If you follow a gluten-free diet, learning to bake and cook without traditional wheat flour may seem challenging. Gluten is found in wheat, barley and rye; flours made from these grains are not safe to consume on the gluten-free diet. Luckily, gluten-free flour alternatives are readily available at most health food or organic stores.
Gluten Free Options
A variety of gluten-free grains may be ground into flour as an alternative to gluten flours. Common gluten-free flour ingredients include amaranth, millet, sorghum, brown or white rice, tapioca and corn and teff. Almonds and legumes like garbanzo or fava beans, which are naturally gluten free, are also used.
Blending Flour
Unlike traditional wheat flour, gluten-free flours work best when combined. Using a combination of gluten-free flours adds essential properties, like density and texture, to baked goods. "Living Without" magazine recommends combining a standard gluten-free flour, like white rice flour, with a starch, like tapioca flour, for better density. Learning to combine your own gluten-free flours may be challenging at first. Using a gluten-free cookbook for baking may help you learn which types of gluten-free flours to combine for your baking and cooking needs.
Binding Properties
The gluten in flours made from wheat, barley or rye acts as a binding agent. Gluten gives bread elasticity and holds baked goods together. Without a binding agent, baked goods tend to crumble. Gluten-free flours lack binding properties so it must be added back in. Xanthan gum and guar gum are commonly used with gluten-free flours. These gums bind with gluten-free flours to hold finished foods together and add density and elasticity. Some precombined gluten-free flours already contain xanthan or guar gum; do not add more when using these flours. If you're making your own flour blend or purchased a premixed blend without a binding agent, you'll need to add 1/2 tsp. xanthan or guar gum per each cup of flour used in a recipe.
Using Flour
Gluten-free flour alternatives may be used in place of wheat flours in most recipes. Gluten-free flours may replace wheat flour cup-for-cup for most baked goods like cookies, cakes and bars. "Living Without" suggests combining 1/2 cup white rice flour, 1/4 cup tapioca flour and 1/4 cup cornstarch together as a basic replacement for traditional wheat flour. Gluten-free flours should be stored tightly and kept in the refrigerator to preserve freshness.
