Secrets of GF Baking - The Flour

I've always been the kind of person who can just follow a recipe and have something turn out. This is thanks mostly to my mom who at the very least made us a good homemade dinner every night. So cooking was pretty normal to me.

Then this doctor decided I had this gluten problem. Great, I'll just continue with my normal way of baking. WRONG! Gluten free baking is oh-so-different. It's not hard; just not what we're used to. Gluten has major effects on a finished baked good. You always have to be careful not to over mix but things always come out fluffy, chewy, and wonderfully held together.

Successfully baking gluten free requires a change in mindset. The norms of baking are gone and you'll have to learn the special nuances of the GF versions. If you have any cooking talent at all, I promise you can figure it out.

The factor that has the largest affect on the finished product is the flour. Some people buy mixes for breads, muffins, even pizza dough... only in America people! Europe, especially outside of the major tourist attractions, doesn't have a culture of pre-made, pre-packaged food. These people make things from scratch. If you've been to Europe I know you've gone into one of those pastry shops and wanted to try everything (or maybe you did). Different pastries are in different countries but same concept.

So good luck finding a GF cake mix for your birthday, etc. Aaaaannnnnddddd, if you do find it, it's definitely not healthy for you. Maybe it's because I live in health-obsessed Colorado but you can always find healthy, GF choices of bread, crackers, even sweets. But for some reason Europe has decided that everything that is GF has to be made from cornstarch. Please look up the nutrition facts for cornstarch. You will discover it has basically no nutritional value. Then compare it to whole wheat flour and you will be even more stunned how bad it is.

As a Celiac, I have to cut out a huge portion of a typical diet by not eating gluten. Remember the food pyramid? Yep, grains is the big category on the bottom. The majority of people fill that category with allll gluten products. So now I need to replace that big part with other grains. So, in an effort to be healthy, there is no way I'm going to replace all that with cornstarch.

So the answer is: make your own blend of flour! This is crucial in not only being healthy but it is a widely know fact than no single kind of gluten free flour can be a 1 to 1 substitute for wheat flour. They just behave differently. But when you mix different kinds together in the right way... blam! It works great.

All that said just so I can give you my fool-proof recipe for GF Flour. This is modified from one of my awesome cookbooks, Artisanal Gluten-Free Cooking. Their basic ideas combined with the ingredients that are available to me have been a perfect substitute for an all-purpose flour.

As a sidenote, this recipe changes based on where I am and what I can find. I could find certain flours in Mallorca, others in Huesca, and others in Slupsk. Even still, the basics always stay the same.

ALL-PURPOSE, GLUTEN-FREE FLOUR BLEND
Time: 5 min               Makes: 6-1/3 cups

INGREDIENTS

• 4 cups different types of GF flours (rice, millet, sorghum, teff, amaranth, buckwheat, oat, etc.)
• 1-1/3 cups corn starch
• 1/2 cup potato starch
• 1/2 cup ground flax seed (optional)

METHOD

1. Combine all the ingredients in an airtight container (mix with a whisk or just shake till it's combined)

TIPS

1. Do not use corn flour, coconut flour, or nut flours in this recipe. Each of those have very different baking properties and should be used only in recipes that call for that specifically. Bean flours might work but honestly anything I've made with them tastes and smells like metal so I don't go near them.
2. I always use rice flour. It is very easy to find and very inexpensive. Brown is obviously better nutrition-wise but either works.
3. I make double this amount every time. It lasts longer.
4. Teff flour is very expensive so I use it sparingly. However, I do always use it because it has an extremely high iron content which is always something women are lacking.
5. SPAIN: Mercadona (grocery store) sells white rice flour and a "bread mix" that is nearly all cornstarch. Otherwise, they have stores called Herboristeria that has some other choices. Also, there is a great online store outside of Zaragoza called Biomix. They have everything you need.
6. POLAND: Buckwheat and rice flour are in many grocery stores. Delima also has amaranth flour. For other kinds, buying online is both cheap and easy. Biokiosk is the one I have used many times.

Yep, I currently use 5 flours in my blend! 1 cup rice flour, 1 cup buckwheat flour, 1 cup amaranth flour, 1/2 cup oat flour, and 1/2 cup teff flour. Oops, and I forgot to label that little bag at the bottom!! That's ground flaxseed. 

Ok, I think that's all.... That's a lot to digest but I promise this has always worked great for me. Leave a comment if you have any questions!