water (105F-115F.) Directions: Bring all refrigerated ingredients to room temperature. Grease a 5 x 9-inch loaf pan. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine eggs, oil, and lemon juice. In a separate medium bowl, combine flours, dry milk powder, xanthan gum, salt, flax seed, yeast and sugar. Pour 1⁄2 of the warm water into stand mixer and blend with egg mixture. Slowly add dry ingredients a little at a time until completely incorporated. Add remaining water, reserving some water if necessary. See note on humidity below. Mix batter on high speed for 31⁄2 minutes, then pour into prepared pan. Batter will be thicker than a cake batter and nothing like the consistency of regular bread dough. Cover bread with foil and place in a cold oven. Set a pan of hot water on a lower shelf underneath the bread. Leave for 10 minutes with oven door closed. (This will cause the bread to rise quickly). Remove bread from oven (do not uncover) and place in a warm place in the kitchen. Preheat oven to 400F. Bread will continue to rise as oven preheats. Uncover bread and bake for 10 minutes to brown the top. Cover bread with foil and continue to bake bread for 35-40 minutes. Turn bread out onto a cooling rack. When completely cooled, wrap tightly to maintain freshness for as long as possible. Tips: If humidity is high, reduce the amount of water in the recipe to avoid over-rising. Many gluten-free bakers experience the frustrating situation in which a beautiful loaf of bread deflates once removed from the oven. You will need to experiment a little to get just the right amount of water in your bread depending on the humidity in the air. If in question, use less water than the recipe calls for. You may use rapid rise yeast instead of regular yeast. If doing so, eliminate the cold oven rise method with a pan of hot water and follow yeast package directions instead for rise time. Hamburger Buns: Pour batter into English muffin rings, follow directions above. Bake for just 15 minutes. Once completely cooled these buns freeze well. Serve buns warmed, otherwise they will be crumbly. Egg Substitution: Grind 3 tablespoons flaxseed and add 1⁄2 cup + 1 tablespoon boiling water, let set for 15 minutes then whisk with a fork.

Celiac.com 12/25/2020 - When you think about it, most cultures have some kind of wrap or tortilla. The Mexicans and Brazilians offer corn tortillas, Thailand has a rice tortilla, China has wheat tortillas for Moo Shu, the French have crepes and Socca made from chickpea flour. Ethiopians have teff tortillas. Nepalese have chappatis made from amaranth flour. Thank heaven, here in America there are gluten-free tortillas we can buy off-the-shelf. Candy’s Corn tortillas and Food for Life rice tortillas are gluten-free staple foods in my kitchen, but there is nothing more comforting than a homemade tortilla. The gluten-free world needs its own tortilla! Let’s call our tortilla the “Alternative” tortilla, to signify a gluten-free safe-to-eat tortilla. This may catch on—imagine going into Chipotle and saying, “I’ll have mine on the “Alternative”… While exhibiting at gluten-free conferences this past year numerous people asked me if I could offer a recipe for a tortilla. Some seemed a bit intimidated about making a tortilla, so I hope this article will diminish all fears and equip you with tortilla techniques to help you feel empowered not only to make the recipe provided below, but to expand, experiment and customize your own recipes. Tortilla Ratio If you’d rather eat a bug than cook, making tortillas is for you! The standard process is simple. Mix together liquid, flour and salt into a ball. Roll it or press it into a round, flat tortilla and cook it. The ratio is simple too: 2 cups flour 1 cup liquid 3 Tablespoons oil It’s just a little different for gluten-free. Since we don’t have gluten—an elastic-like protein to hold everything together, we add xanthan gum. Optionally, if you want a more puffy tortilla, you can add baking powder. With gluten free baking in general, it’s best to use a combination of flours, but since tortillas are “flat bread” most gluten-free flours will work fine by themselves. On the other hand, using several different flours boosts taste and nutrition. I prefer to make mine with mostly whole grains such as sorghum, brown rice, amaranth, quinoa, buckwheat, millet or teff flour. If you know you are going to need 2 cups of flour, think of one as the stabilizer and the others as enhancers. The stabilizer should represent 50% of the flour in the recipe. Sorghum and rice flour are the two most common stabilizer flours. Sorghum flour yields a smooth, light texture whereas rice flour is coarser. I love the texture of baked items made with both. The other flours you choose can make a dramatic difference in the outcome. Enhancer flours make up the other 50% and include teff, amaranth, nut meal, bean flour, starchy flours or quinoa. These can be mixed and matched—25% of one, 25% of another. Alternative Flours Sorghum flour is the workhorse of gluten-free baking. I