gluten free baking

Sourdough Can be Gluten Free!

Recently someone said in my hearing that sourdough is safe for gluten avoiders to eat. I thought, nope. Then I heard it again from a neighbor. I asked a few questions. This very nice neighbor and I share gf baked goods with each other. It turns out she has tummy issues that are causing wheat intolerance. I have celiac. She finds that sourdough bread is very digestible for her. I had to explain that if I ate regular sourdough it would not be at all safe for me. The sourdough process does not remove or magically inactivate the gluten in the wheat based flour. Sadly nope. Would be nice if that were so.

But I do have to say that I have been making some gluten free sourdough baked goods and find that they are delicious and not crazy difficult. The scones I posted a couple of weeks ago come to mind. So tasty, what great texture and flavor! And I have twice made delicious gf sourdough breads; one using white flours that I added oats and oat flour to base flour as well as seeds like poppy and fax seed. Makes such incredible toast. The other bread success has been the raisin bread; a fruited version of a plain sourdough loaf. Both recipes came from a facebook group for gluten free sourdough bakers who want to help each other bake gf sourdough foods. If you are on fb; put in that topic and you should find them. This awesome group has lots of recipes in their home page top right at “files”. And folks answer your questions when a bake turns out less than optimal.

I feel that sourdough breads have a better crumb and texture than regular gf breads. They toast up simply amazing, sort of like an English muffin bread. Makes great sandwiches. Lovely for us celiacs who miss good bread in a deep and fundamental way. I actually have eaten a lot less bread since going gf, its expensive and sometimes very disappointing so I just kept finding ways to avoid it. Baking bread that is worth the time and ingredients can be very hit or miss. My French baguettes are delicious, and my Italian fennel and golden raisin wide loaves are wonderful but I have also made many subpar loaves of gf bread over the past 9 years. Gummy, heavy, grainy and poor flavor plus they often only taste good the day you bake them. I strongly urge you just take a minute and check out this gf sourdough group on fb. Another recent and strong source for possible gf bake recipes are the two cookbooks out by Aran Goyoaga. Last month I bought Cannelle et Vanille in hardcover which is mostly very interesting components of a healthy meal using lots of flavors and lots of vegetables and I just got Cannelle et Vanille Bakes Simple on kindle. I haven’t baked much yet from either book but I hear a lot of good buzz in social media from gluten free bakers. Folks on fb call her CV as a nickname, now you are in the know too! I will report in this blog on how bread turns out when I use her recipes.

As I wrote above, the ones out of the gf sourdough bread bakers on fb are pretty tasty, the raisin and current loaf was amazing fresh and delish toasted a couple days later. I froze a lot of it and it defrosts quickly in my microwave before toasting slices to give it all those golden nooks and crannies. The seeded one makes awesome avocado toast and I love it toasted along with a couple of eggs in the morning. Just know that these gf sourdough breads take several hours to rise, can’t be rushed. AG’s Bakes Simple has several non sourdough bread recipes. Also other kinds of baked goods. They are much quicker than sourdough; use yeast from the store. Enjoy!

The other book by her is all bakes cookbook but is is pretty much sold-out hence I bought it as a kindle.

Meanwhile, join that gf sourdough group on fb (who would have ever thought that such a group exists!) and make a starter; takes about 7-10 days. I used CV’s recipe that is made with brown rice flour. It’s not that difficult to stir up a loaf if you have a stand mixer and you might really enjoy watching the slow rise of a tasty loaf of gf sourdough bread.

Raisin bread before I cut into it. Incredible scent and flavor. Mmmmm best raisin bread ever!

I feed my starter most every day; just a little bit and try to discard some each week. I guess it is time for some scones this weekend! I made some interesting chocolate chip sourdough cookies the other day; uses just almond flour so it is a bit grainy to me, made also with coconut sugar and coconut oil so kinda healthy but just not quite the texture I am dreaming of. My favorite CC recipe is King Arthur’s recipe. I love how you can form and freeze the cookies in a ziplock bag and bake just as many as I like. I guess I will live without sourdough in them! Back to the sourdough scones; there is nothing going less than perfect with them. Incredible flavor and impeccable texture. This weekend it is raspberry time!

Chocolate chip and walnut sourdough scones. My dieting downfall…

Chocolate Chip Walnut Sourdough Scones

Scones, tender, flakey, full of yumminess… something I used to make years ago. Kinda gave up on them until I attempted blueberry scones last weekend and made with excess sourdough starter, generally called discard. I had created the starter a few weeks ago using brown rice flour and had made a tasty loaf of seeded white sourdough bread in my 8.5 x 4.5 tall, sided loaf pan. So, I was looking for a way to use up the excess sourdough starter. Last week I couldn’t find a recipe for blueberry sourdough gf scones, so I took a gluten-based recipe and reconfigured it to make with a one for one blend: they were so good I made more; today I used a different 1-1 blend; used King Arthur’s Gluten Free Measure for Measure Flour Blend. I used a half cup of thick starter like last week. I added a touch of cinnamon to complement the nuts and chocolate. They baked a bit faster than the ones last week; maybe because no frozen fruit in it. The chocolate and walnuts were at room temp. I ate the first one when it was slightly warm. It was indeed heaven in a scone shape. Crisp outside, tender inside. Bursts of dark chocolate chip. It was another religious experience for me. The crumb was moist and as perfect as I could ask for. If you like scones you have to try this version too! I don’t know what you can sub for the sourdough starter. Possibly slightly thinned Greek yogurt? Or you should just make starter so you can bake these scones. There are lots of starter recipes out there. Mine is brown rice flour based but you can use sorghum or teff or almost any flour around

