“Just a little slice of light”

I think one of the things that most serves me in my baking, is that I have a strong foundation in traditional baking and the science of baking.  Its very difficult to start with a recipe that you want to change, when you are not clear on what function individual ingredients have in a recipe.  In baking it is important to understand what will cause the leavening, what will help maintain the shape, what will effect the texture……

For a long time I refused to make any product that was not a strict vegan translation of its mainstream counterpart.  So the eggs in brownies became HUGE to replace.  If you just replace them with an egg replacer (a topic for another day), you may get the binding, but not the lightness they provide.  So the compromise there is to use a leavening agent.  Although a classical brownie is unleavened, its vegan counterpart is leavened.  I learned to deal with that.  The compromise allows the vegan product to model itself upon the original.  And if you are a crafty little baker, as I am, you can make a brownie that even the most mainstream individual will like.

a most mainstream consumer blissfully enjoying a gluten-free brownie

I think the same is true of gluten-free baking.  But the challenge is far greater in replacing the gluten.  In a typical baked good, gluten is what gives it its texture and form.  Gluten is the protein that forms in wheat flour during the baking and preparation processes.  It binds the product as well as defines its texture.  In choosing a gluten-free alternative to wheat, a lot of experimentation will lead to the best result.  Different products are suited to different flour blends.  The properties of the flours you use are important as well as the taste.   Many of the gluten-free alternatives have strong flavors that can be overpowering on their own, but in combination are fine.  The same is true of their textures.  Too much alone, but excellent in combination.  Additionally, you can consider the nutritional aspects of the flour in your choice.  Nutrition is usually something I address after the product has the right texture.  For example, I made peanut butter/sesame cookies with my flour blend.  I wanted to add a nutritional kick to the recipe, so after the recipe was about right, I added quinoa flour.  Quinoa is a good source of vegetable protein and so makes the cookie a healthier snack.

This is what I call my basic flour mix.  It has a mix of flours as follows:

one part white rice flour

one part brown rice flour

one part garfava flour

one part tapioca flour

one part potato flour

This is the blend I choose to work with as my most basic starting point.  Baking gluten-free requires lots of ingredients.  So keeping a flour blend on hand helps simplify the process.  In most recipes, I will use this blend then augment it with  additional flour that may or may not be in the blend already.   So it is important to know the properties of the individual flours.  The white rice flour is fairly light and flavorless, so is a good base flour.  The brown rice flour is denser and grittier and stronger in flavor.  The garfava flour has an amazing texture, but a distinctly beany flavor if you use too much of it.  In the correct proportion it gives a lovely smoothness and density to the product.  The tapioca flour is an amazing ingredient!  It adds a chewy texture that is hard to get in gluten-free baking.  The potato flour and the tapioca flour both help hold things together and enhance the texture of  a gluten-free baked good.  The combined properties of all five flours, make a nice basic blend.

I don’t use this flour blend for everything I do gluten-free.  But I do think it is a helpful starting point for someone baking at home.  In baking professionally, I consider not only the best blend of flour to use in an individual product, but also the variety of ingredients in all of my products.  In serving a market for those with food allergies, one cannot use the same ingredients over and over without excluding some consumers.  When baking at home, you know what you and your family can/can not eat .  And once you settle on your blend, you can use it for pancakes, pies crusts, cookies……….

This blend is a good place to start.  I have used it for pie crusts, brownies and cookies thus far and have been quite pleased with it.  I hope it helps you in your gluten-free baking endeavors.