think of it as the primary flour for most baked goods and build around it. Brown Rice Flour is the other workhorse / stabilizer flour. It is considered a whole grain. Some manufacturers grind whole grain rice flour more finely. For example, Authentic Food’s brown rice flour yields an item with a smoother texture than Bob’s Red Mill’s brown rice flour. Both are good, depending on the outcome you desire. Teff is considered one of the highest protein grains. It is high in fiber and carbohydrates. Considering that the world’s best marathon runners come from Ethopia and their staple grain is teff, athletes would be well-advised to incorporate teff into their diets. Amaranth and Quinoa flour can be dry-toasted in a pan which adds a nutty taste to the tortilla. Just add the flour to a sauce pan and turn the heat on medium/high. Keep the flour moving until it turns brown. Cool and use in the recipe. Buckwheat, in spite of its name is not derived from wheat. It adds a distinctive taste and light texture to baked goods. Tapioca Flour is made from my favorite root—the yuca root or cassava plant. It enhances elasticity when added to the flour mix. Potato Flour is very starchy and will make the final product lighter. Nut Meal adds texture and protein. Nuts can be ground coarsely or finely depending on your taste. Some easy-to-find nut meals include almond meal and hazelnut meal. If you have a food processor, you can grind your own. Just don’t add oil or liquid, or you’ll end up with nut butter! (If this happens, add salt and enjoy it on a tortilla!) Corn Flour comes in several different varieties. Masa Harina is corn processed with lime, ground finely and commonly used for tortillas. A more coarse grind is corn meal, and the most coarsely ground is polenta. I wouldn’t recommend using polenta for corn tortillas because the texture is too coarse, but cornmeal works well. Bean Flours add lots of protein and make the final product a bit lighter. Try garbanzo, fava, navy or pinto bean flour in your tortillas. Liquids Most people use water when making tortillas, and that is perfectly fine—but you could be creative with the liquid too and make some interesting compliments to your food. For example, if you plan to stuff them with roasted vegetables, consider using vegetable juice for the liquid. Herb teas or broths are other liquids to consider. Tortilla Techniques Most traditional tortilla recipes call for lard or saturated fat. Substituting oil means the preparation is a little different. Use warm water, and mix the water and the oil together separately. Then combine the water/oil mixture with the flour and salt. Then, with a whisk, incorporate the water and flour mixtures. Oiling your hands before forming the balls keeps the moisture in the dry, gluten-free dough. Let the dough balls rest a few minutes. This yields a lighter product. A tortilla press is a true kitchen marvel. Corn tortillas are usually pressed in a tortilla press, and wheat flour-based tortillas are usually rolled with a rolling pin. That is because the gluten in wheat flour is more resistant to pressing. Gluten-free flour tortillas work well in a tortilla press. If you have one, place plastic wrap on the top and bottom plates of the press. Place the ball off center toward the hinge and press until the dough reaches the outside of the press. Transport the dough on the plastic wrap to the griddle. If you use a rolling pin, oil it before rolling out the dough. It is preferable to cook tortillas on a cast iron tortilla griddle because they hold the heat, but any frying pan will work too. Press the tortilla while it is cooking with a pancake turner. Flip it once and cook the other side. My upcoming book Delicious Delightful Delicacies—GFCF BAKING Cookbook, is a baking primer covering all types of baked goods including many easy-to make tortillas, packed with flavor. Tortillas can be stuffed with savory beans, fresh or roasted vegetables and topped with fresh chopped salsa or eaten plain as a snack. Making fresh tortillas is something your whole family can enjoy doing together. Alternative Flour Tortillas Reprinted from Delicious Delightful Delicacies, by Jean Duane. Ingredients: 1 cup brown rice flour ½ cup sorghum flour ½ cup tapioca flour 2 tsp. xanthan gum 1 tsp. salt 1 cup warm water 3 TBS sunflower or olive oil Directions: Whisk together the flours, baking power, salt and xanthan gum. Separately mix water, and oil together, then add to the flour mixture. Mix with hands or a pastry whisk until incorporated. Oil hands and form dough into 8 “golf balls”. Place plastic wrap over the bottom of a tortilla press and put a ball of dough on the plastic wrap. Place another piece of plastic wrap on top of the dough, and slowly press the tortilla with the press until it is flattened. (Or, roll the dough out on waxed paper with an oiled rolling pin.) Heat an oiled cast iron pan or griddle and place the tortilla on it. Press it while it is cooking. When browned, turn and cook the other side. Place in a tortilla warmer until ready to serve.

