[Flour Mix Recipe is at the end of this post]
In the comment section of my pie crust post, reader John asked if I had any info about the gluten-free flours that I use. I’ve been meaning to post something on this topic for awhile now–and I’d like to thank John for reminding me.
I was diagnosed as being gluten intolerant right after my daughter was born, in 2000. Up until that time, I was an avid wheat baker. And I had no plan on stopping. But, gluten-free (gf) baking seemed to be a whole different world from wheat baking. And everything tasted awful. I actually spent days crying over the fact that the thing that gave me the most joy in the world, baking, was taken away from me. I obsessed over the fact that I wouldn’t be able to teach my daughter how to knead bread when she got older. It was a “dark night of the soul” period for me.
At a certain point, I decided that if I wanted to continue baking good-tasting things, I had to do a lot of research and experimentation. And by good-tasting, I don’t mean simply edible–I mean yummy. In 2000, gf baking was nowhere near where it is today. All of the commercially available things were awful. The best you could hope for from gf baked goods is that they not be too dry, too crumbly, or too hard. And, home baking seemed not really worth it–all of the recipes seemed to have an air of “here’s something you can bake but it will taste gross, so good luck” about them. If you didn’t have to eat gluten-free, you wouldn’t bake or touch these things with a 10 foot pole, much less eat them.
I determined that the main obstacle to gf baking was the flour component. And, from that day on, I was on a search for flours that made gf baked items taste good. At first I tried using single flours. For example, I would bake something with just white rice flour. It became clear very quickly that this was not a good idea. One of the big problems with any single gf flour is that they are not the correct texture for most baked goods. They each have their own “disposition,” to use the term Bette Hagman, The Gluten-Free Gourmet, used. Further, they don’t have gluten to hold them together, so the final product is crumbly. And dry. I started thinking that combining several different flours was probably the best route to go. Becca, my gf friend and mentor, and I would have debates about the relative merits of measuring out different flours for each baking project vs. using a mix. One thing that was key for me was that I hated having to get out several flours every time I baked and measure out different amounts of each. This took time and it wasn’t very fun.
Then I happened upon the books of Bette Hagman, the “Gluten-Free Gourmet.” Everyone who cooks and bakes gluten-free owes Hagman an enormous debt of gratitude. I met her once at a gluten-intolerance awareness fundraiser and made quite a scene with groveling at her feet to show her how thankful I was for the research she did on gluten-free cooking and baking. She’s the main one, I feel, who brought baking back to the gluten-free population. She wrote several books on gluten-cooking and baking. The one I used the most is her The Gluten-Free Gourmet Bakes Bread. Indeed, when Girlfriend was 1 yr old, and we were out of the “oh-my-gosh-I-have-a-baby-and-can’t-do-anything-else” phase, I spent almost every day baking bread out of Hagman’s book.
It was from Hagman’s books that I discovered the concept of mixing gluten-free flours to make a cup-for-cup gf substitute for wheat flour. Her favored mix contained garbanzo and fava bean flour. She liked this combo because she felt that the protein in the beans helped gf baked goods to have a good texture and because they have a high nutritional value. I made and used her Four Flour Bean Mix for awhile. This mix contains garfava bean flour, sorghum, cornstarch, and tapioca flour. I found out that I didn’t like the taste of this mix–primarily because of the bean component. And the dough or batter made from it (e.g., cookie dough) tasted awful. Unless you’re making something that specifically calls for a bean flour (like papadum), I don’t think bean flours are a good component of gf flour mixes.
After discovering how strong the bean flours could taste, I started to pay attention to the taste of each gf flour. It hadn’t dawned on me before this that the flour could add a taste to the item with which it’s baked. It was then that I decided to clarify my goals for my gf baked goods. I determined that my primary goal was to make gf baked goods that tasted like they did when I made them with wheat flour. I wanted a chocolate chip cookie or a cake to taste and feel like what I remembered them to taste and feel like pre-gf days. And so did everyone around me. I love to bake for other people, so it wouldn’t work for me to bake things that taste differently than people expect them to.
A note: I have noticed that many gluten-free bakers have determined that their goal with gf baking is health-related. These bakers use certain flours over other ones because they are more “healthy” than others. So, these folks don’t use rice flours because they feel they’re not as full of nutrients as, say, quinoa flour. This is fine, as long as you and they are aware of the different qualities these flours give to baked goods. Baking with these flours is the equivalent to non-gf bakers using whole wheat or rye flour in all of their baked goods because it’s “healthier.” As any baker knows, whole wheat flour by itself lends a certain taste and texture to baked goods that you don’t get with white flours. So, a whole wheat cookie is going to taste and feel differently in your mouth than one made with white flour. It drives me crazy when people tell me they think gf baking tastes weird and then I find out that it’s because bean or some other strong-tasting flour was used by the baker.
My goals for baking don’t fall into this category. I am a classic baker. I like to think of myself as falling into more into the Julia Child category of bakers. I don’t bake brownies, for example, because they’re healthy. I bake them because I love to bake, I like the craft of baking, I want a treat, and brownies are yummy. So, unless I’m going for a certain taste/texture, like I do with my gf baguettes or graham crackers, I usually do not use the heavier and more strong-tasting flours like sorghum, teff, amaranth, and quinoa. I include this caveat here to explain why I use the flours I use.
Back to Bette Hagman. I think at a certain point folks must have communicated to Hagman that the taste of the bean flour mix wasn’t that good, for she then came up with her Featherlight Rice Flour Mix, which got rid of the bean flour. This mix contained rice flour, tapioca flour, cornstarch, and potato flour. This was better. But, not great. And the batter made with this mix still tasted awful. Another issue with both of her mixes is that they do not contain xanthan gum–which is essential for gf baking. You have to add it separately to each recipe. This drove me crazy for everyday baking.
A word about xanthan gum. Think of xanthan gum as the “gluten-replacer” in gluten-free baking. It acts as a binding agent. It holds baked goods together and eliminates the “crumbly factor” in gf baking. It provides the elasticity that gluten does. I consider it a must. You don’t need to use very much in most baking–only about a heaping 1/4 teaspoon per cup of flour. Some people substitute guar gum. Guar gum works the same way that xanthan gum does, but it isn’t as elastic. And, be aware that it has some issues around creating gastrointestinal problems in many people–it is also a laxative (it is often sold as such). And, given the problems gluten intolerant folks have with digestive issues, I don’t think it’s really a good choice, unless you can’t tolerate xanthan gum. One thing to note about xanthan gum is that it is often grown on corn. My corn-sensitive friends have reported no ill effects from eating xanthan gum in my baked goods. My food scientist friends tell me that the corn should be gone from the product once the process of making the xanthan gum is finished. But, you need to check with your doctor to see what he or she says is right for you if you are corn sensitive. For more info on all of the gluten-replacers, check out my GLUTEN REPLACERS post. For an intense and scientific discussion of xanthan gum and guar gum, see this article.
Again, back to Bette. After reading Bette Hagman’s books, I continued on my search for the perfect gluten-free flour mix. I stumbled across (it was in the window of my local bookstore) and read Karen Robertson‘s fabulous cookbook, Cooking Gluten-Free! I think this is one of the best gluten-free cookbooks out there. It was from this book that I found out about Wendy Wark’s Gluten-Free Flour Mix. Wendy Wark, the woman behind this mix, wrote a little gluten-free cookbook in 1998 called Living Healthy With Celiac Disease, and used this flour mix for her recipes. Robertson used the mix as the basis of her baked goods, as well.
This was what I was looking for! Finally, a flour mix that closely mimicked wheat flour, contained no bean flour, and had the right amount of xanthan gum. This mix contains brown rice flour, white rice flour, tapioca starch flour, sweet rice flour, cornstarch, potato starch flour, and xanthan gum. Robertson even got the gf company, Authentic Foods to carry this as a packaged flour mix, Multi Blend Gluten Free Flour (I’m not sure if they carry this anymore). This made it easy for folks to use the mix without having to mix it themselves.
This mix was my standard flour mix for a couple of years. But, over these years, as I baked for other people, I started encountering difficulties with this mix. First of all, it was a hassle to mix–so many ingredients and one of them, the potato starch flour, was hard to find (I liked mixing it myself rather than buying it pre-mixed). Second, I have a gluten-free friend who is also corn-sensitive. This wasn’t good, because she was one of the main recipients of my baked goods. So, I started substituting arrowroot starch for the cornstarch. This, ultimately, wasn’t satisfying because the arrowroot flour seemed to go bad fairly quickly, which made it taste awful, and it was hard to get. Also, around this time, I had another friend with a gluten-free daughter (another recipient of my baked goods), who is nightshade-intolerant–which meant the potato starch didn’t work for her. This led to my decision to eliminate the potato starch.
So, I started playing with the concept of simplifying the mix and the ingredients in the mix. All the ingredients had to be fairly easy to get, either here or online, and the ingredients had to be as allergy-neutral as possible. This is how I came to develop the mix that I call Jeanne’s Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Mix. This mix contains just brown rice, white rice, and sweet rice flours, mixed with tapioca flour and xanthan gum. It’s easy for me to mix on my own, and it stores well in the fridge. People ask for it all of the time. And best of all, I can use it as a cup-for-cup substitute for wheat flour in most of my recipes. Yay!
I get my gluten-free flours and xanthan gum from Bob’s Red Mill, whose products are widely available in Seattle stores, or from Authentic Foods or Amazon. I also sometimes use the brand of sweet rice flour (also known as “glutinous rice flour”) from Koda Farms called Mochiko. This is available in regular grocery stores in the “ethnic” section. You can also order it online. All of these flours are available online. All of these flours are made in facilities that adhere to gluten-free manufacturing practices. And, they are made with bakers in mind, so the grind of each flour is “fine” and they work well. You may also find some of these flours in Asian grocery stores. Please note that if the package is not labeled “gluten-free” you cannot be sure that it is not cross-contaminated.
I don’t know where to get these flours in your hometown or your country because I don’t live there. 🙂
Also, when I refer to a gf “flour mix” in my recipes I mean one that is designed to be used as a cup-for-cup substitute for wheat flour. I do not mean a pancake mix or a baking mix that includes other ingredients like baking powder, soda, vanilla, or salt. Pancake mixes will not work well when you’re baking from scratch and using a recipe that calls for “flour.”
FYI: my flour mix has a slightly higher glycemic index rating than regular all-purpose wheat flour, so it’s not any “healthier” than using wheat flour.
How to convert this mix to SELF RISING gluten-free flour.
BEFORE you post a question about the mix on:
1) Where to get flours
2) How to substitute for one or more of the flours
3) Substitutions for for xanthan gum
4) The cost of flours
–check out this post “Answers to Questions About/Substitutions For My Gluten-Free Flour Mix”–your questions might be answered there!
BEFORE you post a question about xanthan gum or other gluten replacers, please see my post Let’s Talk Gluten-Replacers in Gluten-Free Baking.
Tapioca flour equals tapioca starch but is NOT cassava flour. Cassava flour is the whole root instead of just the starch
Jeanne’s Gluten-Free All-Purpose Flour Mix
Mix together and store in a cool, dark place for about 6 weeks, or in fridge for up to 4 months or in the freezer for 7 months (or even longer).
1 cup of this mix equals 145 grams. Use this mix cup-for-cup or gram-for-gram in most of your recipes you are looking to adapt from wheat (except for yeasted recipes–those require a bit more tweaking):
1 1/4 cup (170 g) brown rice flour
1 1/4 cup (205 g) white rice flour
1 cup (120 g) tapioca flour/starch (not cassava flour)
1 cup (165 g) sweet [white] rice flour (also known as “glutinous” white rice flour or under the brand name, Mochiko.)
2 scant tsp. xanthan gum (scant means: “falling short of the measurement.” Scant in this case means not quite 2 teaspoons. That said, don’t over-think it. Just measure and move on.)
PS: Please be a good blog colleague and do not print this recipe on your site. If you want to use it for a recipe on your site, simply link to this page so your readers come here for the information on how to make the mix. I have made the recipe available to my readers as a service–I don’t make any money on this mix even though I spent years and money on developing it, and the only “payment” I receive is page views for my blog. Thank you.
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2012 Jeanne Sauvage
Please help! So this gluten free flour recipe you listed above, where can i find your bread recipe that calls for this gluten free flour? I have all the ingredients but do I need baking powder, soda, yeast, I really need bread recipe that has these in them so i can make some bread 🙂
thank you
Mike: Check out the Gluten-Free Recipes tab at the top of the blog. It has a list with links to all of my recipes. Happy baking!
