Going Gluten Free A serious condition called celiac disease or celiac sprue has always afflicted a small percentage of the population, who often struggled with health problems for years before being diagnosed. Awareness is helping more of those people get help. Beyond celiac, gluten is one of the top allergens, and many people have reactions to eating it. There is also a growing number of people who consider themselves gluten intolerant on some level and may feel better removing it from their diet. (More information is available through the Celiac Disease Foundation, celiac.org). Luckily, gluten-free products have vastly improved in recent years, and new ones are introduced every day.
Gluten-Free Flours Most gluten-free baking and cooking is done using a combination of flours. Bean, nut, and gluten-free grain flours and starches can be combined to create a good mix. The blend is usually made from two or three types, such as a grain flour, a bean flour, and a starch flour. Bob’s Red Mill Gluten-Free All-Purpose Baking Flour is a great option, or you can make your own by combining a bean, nut, and grain flour with starch flour and experimenting with a balance: • Bean: Garbanzo and garb-fava, pea, and soy flours • Nut: Almond, coconut, and hazelnut flours • Grain: White and brown rice, sorghum, millet, teff, amaranth, quinoa, and buckwheat flours • Starch: Tapioca, arrowroot, cornstarch, and potato starch
Gums and Binders Without gluten, which acts to bind dough and provide structure, leavened breads can’t form the open texture we expect and enjoy. That’s why we use gums and binders. The following are just a few of the gums and binders that make gluten-free baking easy. • Xanthan gum is made by a special bacteria that, when mixed with water, becomes a gum. It’s an indigestible carbohydrate, and you use such a tiny amount of it that it has little nutritional effect. • Guar gum is extracted from a tropical bean through a simple milling and screening process. It’s a form of starch that forms a thick gum when mixed with water. It can be substituted for xanthan gum. • Flax seeds, which are very nutritious, add essential fats and cholesterol-lowering fiber to foods. They can be ground and added to gluten-free baked goods. And, when mixed with water, ground flax seeds also can be used as an egg replacement.
46 real food spring 2013
Gluten-Free Banana Nut Bread Makes 8 servings
Don’t tell anyone that this banana bread is gluten-free, and I promise you, nobody will figure it out. This is great just out of the oven or toasted the next day, slathered with peanut butter. cooking spray 2 cups Bob’s Red Mill GlutenFree All-Purpose Baking Flour ½ teaspoon xanthan gum 2 teaspoons baking powder ½ teaspoon salt 2 large bananas, ripened ½ cup milk ¼ cup canola oil or butter 1 cup brown sugar 2 large eggs 1 teaspoon vanilla ½ cup chopped pecans 1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Oil or spray a standard loaf pan. 2. In a large bowl, combine flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and salt. In a food processor, purée bananas. Add milk, oil, brown sugar, eggs, and vanilla, and process until smooth and wellmixed. Combine with dry ingredients and beat with a whisk or wooden spoon until a smooth batter forms. Scrape into prepared pan and sprinkle with pecans. Use a spatula to swirl them in and smooth top of batter. 3. Bake about 1 hour, until top is golden brown and a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool in pan on a rack. Tightly wrapped bread can be stored in refrigerator up to 1 week.