Celiac.com 01/17/2020 - What's fonio and why is it set to take the gluten-free world by storm? In West Africa, fonio is well-known for its great taste and dish nutritional profile. In addition to being a nutritious and great tasting, fonio is a versatile and highly sustainable crop. Fonio does well in dry areas, has low water needs, and grows well without pesticides. Fonio is rich in fiber, protein, amino acids, B vitamins, zinc and magnesium. With its slightly nutty flavor, fonio makes good gluten-free flour and can be used in many baking applications. It also be eaten alone like couscous or quinoa. Outside of Africa, however, fonio is virtually unknown. Among those who do know it, it has a reputation as a difficult grain to harvest. Grown only in the Sahel region of Africa — a narrow belt that runs south of the Sahara and north of the savannah from the Atlantic Ocean to the Red Sea, fonio has never been formally cultivated, and is uncommon outside of that region. That's set to change. Once a new state-of-the-art processing plant in Senegal in West Africa, coupled with a pasteurization and quality control plant in North Dakota are in operation, annual exports of fonio could quickly climb to thousands of tons, says Peter Carlson, director of Terra Ingredients, a leader in commercial ingredients made from organic and non-GMO grains, pulses and other plants. With processing facilities in the United States, and markets on six continents. Currently, only a few small companies export fonio, which means the price remains high. A company called Yolélé Foods sells three 10-ounce bags of fonio grain on Amazon for $19.95. Carlson says that once he learned about fonio, the decision to incorporate the grain into their company offerings was simple. Doing it at scale means the price could come down quickly, as supplies rise. Terra Ingredients has been working with a women's co-op, which processes small quantities of fonio by hand. Currently, hand processing takes nearly one-hundred women working full-time two weeks to fill a single commercial barrel with fonio. Soon, however, the fonio will be processed mechanically, while the women will perform other roles in the company, including liaising with growers, ensuring quality, and overseeing some of the processing work. Even though fonio is gluten-free, Carlson points out that fonio is not a niche product. "I think I keep going back to the taste, because that's what we hear from so many people." Carlson said. Because of fonio's great taste, he expects the non-gluten-free market to be big. If you're looking for a tasty, nutritious new gluten-free grain to round out your celiac disease diet, keep your eye out fonio at a store near you. Read more about fonio at FoodDive.com

Celiac.com 05/22/2017 - After their seven-month-old baby died weighing less than 10 pounds, a mother and father in Beveren, Belgium, are standing trial on charges that they starved the child by negligently providing an alternative gluten-free diet, with no medical supervision. The couple, who ran a natural food store, put their son Lucas on an alternative gluten-free, lactose-free diet, which included quinoa milk, despite doctors describing it as unsuitable for developing infants. According to child gastroenterologist Elisabeth De Greef, from the University Hospital of Brussels, feeding quinoa milk and other such foods to infants is absolutely wrong. She says that "These kinds of milk, which you can buy in a supermarket, do not contain the necessary proteins, minerals and vitamins. They are not adjusted to infants and thus unsuitable." Lucas' mother said in a statement that "Lucas had an eating disorder. He got cramps when he was fed with a bottle and his parents tried out alternatives. Oat milk, rice milk, buckwheat milk, semolina milk, quinoa milk." These are all products the couple sold at their store. At the beginning of the trial, public prosecutors blamed the couple for their son's death. Prosecutors claim that the couple made their "own diagnosis that their child was gluten intolerant and had a lactose allergy," without any input from doctors. In fact, prosecutors allege that the couple kept the child away from doctors altogether. "Not a single doctor had a dossier about Lucas and child protection services did not know about them," said the public prosecutor. The infant's diet, said prosecutors, "led to him being less than half the expected weight for a boy his age," at the time of his death in June 6, 2014. An autopsy showed that Lucas' stomach