Hi, I have been using this mix for over a year now —it is fantastic and inexpensive to make. I was recently organizing my cookbook and decided to come back to this website to look for new recipes. I realized that I hadn’t left a comment yet to say Thank you for this great mix! I am celiac and have been eating GF for 3 years now. The first year I tried lots of the boxed mixes — most tasted pretty terrible unless you could cover up the taste with enough cocoa powder or spices. Then I tried making my own mixes. I started off trying bean flour mixes (because that’s what my cookbooks advised) and again, pretty terrible. Then I tried cornstarch/rice mixes and it found it really “gummy”. This mix finally worked for me. Since then, I have experimented with sorghum and millet ….and even coconut flour. but those are for specific recipes…not a “cup for cup” general blend. Anyway, thank you very much!!
Jen: You are so welcome! I am so glad!!
Hi I was researching for a GF work project I’m doing for my co-op placement. I am a food scientist finishing my education at University of Guelph. I just wanted to thank you for all the information that you have really well summed up on your site, and that it also agrees with my school and work knowledge as well. Its not often you (or I) come across a well written blog with correct an accurate information. Thank you 🙂 for taking the effort on yourself to educate the public with correct info 🙂
Colin: You are welcome! And thanks for reading!
I use this mix all the time in baking- it is really outstanding. Made a cherry pie tonight with a crust from the mix and your recipe for gluten free pie crust and it was awesome. Thanks Jeanne.
Kim: Yay! I’m so glad!
One more question if you don’t mind!
So I am in the process of buying your gluten free ingredients. Do I need to buy yeast and use it with the ingredients or use baking soda, baking powder?
thanks
Joe: Each recipe will have different leavening requirements. So, you will buy yeast, baking powder, and/or baking soda as needed.
Oh wow! Such great info…just getting into this GF discussion now, since I am trying a low FODMAP diet and gluten is out of the question. But what is in the question is: I am assuming I can use this as a flour in pie crust applications, correct? Excited to give this a whirl!
Annaliese: Yes! Got to the Gluten-Free Recipes tab at the top of the blog for lots of recipes–including pie crust. Happy baking!
We’ve recently gone gluten free as my daughter has IBS and gluten and wheat really cause her to bloat. Last night I made your sandwich bread with the ingredients I had available and I’m really pleased with the way it has turned out so thank you. I’ve just placed an online order for the combination of flours to make your all purpose flour and I’m so excited to make proper little cupcakes and brownies for Meg. The sweet rice flour isn’t easy to source here in Wales (uk) but I’ve managed to pick some up at Amazon. Thank you again
Cerys: Yay! I’m so glad! And I am so glad that you found all of the flours! Happy baking!
Hello, our family is going to be switching out commercial breads for yourssssssss…so excited. A quick question for you.
1. would this work good in a bread machine or would it be better to just mix and put in a pan?
thank youuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu
Joe: Each recipe on my blog has its own requirements. I have instructions for how to use two of my breads in either a bread machine or in a pan in the oven (the Soft Sandwich Bread and the Multigrain Bread). My other breads have oven instructions only (but you are welcome to do your own experimenting with the bread machine).
My family really loves the Dove gluten free flours available in the UK – they are readily available at supermarkets for a fraction of ordering specialty ingredients. I often found I could do a straight swap for plain or self-raising flour in a regular cake recipe.
Cheri: Great! I’m glad you found something that works for you. One thing to keep in mind: as far as I know, the Dove mix doesn’t have xanthan gum, so you need to add some sort of xanthan gum to it to get things to stay together.
Wow – managed to make a loaf of bread that the children ate and didn’t complain tasted funny. Just taken cupcakes out of the over made with the rest of the flour from the batch and they look amazing -light and fluffy! I am going to have so much fun using this flour!
Lynsay: I’m so glad!
Hello Jane, and thank you for posting this recipe. I am an avid baker, but a complete newbie on everything GF. One of my friends has had a lot of health issues recently, and the list of what she’s not allowed to eat right now makes me want to weep. I promised her I was going to try and find a good recipe for bread and for crackers, and after snooping around on the interned I stumbled on your website.
I like that your mix doesn’t contain potato starch or flour, because it’s one of the items that is on her no-no list. Which means I can’t buy any of the GF ready made mixes I find anywhere, because they always contain either/or…
And now, a couple questions:
The mix: can you double/triple your mix leaving the proportions “as is” and just multiplying, or do you have to modify it? I’d like to make a BIG batch of the mix and give it to her with a basket of baked goods (I plan on starting with your soft white sandwich bread, cheese crackers and dinner rolls. We need to cheer that woman up!).
The cheese crackers: She can only eat hard grated cheeses like Parmesan. Would you add more of it or simply remove the cheddar?
She can’t have regular milk, only lactose free milk. Will the absence of lactose affect the browning/taste of the finish product?
Thank you for your help.
Sherine: Thanks for the nice note! You can multiply the mix as much as you want. I usually made a triple batch. When making the cheese crackers, I would recommend using the appropriate amount of parmesan in the place of the cheddar. Otherwise, I don’t think it would have enough cheese to make it stable (but I haven’t tried it, so it’s always worth a try to see if it works). I haven’t used lactose-free milk but I have use alternative milks in most of my recipes and they work out fine. 🙂
Oh, my. Finally, FINALLY I have a flour mix that works – both in your recipes, and mine!! Your pancakes were as close as I’ve ever gotten to wheat-based (even though I accidentally left out the baking powder, and mine were more like crepes LOL, the flavor was still spot-on). Then I tried your sandwich bread in a bread machine (also excellent), and finally used your mix to replace wheat flour in my own oatmeal cookie recipe. None of us can tell a difference! I bake wheat-free for my daughter, so I can still taste and compare, and this is the best GF All Purpose mix I’ve ever tried. THANK YOU SO MUCH for sharing it with us all!
You’re welcome! So happy to help!!
Hi there – For two years I’ve been looking for a mix that works like wheat and voila! Thanks so much. My husband and son are now happy after being subjected to some pretty awful experiments with coconut flour, gluten free bought mixes etc – but I don’t give up! I ground my own glutinous rice flour from sushi rice for your mix and though a tiny bit gritty – I’m okay with it and the biscuits, cakes, batter etc are so much like a wheat finish that I just don’t worry too much about it lol and when I can find some bought sweet flour it’ll be perfect. Thanks so much.
Regards Shelley and long-suffering family 🙂
Shelly: I’m so glad! Thanks for letting me know!
You mind sharing specifics ? You grind raw sushi rice kernels in a Vitamix using the grain attachment? I have ground grains but never the rice. Very intrigued and wish to try this approach.
Excuse me if I am not understanding, new to gluten-free, but isn’t Xanthum Gum made with wheat which would give the flour combination gluten? I purchased all of the flours and am ready to mix and dive into baking a white cake. This is the only thing stopping me. Also, have you tried using the White or yellow cake basic recipe and using full-fat sour cream? I find the traditional (made-with-wheat-cake flour) white almond sour cream cake absolutely devine. My goal for GF is to replicate as much as possible this cake in particular.
All About: No, xanthan gum is created by growing the bacterium Xanthomonas campestris on a sugar medium. Read my post about xanthan gum and other gluten-replacers for more information. Also, which basic recipe are you referring to?
Thank you Jeanne,
I love your flour mix. So nice to be able to make really nice GF baked goods.
My grandson is coeliac and cannot eat legumes so your flour mix is great for us.
It does not contain Soy flour which we don’t eat either and is in most of the commercial gf flour mixes.
Thank you again for sharing.
Marthea: Oh, I’m so very happy to help! It’s truly my pleasure!
Hi Jeanne. I’ve been storing your flour mixture in a container in the refrigerator and I now wonder if that is best for the life of the baked goods. Would it be ok to just store it in a closer container in the pantry?
Kathy: If you’re storing the flour mix for a long time, I recommend storing it in the freezer. And freezing it won’t affect the baked goods. Also, never store your baked goods in the refrigerator (they go stale much quicker). Store them at room temp or freeze them.
My mate cannot consume gum products. Is there any good replacement for xanthum gum?
Imani: Check out my post about Gluten-Replacers–there is info there about ground seeds, which is something some people use. Happy baking!
Hi In case I decide to use chia instead of gum ,how much should I use .
I want to make the crazy cake but I don’t know if I should add the chia to the flours or to the bowl when I combine the dry ingredients with the wet ones.
Chana: To be honest, I don’t really know. I would find a blog that uses them in see what they recommend. If you want to experiment, I would grind chia seed and then use 1/4 tsp per cup of flour to start with and see what happens!
I apologize if this was asked but I did not see it. I have a mix of GF flours that I prefer and have some already mixed and ready to use in my pantry. However, my mix does contain xanthum gum. Because of that I would think I need to add a bit more than the “additional” amount called for in the recipe. Is there an approximation you can give me for that? I.e. 1/4 teaspoon per 140 g of GF flour???
Or does it depend on the flours I am using in my mix ( neutral ones).
Mary: If your mix already contains xanthan gum, then just treat my recipes as you would if you were using my flour mix–if the recipe calls for “extra” xanthan gum, then add the amount listed as extra.
I’ve been hearing a lot about the “America’s Test Kitchen” Gluten free flour mix lately and decided to give it a try. I made some of their recipes using their mix, and some of your recipes using their mix – and I must say, the results that I get with your mix are noticably better. I’m sure that there is some interesting scientific reason for the difference, but as far as I’m concerned, the results are all the evidence I need to know which one I prefer! In “Lisa’s” Test Kitchen, your combo reigns supreme.
Lisa: Thank you so much for the info! From what I know about ATK and gluten-free, they are trying to recreate the wheel–i.e., they are working in a vacuum and haven’t consulted with any gf bakers who have experience. Therefore, they don’t know the science behind gf baking, and they don’t have the experience to know when something is really good.
I was wondering what you would put in place of the xanthum gum if your allergic to both corn and soy? I know theses are what xanthum gum are made from and I am allergic to both so would you just omit it or is there another gum that you could put in place of it? Thank you.
Cassidy: There’s a link in the post that leads you to my page on info about Gluten Replacers (including xanthan gum). Xanthan gum doesn’t contain the sugar it’s grown on. In fact, Bob’s Red Mill xanthan gum is grown on wheat sugar–and it’s entirely gluten-free and doesn’t contain wheat (and I use it and don’t react to it). Read the post for more info on this topic 🙂
Hi Jeanne, I have followed your blog ever since I was diagnosed with Celiac Disease about 10 months ago. I was so taken by your statement regarding baking food that tastes good *like it is supposed to” as opposed to those who want to eliminate every possible ingredient that might be important to their own ingredient limitations . I understand that there are many people who have sensitivities beyond those that I have to deal with, but at this moment in time, coming from a classical baking background, your approach is exactly what I have been looking for. Thank you !
Sue: Yay! I’m so glad!!
Well ir your stearing clear of gluten you should know about not eating xanthan gum , they put that in all the gluten free products ….can give people reaaaalll problems . Try to cook without it not good ….read up about it
Jane: I’m not really sure what you’re talking about. You seem to be majorly misinformed. Please ready my post on Gluten Replacers for a discussion of xanthan gum, how it’s made, and what it contains.
Why do you assume that the owner of this blog has not already made herself aware of the positives and negatives of the ingredients she uses. You know what they say about people who “assume”.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for all the wonderful info, references, and hard work! I am new to this gluten free life and am feeling overwhelmed, lost, and to be honest a bit angry. I literally found out yesterday that I need to be gluten free after 50 years of eating wheat. I was trying to cheer myself up (see it isn’t so bad, look at all the recipes available). When I found your white cake recipe. Oh yeah gonna have birthday cake after all this year!!! Thank you.
Lori: Yay! And happy birthday!!
Lori… I am in the same age bracket and I also found out in May that I needed to eat gluten free after testing positive for Celiac disease. My biggest ‘anger’ though is that it took so long for someone to decide to test me for it, most likely because I also have Fibromyalgia and a lot of symptoms are the same. After the initial shock I decided to look at it as an adventure. I am so happy there are sites like this that can help guide us on this adventure! I am eager to try some of these recipes!
I can’t thank you enough for this gluten free nightshade free flour mix, I am also suffering from nightshade and almost all flour mix has potato starch. This recipe is like a birthday gift to me.
Sepi: I’m so glad!!
i just made my first batch of gluten free cookies with this flour mixture. I made chocolate chip bar cookies. They’re a little crumbly compared to cookies made with wheat flour but all in all, very good! A nice pleasant taste
I have a really basic question – why do you need to refrigerate the flour? I’m not familiar with tapioca, is that something that requires refrigeration, perhaps?
Jenifer: Refrigerate or freeze if you’re not going to be using it within a few weeks.