I mixed it with a spoon and then dumped it out; seemed dryish but as I gently kneaded it the dough became more fully blended and the dry flour mix disappeared.  Trust me, it is easy to make and utterly decadent despite no fancy sweet icing. I think I will make raspberry ones next as I have frozen berries in the freezer.

The dry mix with wet ingredients just added on top.
The wheel of 8 slices of dough ready to be placed on the baking sheet.
Ready for the oven!
Cooling on the rack; they sure got nice and plump!

Angie’s Chocolate Chip and Walnut Sourdough Scones (makes 8)

Ingredients:

200 grams 1-1 Gluten free flour blend; I used King Aurthur Measure for Measure

50 grams almond flour

100 grams granulated sugar

2 ½ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

7.5 Tbsp of cold butter

3/4 cup coarsely chopped walnuts

heaping 1/2 cup of dark chocolate chips or semi-sweet if you like them better.

½ cup sourdough starter (Use the discard if you are creating discard)

1 large egg

1/3 c cold whole milk

Directions:

Mix all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Cut in cold butter with a pastry cutter or 2 knives. Until it is tiny pebbles of dough and butter.

Add the egg, starter and ¼ c of the milk. Mix to break up egg and start the blending process. Add in the chocolate and nuts and continue stirring. As it gets to be a thick dough dump it out on your breadboard with all the dry bits and hand knead it to coalesce it into a thick dough. Form it into a large disc; about 8-9 inches across. Cut into 8 wedges; cut in half, then quarters then again into eighths. Spread them out on a cookie sheet that you have sprayed with cooking spray. Put the sheet in a cold place to chill while you heat the oven. Heat to 355 degrees.

Put the sheet in to bake. If you have a convection cycle they will be done in about 22 minutes; the outside needs to be light brown, bottom browned and they look done. If you don’t have convection they will likely take a few more minutes.  Let cool on pan for 5 minutes and move to a rack. They cooled rapidly and I couldn’t resist eating one. Plain. Now I am not hungry for supper. I just want more scones.

Enjoy! I think they will freeze nicely; vacuum sealing would be a good way to go about it.

Blueberry Sourdough Scones

Scones, tender, flakey, full of yumminess… something I used to make years ago. Kinda gave up on them, had made some but sort of heavy. So, I assumed all scones were generally pretty sad when made gluten free. Well, today I attempted them and made a batch with leftover sourdough starter which is generally called discard. I had created the starter last week using brown rice flour and had made a tasty loaf of seeded white sourdough bread in my 8.5 x 4.5 tall, sided loaf pan. So, I was looking for a way to use up the excess sourdough starter. I couldn’t find a recipe for blueberry sourdough gf scones, so I took a gluten-based recipe and reconfigured it to make with a one for one blend: specifically, Bob’s Redmill 1-1 Blend. I used a half cup of thick starter. I left out the recipe’s lemon ingredients as I just wanted blueberry and scone as the flavors. I also returned the dairy back to real dairy like actual butter and milk.  I ate the first one when it was just to room temperature. It was like heaven in a scone shape. Crisp outside, tender inside. Bursts of blueberries rendered me speechless. It was somewhat of a religious experience for a baker like me. I have never eaten such a tender delicate gluten free baked item. The crumb was moist and as perfect as I could ask for. You have to try this! I don’t know what you can sub for the sourdough starter. Maybe Greek yogurt? Maybe you should just make starter so you can bake these scones. 

I don’t know what flavor I will make next but I do know there will be a next time. Frozen blueberries worked so well; keeping the dough chilly as I mixed it with a wooden spoon and then kneading it with my bare hands.  Trust me, it is easy to make and utterly decadent despite no icing or chocolate or nuts. I may make it with some nuts and chocolate next weekend. Can. Not. Wait.

As I am about to mix it together.
Ready to bake scones.
Just baked scones still on sheet from oven

Angie’s Blueberry Sourdough Scones (GF of course)

Ingredients:

200 grams 1-1 Gluten free flour blend; I used Bob’s Redmill

50 grams almond flour

100 grams granulated sugar

2 ½ tsp. baking powder

¼ tsp. salt

7.5 Tbsp of cold butter

1 heaping cup of fresh or frozen blueberries

½ cup sourdough starter (Use the discard if you are creating discard)

1 large egg

1/3 c cold whole milk

Directions:

Mix all dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Cut in cold butter with a butter cutter or 2 knives. Until it is tiny pebbles of dough and butter.