was totally empty at the time of his death. Prosecutors say the parents did not seek medical attention, even when Lucas was gasping for air in the days before he died. When Lucas was in the final throes of starvation, and the parents finally did take action, prosecutors say that they compounded the child's medical crisis by driving to a homeopathic doctor on the other side of the country, instead of going to the nearest hospital. In their defense, Lucas's father, claimed the couple never took Lucas to a doctor "because we never noticed anything unusual." In fact, the parents believed Lucas had an eating problem, says the couple's lawyer. Under questioning, Lucas' tearful mother said that the couple never "wished for the death of our son." She also stated that Lucas ometimes…gained a little weight, sometimes he lost a little." Yet according the public prosecutor the actions by the couple amount to "intentionally denying food" to the boy. For now, the trial in this tragic case continues, with a verdict set for June 14. Read more: Metro.co.uk

Celiac.com 03/17/2017 - Want a super healthy gluten-free alternative to grain flour that is packed with natural fiber and protein, and tastes great? There is power in coconut flour! The amazing benefits of coconut products are astonishing and coconut flour is so versatile. It can be used to cook or bake or even to thicken sauces and gravies! Coconut flour is naturally gluten-free and considered hypoallergenic. It contains the highest amount of dietary fiber found in any flour! According to the Livestrong article by Jane Jester Hebert, one quarter cup of coconut flour is equal to about 14g of fiber! An adequate amount of fiber is essential in a healthy diet to promote a healthy digestive tract. It also lowers your risk of heart disease and diabetes, and helps you to maintain a healthy weight. Coconut flour is rich in lauric acid which promotes good skin health and manganese which is an essential trace mineral used in the body for energy production. It is also low in carbohydrates and low on the glycemic index making it a great choice for diabetics and people wanting to maintain a healthy blood sugar level. Coconut flour is a good source of coconut oil which also has amazing benefits such as being antiviral, antifungal, antimicrobial, antibacterial and antiparasitic. Coconut products are so healing that according to a Natural News article by Megan Rostollan, the Pacific Islanders are calling coconut the "Tree of Life" and believe it can heal almost any illness. She goes on to say that, "In many traditional cultures around the world the coconut has been used to heal: abscesses, asthma, baldness, bronchitis, bruises, burns, colds, constipation, cough, dropsy, dysentery, earache, fever, flu, gingivitis, gonorrhea, irregular or painful menstruation, jaundice, kidney stones, lice, malnutrition, nausea, rash, scabies, scurvy, skin infections, sore throat, swelling, syphilis, toothache, tuberculosis, tumors, typhoid, ulcers, upset stomach, weakness, and wounds." (1) What is coconut flour, you may be wondering? Coconut flour is the natural byproduct in coconut milk production. The coconut meat left over is dried at a low temperature and then ground up to make soft powdery flour, similar to wheat flour in texture; however, it does require special techniques in order to yield success. For example, you cannot substitute the same amount of coconut flour for wheat flour. Coconut flour is super absorbent and can produce a very dry end result when not properly paired with the right amount of liquid or binder such as eggs. When starting out with coconut flour it is best to strictly follow a tried and true recipe to yield good results. Above is a favorite shared by Megan Rostollan! As you can see, with the vast and amazing benefits of coconut flour and coconut products, and being naturally gluten-free, you can definitely indulge and, "have your cake and eat it too!" Lemon-Coconut Pound Cake by Megan Rostollan Ingredients: 3/4 c. organic coconut flour 1 tsp aluminum free baking powder 3 tbsp xylitol, divided 1/2 tsp sea salt 6 pastured eggs 8-10 tbsp organic butter, softened 3 droppers full of liquid stevia 2 organic lemons (juice and zest) Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease an 8X4 loaf pan and set aside. Sift together dry ingredients (2 tbsp xylitol). Zest and juice lemons. Whisk together eggs, butter, lemon juice, stevia, and zest. Combine wet and dry ingredients, whisking until smooth (batter will become quite thick - if too thick to combine well, add a little water). Spread in pre-prepared pan with hands or spoon as needed, sprinkle with remaining xylitol and bake for 40 minutes. References: naturalnews.com livestrong.com

