I’ve been playing around with the gluten-free recipes from Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes per day.  Zoe Francois and Jeff Hertzberg have done a great job of providing whole grain and gluten-free options for their Artisan Bread in 5 minutes per day method.

Simply put, this method is great for families and households where you would like [...]]]>

I’ve been playing around with the gluten-free recipes from Healthy Bread in 5 Minutes per day.  Zoe Francois and Jeff Hertzberg have done a great job of providing whole grain and gluten-free options for their Artisan Bread in 5 minutes per day method.

Simply put, this method is great for families and households where you would like to be able to make bread with a minimum of fuss.  It involves mixing larger batches of dough, and letting a long, cool, delayed fermentation do the rest of the work for you.  For wheat-based breads, this method is great, as it develops the gluten structure slowly, but thoroughly, and has the added benefit of the enzymatic reactions typical of a delayed ferment.   Obviously, with gluten-free breads, there is no need to develop the gluten, but this method is a great one nonetheless, for the convenience AND for the flavour development

While I’ve been doing my own noodling around with these recipes to make them egg and dairy-free, a while back, I noticed that ABin5 put up their own version of an egg-free, gluten-free version, which was also whole-grain heavy to boot!  AWESOME, I thought, and read on, only to discover that it made use of some of the new King Arthur gluten-free flours — not at all readily available to us up here in B.C.  In my trials with this method, I’ve moved completely away from commercial egg-replacers as I found them too drying, and been relying on chia seeds or flax seeds, so I was interested to see that ABin5 also fell back on flax seeds for theirs.

Undaunted, I set about to play around and come up with a recipe that would be heavier on whole grains, but be feasible for those of us still buying our flours separately!  This is my modification of Zoe and Jeffs — the proportions are based on their original recipe, with the major change being the flours.  This relies on only about 25% starch for the texture: considerably less than the minimum of 50% that many other gluten-free breads require to achieve a pleasant texture.  The other addition here that is critical, is the inclusion of sweet rice flour, which adds moisture and helps with the binding of the final flour.

A final note:  I’ve given proportions in volume measures here.   There is minimal mixing required for this approach, as the xantham gum hydrates slowly while the dough sits, and I’ve found that hydration levels are easy to adjust for as you go.  I’ve tried both volume and weight measures, and had consistent results with both, so left the measures as volumes as many folks find them easier.

We’re making baguettes here today, but stay tuned to see what else we can make with this dough!  We’re also sending this one over to Yeastspotting, go check out  what some amazing bread bakers have been up to!!!

Whole “Grain” Gluten-free, Egg-free Baguettes

(modified from Artisan Bread in 5 minutes per day)

• 2 tablespoons flax meal (I use golden flax seeds for their flavour)
• 1/3 cup warm water
• 1/2 cup tapioca starch
• 2/3 cup brown rice flour (make sure to use one that is very finely ground, not gritty)
• 1/3 cup sweet rice flour (also called “glutinous rice” or “sticky rice”)
• 1/2 cup millet flour
• 1/2 cup amaranth flour
• 1/2 cup sorghum flour
• 1 Tablespoon instant yeast
• 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt
• 1 Tablespoon Xantham gum
• 2 cups warm water
• 3 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 Tablespoon honey or organic cane sugar

Mix together the flax meal and 1/3 cup water and set aside for 15 minutes until it becomes thick and gloppy.

In a large bowl, mix together flours, yeast, salt, and xantham gum.  Whisk well to combine all the ingredients (You do NOT want to have blobs of xantham gum!!!)

Add all the liquid ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix with a spatula until the dough is well mixed.  Transfer the dough to a container with a loose fitting lid, and let rise for 1 1/2 – 2 hours until doubled in volume.  The dough will be airier in texture than wheat-based dough.  Store the dough in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

To bake baguettes, preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Grease a baguette pan, or line with parchment paper.  (You can do this on a heavy sheet pan, but the baguette pan allows for greater air circulation on all sides of the baguette — its all about the crusty exterior!!!)

