I was so pleased with the results of my most recent experimentation on a gluten free multigrain bread recipe. The texture is soft enough for sandwiches and toasts easily, as well. It is also gum-free. Enjoy!
Learn About Some of the Ingredients I Used in This Recipe
STARCH
I used a 50% ratio of starch to flour (cornstarch in this case, but you can use potato starch). While this recipe contains plenty of heavier items such as apple sauce, seeds, flax seed meal and more, I did not raise the ratio of starch. Starches such as cornstarch, potato starch, tapioca flour/starch, and arrowroot flour lighten baked goods. Instead, I used other ingredients to lighten this bread such as baking powder.
RICE STARCH
While most starch ingredients lighten baked goods, rice starch provides more chewiness and moisture. Tapioca flour provides more chewiness than rice starch; thus the reason for adding just a few tablespoons of rice starch. Hol Grain brand is gluten free.
PSYLLIUM HUSK POWDER
If you experience digestive issues with xanthan gum and guar gum, psyllium husk powder is an excellent substitute. However, due to the high fiber content of psyllium husk powder, you will need to use 2 tablespoons of water per 1 tablespoon of psylllium husk powder. Be aware that whole psyllium husk and psyllium husk powder is a bit different.
GLUTEN FREE BAKING POWDER
Most baking powders are gluten free, however not all of them. I suggest using ones which are free of aluminum as well as gluten such as Bob’s Red Mill and Rumford’s. Unfortunately, Clabber Girl and Davis contain aluminum. If you are allergic to corn, use Featherweight brand. It is also gluten free.
EGGS AND EGG WHITES
While many other gluten free bread recipes call for whole eggs, I do not like using them as they create more crumbs and a dryer bread. Dry bread breaks easily when folded. I either use 4 large egg whites. Once in awhile, as in this recipe, I use 1 whole egg and 3 egg whites. The egg yolk provides natural lecithin which helps gluten-free bread a bit. I have learned to only use egg yolk when I use other ingredients with a chewy texture and enough moisture.
SUNFLOWER LECITHIN LIQUID
Lecithin enhances any bread dough. Gluten free bread can use all of the help it can get. I used 1 tablespoon of liquid sunflower lecithin to replace some of the oil I normally would have used. You can use liquid soy lecithin instead of sunflower lecithin, but personally, I do not consume many soy products as they increase estrogen levels in all of us, men, women, and children.
UNSWEETENED APPLESAUCE
Applesauce not only adds a bit of flavor, it also adds moisture.
SUNFLOWER OIL
While I normally would use extra virgin olive oil or grape seed in my bread recipes, I was trying to copy most of the ingredients in Schar’s Wholegrain Ciabatta Rolls. So, I tried sunflower oil instead. I enjoyed the nutty flavor for a change. Use whichever is best for your health and diet.
APPLE CIDER VINEGAR
Vinegar creates little holes in your bread by bubbling up the dough as does yeast. You can use white distilled vinegar, but I prefer the sweeter flavor of apple cider vinegar. Just be sure to use 5% acidic vinegar.
IN CLOSING:
While this bread contains other ingredients, I thought you would appreciate learning about the above ingredients. I hope this helps you better understand gluten free bread baking.
A surprisingly light and soft gluten free multigrain sandwich bread recipe you'd proud to serve your gluten-eating friends.
Ingredients:
Instructions:
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I've been making gluten free bread for 10 years, pretty successfully, but I'm always searching for new ideas, so I wanted to try this recipe. However, when I looked at it, I thought it had way too much water. I decided to try it anyway because it's not fair to judge a recipe unless you try it exactly (or almost exactly since I used a mixture of cornstarch and potato starch instead of all cornstarch, which was indicated as an option in the recipe). The bread fell even as it was baking - an indication of both too much water and a too fast rise at the very beginning of baking. I was very disappointed since I had paid for a membership in order to get this recipe. I will try it again with less water because I think the recipe has potential, but I will need to play with it a bit.
Also, did you use liquid sunflower lecithin?
Karis,
I’m so sorry that you had a bad experience with this recipe.
