Bread of Life - Sweet Freedom: Living Allergen Free

Another installment in Dawn Kiehl-Beals Sweet Freedom:  Living Allergen Free Series.

Enjoy!

Bread is one of the main staples of diets all around the world.  It comes in a variety of textures, favors and types such as roti, naan, focaccia, fry bread and whole grain.  But no matter what name it goes under, the mere mention of the word sets your mouth watering.  A warm soft center surrounded by an aromatic, crunchy crust, slathered in butter and jams, umm!  Who can resist?  Obviously not many of us in the U.S.  I found some fun statistics about our love affair with bread:

Retail sales of fresh breads, buns, and rolls in the U.S. total more than $17 billion annually.

In 2003, U. S. sandwich sales were estimated at $105 billion.

Americans eat 45 billion sandwiches every year.

According to the Great Food Almanac, the average American student will have consumed approximately 1,500 peanut butter and jelly sandwiches upon graduation from high school.

Sandwiches can be nutrition powerhouses. Because bread is made up of primarily complex carbohydrates and very little fat, it provides lots of energy for fewer calories than fatty foods.

Bread is a great source of energy because it is rich in complex carbohydrates.

The soluble fiber in bread can help lower blood cholesterol, which reduces the risk of heart disease.

The Bible also talks about bread.  Luke 11:2-3 says, "And he said unto them, 'When ye pray, say...give us day by day our daily bread'."

And John 6:35 says, "Then Jesus declared, 'I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty'."

I believe that Jesus provides food for our souls, but as one who has to follow a gluten free diet, sometimes I just want a hot slice of "my daily bread".  I've tried lots of recipes but most have been tasteless, crumbly or hard as a rock.  However, I finally found a gluten free recipe for French Bread that even leaves my gluten loving friends asking for more.  Before I share the recipe, here are some tips I've discovered.

Equipment

You are going to need a mixer – it is going to do pretty much all the work for you.  You also need a French bread pan – gluten free bread needs support when it is rising and baking.  The pans come either perforated or solid and both work well.  And finally, unless you are dead certain your oven is totally accurate, run over to the hardware or grocery store and grab an oven thermometer.

Kneading

Gluten free bread doesn't require any kneading!  3 minutes in the mixer and that’s pretty much it.

Yeast

I get the best result from Dry Active Yeast. It needs to be “active” so if you have had a jar sitting in your fridge since you can’t remember when, go get a new one – it lasts about 6 months refrigerated, after that it may not be good any longer. If you do store your yeast in the fridge then it will take longer for the yeast to “proof”. You want the yeast mixture to pretty much double in size and be all foamy.

Flours

Choose your favorite GF premixed flour mix or mix together the individual GF flours listed in the recipe below.

Gum and Fat

Mixing the xanthan gum with the fat (olive oil) before adding it to the batter makes it work better.

Prep

Get all your ingredients out, mix your yeast, blend the xanthan gum with the oil and lightly beat your eggs before you start to mix, it makes it easier. Do the steps in order as I give you in the recipe.

The Dough

If you were used to bread making in a former pre-gluten-free life you will think there is not enough flour in the dough because it has a consistency more like a thick batter than dough. Resist with every fiber of your being from adding more flour! This is just the way gluten free bread dough is. You need to spoon the dough into the pans and shape it with a spatula – it won’t magically turn into pretty ovals unless you do this.

Slashing the Dough

Cutting 3 or 4 diagonal slashes into the top of the dough will help the steam escape while it is baking giving you a lovely, tender texture.

Prepping the Pans

Either spray your French Bread pans with gluten-free, non-stick cooking spray or brush with oil before putting the dough into the pans to rise. For a really authentic bottom, sprinkle a teaspoon of cornmeal on the bottom of the pans after you oil them.  If using the perforated pans, place them on top of a baking sheet to oil and dust with cornmeal.  Do not bake the bread on the baking sheet however, just put the French bread pan right on the oven rack.

Browning

To get the perfect brown what I found gave the best color came from brushing the loaves with melted butter or a dairy free butter replacement just before baking.

Humidity

To get that crunchy crust and tender inside so characteristic of good French Bread it should bake in a humid environment. This is easily created by putting a pan of hot water into the oven while it preheats and just leaving it there while the bread bakes.

Gluten Free French Bread

Ingredients

2 tablespoons Dry Active Yeast

2 teaspoons sugar

1½ cups warm water (it should be pretty warm to the touch but not hot)

3 teaspoons xanthan gum

2 tablespoons olive oil

*1½ cups super fine or Asian white rice flour

*½ cup superfine or Asian sweet rice flour

*1 cup tapioca starch

1½ teaspoons kosher or fine sea salt

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

2 teaspoons cornmeal – optional

2 tablespoons butter or Earth Balance, melted

*in place of the flours and starch you can use 3 cups of a good, pastry quality gluten free flour blend

Directions

Combine the yeast, sugar and warm water in a bowl about twice the size of the mixture and whisk to dissolve the sugar. Let sit for 5 -6 minutes (10 if the yeast has been in the fridge) or until it is foamy and doubled in size.

In a small bowl stir the xanthan gum with the olive oil until the xanthan gum is dissolved.

Combine the flours, tapioca starch (or gluten free flour blend) and salt in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or just the regular beaters – don’t use a dough hook) and mix to combine. Add the yeast mixture, xanthan gum mixture, eggs and vinegar and mix on low to combine. Scrap down the sides of the bowl once. Turn the mixer to high and mix for 3 minutes.

Spray a French bread pan (with 2 forms) with gluten-free, non-stick cooking spray or brush with more olive oil and sprinkle a teaspoon of cornmeal onto the bottom of each pan.

Spoon the batter into the forms and shape into an oval with a spatula. Using a razor blade or sharp knife cut 3 or 4 diagonal slashes on top of each loaf. Cover the loaves with a clean kitchen towel and set in a warm, draft-free place to rise. Let rise for 30 minutes or until the loaves have doubled in size.

Place a baking pan on the floor of your oven (or on the bottom shelf) and fill it with about an inch of really hot water. Position the rack you are baking the bread on in the middle of the oven. Turn the oven on and preheat to 400 degrees.

Brush the top of the loaves with the melted butter or Earth Balance and bake for 40 – 45 minutes or until the loaves are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped. Let cool in the pan for 5 minutes then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.

You can also make crusty rolls by scooping the dough into 2 standard sized muffin tins, letting them rise 30 minutes and baking for about 20 minutes.

A gluten free recipe that makes 2 loaves of French Bread or 24 Crusty Rolls.