My experience with gluten free breads is limited to what I've purchased at the supermarket, being a small rectangular, heavy set loaf with solid texture and a strange taste. I'd resigned myself to a bread-less life if those blocks were anything to go by. I mean, I buy them and I eat them, but I don't much enjoy them. They're not bread, they're something other than bread.
I don't have brown rice flour so I used white instead, and similarly I didn't have ground flax. I did find some flax seeds in the cupboard though, and after a humorous attempt to grind them in a mortar and pestle, and then to vitamise them in a food processor, I resigned myself to throwing them in whole. I used 1/4 cup and added in an extra 1/4 cup rice flour.
The yeast frothed well, which was an encouraging start. I don't have a mixer with a dough hook (though am hoping to get one soon), so I used an electric whisk for the required 4 minutes. Aside from flicking outside of the bowl several times, that seemed to work reasonably well. The dough was soft, wet and much stickier than anything I'd encountered and I really didn't like my chances of getting anything bread-like from it.
Into the bread pan it went and into a warm place. It took forever to rise. Not the recipe's fault but rather my cold house and this burst of spring-winter we're getting. But once it started, it kept going and going and going. When it reached the top of the pan and seemed set to become the incredible blob, I popped it in the oven. This is what came out:
This recipe is everything it promised to be and more! Beautifully textured and light with air pockets just like wheat bread. This is something I'd never expected from gluten free. Morever, it tastes delicious with just a tiny tasty bitterness that I've come to expect from gluten free baked savoury goods. It slices well, holds its form and lasts several days without deteriorating into grainy or mushiness. For my first attempt at gluten free bread, I have to say this has given me confidence to explore further.
Yum! Again, looks wonderfully chewy and airy. Better than store bought!! Success!
ReplyDeleteYeah! So glad that this recipe worked so well for you! I have refused to buy the bread in the store for the same reason as you...it's just not bread. This bread, however, is really good, and I'm so glad that it worked so well for you.
ReplyDeleteThe flax seeds, however, are nearly impossible to grind in the food processor, they just keep dancing around in there. I bought myself a small coffee grinder, and it works great for making flax meal. I grind up a bunch, and store it in the freezer in a ziplock bag, as it can go rancid after it has been ground up.
Happy baking, not all gf goodies need to be gross, there are a LOT of really good recipes out there! :)