Hi Jeanne
I have just recently discover your website and I definitely love your GF Flour Mix.
Indeed it is a cup for cup replacement for plain flour. I tried baking Butter Cookies and Choc Chip Cookie from a non GF recipe by just replacing with your GR flour mix – and it turns out super!
Many thanks for sharing this mix with us.
Tania: Yay! I’m so glad!
Hi Jeanne,
I only have tapioca flour, white rice flour, brown rice flour, xanthum gum and potato starch could I use this as a flour mix for bread? & if so what measurements should I use? Thank you!
Megan: Check out my Answers About/Substitutions for My Gluten-Free Flour Mix post. Thanks!
I actually already did before i commented. ill just combine them and see what it comes out like i guess
hi jeanne
i am currently doing experiments on creating the best tasting gluten free pizza bases. I have been trying the whole banting root but tend to find the bases taste way too much like cauliflower which is pretty disgusting. Even though i tried using more coconut and tapioca to try mask the taste it just doesnt help. I then resorted to making a base solely out of tapioca flour but it ended up having a very powdery and floury after taste which is also not very appealing. i havent tried your mix yet but off the cuff do you think it would solve the problems i have been facing?
I have been trying to stay away from the complex carbs like rice etc to try accomodate for those doing a tim nokes kind of diet (hence i tried the banting way).
There is a supplier that i have bought Cauliflower wraps from which i have made into pizza bases and they are amazing. texture is great as a wrap or a pizza, no floury/powdery or funny taste to the flour. bases get crunchy and taste exactly like a normal wheat base pizza. thing is that i have tried mimicking the recipe using the ingredients list she has placed on the packaging, namely : Cauliflower, cocounut flour, tapioca flour, psyllium husk, flaxseeds. However every time i try it is either way too much cauliflower or it just tastes weird and powdery, is there anything you could suggest?
thanks a mill
Ryan: I’m thinking that my site really isn’t the kind of site you’re looking for. I do classical baking using rice and tapioca flours, with xanthan gum as the gluten replacer. I don’t like the taste or the behavior of psyllium husk in the place of xanthan gum, so I can’t really advise you on that. I don’t do paleo or carb free baking and I don’t know much about those. Check my Baking Tips/FAQs page for more info on my baking recommendations.
Ryan – did you find your answer?? If so, please post it! I’d *LOVE* to find a way to make a crust just like that, with those ingredients.
Thanks!!
Hi Jeanne: I have been eating seitan (sp) for a while and not tolerating it well. I wanted to know if your flour mixture would do well in making non wheat meat? I had been making roasts, sausages and other meats from gluten and want to continue to have these in a non wheat form. If you have additional information that would be helpful. Much appreciated.
Allison: Well, the thing about gluten is that it is a protein–so you can separate it out and make stuff with it. There isn’t an equivalent for gluten-free. Therefore, I would recommend using another protein: beans, tofu, cheese, etc. to make alternative “meats.” I don’t know how to do this, but I’m guessing there are a zillion sites that can teach you how!
Good Evening Jeanne: I recently bought a bulk bag of organic tapioca flour produced in India from a reputable health food store where I have purchased many bulk flours before. This bag of tapioca flour has a distinct brown tinge…all other tapioca flours I have used have been pure white. Is this a common occurrence, or should I return it to the store (I live an hours drive from this store)?
Delee: Hm, I’ve never seen a brown tapioca. Even when my tapioca flour goes bad, it is still white. How does it smell? Does it smell kind of neutral–like plain flour? Or does it smell icky or metallic? If it smells bad, then it’s definitely gone off. I would bring it back and ask the store if this is the correct color for it.
Hi, just wondering if more white or brown rice
flour can replace the sweet rice flour in your
flour mix recipe? Imvfrom Ireland and it is
not possible to get sweet rice flour here.
Isabel: Greetings! I looked on Amazon UK and it looks like you can order Sweet Rice Flour (also known as Glutinous Rice Flour) from there. If you don’t want to do that, I saw that Dove’s website has Potato Flour (not Potato Starch) for order–you can substitute that for the Sweet Rice Flour in a pinch.
Thanks Jeanne – that’s really helpful!
Isabel: Happy to help!
I found this mixture via Yammies gluten freedom, and I just wanted to say thank you for making it available! I have had nothing but success while using it (must recently for rum cakes).
And you were totally right about using the rice flour made by Authentic Foods- the texture is much better using their product!
Mattie: I’m so glad!
Mattie: Yay!! Thanks for letting me know!
Is brown rice flour necessary to use? Would using only white rice flour be okay? What is a good substitution for the brown rice flour?
Amaris: Yes. I didn’t make the mix willy-nilly. That said, it will be OK if you want to substitute extra white rice flour. It will be a bit starchy for my tastes, but basically OK.
I’m new to gluten free. My son has a sensitivity to wheat. Can I substitute this flour for reg. all purpose flour in my non-gluten free recipes?
Cyndi: Yes, for the most part. Most cookies do well with a one to one conversion and no other changes. Yeasted recipes need a lot of changes. And cakes and bars (and pancakes) might need baking powder added or increased. Happy baking!
Can I use this mix to make pasta?
Jenna: Yes! In fact, I have a pasta recipe here on the blog!
I am using your Gluten Free Flour Mix, but I find that my baked goods have a slightly gritty/sandy taste. What can I add or subtract to improve this?
Cheryl: usually a gritty feel is due to the flour grind. A couple of things you can do: buy flours labels “finely ground) (Authentic Food has the best grind, I think). Or, put your flours in a blender or food processor and grind them a bit more there. The primary culprit for this is the brown rice flour, with the white rice flour being a close second. If you get the Authentic Foods Brown Rice flour, I’m guessing the problem will go away. 🙂
Thank you so much. I replaced the flours to finely ground and no more sandy/gritty taste. One additional question – can I make your flour mix into a cake flour mix?
Cheryl: Yay! I’m so glad you solved the gritty problem. Also, this mix is already kind of a cake mix–it is a bit finer than all purpose wheat flour, so it works quite well for cakes and pastries.
Hi Jeanne, thank you so much for the flour blend recipe. I have just been eating gluten free for the past month, and I loooovvvve my baked goods. My first few attempts at GF baking (with a packaged GF blend available here in Canada) were a disaster. I am so glad I found your site, as I have the same objective – I want it to taste good. I have used your blend to make a couple of my regular recipes already mad they turned out great! Thanks again.
Joan: Yay! I’m so glad!
I am so impressed with this flour blend, I can’t thank you enough! I’ve stopped using gluten free recipes exclusively and I’ve had wonderful results just substituting this blend for the wheat flour called for in a traditional recipe. I love to bake muffins and I was getting so discouraged with the heavy, too moist, gummy, shrunken up or too dry muffins that seemingly every recipe I tried produced. I made a batch of banana chocolate chip muffins the other day that turned out so perfect that I told my husband they made up for all the bad muffins he’s been subjected too! Thanks again, I feel like I have freedom to bake again and expect to get good results.
Jane: Hooray! I’m so glad!
Hi,
Baking breads using chickpea flour calls for baking powder and bicarbonate soda. There is an awful aftertaste using these raising agents. Do you have any suggestions about how to mask or eliminate their taste in the finished bread.
Ritson: See my post about baking powder. If you use a baking powder that contains sodium aluminum sulfate, you will notice a distinct metallic flavor. Also, chickpea flour itself has a taste that I don’t like in my regular baking, so that might be part of the problem, too.
I was wondering if you could use Bob’s read mill all purpose gluten free flour mix for this recipe instead of the one you suggest?
Ashley: check my answer to this question in the Substitutions link.
This may be off topic, but I really needed help with my dough.
I mixed glutinous rice flour, some cornstarch, oil and water to form a dough.
However, I notice my dough seems too soft, and breaks easily. Some parts also crumble when I knead.
Any idea what’s wrong?
Thanks. 🙂
Noobie: That’s not really a dough. That sounds like a recipe for Play Doh.
My daughter is allergic to rice… Any suggestions about how/where I should start? I was thinking sorghum and coconut.
Thanks!
Sarah: Take a look at my post about Substitutions and Questions about my flour mix.
Is Sweet Rice Flour the same as Sweet White Rice Flour?
Tracy: Yes.
Hi I love this gluten-free flour mix it works so well with all of my gluten-free bakes. I was jet wondering if you have any special mixes for gluten-free self-raising flour.
Thanks very much.
Jade: Check out the link to the Self-Rising flour page in the post.
I made all the desserts for a friends wedding, and the bride eats gluten free. One of the two GF desserts was a lemon cupcake (made with this flour mix) with raspberry butter cream . They FLEW off the table! They ran out! I felt horrible for not making enough of them, but I didnt think EVERYONE would want a GF cupcake! Lesson learned, especially since other than the texture, didn’t taste any different than a traditionally made cupcake. Huge success!! Thanks!
Mary: Yay! I’m so glad!
I love your flour mix! It is far superior to any other gluten free mix. I use it in all of my cooking. My two gluten free children are very impressed with the results.
Susie: I’m so glad!
What happens if i leave out the xanthan gum?
Kelly: please go to and read the Gluten Replacers link in the post.
Thank you so much for this recipe! I have a sensitivity to most GF flour mixes due to corn and tapioca starch sensitivities. I make this recipe with arrowroot subbing for tapioca and double the amount of beef gelatin for gum. It works great! I can eat cake again! I’m aiming to make bread next. Wahoo! Thanks again!
Josie: I’m so glad!
Hello and thank you for replying and, well, for putting this information out there for everyone. Kuddos! Me and my husband were just good sensitivity tested (Alcat) and I am mildly gluten intolerant while he is moderately gluten intolerant as well as moderately Rice (brown & white), Potato AND Corn intolerant. 🙁 what GF AP flour mix/combination would you say taste best — and doesn’t include Rice, Corn, Potato? (He is also cane sugar, HFCS and honey intolerant. Our doctor suspects leaky gut. Thank you!
Gina: To be honest, I don’t really know of a mix that has the specifications you need. Check out the link to my flour substitutions post for info on how to make your own mix.
Hi There Jeanne.
Thanks for your dedication.
Regarding teff flour.
I was wondering whether your tortillas you made using your mix in your experience, managed to stay soft and pliable after a few days in the fridge?
Secondly I have got hold of some teff flour which I see some of the tortillas in the supermarket are using, what would be your opinion on using this and what would you substitute in your recipe if anything with the teff flour.
Thanks again.
Ant: storing baked things in the fridge isn’t a good idea unless it’s something like a frosted cake. The cool temp in the fridge actually speeds up the staling process. That said, I don’t know how teff would behave in the the tortilla recipe. I would try it and see! Be sure to add 1/4 tsp of xanthan gum per cup of flour. Also, the liquid might need to be altered depending on how the teff absorbs it. Happy experimenting!
Thank you for breaking things down so simply! It’s a bit overwhelming starting out. I really appreciate the information!
Allison: You’re welcome! And I agree–it is very overwhelming at the beginning. But it does get better!
Ah, oh also wanted to ask if sorghum flour might be a flour I can add to this? I really like the flavor that sweet sorghum adds to breads and muffins. If it doesn’t work in this mix, do you have any suggestions of a blend that includes sorghum flour? Thank you!
Cee: check out the link above in the post: Answers to Questions About/Substitutions for my flour mix.
Hi, I went through a lot of comments but didn’t see one that was my question. I am a baker at a cafe, and we haven’t ordered sweet rice flour yet, but I am just wondering if i can substitute that for potato starch since we do have that in stock? I need to make it and we won’t have time to wait to order the other flour. Do you think that will make it too starchy or will it be okay? I would think it would be all right, but I just wanted to make sure first. Thank you! Your site is great, I have used a few of your recipes with slight modifications and have had great reviews!!
Cee: I would recommend using potato flour for the sweet rice (it’s in the link above Answers to Questions About/Substitutions for My Flour Mix.
can I use your bread rec .in a bread making machine? and how would I use it?
Yvonne: Yes, check out my post about using the loaf recipe in a bread machine.
I have a cake recipe that I have been asked to make gluten free. Can I replace the all purpose flour with gluten free flour? And if so will it affect the final product?
Shelley: Yes, you can replace the flour with my flour mix. You may need to make some other tweaks, but I would try the recipe with my flour first to see if it works and then go from there.