To shape this dough, you want to handle it as little as possible.  I’ve found the easiest way to form into baguettes is with a scoop, laying scoops of dough all in a row and then use a wet spatula or fingers to smooth out the scoops into a uniform baguette.  Sprinkle seeds or gluten-free grains of your choice on top of the baguettes.   Once you’ve formed the baguette, let it sit for about 30 minutes, to take the chill off the dough.  It won’t double in size, but will have oven spring once it starts baking.  You can also slash the top of the dough to control the rise, just be gentle when you do!

Bake at 450 degrees for 30-35 minutes.  Let the baguettes cool completely before you try to cut them!

But before we get into the recipe, here’s a couple of things you need to know about me:

I tried some out a couple of [...]]]> Ive been doing a few trials with this new Timtana flour (for more on the flour, see my post from a couple of days ago), and while I don’t think its suited for more delicate baking, it works well in many of the yeast-raised breads and the more hearty quickbreads.

I tried some out a couple of days ago in the whole “grain”, gluten-free cinnamon buns that I make with sorghum.  These are much heartier than your typical fluffy white cinnamon buns, but they still feel like you are eating something treat-like.

I decided to try the Timtana flour in these instead of garfava, and also decided to switch to light buckwheat flour for the usual sorghum flour.  From the trials I have done, it appears that the optimal balance of starch:flour in order to have a somewhat open texture while boosting the nutritional value is equal parts of starch: flour.

These cinnamon buns are gluten-free, but also dairy-free and egg-free.  These are NOT a super fluffy cinnamon bun, but they do have an open texture, and are quite moist.  The addition of the Timtana flour appears to help create a nice moist dough that keeps fairly well over a day or two.  These remained as moist a day later, and didn’t develop the typical crumbliness of many gluten-free doughs.

Timtana and Buckwheat Cinnamon Buns

• 1 1/4 cups light buckwheat flour (150 grams)
• 1 cup Timtana flour (120 grams)
• 2/3 cup tapioca starch (80 grams)
• 1/2 cup cornstarch (64 grams)
• 1/4 cup almond meal
• 1 Tablespoon xantham gum
• 4 teaspoons granulated yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt

Combine dry ingredients in a medium bowl and mix well with a whisk

• 1 Tablespoon Ener-g egg replacer
• 4 Tablespoons cold water (60 ml)
• 2 Tablespoons coconut oil, melted and cooled
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cider vinegar
• 1 cup vanilla soymilk at room temperature

Combine egg replacer with water and whisk or mix with a hand-mixer until very frothy, like egg whites.  Add the remaining wet ingredients and then fold in the dry ingredients.  Mix with the hand mixer for at least 1 minute, until the dough is smooth.

Place the dough on a cornstarch dusted silpat mat, and place a piece of plastic film overtop.  Roll out to a rectangle approx. 18 inches by 12 inches.

• 1/3 cup Earth Balance buttery flavoured shortening or other vegan shortening
• 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar
• 1 Tablespoon cinnamon
• 1 cup raisins

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Spread the softened butter over the dough, leaving a 2″ border on one side.  Spread the sugar, cinnamon and raisins over the dough.  Roll up like a jelly-roll from the long-side.  Cut into 6-8 slices and place in a greased 9″ cake pan.  Cover loosely and let rise for 60 minutes, or until doubled in size.  Bake for 50-60 minutes, tenting with foil if they appear to be browning on top too quickly.  Glaze them if you like yours glazed.

Oops, almost forgot to link up to Yeastspotting — a weekly roundup of all things yeasty!

The Timtana flour comes from the seeds of [...]]]> So I received a new flour in the mail a couple of days ago: Timtana flour, made by Montana Gluten-free Processors (in Montana of course!).  I’ve been waiting with some interest to see what it would look like and more importantly, what it would be like to bake with.