Celiac.com 11/01/2016 - Is flour made from mangoes the hot new gluten-free alternative to wheat flour? A Filipino pastry chain is hoping to woo health-conscious consumers with their gluten-free flour made from mangoes. You heard right. Flour from mangoes. Philippine-based bread and pastry chain, Magic Melt Foods Inc., is introducing a gluten-free product line they hope will appeal to people with celiac disease, and with growing numbers of nutritious-minded consumers. Magic Melt's "healthilicious" mango flour is milled from mango peel and mango seeds, instead of wheat. Based in Cebu, Philippines, Green Enviro Management Systems Inc., manufactures and holds the patent for mango flour. The company's product as gained attention from far and wide, and recently drew a visit from government officials of Johannesberg in South Africa, who sent workers to learn the process. Like many gluten-free flours, mango flour lack the stickiness common to gluten flours. To work around that, the company turned to egg whites and other "healthy" alternatives. The resulting mango flour is suitable for some muffins, bread, energy bars, and sandwiches. So, will mango flour be making an appearance in gluten-free products at your store? Stay tuned for more developments on this and other gluten-free stories. Source: freshplaza.com

Gluten-free bread making the first few times is an incredibly frustrating experience that begs the question...is it really worth it? After my many trials I must say yes it is definitely worth it! We are now able to make an excellent bread that we can all enjoy. Being able to make bread allows my kids to take a sandwich to school, the fact that the bread is good (and looks good) is equally important to them. Since they cannot eat the hot lunch at school due to its "gluten in every bite" nature, it is important to have the option of sending a sandwich the children like (and will eat). Other kids taste the bread, they like it, and say hey this gluten-free diet is pretty good! The benefits to these exchanges are priceless. It took awhile to get to this point but one day I was lucky enough to meet Lee Tobin. He gave me a recipe (originally developed by Barbara Emch) and I had success! I then began to shape this recipe to accommodate the various alternative flours stocked in my pantry. The recipe is fool-proof and it tastes great...especially with teff, amaranth, or buckwheat flour. In this class you will learn how to make a perfect loaf of bread. I will review alternative flours and why I use them. You will learn the tricks for successful gluten-free bread making. And you will learn how to change the template recipe for your own specific needs. In an effort to provide you with a brief recipe for future use—all of the comments I would typically make during a cooking class will be found in the text that precedes the recipe. Why Use Alternative Flours? My experience has been that these flours simply make a superior gluten-free bread. Additionally, many celiacs struggle with weight gain after diagnosis and find their diet may lack important nutrients. As you adjust to the gluten-free diet it is a good time to understand how your body uses the food you eat. Simple carbohydrates are quickly digested and are broken down into simple sugar glucose. When the cells in your body need fuel they use this glucose. Extra glucose is converted into glycogen. If your body already has enough glycogen stored up, the glucose is turned into fat. The typical American diet is overloaded with simple carbs and the celiac diet is no exception. Complex carbohydrates not only take longer to digest but they provide slow consistent energy. You feel full longer and your body doesnt feel the wide fluctuations of blood sugar swings. Beans, whole grains, nut butters, oatmeal, soy, sweet potatoes, and vegetables are complex carbs. They provide needed vitamins, minerals, fiber, and consistent energy. Many celiacs lack B vitamins, calcium, iron, and other nutrients—why not get them from your baked goods and reap the benefits of complex carbs? We try to incorporate the alternative flours in most of our baking. When making sweet breads, cookies, bread, pizza crust, biscuits, and bread sticks I try to substitute about ½ of the flour called for in a recipe with a healthy alternative flour. Our