Wow, you are so good about replying to questions! I have a post that got so many questions I eventually had to shut the comments down on it and refer readers to my Q&A b/c they were the same ones asked over and over. A lot of work! Anyway, here’s another one for you. Have you ever weighed a cup of the mixed flour blend? I bake by measuring on the scale because I love having less dishes to wash, so I was stoked that you included gram measurements for each flour. Just was curious if you knew how much a cup of the finished mix weighs. If not, do you measure it by just scooping it out or do you pour/put spoonfuls into the measuring cup before levelling off? As an avid baker myself, I do the latter and just want to make sure that measuring this way is the right way to go with your gluten-free blend. Thanks!
Veronica: Thank you! I don’t think there is a better or worse way to measure–this mix works well measure by volumes or by weight. I tend to do the scoop and sweep method–but the spoon in method is fine, too. It’s not that exacting :). As listed in the post, one cup of this mix equals 140 grams.
Ugh, I did exactly what I hate for others to do to me – missed the answer to my question contained in the post! So sorry about that! And thanks for the help! I’m not GF but I’m baking a GF cake for a friend’s son’s birthday. Your flour blend was listed as the favorite on Yammie’s Gluten Freedom blog and I trust her. This cake is gonna rock! Thanks for sharing your recipe!
Veronica: No worries! Happy baking!
Hi! I just wanted to let you know that I used your baking mix in replace of flour for this recipe – http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2013/08/brown-sugar-oatmeal-cookies/
And it turned out delicious!!!! If my boyfriend didn’t know I used your flour, he would have thought it was regular flour. It replaced the regular flour beautifully! I can have oatmeal cookies! Thank you so much for your dedication and all your trials and errors and creating a flour that works so well like this!
Stephanie: Yay!
Hi,
Can I use your flour mix in s bread recipe? I have a bread maker machine, work full time so am short on time so looking for a gluten free bread flour with no dairy, soy or potato….this sounds like it could be a transformative flour for us (I’m in the UK, things are a little limited here!!).
Lisa: It’s a bit more difficult to adapt yeasted recipes to gluten-free. Often you need more yeast, more liquid, and maybe some added baking powder. Do some experimenting and see what you think. Also, I do have bread recipes on the site and see if they are ones you want to try.
Hi was wondering if I could add 1/2 c each more of the rice flour as I can not get the sweet one??? Hoping to try these when I get home..LOL
thanks..
Diana: Sure! Although, it will probably be best if you substitute the white rice flour for it. If you add more brown rice, it will create a more “whole grain” type of mix.
Thanks. I did add 1/2c of each flour but it was very grainy. Not sure why? But I love this recipe. I am trying again tomorrow but with raspberries .
Diana: It’s grainy because you used substitute flours, one of which is brown rice flour–which has a reputation for being grainy. It would be smoother with the original recipe. Also, some people prefer to use “extra-fine” brown rice flour–you can get that at Authentic Foods dot com.
Im doing a dessert bar for a friend’s wedding, the bride eats gluten free. I purchased a few ready made boxed gluten free flours for lemon cupcakes with raspberry butter cream cupcakes I want to include on the dessert bar. The boxed varieties I tried were awful to say the least on top of the grainy texture. The after taste was even worse! I researched online for DIY all purpose gluten free flour mixtures and this one seemed to fit the bill. I just tested the mixture (prepared exactly as written) on blackberry muffins. DELICIOUS!!!!! No after taste, no grainy texture, and no chemical taste. Had I not made these myself, I’d never know they were gluten free. Im telling everyone I know who eats GF to make this mix! Thanks!
Mary: Yay! I’m so glad!
Will adding baking soda and powder make breads more fluffy?
Thanks,
Rich
Rich: Much of the time, yes. I usually add double-acting baking powder to my yeasted breads. Baking soda isn’t of much help for yeasted breads because it works as soon as you mix it into the dough and it comes into contact with an acid–so by the time the yeasted bread has risen, the baking soda has finished doing it’s thing.
I’m sure this is already answered somewhere and I’m just not competent enough to find it, but will your flour mix generally work in other recipes that are already gluten-free? Maybe if I omit the additional xantham gum required by the recipes? Thanks for the wealth of information on this site – everything’s turned out delicious so far, even with the tweaks needed for my family’s variously intolerances (dairy-free, sugar-free, low-fat).
I Ain’t: The answer is: I don’t know but probably. I always say try them to see what happens!
Hi Jeanne!
I used this flour mix in serveral recipes that originally use wheat flour and they all turn amazing!
Lately I am not being able to find the sweet rice flour and potato flour I was never able to find, only potato startch. I could imagine that potato flour and startch are two different things, right? Is there any substitute for the potato flour? Thank you so much!
Carol: Yes, potato flour and potato starch are 2 different things. Also, my mix doesn’t include potato flour. What mix are you using?
The one in this post!! I always used the mix as you explain but once I wasn’t able to find the glutinous rice flour anymore I went to check you substitutes list:
Do you have an substitute mix that is rice-free?
Here is what I recommend as a rice-free mix:
For the brown rice flour use: 1 1/4 cups sorghum flour
For the white rice flour us: 1 1/4 cups millet flour
For the tapioca flour use: 1 cup potato starch (not potato flour)
For the sweet rice flour use: 1 cup potato flour (not potato starch)
I was thinking of substituting just the sweet rice flour by the potato flour. But I am not able to find either of them. Do you have any suggestions?
Thank you!
Carol: Ah, OK. You are looking at my Substitutions post. The thing is: you are now asking for a substitution of the substitution. That’s getting farther and farther away from the mix and it’s special chemistry. Where are you located? I would recommend ordering the sweet rice flour online–that way, you can have the mix itself. That’s what I do. 🙂
Hi Jean,
I wanted to thank you. I stumbled across your website while trying to find gluten free recipes. IDK if my son and hubby are intolerant, but felt it was possible, so I started cooking and baking gluten free. Your AP flour is amazing. With that being said, so are all your recipes I’ve tried to date. Zucchini bread and chocolate zucchini bread…to die for. Homemade pasta? DEEELISH. Hubby and son prefer your pasta over store bought. Homemade sandwich bread? Holy cow. Soft and amazing. I love you…your blog…and everything In between. Thank you for doing all this hard leg work to try and test and PERFECT everything. I love to bake and cook (a double curse…cuz I’m great at both lol) and you have made all that possible to continue!!!
Terri: Oh, I’m so glad! Yay!
Please just keep doing what you do…and do best. I’ll be a follower for life. I’m thrilled to say our local asian market sells all these flours dirt cheap…so I whip up a huge batch of AP flour for very little. If only xanthan was cheaper…I’d be all set!!! Again…thanks 🙂
Terri: Yay! Also, I have found that one bag of Bob’s Red Mill xanthan gum makes something like 56 batches of my flour mix!
Thanks for the wonderful flour mix. I just switched from a boxed (expensive) gf mix and love the results. The texture for my pumpkin muffins was much softer, more wheat like. My grandchildren love these, too.
I used to bake my own bread so I look forward to making the sandwich bread from your recipe.
Mama Gay
You are appreciated.
Mama Gay: Yay! Thank you for letting me know!
I just wanted to give a cost breakdown on the Flour Blend… as I have a WinCo here in AZ and a great Asian market I was able to buy the flours in bulk at WinCo and the Mochi ( which I have used for years – once doing a straight sub with wheat flour in my waffles over 20 yrs ago- whoda thunk I was making it GF) at the Asian market and purchasing Hodgson Mills Xanthan packets at my local Kroger market.
Zanthan- .15 cents per tsp.
Brown Rice Flour – .00281 cents per gm.
White Rice Flour – .00252 cents per gm.
Tapioca Flour – .00310 cents per gm.
Mochi Sweet Rice Flour – .00377 cents per gm.
Total Cost of 1 recipe – $2.30 !!!!!!
Since I used a scale to weigh out the flours based on the recipe, it was quite simple to get an accurate mix. I quadrupled the basic recipe, filled my 1/2 gallon jar, and then measured some other recipes ( biscuits, cookies and pancakes) in bags, ready to make at a moments notice.
Total cost to purchase all the ingredients in bulk at one time –
White Rice Flour – $1.13 per lb.
Brown Rice Flour – $1.26 per lb.
Tapioca Flour – $1.39 per lb.
Mochi – $1.69 per lb.
Xanthan – $8.99 per 21/1 Tbsp. packets
plus $10.00 for 6 – 1/2 gal canning jars at WinCo!!!!
I spent about $26.01 for the flours plus the $10.00 for the jars and I have enough mix to bake to my hearts content, and 5 jars filled with the single ingredients.
Damn sight cheaper than any mix on the market and although I have yet to bake with it ( tonight is Buttermilk Biscuits) I am certain that I will love the results!!!!
Thanks Jeanne!!
Kai: Yay! I also did a cost breakdown on my mix if you buy stuff from Amazon on my Answers to/Substitutions for My Gluten Free Flour Mix post. Your break down is awesome! And yes, it is much cheaper than the other mixes. Thank you!
i invested quite a bit of money in a bread mix receipe After many failures am wondering what i can do with all this mix you combine 1 24 oz bag of brown rice flour,1 bag white rice flour,1 bag sweet rice flour,1 bag tapioca flour and 2 1/2 TBS XANTHAN GUM mix well and store in air tight containerm from this you usr 3 cups mix 1/12 tsp more of xanthan 4 tsp baking pwd 1 tsp salt, your yeast and honey mix and apple cider vinegar 1/2 cup olive oil 2 large eggs it has a good taste doesnot crumble but also doesent raise like her pictures show abt 4 raises in oven,i purchased a thermometer so i could test the inside doneness and yet most of the time the bread still fell,anyway can i use these combinations as such in another bread receipe or other receipe im really frustrated knowing what to change or what i have not done right any ideas
Beverly: Several things could be going on. Since it’s not my recipe, I can’t be sure. But I would recommend that you check out my Troubleshooting Baking Problems post.
Hey Jeanne,
I’ve been using this mix to do the soft sandwich bread and it is absolutely AMAZING, so thank you!! Even my perfectly health husband stopped eating regular bread!
I want now to try using this mix to substitue a wheat flour recipe and I am not sure if I need to add the xanthana gum and/or vinager. And in which cases should I add them…
The other day, I tried a bread recipe that uses wheat flour and did just substitute it on a cup by cup basis and didn’t add any xanthana gum and the bread ended up too heavy…
Now I want to try a chicken pie my mom used to make with this mix. And the recipe should go as 300g of wheat flour (I will convert this to cups), 1 egg, 100g butter, salt and 150ml of milk. I am not sure if I should just substitute the wheat flour by you mix or I should also add a teaspoon of vinager and some xanthana.
Thank you so much in advance!
Best,
Carolina
Carol: Yeah, a yeasted recipe requires more tweaks than other recipes. So, it’s not a straight cup for cup conversion. Also, converting a wheat recipe by weight can be tricky–the weight of my mix is 140 g/cup. So, you need to find how how much the wheat flour used in the recipe weighs before converting. Most all purpose wheat flours are 140 c/cup. But, if your area has AP wheat flour that isn’t 140 g/cup, you need to make the appropriate tweaks. Also, for chicken pie: is a crust you are using the mix for? I would recommend that just make a straight conversion (don’t add or change anything other than add my mix). Let me know how it goes!
I was excited to receive your gluten-free baking for the holidays cookbook for Christmas, as I pretty much have given up desserts and sweet things since I have developed a wheat allergy. I find gluten-free products to be inferior in taste and texture and I would rather do without. I was looking forward to making some of the products in your cookbook with the promise that it would be almost as good as with flour. I was pleased with the taste and texture of the final results, even my boyfriend said it taste good and he does not like gluten-free. Two of the recipes I have tried from your cookbook are the dinner rolls and the cinnamon buns, but I could get neither one of them to rise. I was not able to locate sweet rice flour and substituted potato flour instead. I followed the directions for the recipe and cannot figure out what I did wrong. The cinnamon buns said it should rise to twice the size but when they came out of the oven they were still an inch high the same as when I cut them. I used quick rise instant yeast instead of active dry yeast would that be the problem? Also the directions indicated that you should stir the yeast until dissolved when I used to make regular buns I remember only stirring the yeast to mix and then leaving it sit undisturbed . I did leave the cinnamon buns and buns on the stove to rise before they went into the oven but they did not rise at all. Please help I feel that if they had risen they wouldn’t of been so heavy.
Melanie: First, I think it would be good for you to check out my Troubleshooting Baking Problems post–this contains all of the questions I ask (and answers to those questions) when people have problems. Also, t’s not a problem that you used quick rise yeast or that you stirred it a little. The more important issue with yeast is whether or not it has expired.
Can I use this flour blend cup for cup using a recipe with regular flour?
