Rabbio’s Gluten Free Bread Flour Blend

Today we’ll be diving into one of the more complex topics of gluten free baking–flour blends. I’ll be going into detail about what a flour blend is and why they are all so different, and what each flour is used for in our bread flour blend.

When I first started baking gluten free I had a hard time wrapping my head around all these “1:1” or “All Purpose” gluten free flour blends. They were all unique and gave drastically different results. After a while I realized there is no such thing as a true 1:1 or all purpose gluten free flour blend. Not every blend will work for every situation. Whether you are making bread, pastries, or cake, you will need a different flour blend to achieve the best results. Some items require more hearty structure vs some need a more light and delicate crumb.

Today we will be specifically going over our bread flour blend which can be used for things like french bread, croissants, and focaccia bread. This blend took me a long time to perfect and I’m excited to share it with everyone. I hope this will save you a lot of time and frustration when trying to perfect your gluten free creations.

Gluten Free Bread Flour Ingredients

• potato starch
• superfine white rice flour
• tapioca starch (same as tapioca flour)
• whey protein isolate (dairy free substitutions detailed below)
• millet flour
• xanthan gum

What Is A Gluten Free Flour Blend

A gluten free flour blend is just that, a blend of gluten free flours. The reason behind using a blend of different flours is to mimic the qualities of regular wheat flour. Since wheat flour obviously contains gluten, we must try to use gluten free flours to create similar results. Every gluten free flour has a different effect on your baked goods which is why using a blend of different flours is usually necessary. In most cases, using just one type of flour is impractical. For instance, if you were to substitute just white rice flour or just tapioca when the recipe calls for a flour blend you will not have the same result. Depending on what you use the result could be dense, dry, crumbly or anything in-between.

Why Can’t I Use A Store Bought Flour Blend?

For many recipes store bought blends work just fine, but for some recipes they just don’t produce the same results. Breads and laminated pastry dough for instance require a specific blend of flours that you just can’t buy at the grocery store. I’ve tried so many gluten free bread recipes using store bought blends and not one has worked out. Usually it’s a texture issue, either they are dense like a brick or so crumbly you can hardly cut into them. This flour blend was specifically designed to make gluten free bread, so if you’ve been having a hard time getting your breads to come out right give this flour blend a try!

What Does Each Flour Do?

Each flour adds different qualities to your baked goods, all with the goal of achieving the perfect texture and taste. Here are the different flours and other ingredients used in our bread flour. I’ve included the basic facts about each ingredient as well as their pros and cons for gluten free baking.

White Rice Flour

This flour is used to add lightness to your baked goods. It has a neutral flavor and a smooth texture. Always try to find super fine or finely ground; this will add the best texture to your baked goods and provide the best absorption in batters and doughs. White rice is the base of most flour blends you’ll find out there so make sure you always have some on hand.

Pros:

• Inexpensive and readily available in most grocery stores
• Adds a smooth and light texture to your baked goods
• Long shelf life

Cons:

• If not finely ground it will result in a gritty texture
• Too much in a blend can result in an unappealing translucent white color and make your baked goods crumbly
• Not ideal for recipes with low water and high fat like cookies

Potato Starch

Potato starch is very common in gluten free baking, and is different from potato flour. It gives your baked goods a smooth and tender texture and has a neutral flavor. Potato starch is used most often for its binding properties and adds structure to baked goods.

Pros:

• Gives smooth texture & tenderness to baked goods
• Provides structure & binding
• Inexpensive and readily available

Cons:

• Too much gives baked goods a crumbly texture
• *Needs to be sifted before use to avoid clumps

Whey Protein Isolate

Of all the ingredients in this blend, I know this one tends to make people scratch their head a bit. It might seem odd but protein is very important in baking to add stability and help with emulsifying oils with the other liquids in your batter or dough. It’s important to mention here that you should never use flavored protein powders–only pure proteins like whey isolate. As a general rule of thumb, the higher the protein powder content the lower the post bake density of your baked good. Since overly dense breads and baked goods are really common in gluten free baking, the addition of protein powder like whey isolate can help fix that issue.

**If you are dairy free you can substitute the whey for other protein powders but nothing will quite work as well as whey. I’ve had the best results with unflavored pure soy protein and egg white protein powder as substitutes. See the notes section below for more information.

Pros:

• Reduces density and gives breads a lighter texture
• Neutral flavor
• Easy to find at most grocery stores

Cons:

• Can be costly
• Difficult to substitute

Tapioca Starch

Ground from the root of the cassava plant, tapioca starch also goes by cassava flour or tapioca flour. Tapioca gives chew, elasticity, and structure to baked goods. This is particularly important with gluten free baking, because chew, elasticity and structure is what gluten achieves in normal wheat flour, which is what we are looking to imitate.

Pros:

• Readily available in most grocery stores and reasonably priced
• Adds chew, elasticity and structure to baked goods

Cons:

• Too much leaves baked goods dense and gummy

Millet Flour

Millet flour has a yellow color and adds a mild sweet nutty taste. It also builds structure in dough and adds a delicate cake-like crumb to baked goods. It is known for being an easily digestible grain flour that works well in sweet and savory recipes.

Pros:

• Adds sweet mild nutty flavor
• Easily digestible grain flour
• Adds delicate cake-like crumb to baked goods
• Helps build structure in dough

Cons:

• Using over 20% in a flour blend can result in a starchy taste and lower the volume of breads leaving a mealy texture.
• Consuming large amounts is not recommended for people with thyroid concerns

Xanthan Gum

This is by far the most widely used gum in the food industry. It’s used to stabilize, thicken and create elasticity in doughs and batters. Almost all gluten free recipes use xanthan gum because it most closely mimics the qualities of gluten. Along with its ability to create more elasticity in dough, it also helps with gas retention when proofing and baking, giving breads and baked goods more volume and better structure.

Pros:

• Provides structure and elasticity to doughs and batters, closely mimicking the qualities of gluten
• Helps with gas retention when proofing and baking which helps create more volume and better structure in breads and baked goods

Cons:

• Can be costly
• Can lead to general GI discomfort for those who are sensitive to it

What Can I Use This Flour Blend For?

I originally developed this blend for our Gluten Free French Bread recipe, but I’ve found it has many other applications as well. This flour blend is ideal for making breads but also works really well for certain pastries that require lamination like croissants and danishes.

Why Is This Recipe In Grams?

When you are making a flour blend it’s very important to be precise with your measurements. Measuring by volume using cups and tablespoons can be very inaccurate and lead to incorrect proportions of each flour. I suggest getting a kitchen scale for this recipe (This is the one I use). It will give you exact measurements and you’d be surprised how easy it is to measure ingredients by weight; you may never go back to your measuring cups!

Notes

*Sift Your Flours- When you are adding all your ingredients to a large bowl after you’ve measured them make sure you pass them through a flour sifter or a fine mesh sifter to remove any clumps. This is especially important for the potato starch which naturally forms clumps.

** Dairy Free Option- Whey protein isolate is lactose free, but if you want to make this recipe dairy free or vegan you’ll have to use a substitution. I have tried both pure unflavored soy protein powder like this one and egg white protein powder like this one with good results. While these substitutions will work, I still got the best results by using the whey protein isolate powder.

I wish you the best of luck in all your baking endeavors and I hope our Rabbio’s Gluten Free Bread Flour is a part of your success!