favorites are teff, amaranth, brown rice, and buckwheat. Quinoa and millet flours can be substituted in the same fashion. Be sure you buy from manufacturers who provide pure, gluten-free flour—from the field all the way to the package. In our family we treat corn, carrots, potatoes, and white rice as if they were sweets (i.e. sugar = excess weight gain). They are all simple carbs as are most of the products made from them (chips, cereal, snacks). Here is a quick overview of the various healthy gluten-free flours and their attributes: Amaranth is a whole grain dating back to the time of the Aztecs. It is high in protein (15-18%), and contains more calcium, folic acid, Vitamin A, C, and E than most grains. The flavor is similar to that of graham crackers without the sweetness. Bean Flour is a light flour made from garbanzo and broad beans. When using this flour in your favorite recipes, replace the white sugar with brown or maple sugar (or combine with sorghum) to cut the bitter taste of the beans. Brown Rice Flour is milled from unpolished brown rice, and has a higher nutrient value than white rice flour. Since this flour contains bran, it has a shorter shelf life and should be refrigerated. As with white rice flour, it is best to combine brown rice flour with several other flours to avoid the grainy texture. Much higher than white rice in protein, fiber, zinc, folic acid, B vitamins, calcium and vitamin E (15 times the E in white rice). Buckwheat is the seed of a plant related to rhubarb. It is high in fiber, iron, and B vitamins. Great in many baked goods, pancakes & waffles too. Millet is a small round grain that is a major food source in Asia, North Africa, and India. A rich source of B vitamins. Nut Flours are high in protein and, used in small portions, enhance the taste of many baked goods. Finely ground nuts added to a recipe increases the protein content and allows for a better rise. It is a great substitute for non-fat dry milk powder in gluten-free recipes. We like it so much we always make the substitution. Keep refrigerated. Quinoa (keen-wah), a staple food of the Incas, is a complete protein containing all 8 amino acids as well as a fair amount of calcium and iron. High in some B vitamins and folic acid. Soy Flour has a nutty flavor, and is high in protein and fat. Best when used in small quantities in combination with other flours. Soy flour has a short shelf life. Teff is an ancient grain from Ethiopia, now grown in Idaho. It is always manufactured as a whole grain flour, since it is difficult to sift or separate. A good source of protein, calcium, iron, fiber, and B vitamins. Cross-contamination at the factory can cause diet compliance issues for the gluten intolerant. Call or write the manufacturers of your preferred flours to inquire about factory and field practices. Many people may wonder why I use just one recipe for bread. It is really a template that can be changed to suit your own tastes, preferences, or dietary needs. Changeable elements in the recipe: Eggs One of the most challenging substitutions, if you cannot tolerate eggs use Egg Replacer from Ener-G Foods (or try ground flax seeds as an egg replacement see recipe in flax seed section below) and be sure to use the almond flour instead of the non-fat, dry milk powder. The almond flour adds a great deal of flavor which could be helpful when you cant use eggs. If you read the nutritional label for almond flour it might scare you as the grams of fat are high, remember this is good fat and there is fiber-- both of which slow down sugar absorption in your body, which in turn helps control weight gain. The dry milk powder is high in sugar. Oil Vegetable oil is typically soybean oil and some people are sensitive to canola oil so safflower oil is a good alternative. Sugar I want to experiment with different forms of sugar to find a healthier alternative to the white refined sugar I use presently. Try turbinado sugar, a raw sugar that has been steam-cleaned. It has a delicate molasses flavor. Flour Four cups of flour are in the recipe. The proportions of flours used can be changed around until you find what is right for you. We use it in the way shown in the recipe but my goal is to experiment further and reduce the amount of tapioca flour and increase the healthier flours. Dry milk powder As seen above in the eggs section I now prefer to use almond flour instead of dry milk powder. The bread is much more flavorful and has a wonderful texture. Flax seed This seed has many health