This is all so new to me our 2 yr old adopted son is having some issues and this is what we are trying to help him out. I love to bake, make bread and cookies so if I Annan adapt it to my regular recipes it would be so much easier
Debbie: You can usually use it cup for cup in recipes that aren’t yeasted. Yeast recipes are a different matter–they usually require more tweaks than just substituting gluten-free flour for the regular flour.
Thank you! At least I can make him a birthdays cake with out breaking the bank and I will know what’s in it!
I appreciate your site and the things I am learning we area bout 75% gluten free. It’s a lot of work!!!!!
Debbie: Yay! And you are so right–it IS a lot of work in the beginning. But please take note: it gets easier as you get more used to doing these things. I don’t even think about it anymore (in my own kitchen).
Thank you for your gf all purpose flour recipe. I’d like to mix up a large batch of the flour so we can use it regularly. Is there an issue with the various flours settling differently or separating over time? Can I multiply the recipe x10 without a problem? Thanks again!
Andrea: to combat the problem of the flours settling over time, I shake or stir my mix before using it. That way it re-combines any that have settled. Also, you can multiply the recipe as many times as you want to. Happy baking!
Jeanne…
You are a genius!! Thank you for sharing your tried and true experience with the gf flours. I was diagnosed with celiac disease 8 months ago and, I, like you, am an avid baker. And my family and friends are avid sweet eaters. I’ve been soooo disappointed with the flour products I’ve purchased. Believe me, I’ve purchased a ton!! One thing I’ve learned is the people who package and sell the all-purpose flour blends don’t actually bake!
Baking is an addiction for me and I have missed it terribly! Pies, cakes, rolls have been my “therapy” all of my adult life. I live in the Panhandle of west Texas and have difficulty finding some of the recipe ingredients. For instance, today, I went searching for sweet rice flour. No where to be found, even at the health and whole food markets. I finally resorted to looking at an Oriental market and there it was!! Less than $4 for 3 one pound bags, to boot!! I appreciate you mentioning the “certified” gf concern of purchasing from the Asian markets. I checked the celiac.com website and the brand I bought has been found to be gf. I will order online to be certain it’s gf, but I just had to try your flour blend today!
I have our family’s favorite chocolate cake in the oven now, but the batter appeared to “behave” the same as I remember when made with wheat flour. We’ll see.
It was also nice to find to find a gf baker who isn’t overly concerned with calories. As you mentioned in your story, baking is a joy and substitutions and healthier versions rarely work. Thank you again!!
Merlene: Yay! I’m so glad! Happy baking!
Hi Jeanne, I have been searching for a good gluten free pie crust for years. I’ve been making pies since I was twelve and I am well into middle age so it was disappointing to not be able to eat pie anymore after giving up gluten but my first attempts were inedible. I made a wonderful apple pear pie with dried cranberries with your crust and have used this GF Flour mix ever since in everything. Thanks for all of the fine tuning!
Mary: hooray! I’m so glad!
Hello. I wanted to ask about using all Mochiko in place of the white rice flour.
Mya: I think that would be too much starch and it wouldn’t work that well.
Jeanne,
After ten years of battling pain, I have found doctors who believe I have endometriosis. Studies have linked a gluten-free diet to relief of pain in endo sufferers. Like you when you first switched, I have been tearing my hair out mixing up flours with little success. They are dry and crumbly, or have a foul, veggie/bean flavor to them when they have the right feel.
Thank you so much for posting exactly what I needed to see today. I care less about nutritional value than I do willingness to eat the food in the first place. I want to bite into a delicious, decadent morsel when I serve food on my table. Nutrition comes from portion control and the surrounding foods, NOT the bread.
That said, I have a question – I was a bit confused when reading about yeast recipes. Were you saying this one will be good in a recipe calling for yeast or will I need to modify it?
I assure you, you will be the one receiving the grovelling if you and I ever meet.
Nicky: LOL and thank you! Also, yeasted recipes require more tweaking than just switching out the flour. They usually need more yeast and more liquid (at the very least).
I realize that the rice flour blend is easier to make and use but if one happens to be diabetic, the rice flours are not the best to use. The rice flours are easier to digest and have a delicate taste but they have a high glycemic index. They easily are converted to sugar because the flours have been very highly refined. Research is also being done to check the amount of arsenic in them. It seems to be higher in rice flours, especially brown rice flour. Just wanted you to know that not everyone can use your rice flour blend. I substitute oat flour, sorghum, millet and quinoa flours for the rice flours.
Thank you for all your contributions. I like learning from everyone, for every gluten-free person has something to contribute. If we share with each other, and learn each others’ tricks, we will get better GF products faster than if we have to conquer this problem ourselves. And, yes, I learned a great deal from Bette Hagman and others.
Keep up the good work!
Linda: The FDA has determined that the arsenic that is naturally present in the soil that gets into the rice is not enough to be a problem for humans. Also, have you looked at the post under “Baking Tips/FAQs” about substitutions for the flours in my recipe?
Wow, very cool. I have just been diagnosed with celiacs disease and am trying to navigate the holidays! I am an avid baker and have just taken this christmas off till last night when I made some sugar cookies, however they have a strange taste and gritty texture to them – edible but not like my old cookies! I mainly used the bobs all purpose go flour. I will go hunting these flours out to try again! Thanks a heap! Hopefully this helps as I would love to make cinnamon buns for christmas morning!
Erin: Yeah, the Bob’s gf mix is not my favorite. It has bean flour, so it makes things taste bean-y. Happy baking!
Try Pamela’s artisan mix it is a good blend. No bean flour like bobs red mill mix. Can be used for eveything. Tastes great. Piecrust, cookies, etc.
Quick question – can I use the all purpose flour blend
in a recipe (Springerle) that calls for cake flour? Also, the recipe
uses a lot of confectioners sugar. I am concerned it may be
too starchy? Any thoughts you could send our way would
be much appreciated. Love your website – everything always
turns out great!
Elizabeth: I have a Springerle recipe in my book–it works great! I would check out the book’s recipe against yours to see how they match up. That will give you some good information on how yours will work.
This flour blend, with one substitution since I didn’t find Mochiko at my local Whole Foods, made a fabulous double pie crust for our Thanksgiving apple pie. I substituted potato starch, but can’t wait to try the blend with Mochiko. The taste and texture were excellent, and this flour blend made a pie crust that rolled out very easily. Thank you! The first couple pie crusts I made tasted “off”. People raved about my gf/df apple pie!
Angela: Yay! I’m so glad!
Hi there,
I’m baking for friends, one of which has a corn sensitivity. I read in your article that after all the processing, xanthan gum should be fine for corn sensitive people, but I was just wondering, could you substitute xanthan gum for guar gum (tspn for tspn) anyway? See, they’re only in town for a few days and I don’t want to risk it!
Regards,
Mary
Mary: yes, just substitute guar gum, tsp for tsp. That should be fine.
can i use this GF Sandwich Bread recipe in place of bread flour or unbleached white flour
Paula: Let’s see–I’m not quite sure what your question is. But you won’t get good results if you use wheat flour this recipe–yeasted recipes don’t really perform well in terms of being good for gluten-free flour and wheat flour. This recipe is specifically designed for gluten-free flours. That said, you can use wheat flour in my other recipes (for cookies and cakes and muffins).
my partner is wheat,soy, corn and nut free. I was making Amish bread with Arrowhead Mills white unbleached flour until I read on front of bag it is made from hard red winter wheat. Wheat was not in the ingredients though. Yummy on the bread, but I need a substitute for my flour. I have not tried your recipe yet, cause she loves the Amish bread.(sweet). I will be trying yours though.
thanks, Paula can I use your flour recipe for a substitute?????
just found out about this celiac that runs in the family . Started all this in Sept. this year. still learning. She still has tummy pain, but i guess not out of the system yet.
Paula: who has tummy pain? Also, stomach pain connected with food usually means that what the person is eating is bothering them. So, I would recommend that that person keep a food diary that lists what they ate and when the pain appears to be able to find out the food culprit(s). Also, often folks with celiac and gluten intolerance react to dairy, eggs, and nuts when they are first diagnosed. So, those things should be looked at as the primary culprits. Also, I would recommend going to a doctor if the stomach pain continues.
I’ll bet answering all these questions could be a full time job! So, no question, but a comment…when weighing ingredients, you must consider where you are. One cup by volume of cake (or any flour) weighed here in Florida is heavier than one cup by volume in say upstate New York. And it’s heavier here in Florida during the summer. Relative humidity affects the weight of dry ingredients. It used to drive me batty until I learned you can’t go by weight….Looking forward to trying you recipes, and thanking you so much for all your research on the matter & then actually sharing so completely all this info! And answering all the questions, many that are answered in your writings if people just read it all before asking. And Bless You, you are an angel!
MotherSquid: Happy to help! And thank you so much for the kind words!!
Paula: Regular “All-Purpose Flour” is made from wheat (and usually some barley). So, it is full of gluten. Also, Are you talking about Amish Friendship Bread? I think that has yeast, right? Yeasted recipes don’t translate to a cup-for-cup substitution with gluten-free flour. You need to make more changes to the recipes to get them to work correctly.
I have Bob Mills GF AP flour- no wheat ,soy,corn. i make Amish white bread and loaf bread, wondering can i use your GF flour as a sub.
Paula: Yes, you can use my mix as a substitution for Bob’s GF AP Flour. But you cannot use it as a substitution for wheat AP flour in yeasted recipes. Recipes with yeast need more work than simply substituting gluten-free flour for the AP flour.
If substituting potato starch, how many grams should a cup of this mix weigh? and would I still use it cup for cup, gram for gram? Thank you so much. I am still learning this gluten free life :/ Your website has been a God send. THANK YOU!!
Tanja: I would substitute by cup. Each flour weighs a different amount due to different densities. And then use by cup. And I’m so glad that my website has been helpful!!
Oh, and forgive me for not saying that this wasn’t for your edification, but for those with questions pertaining toweight vs volume…..Thannks again!
Hi, my daughter was recently diagnosed with diabetes and now is having trouble with gluten. Do you know the carb count in your bread, or a way I can figure it out? Thanks for sharing your recipe. =)
Shar: I don’t know the carb count. My understanding is that rice flour is a bit higher in carbs than wheat flour, if that’s any help. I think there are sites that can give you a carb count of ingredients–I would do a search for those and then input the ingredients of my recipes for the count.
Thank you Jeanne; I’ll do that. You have obviously spent a lot of hard work on this recipe, so thank you again! We are definitely going to try it. I figure we can always control the carb count by portion size.
OK, sounds good!
From what I understand, it is very common for diabetes to be linked with Celiac Disease, as both are auto-immune diseases. I used to go to Diabetes summer camp as a kid and there were always gluten-free food options for that very reason. I would recommend having your daughter tested for Celiac if you haven’t already; it could be helpful 🙂
Hi Jeanne,
I am allergic to wheat/gluten and tested sensitive to corn, potato, and tapioca. Do you think I can substitute something else for the tapioca in your recipe? Thanks for your response! I was SO excited to find your blog!
Marietta: Check out my post on substitutions! And happy baking!
Oh my gosh! I almost cried with happiness when I found your blog. Baking has been a big part of my life, and subsequently, those around me, for a very long time. I felt like I was losing a part of my identity when we found out I was gluten intolerant. I tried mix after mix and nothing seemed “right” and the goodies I’d bring in to work would not disappear like they normally did. I tried not to take it personally, but what’s the fun in not sharing your goods? 🙂
I’m happy to report that the last batch of my famous molasses crinkles were consumed with their normal fervor after switching to your flour mix. Thank you, thank you for doing all this work! Next weekend I’ll be attempting your puff-pastry dough!
Hannah: Yay! I’m so glad! And exactly–sharing what you bake is half the fun! Happy baking!
I was reading online and found an article about using Teff flour for gluten free baking. They had a gluten free mix:
1 cup teff lour
1 cup brown rice flour
2/3 cup potato starch
1/3 cup tapioca starch
1/2 to 1 tsp. xantham gum
Have you ever used this kind of mix or Teff flour? I guess Teff is fine texture and really good for pie crust.
Marjle: I don’t use teff for much so I’m not up to date on how it behaves. I use my own mix, but you definitely need to do what seems best to you. Happy baking!
I just re-read your post as I was about to mix up another batch and noticed you said you keep yours in the fridge. I haven’t been doing that, although it never seems to stick around long enough to go bad (someone apparently sneaks in at night and steals it!!). Do I need to refrigerate this mix?
Thanks for this recipe, it has worked so well with many of my old recipes, and, of course, with yours!
Tracy: No, no need to keep it in the fridge if you’re using it regularly. That was mostly for folks who only use it once in awhile. I normally keep mine in the kitchen cupboard. 🙂
I am newly gluten-free. What is the difference between using rice flour & sweet rice flour. Being Asian, I am familiar with glutinous rice. But, I am seeing on other blogs they only use the latter. How do they function differently? Thank you.