Did you use psyllium husk powder? The main reason why so much water is required is due to the use of psyllium husk powder. Rice starch also requires additional water. Also, did you use a stand mixer and beat the dough batter for 5 minutes? The mixing length is also important as it gives the ingredients time to absorb the liquid.
I used Vitacost.com brand psyllium husk powder. What brand did you use? Also, did you use psyllium husk powder or whole husk psyllium? Whole husk psyllium could cause a huge problem. It does not absorb as much liquid as the powder.
Let me know and we can go from there.
Carla
I used psyllium husk powder, not whole. It was in the bulk section, but I think it's Frontier. I didn't use rice starch, I used sweet rice flour, as you suggested. I did beat it for 5 minutes in my kitchen aid. As I said, I've been successfully making gluten free bread for 10 years. This is a very familiar process for me.
I will make this recipe again myself just to make sure there aren't any errors in the recipe. However, I do remember adding 1-3/4 cup of water. The recipe actually looks correct to me.
So, you did make two changes (using sweet rice flour instead of rice starch and using potato starch for some of the cornstarch) which could cause a little problem. However, over-rising will cause bread to fall as well. Do you have any photos of the bread risen?
Also, did you use liquid sunflower lecithin? That is extremely important as well.
Meanwhile, wait for my feedback once I make the bread again.
Have you tried that Expandex bread recipe? I see that you commented on the article about Expandex, but I’m not sure why you referred to not having a microwave. Did you mean to comment on a different page? If you don't mind using modified starch, it makes wonderful bread, but heavier than most of my recipes.
My favorite gluten free bread recipe is the one with oat flour and rice flour: https://glutenfreerecipebox.com/gluten-free-brown-rice-oat-bread-video-sorghum/.
Carla
The substitutions I made were at your suggestion. Have you tried the bread with the substitutions? The potato and the sweet rice may absorb less water than the cornstarch and the rice starch, but I wouldn't expect it to be that significant. I did use liquid sunflower lecithin. The bread did not over rise before it cooked, but it rose significantly at the beginning of rising. It was big and beautiful, but I was concerned because it's not supposed to rise that much that fast. I do have a thermometer in my oven, so I know the temperature was accurate, it just may need to be lower. It's not a big deal - I would just use less water and possibly a lower oven temp. if I try this recipe again. I was really just looking for some new ideas, but the flavor is very much like my own recipe because we use largely the same ingredients. The texture in my bread is just what it should be - light, stretchy, and soft-ish (I don't like my bread too moist like some gf recipes that use a lot of milk). It just doesn't stay soft for more than 2 days or so, but I guess that's just the nature of the beast.
Also, my comment on the expandex site was in reply to someone else recommending heating a wet towel in a microwave and wrapping the bread it in to soften it a bit. I thought that was a great idea. No, I won’t use modified starch in my baking.
Karis,
You are correct in that the potato starch/cornstarch sub probably wasn't significant enough to make a difference. No. I haven't tried that one myself. I just know the makeup of each ingredient. They're similar enough. When you asked me for a sub for rice starch, the closest thing I could think of was sweet rice starch, but it is different as I explained previously. You should always use the first suggested ingredient in any of my recipes. Substitutions are for those with other food allergies. Always expect a different result. If I ever state, "you can try..." means it is a new experiment you'll be doing.
Thanks for clarifying about the microwave comment. I found that suggestion extremely helpful as well.
Meanwhile, since you're looking for a new bread substitution with a new flavor, you must try the pull apart potato rolls, which are extremely tender and soft. Also, and the most flavorful is the Pull-Apart Almond Rolls. I brought the latter to a potluck and even gluten-eaters gobbled them up.
Carla
Carla
With that said, feel free to experiment away, but before you try reducing the water, I would leave out the baking powder. However, leaving it out will result in a denser dough. As you can see from the photo, my final bread was rectangular not large and square. While it may have fallen for me too (I don't recall), all I know is that the final result was something I enjoyed. It was light and a nice texture. The use of psyllium husk powder is what gives it that longer shelf life. However, it makes a little chewier than my other bread recipes. As you said earlier, it's the nature of the beast.
Carla
Hi,
What can be used as a substitute for Rice starch? Thank you.
Kathy,
You can try using sweet rice flour, however, it is not as starchy.
Carla
How can I print the picture with the recipe?