Tips for baking Gluten Free Bread and Recipes

I feel it an absolute joy of baking the bread myself and enjoy the fresh hot loaf from the oven instead of buying from grocery store. Learning on how to bake gluten free bread is not so much difficult compare to baking normal bread. What you need to do is to tweak slightly the process of baking normal bread and make necessary substitution to the ingredients. For instance, normal wheat bread usually requires two kneading and an extra rising before the dough is transferred into baking pan and start the baking process. Whereas for gluten free flours the dough doesn’t require the double kneading treatment as gluten is not reacting with yeast and has not much to feed on the second rising, instead the double rising process will turn out producing a much denser loaf than the single rising.

Gluten free bread can be easily prepared through the hand mixing and oven baking method in about 1.5 hours. This method allow us to have more control over the rising and baking time and produce a finer textured and lighter loaf. This manual process of baking also allow us to decide the size and shape of loaf that we like which is seldom possible if we choose to prepare with a bread machine.

For those of you who are beginners in gluten free bread baking, there are a few important rules that you may want to remember.
1.Do not try to follow a wheat flour recipe and substitute it with gluten free flour. The results may not turn out to be similar with what a wheat free recipe produce.
2.Follow carefully the mixing directions provided on the package, as they are usually the most optimum ways of mixing.
3.Always check the date on the yeast package to be sure your yeast is fresh, let the bread rise in a warm place.
4.Do not use too hot or too cold the water during mixing. Hot water will kill the yeast and cold water will prevent the yeast from working. Lukewarm water is recommended, with temperature of 110-115 F.
5.Gluten free bread dough is usually softer and stickier, it is advisable to use heavy duty mixer to beat the bread.
6.Use xanthan gum for the yeast recipe which will make the bread springier.
7.Replace guar gum for xanthan gum in equal amounts if necessary and always use the size pans called for in the recipe.

Gluten Free Banana Bread

Ingredients:
1 cup soy flourrn¼ cup rice flourrn½ cup potato starch flour
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 ¼ teaspoon cream of tartar
1 teaspoon baking sodarn½ teaspoon salt
1/3 cup shortening
2/3 cup sugarrn½ cup mashed banana
2 eggs, well beatenrn½ cup chopped nuts

Method:
1.Grease a loaf pan with size of 8.5” x 4.5”. Preheat oven to 350F
2.Whisk the flours, xanthan gum, baking soda, cream of tartar and salt in a medium bowl then set aside.
3.In a mixing bowl, cream shortening. Gradually add the sugar and beat until light and fluffy.
4.Add the well-beaten eggs, beat well and add the dry ingredients alte
ately with mashed banana, add a small amount at a time, beating after each addition until smooth.
5.Stir in the chopped nuts (if you like), then pour into prepared pan and bake for 1 hour.