Jane: Glutinous rice flour is more sticky. So it adds some binding capability.
Hi Jeanne,
I’m so thrilled to have just discovered your site and I’m so looking forward to start experimenting with this flour mix!
I currently live in Argentina and have never seen GF glutinous flour, but I did find mochi rice which is supposed to be a glutinous rice. Do you think it would be safe ( gluten free) if I ground it at home and use it as a GF flour in the blend? Do you think I would need to rinse it with cold water, let it dry in quick way and once dry, grind it?
Is this blend good to make savoury tart shells?
Thank you so much for your generosity!
Irene: Yes, grinding your own rice into flour is just fine. Just grind it dry without rinsing. The reason you rinse rice is to wash off the starch that is sticky. But you want this to have the sticky qualities of mochi rice. And yes, this would me nice savory tart shells. If you want, don’t add the tablespoon of granulated sugar for savory items (although I keep it in for my savory stuff). Happy baking!
Jeanne,
Where can I find sweet rice flour in the Seattle area?
Bradley: Anywhere that sells Bob’s Red Mill Flours. I get mine at PCC, QFC, Whole Foods, and I think Fred Meyer has it, too. If QFC or Whole Foods doesn’t have the Bob’s version, get the Mochiko flour in the white box in the “Ethnic” section.
I’ve been buying all of my flours at the Asian market; potato, tapioca, rice, for practice on my products. I love the way they are turning out. Now I want to start selling, but I’m concerned about flours from that region, whether they are made in a gluten-free environment compared to buying online here in the US. with the assurance. What is your opinion on flours from that region? I just love the smooth consistency and the cost is minimal compared to others. Shall I and continue with these flours?
Thanks!
Cally: Unless the package says that it is certified gluten-free, you can’t be sure that the flours are gluten-free. If you’re going to be selling your baked goods, you need to be very careful about this. I would recommend use US flours that are certified gluten-free.
Yes that’s what I thought. Thanks very much for your reply.
Cally: you’re welcome! Happy baking!
Hi Jeanne
Thanks for sharing so much information with us. I’ve just started baking GF and your site is an absolute gold mine. One question: your AP flour mix recipe includes “scant” teaspoons of xantham gum. Would that be the same as what I in the UK would call a level teaspoon?
Murph
Murph: Scant usually means “just barely.” What I’m trying to get at is that you don’t need a heaping teaspoon. So yes, a level teaspoon is just fine. 🙂
I’m sorry- but this makes no sense to me. A teaspoon measure is by definition a “level” teaspoon as the measuring spoon was designed with one purpose in mind: to hold 1 teaspoon of volume. Therefore, a “heaping” teaspoon is more than a level teaspoon and a “scant” teaspoon is slightly less than a level teaspoon. Are there actually people out there that can bake successfully by adding a heaping teaspoon to a recipe that calls for a teaspoon?
That said- I can’t wait to try your flour mix. I appreciate that you have endeavored to make a cup for cup mix containing readily available ingredients. I agree that there is a time and place for trying to substitute healthier flours into GF cooking and a time to focus solely on taste and texture. I find that in heavier versions of breads and cakes, coconut flour, almond flour, flax meal, and teff make great additions that allow for more nutrition and less glycemic load, which is important for diabetics and carb watchers for everyday eating.
Kay: Home baking has a larger margin of error than does professional baking. I don’t agree with the people who claim that a tiny difference in measuring is going to destroy a recipe. That’s just not my experience. I know I can be much less precise at home than I can be when baking in bulk or baking professionally. I use the measurement “scant” to tell people that if they are going to be a bit loosey-goosey, to be loosey-goosey on the minimal side.
Hello Jeanne
I live in Australia and absolutely adore your recipes.
I have been using the flour mix with great success, however, when using it in biscuit recipes it leave a gritty tasted at the end, can one of the flours be substituted with something else to eliviate the problem?
Kind Regards
Renee
Renee: It may be that the flours you are using aren’t ground finely enough for your tastes. Usually the brown rice is the culprit. I would recommend using a blender or a food processor to grind it a little bit more fine. Or, look for flours that are listed “finely ground.” Also, the baking powder might also be the culprit. Make sure you are using an “aluminum free” baking powder. The ones with aluminum have a funky taste. Happy baking!!
Hey, I was wondering I saw that you said that the Sweet Rice Flour could be substituted with Potato Flour but what if I can’t find that either. I live in a really small town and have trouble finding some of the stuff.
Kate: I would recommend ordering online. At first it seems crazy, but it actually is very easy. Also, I have an Amazon Prime membership ($79/year) which comes with free shipping on everything. Totally love it!
THANK YOU!
I am so excited. My son is gluten, soy, dairy, egg, oat, wheat, grain, and potato free. I am thrilled to find your recipe as my baking efforts til now had been fairly pitiful!
I’m now excited to bake – he is 3 next Friday and thanks to you I think he will get a decent cake.
E
Emma: Yay! Happy baking!
Thank you so much for sharing with us. My 2 boys have just been diagnosed with wheat allergy. So I am looking for gluten free options. Can i perhaps substitue the sweet rice flour (also known as glutinous rice flour or under the brand name, Mochiko) with something else. We live in South Africa and i cant find sweet rice flour.
Regards
Antoinette: If you have access to potato flour (versus potato starch), I would use that. Happy baking!
Hi Janeane, I just had to e-mail to tell you how you’ve made my life and that of my 11 yr old daughter sooo much easier. I too love to bake and cook, its who I am, and to have gluten now off the menu I almost fell into depression and started avoiding my kitchen! We live in New Zealand and gluten free items are very expensive to buy, ie a small loaf of bread is $8! I now make your bread and use your flour mix and feel like I can enjoy baking again. I found you via pinterest. thanks so much for all the hard work you’ve done to make this available to us!
Rebekah: Oh, I’m so glad that my site and my recipes have been helpful! Yay!
Thankyou so much for the recipe! Im wondering though, sine u weight everything in grams. How much is a scant teaspoon of xanthan gum would weight? Im worried if only tiny little bit different amount of this powerful stuff would create different results. Thankyou!
SugarMama: a micro gram here and there isn’t going to change things. I wouldn’t worry to much about it.
Thank you thank you for posting the amounts in grams!
Wendy: You’re welcome!
The best, simplest flour blend I have found so far. It is my go-to blend for light baking, and I find it subs well for the GF Bisquick recipes when you add a touch of baking powder, salt and sugar. Thank you so much for all your hard work, your site has made my gluten intolerance enjoyable!
Ursula: Yay! I’m so glad!
I live in Denver, Colorado. I love your website and hope to try some of your recipes. My question is do I have to make changes due to living in 5280 altitude? If so, what changes do you recommend? I’m just now learning how to deal with baking in the high altitude. Thanks.
Marjie: From the feedback I get from my high altitude readers, it seems like high altitude is awesome for gluten-free baking. Your baked items will probably bake up higher and fluffier than they would at sea-level. Keeping that in mind, I would guess that your yeasted breads will probably rise higher and faster–so they will take much less time to rise. I think that’s the main thing you need to watch out for. Please let me know how things go for you! Happy baking!
Thank you for this post, even though you wrote it a while ago! I have been baking gluten free for a decade or more and have noticed the trend towards bean flours, almond flour, and other “healthy” flours. And then I have felt bad about not wanting to bake with those because I don’t like the flavor (and most importantly, I don’t like the flavor of the batter, and tasting the batter is one of my favorite parts of the baking process). It is a good reminder that baking (for me) is about the enjoyment of a treat not being healthy. I have tried many of your recipes and they all have been divine. Well written! Thank you!
Kim: Yay! I’m so glad. And thank you!
Thank you so much for the recipe for this all purpose flour. I used it in your blueberry muffin recipe last night – wow…..it is fantastic :). Even our non GF son loved them, which is a plus. I had been searching for the right tasting flour blend for a long time, and I have found it!
Carolyn: Yay! I’m so glad! Happy baking!
just tried some gluten free biscotti with your mix..i think i prefer them to the regular type! just one comment..they tasted a little bit ‘sandy’ or granular – is that normel with the mix of flours? They also seem to need more bonding agent but other than that LOVELY!!!!
Louise: Great! I think the granularity is part of some gf flours–especially if they aren’t “superfine.” Also, you can add more xanthan gum (a tiny bit more) if you feel like they need more binding.
Hello Jeanne,
I have just found out that I can’t eat potatoes so I thought my GF baking days were basically over. I am SO grateful that you have worked so hard to develop a flour mix that I can use! Yea! Bless your desire for good taste and texture and all that goes into baked yumminess. 🙂
Kathryn: Yay! I’m so glad!
Thank you, thank you, thank you for sharing this! I’m at the beginning of the gluten free learning curve and have been feeling very disappointed when all of my attempts at making anything familiar have been at best “off” and at worst inedible. I feel renewed hope now that I can bake the things I love and have them turn out closer to the way I remember them! Now I just need to go shopping for some sweet rice flour, and I should have everything I need to give it a try!
Jessica: Yay! Happy baking!
Well, my first loaf is rising as I type. I wonder if I did something wrong as I was not able to pour the mixture into the pan. It was more like grab it out in clumps and push it in the pan. I followed the recipe to the letter except I had to use white vinegar,could I have used boiled cider vinegar from King Arthur? why do you think it was so ploppy instead of being pourable?
Brooke: No, I think you’re fine. I say “pour” in the recipe, but it’s more accurate to say “scrape.” I need to edit that! How did it come out? Also, what recipe are you using?
well it didn’t turn out very well.It didn’t rise even to the top of the pan and it’s kind of heavy. the recipe was Soft Sandwich Bread ,Gluten Free from this site I believe.
Brooke: Did you follow the recipe exactly? Did you make any substitutions? This bread is going to be more dense than Wonder Bread, but it should look like it does in the photo.
yes,I followed it to the letter the only difference was in the vinegar I used white as I had no Apple Cider vinegar. I will try it again very soon as I do have some of your baking mix made up. We’ll see what happens.
hi i live in the uk and i was wondering if you can use your flour mix to make yorkshire puddings. i tried a recipe with rice flour and tapioca flour and the yorkshire puddings were all stoggy in middle and didnt rise so a total disaster because we love yorkshire puddings
Maria: I think it should be fine–but I haven’t made Yorkshire puddings before. Do you want to email me the recipe that you used and I will take a look at it to see if I have any tips for you? artofgfbaking@earthlink.net
What’s the difference between sweet rice flour and white rice flour? Bob’s Red Mill seems to only carry the sweet rice flour.
Brooke: Bob’s Red Mill carries both. Sweet rice flour is also known as “glutinous rice flour” because it is sticky. The flour helps bind things a bit.
I did find it eventually… thanks
Another question please. Is the sweet rice flour in lieu of another starch. such as potato starch? In doing my research, I’ve seen that there should be two starches with the protein, yes? The tapioca and sweet rice would then be the two starches?
Thanks again!
Cally: Where did you get the information that it should be two starches to a protein? My mix mimics the starches to protein/gums ratio of all purpose wheat flour–which is about 80% starches and 20% protein/gums. I use the sweet rice flour because it has some properties that I like.
Hi there…Even though there is xanthan gum in your all purpose flour recipe, do I need to add 1/4 tsp for each 1 cup of flour to my mixture when making my products?
Thanks!
Cally: no, you don’t need extra xanthan gum in a recipe unless the recipe calls for more. Many of my yeasted recipes call for more.
I am 11 years old and I am off school today so I tried to use this mix to make me chocolate chip cookies. Some thing is wrong, the cookies were greasy and edges were very hard.
I made these with another mix and they are fine.
Please tell me what may be wrong
Thank you
Brandon: Welcome! What recipe did you use? The texture of chocolate chip cookies are often tied to the temperature of the fat (the butter). If the fat is warm when you put the cookies in the oven to bake, they are going to bake up more flat and crunchy. Tollhouse recipe chocolate chip cookies will usually bake up flat and a bit greasy if the butter is soft and warm. Try putting the dough in the fridge for an hour before baking and see if that helps.
Ok. Thank you
One more thing, I tried this mix in my moms bread maker and it turned out bad. Do you know why?
Brandon: What recipe did you use in the bread maker? One thing to be aware of–it’s not easy to adapt a wheat yeasted recipe to gluten-free. Did you use a gluten-free yeasted recipe or a wheat recipe with gluten-free flour?