The Timtana flour comes from the seeds of Timothy grass (basically a perennial forage grass).  What is interesting, is that it is grown as a perennial, rather than continuous annual cropping like most other grains.  Its also packed with protein and nutrients.  Looking at the properties of it, I had some ideas in mind, thinking it might behave much like teff flour in baking.  Nutrient content as outlined on the bag:

120 grams = 1 cup flour

nutrition facts per 1/4 cup flour:

• 90 calories
• 2 grams fat (0 saturated, 0 transfat)
• nil cholesterol
• 0 mg sodium
• 19 gram carbohydrate (5 grams dietary fibre)
• 1 gram sugar
• 5 grams protein
• This stuff also contains Calcium and Iron!

The flour is completely gluten-free, processed in the Montana Processors facilities with no risk of cross-contamination.  Not only that, but the Timothy grass is also grown in fields that have not had any glutinous crops grown on them within a four-year period.  Hard-core attention to detail!!!

So this morning, I opened the bag of flour up, and was somewhat surprised!  Right out of the bag, the flour is much fluffier than most other gluten-free flours, which tend to fall either in the starch or the fine-sandy camps. The flour itself is a little bit nutty in flavour, with a sweet, slightly grassy aroma to it, and a light brown colour.

So for the first round, I figured I would go pretty basic, with bread.  Not too many other flavours as I really wanted to get a sense of not only how this baked up, but also whether the flavours would change much on cooking.  I’ve been thumbing through the new Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day, and opted to try out a modified and veganized version of the basic gluten-free boule.  I’ve made this gluten-free bread before, with millet flour, and wanted to see if the Timtana flour would provide much loft and whether it would develop a crust.

I mixed up this batch of dough by hand and it wasn’t difficult.  When you make the dough this way, it is quite a bit more dough-like than many other gluten-free bread “doughs”, but it remained fairly soft throughout.  After letting it rest for about 2 hrs, I split it in half, to bake part of it, and stash the other half in the fridge to see what it will be like tomorrow.  For those of you who haven’t tried the Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day (and you can do a gluten-free version!), you mix up a large batch of dough, let it go through an initial proof, and then store it in the fridge for 1-2 weeks, pulling of a loaf-sized amount as you need it.  It really does work, so we’ll see what happens with this batch with the Timtana flour.

So here’s the bread fresh out the oven — a small boule perfect for 3-4 people with dinner.  I baked this at 450 degrees, under cover for 15 minutes, and uncovered for 20-25 minutes.  The texture of the inside is quite nice — hearty but not too dense.  The Timtana bakes up with a nice crust, which is also aided a bit with the cornstarch I added to the initial flour mix.

The interior is fairly moist (made very few additions to this to encourage the moisture).  The crust is chewy, with a soft interior crumb, which I thought had a faint alfafa aroma.  Where the dough was browned, the flavour is much more nutty.  All in all, a pleasant loaf of bread — Jeff gave this a thumbs up.  I am thinking for the next round I may add a little bit of almond meal or flax meal.

I’m thinking this dough would also make tasty bagels — holding their shape well with a nice crust on the outside.

Basic Timtana Bread (adapted from Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day)

• 1 3/4 cup Timtana flour (210 grams)
• 3/4 cup tapioca starch (112 grams)
• 3/4 cup cornstarch (96 grams)
• 1 Tablespoon instant yeast
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 Tablespoon xantham gum
• 1 Tablespoon Ener-g egg replacer whisked with 4 Tablespoons water until very foamy
• 1 1/3 cup water
• 2 Tablespoons grapeseed oil
• 1 Tablespoon evaporated cane juiuce

Whisk dry ingredients together until well combined.  Whisk wet ingredients together, and add dry ingredients, stirring well until the dough starts to smooth out.  Cover and let the dough rest at room temp for 2 hours.  Refrigerate for up to 2 weeks if not using immediately.   Dough will be best if used by 7-8 days.

To bake, take half and smooth into a loaf or ball on a parchment-lined baking sheet.  Preheat oven to 450 degrees.  Let the dough rest for 30-40 minutes, and slash the top just before baking.   Put the pan in the oven, covering with a disposable lasagna pan for 15 minutes.  Remove the foil pan, and continue baking for about 20-25 minutes, until the internal temperature registers 205 degrees.  Let cool for at least 45 minutes before slicing.

I also tried the Timtana flour out in Banana bread — post to come as its just come out of the oven but is too hot to slice