There are so many gluten free breads on the market now and not all are healthy to eat. I feel that making our own gluten free bread means we know what we are eating therefore avoiding some of the less than healthy additives used to try and make gluten free look and feel like a wheat based bread.

Before I give you the recipe I just wanted to make a few observations about gluten-free breads.

I went to my local supermarket and purchased one of the commercial gluten free breads available as I thought it might be interesting to compare the ingredients.

Shop Bought Gluten-Free Bread

Water
Tapioca Starch
Rice Flour
Potato Starch
Rapeseed Oil
Sunflower Seeds (4%)
Maize Starch
Linseeds (3%)
Psyllium Husk Powder
Millet Seeds (2%)
Humectant Vegetable Glycerol
Caster Sugar
Stabiliser: Hydroxypropyl Methyl Cellulose
Dried Egg White
Yeast
Poppy Seeds (1%)
Salt
Maize Flour
Rice Starch
Preservative: Calcium Propionate

Home-Made Gluten-Free Bread

Gluten free flour blend:
Rice, Tapioca, Potato Sarrasin Carob, sugar beet fibre and xanthan gum
Salt
Yeast
Sugar
Milk
Butter
Eggs
Vinegar
Oil
Sunflower seeds
Pumpkin seeds.

The shop bought gluten-free bread looks more like a normal commercial bread and its texture is like cheap white bread in that it goes doughy if you squeeze it. You can make a sandwich which holds together, it comes ready sliced, and you can more or less pretend it’s no different from what you ate before.

Home made wholemeal loaf

Gluten free bread

The home made gluten-free bread is more like a good solid home made wholemeal loaf. You are in control of the ingredients which means that you can make it dairy, egg and sugar free as well if you need to. It has texture and taste, however it can fall apart quite easily if you cut the slices too thin.

Flour Alternatives

Both breads contain a stabiliser, the commercial brand has Hydroxypropyl Methyl Cellulose which you can read more about here. The home made loaf has Xanthan gum in the flour, you can read more about that here. Depending on what variety of gluten-free flour you use it may not contain Xanthan gum; you need to read the labels.

ALternatively you can use your own mix of gluten free flours so avaoiding any additives at all.

The gluten free bread recipe

Now for the actual recipe. I have included alternatives for more free -from options as like me, many of you not only need to be gluten free but dairy, egg  and sugar free. I have tried all these variations and still end up with a loaf I can enjoy, I hope you do too.

This recipe is an adaptation of one I found in a magazine called The Essential Home Baking Collection.

Delicious Home-Made Gluten-Free Bread Recipe

Ingredients
420g gluten-free flour (brown or white)
1 tsp salt
7g fast-action yeast
2 tsp sugar (miss this out or use honey instead)
350ml lukewarm milk (replace with dairy free milks i.e. home made nut milks)
75g melted butter ( replace with coconut oil)
2 eggs (replace with 1 tbs ground flax seeds mixed in 3 tbs water)
1 tsp apple cider vinegar
1 tbs olive oil (replace with coconut oil)
1 tbs sunflower seeds
1 tbs pumpkin seeds

Method:
Grease a 1kg/2lb loaf tin.
Combine flour, salt, yeast and sugar if using.
Stir melted butter and milk into flour mix.
Beat eggs or substitute with vinegar and stir into flour mix.
Stir in oil and seeds. If using coconut oil melt it first.
The mixture will be sticky and sloppy not at all like bread dough.
Put mix into loaf tin cover with cling film and leave in warm place to rise.
Leave till double in size, about 45mins.
Heat oven 220°C.
Gently brush top of dough with water and sprinkle with additional seeds.
Bake for 15 mins then reduce temperature to 200°C and bake for another 30mins or until golden brown and cooked through.
Cool in tin for 15 mins and then on wire rack.

While still warm it is delicious thereafter I prefer mine toasted. Cut reasonably thick slices and handle with care. It can also be frozen and a slice or two taken out and toasted as and when required.

I make mine with brown gluten flour and dairy, egg and sugar free so it is more dense but delicious all the same.

Let me know how your’s turns out?