Wheat flour is a remarkably versatile ingredient. Whether wheat is excellent for most recipes, or most recipes have been fine-tuned for wheat, is difficult to guess. In any case, it's notoriously difficult to turn out decent baked goods without wheat flour. However, the ingredients for gluten-free baking are more common now than they were at the end of the 20th century, so making the adjustment to wheatless baking is not as difficult as it once was.
Flourless Cakes
One way to avoid the thorny issue of using nonwheat flours is to bake a flourless cake. Flourless cakes have a dense, fudgy texture that's often similar to brownies. They're made with egg whites as the "firming" ingredient that gives the cake its structure. To make one, you prepare the cake's other ingredients as a batter, then fold in the egg whites. When the cake bakes it puffs like a souffle, then subsides into a thinner, brownie-like texture as it cools. Once cool, they can be iced and layered like any other cake. Chocolate is the most common variety, but there are many others.
Alternative Flours
There are several gluten-free flours available, and each has its strengths and weaknesses. For example, rice flour gives a pleasant crunch to cookies, breads and biscuits; but it has a gritty texture that can be unpleasant. Amaranth flour can make your cake gummy, and buckwheat is heavy and strong-flavored. In most cases, the best result comes from mixing a variety of flours including potato or rice flour, corn flour, tapioca flour, amaranth or quinoa flour, and so on. Most health food stores sell commercial blends that provide a good, well-balanced flavor.
Baking with Alternative Flours
When you're new to gluten-free baking, start by locating well-tested gluten-free recipes. These are widely available online, from the websites of support and advocacy groups as well as commercial manufacturers. You'll need to get a feel for how gluten-free recipes work, as well as gaining familiarity with ingredients such as xanthan gum and guar gum that are essential to gluten-free baking, but otherwise rarely used at home. Once you understand how to bake with gluten-free flours, you can begin adapting your own personal recipes to this new style.
Flours to Avoid
There are two proteins that make up wheat flour gluten called glutenin and gliadin. It's gliadin that triggers celiac disease and most other intolerances, and a number of grains contain gliadin. Aside from wheat, you also need to avoid rye and barley. Oats are hit or miss; they're often contaminated with wheat residues during the milling process. If you can find certified gluten-free oat flour, it is safe for most celiacs. There are many exotic-sounding grains that are actually forms of wheat, which you also need to avoid. These include einkorn, emmer, spelt, dinkel, farro, durum and kamut.
References
- "On Food and Cooking: The Science and Lore of the Kitchen"; Harold McGee; 2004
- Allergy Net: Cultivated Wheat
- Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network: Wheat
- Celiac Society: What is Celiac Disease?
- Celiac Disease Foundation: Diet and Lifestyle
- "Gluten-Free Baking: More Than 125 Recipes for Delectable Sweet and Savory Baked Goods, Including Cakes, Pies, Quick Breads, Muffins, Cookies, and Other Delights"; Rebecca Reilly; 2007
