My First Time Baking Gluten Free Bread (Spoiler: It Turned out Delicious)

Maybe it’s hard to believe, but up until recently, I had never tried baking my own gluten free bread before. I’ve been on the gluten free diet for 5 year now - what took me so long?! I guess it partially had to do with my perfectionism. I was worried that if I tried making my own bread, I might mess it up somehow and the recipe wouldn’t turn out. Sometimes I struggle with taking a bit of a risk and trying something I might not be good at.

For some reason, I also thought that it was going to be a ton of work. Probably because I’d never made any kind of bread before, gluten-free or gluten-containing. I had this perception that baking bread would be this intense, laborious procedure. I’m not exactly sure why. I blame the media.

Anyways, before taking the plunge, I did some research on the internet on how to make the best gluten free bread. I learned that the secret to moist and soft gluten free bread is adding some extra xantham gum to your dough. Also, I found out how to prevent your bread from getting too browned/burnt on the top while you’re baking it. If you make a mini-tent out of aluminum foil and set it lengthwise on top of the baking pan halfway through your baking time, you’ll get a beautifully coloured loaf.

After doing my research, I combined what I learned into a recipe and gave it a try. I was so happy with how my bread turned out! It had a crunchy crust that was just the right thickness. And the inside was so soft and fluffy. Also, I had added some cinnamon to my dough and that gave the bread a delicious aroma - I love cinnamon. Luckily, my first experience baking bread was a great one. I think I’ll start making gluten free bread more often. Nothing beats the taste of freshly baked bread :)

As the proverb goes, man cannot live on bread alone. Therefore, I made chicken salad so I could make sandwiches. I put apple and grapes in the salad, which gave it sweet flavours that complemented the salty flavours quite well. As a bonus, the apple also gave the chicken salad a nice crunch.

If you’d like to try making gluten free bread and/or a crunchy chicken salad, you can find both the recipes below. Enjoy!

Soft & Delicious Gluten Free Bread

Yield: 1 loaf

Yeast Mix

1 1/2 cups water or milk or milk alternative (I used soy milk)

3 - 4 tablespoons honey or sugar

2 1/2 teaspoons quick-rise instant yeast (or one packet of Fleischmann’s yeast)

Dry Ingredients

3 cups all-purpose gluten free flour (I used President’s Choice)

1 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum (check for gluten free certification)

4 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

optional: 1 tsp cinnamon (or other flavourings, like cloves or onion or garlic powder)

Wet Ingredients

2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar or lemon juice

1/4 cup oil

2 large eggs

Instructions

1) Preheat the oven to 350 F.

2) In a Pyrex measuring cup, measure out water/milk/milk alternative. Heat in the microwave until it is warm to the touch. Make sure it isn’t cold or hot, which will kill the yeast.

3) Stir in the honey/sugar. Then add the yeast last. Set aside for about 10 mins.

4) Combine the dry ingredients in a bowl.

5) Combine the wet ingredients in a separate bowl.

6) Add the yeast mixture to the wet ingredients - only mix it for a few seconds.

7) Combine the dry mixture with the wet ingredients until all ingredients have been incorporated (about 2 or 3 minutes). The dough will be thick and sticky.

8) Coat your 9x5 baking pan with some oil. Using a spatula, put your dough into the baking pan. Use the spatula to smooth out the top of the dough.

9) Let the dough rise on the stove top for 20 - 30 minutes, or until the top of the dough is level with the lip of the baking pan.

10) Bake for 35 - 45 minutes.

11) To prevent the bread from sticking in the pan, after the bread has been out of the oven for a couple minutes, turn the baking pan on it’s side and gently place the loaf on a cooling rack. Allow it to cool before slicing with a serrated bread knife.

Crunchy Chicken Salad

Yield: filling for 8 - 10 sandwiches

**The night before, or a few hours beforehand, bake four chicken breasts in the oven. You can mix spices (paprika, cumin, garlic powder, etc) into some oil and then brush the oil onto the chicken. For juicy chicken, bake at 400 F for 20 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350 F and bake another 20 minutes**

Ingredients

4 cooked and cooled chicken breasts, cubed

1 cup chopped celery

1 cup green seedless grapes, halved

1 apple, cored and chopped

1/2 cup roasted nuts, chopped (you can use cashews, pecans, walnuts, etc)

1 cup mayo or Greek yogurt - or do half and half

1 or 2 cloves of garlic, minced

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp sriracha

salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

1) Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and mix just until everything has combined.

Can be stored in the fridge for 3 or 4 days.

Have you ever tried making your own bread before? How did it go?