benefits such as high-quality protein, fiber, B and C vitamins, iron, and zinc, anti-cancer properties, omega-3 fatty acids, and many other benefits. To use as an egg substitute grind 2 tablespoons flaxseed and add 6 tablespoons boiling water, let set for 15 minutes then whisk with a fork-- this mixture will replace 2 eggs in a recipe. A clean coffee grinder works well to grind the small flaxseed. Cookware Its a good idea to have the proper cookware in your kitchen before attempting to make gluten-free bread. You must have a heavy-duty stand mixer like the Kitchenaid mixer. A heavy-duty mixer properly aerates the batter producing a lighter bread with a fine crumb and more height. You should also have a good quality loaf pan. It helps to know if your oven is running at the correct temperature (an inexpensive oven thermometer will tell you what adjustments you will need to make). Bread machines can be tricky with gluten-free bread, you can call the Celiac Hotline at Red Star Yeast for the most current bread machine recommendations 1.800.423.5422. Temperature In addition to knowing your oven temperature, realize that when the temperature of your home is warm, bread will rise quicker. The recipe includes some tricks to help your bread rise faster when your home is cool (as is generally the case in Seattle). Humidity Gluten-free flour absorbs moisture from the air so be sure to keep it sealed in its packaging and tightly cover any mixing bowls rather than allowing them to sit uncovered for any period of time. The moisture the flour absorbs from the air will affect your recipe. Amaranth Bread: Amaranth Bread makes one loaf. Feel free to substitute the amaranth flour with teff, buckwheat, or quinoa flour. Ingredients 3 large eggs (egg-free option see note below)* ¼ cup vegetable oil 1 teaspoon lemon juice 1½ cups amaranth flour 1½ cups tapioca starch flour 1 cup fine brown rice flour 2/3 cup instant non-fat dry milk powder (dairy-free: substitute with finely ground nuts or almond flour) 2 teaspoons xanthan gum 1 teaspoon salt 2 tablespoons ground flax seed (optional) 1½ tablespoons active dry yeast 4 tablespoons sugar 1¼ cups warm water (105F-115F.) Bring all refrigerated ingredients to room temperature. Grease a 5 x 9-inch loaf pan. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine eggs, oil, and lemon juice. In a separate medium bowl, combine flours, dry milk powder, xanthan gum, salt, flax seed, yeast and sugar. Pour ½ of the warm water into stand mixer and blend with egg mixture. Slowly add dry ingredients a little at a time until completely incorporated. Add remaining water, reserving some water if necessary. See note on humidity below. Mix batter on high speed for 3½ minutes, then pour into prepared pan. Batter will be thicker than a cake batter and nothing like the consistency of regular bread dough. Cover bread with foil and place in a cold oven. Set a pan of hot water on a lower shelf underneath the bread. Leave for 10 minutes with oven door closed. (This will cause the bread to rise quickly.) Remove bread from oven (do not uncover) and place in a warm place in the kitchen. Preheat oven to 400F. Bread will continue to rise as oven preheats. Uncover bread and bake for 10 minutes to brown the top. Cover bread with foil and continue to bake bread for 35-40 minutes. Turn bread out onto a cooling rack. When completely cooled, wrap tightly to maintain freshness for as long as possible. Tips: If humidity is high, reduce the amount of water in the recipe to avoid over rising. Many gluten-free bakers experience the frustrating situation in which a beautiful loaf of bread deflates once removed from the oven. You will need to experiment a little to get just the right amount of water in your bread depending on the humidity in the air. If in question, use less water than the recipe calls for. You may use rapid rise yeast instead of regular yeast. If doing so, eliminate the cold oven rise method with a pan of hot water, follow yeast package directions instead for rise time. Hamburger Buns Pour batter into English muffin rings, follow directions above. Bake for just 15 minutes. Once completely cooled these buns freeze well. Serve buns warmed, otherwise they will be crumbly. *Egg Substitution: grind 3 tablespoons flaxseed and add ½ cup + 1 tablespoon boiling water, let set for 15 minutes then whisk with a fork. Recipes from: Cooking Gluten-Free! A Food Lovers Collection of Chef and Family Recipes Without Gluten or Wheat Karen Robertson (Celiac Publishing, 2002)