I am very excited to try this. At 61 my nutritionist is trying gluten free, low carbs and no processed sugar to stem my bloating and family history of diabetes (I don’t have it yet.). I love sandwiches and I love to bake. To save money and save on too many ingredients, I always baked for my two children and husband. Now they won’t let me stop, lol. I am so happy I found you when searching for a good recipe on the web. I can’t wait to make the bread over spring break. I refuse to pay the price for a loaf in the store when I can do it myself and enjoy myself at the same time baking.
Mary: Yay! Happy baking!
Mary,
I know I’m a bit late on this, but here goes. Please be aware that with family history, and probably a high risk of developing diabetes, white rice and white potatoes as well as white wheat and refined sugars should be avoided. I’m not diabetic, but earlier this year I learned just how high my risk is of developing diabetes. After eliminating these refined foods for months I discovered this month that I’m just plane allergic to wheat (on top of the other foods I already knew about). And I deal with allergies of friends and family members, like legumes, dairy, eggs, seeds, pineapple, nuts, etc. Needles to say, I haven’t got it all figured out, but I’m working on it.
I ran into the same problem with the garbanzo bean flour tasting bad. I switched to Mung bean flour. Same nice protein level without the strong flavor. 🙂
Patt: Awesome!
I have been looking for a gf flour blend to use in my toll house cookie recipe (and for other baking once I get the hang of this gf thing…!) for my daughter who has leaky gut syndrome and has just been out on a super strict elimination diet. Her lab work showed sensitivity to (ampng other things..) brown rice, sorghum and corn which is tough as a LOT of commercially made gf anything has these things in it! What flour could I substitute in the gf flour blend in place of the brown rice? Coconut? Thanks a lot!!!
Tamsin: I was going to say sorghum, but I see that’s another one she can’t have. Let’s see. Can she have white rice flour? If so, substitute more of that. If not, maybe try quinoa, amaranth or millet flour. They do have more taste, though.
i have finely made the flour mix with all the proper ingredints and the pastry is amazeing my family love it.i made a giant sausage roll for tea for myself and i had to make it agian the next day cause my family eat mine so thank you very much for your recipes .
Maria: Yay! I’m so glad!!
I simply have to thank you and share a recipie..Your flour mix has returned my son and I to “normal” eating! We used to make Amish Friendship Bread often before being gluten intolerant (also lactose and fructose) Anyways, your flour mix starts and completes the recipie wonderfully! Not sure if you have had or heard of Amish Friendship bread..but I live in Ohio and someone is always passing out a bag or 12..lol! I just wanted to share the starter as well as what I have tried for those looking for another jumping off point. We love our bread around here..for all meals, for tea & coffee snacks…so, let me share with you.
Amish Friendship Bread Starter
It is simply this: 1 cup flour (I used Jeannes but wheat people use all-
purpose)
1 cup sugar (any kind)
1 cup milk..(any, regular, lactaid, rice & coconut)
thats it..put in gallon size ziplock bag and mush/mix well…see next part
Amish Friendship Bread-DO NOT use any metal spoons, bowls, or other utensils DO NOT refrigerate If air is filling bag, let it out, it is normal for batter to frement and rise..bubble etc…
Day 1- Mush the bag
Day 2-Mush the bag
Day 3- Mush the bag
Day4-Mush the bag
Day 5-Mush the bag
Day 6- Add to the bag: 1 cup flour, 1 cup sugar, 1 cup milk..annd Mush
Day 7-Mush the bag
Day 8 Mush the bag
Day 9 Mush the bag
Day 10-follow instructions: 1-pour contents of bag into non metal bowl
2 add 1-3/4 cup flour, 1- 3/4sugar , 1-3/4
cup milk
3-measure out 4 seperate batters into 4
gallon ziplock bags-1 cup each date it!
4-heat oven to 325
5-to rest of batter in bowl add 3 eggs, 1
cup oil, 1/2 cup milk, 1 cup sugar, 2tsp
cinnamon, 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1-1/2 tsp
baking powder, 1/2 tsp baking soda, 1/2
tsp baking soda, 1/2 tsp salt, 2 cups flour,
1 large box instant vanilla puding
6- grease & dust 2 large loaf pans with
cinnamon & sugar
7-pour mixture into both pans evenly and
sprinkle with more cinnamon sugar mix
8-bake 1 hour cool till bread loosens from
pans..about 10 minutes…
if you keep statrer for yourself you will be baking this bread every 10 days..it makes a great crispy french toast, and you can realy have fun with it! We didn’t want to have “more” starter bags so we, on day 10, instead of adding more milk, sugar & flour and then measuring out 4 starters..skipped to step 5 and went from there..we have made muffins using cinnamon baking chips, fill almost to top, we have left out cinnamon from step 5 and added cocoa powder and chocolate chips for a sweet bread, peanut butter (melted) and peanut butter chips, apples and apple syrup in place of last milk..we have used flax & water instead of eggs and added yogurt instead of milks, dried and fresh fruits..just adjust liquids accordingly!
I had to share because your site has given me back the joy of baking for my family. With all the epic fail, rock hard, crumbly, flavorless things we tried before I found your site I had to give you thanks from the Hamrick family. ALL of us! The Family has taste tested everything and your flour mix gives me the ability to make it all for the family instead of a batch for 2 of us and a batch for the other 4 with “regular” flour. This gives me such joy and relief..less time cooking “double” recipies, no one can tell the difference in gluten free or “regular” and I just had to share on of my pre-gf baking favorites. THANK YOU!!!
Jamie: Yay! I’m so glad! And thank you for the recipe–so fun! I’ve heard of Amish Friendship Bread but I’ve never tried it!
Happy baking!!
Hello! Do you know of a good replacement for eggs in bread? I can’t eat them and would like to make this! 🙂
Kathryn: Check my FAQs tab. I have a few posts on substitutes. I would recommend using the flax seed/water substitute and see how it goes.
I am very impressed you answer all these comments! I recently found your website. Several years ago I decided my husband should try going gf. He has RA. After a few weeks we did not see any results and he had lost a lot of weight. We were also trying dairy free at the same time. At that time I experimented with Bette Hagman’s recipes and actually got a decent loaf of bread. I have been baking breads, pastries and sweets for 36 years, so as you know baking is what I do for him. He loves all those wonderful gluten things! After giving up this experiment for him, I found out a couple years later I was gluten sensitive. I have felt so much better since I dropped that from my diet. Since then we have discovered other’s in the family are as well…a daughter, several grandchildren. I have never been a big bread or baked goods eater so I haven’t bothered with the gf baking for myself, but now that other’s are discovering this problem I want to be able to feed them. Doesn’t a Nana love to give her grandaughter a cookie? etc. So here I am starting again. If my husband can taste gf baked items and love them, then the battle is won. I bought again these flours you recommend..different from Bette’s. I want to start today. I think I’ll start with the oatmeal cookie recipe. I feel like the breads, pastry and cakes are the real test. I remember Bette having a last step of inverting the bread. You don’t mention that. Why? Also, can I really just use your flour mix and substitute in my own recipes? Thank you for your wonderful help and being so willing to share your experience.
Pam: I totally get it–I love to bake for my loved ones, too! Also, when you say invert the bread–do you mean in the cooling process? I don’t have my Bette book in front of me. But I think it’s probably so things don’t settle during cooling. I learned to place the loaf on its side during the cooling process for this reason. But, ultimately, I don’t think it matters.
Also, yes–you can pretty much use this mix in most things cup for cup. The only caveat is that yeasted things need more tweaking. You can’t just substitute the mix in a yeasted recipes–you usually need to alter the yeast amount and water amount, too.
Happy baking!
@zaranie This one is mine: http://t.co/enPmsmAgLn
Thank you very much for sharing your gluten free flour mix. I have been looking for an all-purpose gluten-free flour mixture. But, I have heard that it is best to add a starch to the flour mixes. Is a starch, like potato starch, tapioca starch or corn starch, necessary in your recipes?
Kristy: There is a lot of starch in the mix–tapioca starch, along with the starches in the white and sweet rice flours. This is by design. There is no need to add more starch to the mix. 🙂
I would like to mention that I used your flour mix to make fried chicken and for those who are wondering it tastes EXACTLY like regular fried chicken! I was so excited to taste regular fried chicken again!
Tiffanny: Yay! I’m so glad! And I agree–the mix is awesome for fried foods!
i think i no were i went wrong with my pastry (dopey me) i didnt use brown r white rice flour for my flour mix cause i didnt have any i just used gluten free plane flour so im going to buy the proper flour and try again
Hi!
I have recently come up with a flour blend that is somewhat similar to this (though mine has potato). I’m wondering if there is any way to remove ANY grittiness from final products. Are the rice flours to blame? And are certain rice flours less gritty than others, or is it just about how finely the flour is ground? I used rice flour I bought from Vitamin Cottage (their brand) that certainly looks like it’s finely ground, but perhaps it’s hard to tell? Also, I didn’t include brown rice flour. Why do you include that?
Thanks!!
Shauna
Shauna: I think that if grittiness is bothering you, then the best thing to do is to buy flours that are ground “superfine.” Authentic Foods (authenticfoods.com) has superfine brown rice flour that you might want to check out. I include brown rice flour because all purpose wheat flour has some grittiness to it and I wanted to mimic that.
Thanks for the thoughts and the link! I will definitely look into the superfine flours-that sounds like it may be the ticket. It’s interesting though to hear that you found wheat flour to have grittiness, as I’ve never noticed it and I’ve made many a batch of cookies with wheat flour! I am not specifically g-free, but have friends/family that are. So I am trying to find a chocolate chip cookie recipe that is basically indistinguishable from the one I normally make with includes Unbleached, All Purpose Flour (wheat). This gritty thing is totally new to me!
Shauna: All-Purpose Wheat flour has a bit of grittiness–but not a bunch. It sounds like you are definitely sensitive to the grind. In addition to checking out the flours at Authentic Foods, you can also experiment with putting your flours in a blender or a food processor and grinding them further. I’ve heard that people have done this with success (I haven’t done this, though).
I would like to know if it was work just to use all brown rice flour instead of brown rice and white rice for your mix?
Thank you for your help and all your research as I am gluten free and newly potato free!
Kimberly: Yes, you can–but be aware that it will create a mix that is a bit more dense and will be a little bit more gritty than the normal mix (which isn’t bad, it’s just something to be aware of).
Hi, I’m new to GF eating and have been reading on baking GF. I am new to all this. This is how I happened to come across your blog. I read a few posts and plan on reading more 🙂 but I see how you usually mention this GF flour can be substituted for the wheat flour in recipes, is this the same for recipes that used white flour? I bake and used white flour but have not done much wheat flour baking. I didn’t know if there was a difference, maybe I should research this more as well. But my question is can I use this flour as a substitute for the white flour in recipes? Thank you.
Evangelina: What people refer to as “white flour” is wheat flour. I think maybe what is confusing is “whole wheat flour”–which is made from the whole grain of the wheat–which is the flour that is used for many “whole grain” breads and other items. “White flour” is what people often call the all purpose wheat flour that most baked items are made of. Often is it “bleached”–hence the name “white.” Also, there is “unbleached” all purpose wheat flour, which is the same thing except not as processed. So, this mix substitutes for either bleached or unbleached all-purpose wheat flour (white flour).
Thank you so much for your recipe! I have yet to try it but am allergic to potatoes and so trying to go gluten free under doctor’s orders has not been easy.
N: You’re welcome! Happy baking!
can you help me please i made naan bread from a wheat recipe with gluten free plane flour and it wa a massive disaster can i use this flour blend to make naan bread so i can try again
Maria: Yes, you can do it–but for yeasted bread, you need to do many more tweaks than just substitute the flour. I haven’t done a recipe for this but I will soon!
thank you the recipe i used didnt have yeast in it. it was just plane flour ill try makeing it again with your flour mix and thank you your website is amazeing and sutch a fantastic help i find myself looking on everyday to see wot else i can make
Maria: Ah. Make sure it has baking powder in it. If it doesn’t, it will be very hard to get them to rise like naan.
thank you for ur help its really good of you x
Maria: My pleasure!
this is the best recipe for gluten free pastry i have ever tried.It rolls and feels like proper pastry when all others iv tried just crumble and wont roll i am really impressed with this one and am not going to use anything else from now on but this one thank you very much even my family who dont have to eat gluten free loved it too x
Maria: Yay! I’m so glad!
THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!!!
I was diagnosed with gluten allergy almost two years ago. I have found a few “replacements” for baked goods- but miss baking, at least baking things that I can eat!