Add the egg, starter and ¼ c of the milk. Mix to break up egg and start the blending process. Add in the frozen berries (or fresh) and continue stirring. As it gets to be a thick dough dump it out on your breadboard with all the dry bits and hand knead it to coalesce it into a thick dough. Form it into a large disc; about 8-9 inches across. Cut into 8 wedges; cut in half, then quarters then again into eighths. Spread them out on a cookie sheet that you have sprayed with cooking spray. Put the sheet in a cold place to chill while you heat the oven. Heat to 355 degrees.

Put the sheet in to bake. If you have a convection cycle they will be done in about 25 minutes; the outside needs to be light brown, bottom browned and they look done. I tried 18-20 min but that wasn’t enough. I think my total was 26 minutes. If you don’t have convection they will likely take a few more minutes.  Let cool on pan for 5 minutes and move to a rack. I got distracted and just left the pan of scones on the rack! They cooled rapidly and I couldn’t resist eating one. Plain. Now I am not hungry for lunch. I just want more scones.

Enjoy! I think they will freeze nicely; vacuum sealing would be a good way to go about it.

Cheddar Cheese Biscuits: Guilty Pleasure

I don’t buy redi-made mixes that often, in fact I have never bought a gf biscuit mix except these. From Aldi’s; a fav hangout! Cheddar cheese biscuits in the orange and blue box. This was my fourth or fifth time making them.

You add water, quarter cup oil and a third of a cup of grated cheese, stir and it becomes this slightly weird fluffy white stuff that looks more like cotton batting than anything else. Next, plop big clumps of this fluffy mixture onto a parchment paper lined (or baking oil sprayed) baking sheet and pop them into the hot oven to bake.  After about 16-17 minutes out comes the pan.  Each biscuit gets brushed with a buttery mixture you create with an herb/garlic powder that is blended with fresh melted butter. Super easy to make and definitely popular at my house.

cheddar cheese bisquits

They are nicely browned on the bottom and very tender. The buttery flavor definitely has a garlic vibe going on. We had them with sausage lasagna I made for supper.  My guy took home a container of lasagna and two biscuits. He left happily clutching his treats including those biscuits.   That should tell you they are tasty; Joe does not need to eat gf and he is fairly picky about his bread.  If it passes the Joe test; it is pretty tasty! This time I used colby cheese; mild cheddar and a great choice for them.cheddar cheese bisquit

They were a couple bucks and the add ins are minimal. I made 10 decent sized biscuits. I froze two which were destined for consumption in future weeks of February and March. Totally yummy even if not particularly healthy, white gf flour, sugar, cheese and butter as major components.  Not gonna tell you how many calories are in them, but frankly regular rolls have lots of calories. If it tastes buttery it gonna have calories…. Still, not often I find something this easy to make and this tasty.  I put this in my win win column. Enjoy!

Reposted from 2020 with minor changes.

Almond Flour Chocolate Cake

My guy wanted chocolate cake for Valetine’s Day. With chocolate icing. I don’t care for chocolate icing and was kinda tired of cake after the holidays. This cake has a more distinct crumb due to the almond flour…. the only other flour in it is tapioca starch so it is gluten free which I need. It is easy to make; no tricky process here plus it is dairy free which can be helpful to some folks. I made it but used half peanut butter icing and half chocolate: just made a half batch of each. It was a big it with my man; he took home the chocolate iced portion and I feasted on the peanut butter iced half.

Mine sunk a little in the middle; I think my 4 eggs were all kinda large; there is variation in a dozen eggs; try not to get the 4 largest from the box, live and learn. I did bake it the full time. The center was like fudge; quite yummy if squishy. The peanut butter icing was the bomb!!

Chocolate cake ingredients:

1 1/2 cup almond flour (not almond meal)

1/2 cup tapioca starch

1 1/4 cup sugar

3/4 cup cocoa

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 cup canola oil

4 large eggs at room temp

2 tsp. vanilla extract

Directions: mix the dry ingredients in a medium bowl; I used a whisk. Spray a 9 inch cake pan and line the bottom with a round of parchment paper. Heat the oven to 350 degrees, shelf for baking set in the middle. In a large mixing bowl beat the eggs until well blended, blend in the oil and vanilla until smoothly blended. Add in the dry ingredients 1/3 of it at a time; blend in and do the next third and then the final third. Pour into the cake pan. Let stand 5 minutes. Bake 30-34 minutes until tester comes out clean. Let cool in the pan for 15-20 minutes before turning out onto a drying rack. Ice when completely dry.

Chocolate icing (this is a half recipe)

1/4 cup room temp butter

2 tbsp. cocoa

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

a pinch of kosher salt (about 1/8 tsp)

1 cup powdered sugar

2 Tbsp. milk (may need another tsp)

Beat the butter with your mixer until fluffy, add the other ingredients and beat until fluffy; add extra milk if too stiff.

Peanut butter icing (half recipe)

1/2 cup creamy peanut btter

2 Tbsp. room temp butter

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 1/4 cup sifted powdered sugar

2 Tbsp. milk (may need another tsp or two)

Beat the peanut butter and butter until fluffy; add the rest of the ingredients and beat until fluffy; add extra milk if too stiff.

Ice half the cake with the chocolate icing and the other half with peanut butter. Enjoy!