On top of that, I teach Home Ec! For the third year now I have gluten sensitive students…hard to teach them basic cooking/baking skills when I can’t find a good substitute. We have had several additions to the trash can in class! :0
I’ve talked to others who simply buy pre-made gf mixes—-sorry, that won’t do for me as I’m highly sensitive to corn, soy, and yeast as well! and so many gf items have corn in them. :/
I am on my way to buy these ingredients to be ready for cookies in class in two days. SOO HAPPY!! I love snickerdoodles. 🙂
Deborah: Yay! I’m so glad! And please email me if I can be of help to you as you teach your gluten-sensitive students. I am all about good technique and am thrilled you are teaching that! Also, I too, Home Ec in junior high–I loved it!!
Well, the Snickerdoodles were a fantastic SUCCESS!!! Oh.my.goodness!! We tried scones in class this week…not what a scone should be but still tasty. I just saw your scone recipe and I can see some things that may help (in addition to the dough not being overworked! lol).
One question…. Can this flour “recipe” be doubled/tripled successfully?
Thanks!
Deborah: Yay! I’m so glad! Also, the flour recipe can be multiplied just fine. I usually double it when I make it. Also, what scone recipe did you try?
I was very excited to try this since I consider myself ‘paleo plus’ (I eat rice). I made a cake with it for my daughters birthday and it really tastes like pure rice. Everyone else had such great reviews of it I’m curious if I’m just too used to wheat or if there was an ingredient error I made. The texture is great but flavor was way too ricey for me. Maybe a different flavor cake?
Danielle: Well, it is mostly rice. I, personally, don’t taste the rice–it is designed to be taste-neutral. But, I did have a reader who said that she prefers the wheat flour flavor, so there are folks (like you) whose taste buds are very sensitive. I would recommend using sorghum flour in the place of the brown rice flour next time–and see how you like it.
@halseanderson recipe for flour. It’s the best of all I have tried: http://t.co/8j7svGbv @nelizadrew @hilarydavidson
Question, how much healthier is this than regular flour. Is there a great or slight difference in healthly eating?
Sandy: On a general scale, no more healthy than all purpose wheat flour. The only people who derive health benefits (versus pleasure benefits) from this mix are folks who cannot tolerate gluten. But otherwise, this is as healthy as white flour (i.e., not very). 🙂
Any thoughts about using this to make a roux?
Madge: This mix works like a dream for a roux. I do it all the time. Just follow your normal recipe for roux, but substitute this mix for the flour. 🙂
Jeanne, first of all I tried your mix and I love it! Thank you so much!
I wanted to know if you have any suggestions for recipes that require cake flour? Also, can you tell me anything about coconut flour? For example, white rice flour adds crispiness, brown rice flour adds chewiness, almond flour moisture, etc. Do you know how coconut flour behaves?
Thanks!
Ellen: I don’t know much about coconut flour other than it absorbs a lot of liquid–so you need to add more liquid to your recipes that contain it.
Oh how I wish I had found this site a month ago for the holidays! We recently went GF, and have been using Pamela’s flour mix. It worked on some, but not all of the holiday goodies.
Going to try this mix this weekend and surprise the kids with “after the holiday” holiday cookies!
Kandra: Yay! Happy baking!
Just wondering, would this be a good flour for pate a choux? Or, would you recommend just using sweet rice flour?
Elizabeth: Yes! In fact I have a recipe on the site for Crullers, which uses a choux paste. I am also going to post a recipe for gougeres, soon!
SO glad I found you! I’m brand new to this (less than a month), but I’m a research addict. Finding a flour mix that exchanges cup for cup is a godsend since I couldn’t figure out how I was going to convince my family to go gf. This will help in my campaigne. THANKS
Joyce: yay! I’m so glad I could help! Happy baking!
Is the sweet rice flour in your recipe sweet brown or sweet white rice? Can I use brown rice for all the rices in your recipe. I love brown rice and sweet brown rice and can easily grind these in my Vitamix, BUT I am not sure how well this will go in your recipe. I am super new to gluten free. I am really excited to try your recipe!
Martha: The sweet rice flour in my mix is white sweet rice flour. Also, each rice flour in the mix has a purpose. If you replace all of it with brown rice flour, you will get denser and more gritty baked items.
I make a muffin for my gluten-free autistic son. He is very thin. I try to fatten him up. : )
1 1/2 c brown rice flour
1 1/2 c. Tapioca flour
1 1/2 c. Almond meal
1 t. Baking soda
1 t. Baking powder
2 t. Xanthan gum
1/2 t. Sea salt
1 c. Banana (applesauce, pumpkin, etc.)
1 c. Whole milk
1 c. Whole fat Greek yogurt
1/4 c. Natural sugar (0r maple syrup)
1 t. Vanilla (or any flavor)
1 c. Chopped dates
1 c. Pecans or walnuts
2 sticks melted butter, added last.
Bake in mini muffin pans buttered at 385 degrees. Makes 48
I have made a variety of flavors. Keeping the dry ingredients the same and the wet ingredients the same measurements. One favorite is orange cranberry walnut. I use chopped fresh cranberries and orange extract and orange zest along with fresh squeezed oj. Wonderful!
Cindy: Thank you for the muffin recipe! Sounds good!
The Grinch of celiac almost stole our first gluten-free Christmas, but thanks to you for a wonderful gluten free flour mix, our cookie making tradition was saved. We used it my wife’s sugar cookie recipe straight up, without alterations, and they turned out great! We really appreciate all your hard work.
Merry Christmas
Al: Yay! I’m so glad! Merry Christmas to you and your family!
Just wanted to let you know I tried your GF flour recipe for the
first time in two of my favorite cookie recipes – absolutely wonderful!
I’ve been baking gluten free for about 2 years now and this is
the best. Thank you so much!
Elizabeth: Yay! I’m so glad!! Happy baking!
just wanted to say thank you for this recipe. My daughter was diagnosed with a gluten intolerance (allergy) 2 years ago and one of the things she missed most was christmas cookies. I have several recipes from my family that I make every year and tried to adapt some of them with other mixes. Yours worked the best. I used in a cut-out cookie recipe and tested it head to head with regular flour. what I love best about my grandmother’s recipe is that you can roll out the cookies paper thin (almost see through). I could not roll out the gluten free batch quite as thin (only about 1/4″) but it handled beautifully and on a taste test there was almost no difference. The cookies were just a bit drier–but I was the only one who could tell! when I used it for peanut butter kisses and toffee bars, the cookies are a bit drier and more fragile. what might work to make them a bit moister or more pliable? My daughter was thrilled with the cut-out cookies!
Amy: I’m so glad this worked well for you! Also, what is the cookie recipe you used? Do you want to email it to me and I will look at it to see why it turned out drier than your regular cookies? artofgfbaking@earthink.net
Hi there, I’m super excited to try your recipe, but am wondering if I used all brown rice flour instead of the white rice flour would there be a difference? Do they do different things?
Thanks.
Ronda: It’s fine to use all brown rice flour instead of the white rice flour–just be aware that the mix will be a bit more “gritty” and the baked goods will be a little more gritty, as well. Not a lot, but some people might noticed it. 🙂 Happy baking!
I have gluten-intolerant friends and have been doing a pile of research on recipes that could work for upcoming gatherings. I stumbled upon your site and really enjoyed reading about your journey with flours and finding your way to developing your own cup-for-cup creation. Thank you! I look forward to trying it with all kinds of recipes.
Morgan: Yay! I’m so glad! Happy baking!
Jeanne,
I am so thrilled for your success with creating a published book! My family is new to g-f (my thanks go to Kathy Abascal of Vashon Island for putting information right in front of me that changed my Foodie paradigm for the better better better; I am living proof that not everyone has heard of g-f as an antidote to inflammation and disease).
Question: I am going to try out your flour blend and have on hand some Bob’s Red Mill Sweet Rice Flour. Is there a reason why you don’t use his version? I admire how he gave his company to his employees and support that company loyally as a result.
This is one small world after all!!!!!
Nancy: I am so glad that you like my site! And I do use and recommend Bob’s sweet rice flour. But that particular flour is sometimes not carried in our stores here in Seattle (even though his other flours are), so I also give an alternative for folks who can’t find the Bob’s version.
I love this flour, but I have a question. I had been just measuring the flours to make your mix, but in anticipation of your book arriving in my mailbox, decided to make a big batch. I decided to do the big batch by weight. When I measured out the sweet rice flour first (to make sure I had enough) and the grams amount was at least a cup more than the measured amount. Since I’ve had such good luck with your measured mix, I decided to abandon the scale, so I don’t know if the other flours had the same problem. Any idea why this happened? I’ve only ever bought my sweet rice flour at the Asian market, so I wonder if Thai sweet rice flour is lighter somehow? I’ll probably just keep measuring, since that works well, but I am curious…
Michelle: Hm. I don’t know what happened. All I can think is that the sweet rice flour was packed into the cup. But, it shouldn’t have been double the weight–that is odd. Was the flour wet by any chance? That would make it heavier. I am currently out of town on book tour, but when I get home I will do some experimenting to see if I can figure it out.
No, I don’t pack it into the cup. When I put the mix together, I whisk it in a big bowl, then scoop out what I need, level off the top with a clean finger and move on. When I weighed it, I poured it directly from the bag. It must be something about the flour. It is very fine and powdery, which is why I wanted to make up a big batch- such a floury mess! It’s not that big of a deal. Like I said, I get great results with measuring by volume, so I’ll just keep doing that.
Michelle: ah, got it.
Wow–today is my lucky day! I am intolerant of the bean flours, and for some reason I can really taste the potato in the potato starch. Very excited to make this mix!
Heather: Yay!
This is the best-tasting and most cooperative flour blend I have used. Thanks! I get my brown rice from from Authentic Foods or Bob’s Red Mill in a pinch (it’s available easily here). I get my white rice flours and tapioca starch at our Asia Market, so they are usually from Thailand and have a very smooth texture.
Michelle: Yay! I’m so glad!
Thank you for this recipe! My good friend is gf and I like to make her baked goods that are good enough to eat!! I did use guar gum because I didn’t have xangthum gum(1.5 times more) and my choc chip cookies came out great! Used the nestle tollhouse recipe 🙂
Megan: Yay! I’m so glad!
I knew I had to try this recipe once I read this line: ” I determined that my primary goal was to make gf baked goods that tasted like they did when I made them with wheat flour.” This is precisely why I’ve avoided most of the other recipes I found for gf flour blends. I just wasn’t interested in baking cookies and cakes that tasted beany.
So far, I’ve made your pumpkin cake and pizza using this flour blend, and both have turned out better than I expected. I’ll be trying out more recipes with this all purpose gf flour, and I’m sure every one will turn out just as good!
Also, since my husband is gluten intolerant, he’s had to avoid many of his favorites like cakes and breads, but now he’s overjoyed that I discovered your site and your all purpose flour blend. He mentioned last night that I should let you know how happy and grateful we both are to you. I told him that I already did. 🙂
Tracey: Aw, thank you! I’m so glad! I love hearing that!!
So sad I am not able to make this mix because your recipes look great. I found tapioca flour, sweet rice flour and white rice flour on the e-shop in my country. I couldn’t find brown rice flour. Is it possible to replace it? I am also not sure if I should use a smooth rice flour or coarsely ground flour.
Greetings from Czech Republic
Karolina: You could try grinding some brown rice and seeing how it works in flour for you. You could also replace the brown rice with sorghum, amaranth, or buckwheat flour. The smoother the flour, the better. Happy baking!
Thank you for your quick answer. I think I will try either my own brown rice “flour” as you recommended or the buckwheat one. I am pretty sure it would be even harder to find sorghum or amaranth one.
So, for all of your recipes you recommend to you as smoother as possible? As we in middle Europe use coarse and half-coarse flour very often (for example dumplings)
Thank you for your advices. Karolina
Karolina: Here in the US, classic baking is done with smooth flour. So, that’s what I recommend. If you want a more whole grain feel, then use more coarse grinds of flour–it’s up to you. Happy baking!
I just wanted to be sure as I want to follow the recipes step by step to be sure I will be successful. Thank you very much!
Karolina: Sure, sounds good!
Hello Jeanne again.
Sorry to bother you but I do not know who I could ask. I was looking for the brown rice flour. I found something called: “instant wholemeal rice flour”. There is written that it is made from long-grain half-husked rice. Do you think this is it?
Thank you very much! Karolina
Karolina: Hm. I’m not sure. I think it is worth a try, right? I say use it in the mix and see what happens!
So glad to find your website and stumble upon your gf flour mix! However, I think I will cut down on the xanthan gum when I make a batch of your wonderful mix. I know first hand about xanthan gum… yekk! More than once I’ve actually thrown up after tasting gf baked goods that use xanthan gum. The slimey feel makes me gag even when I don’t throw up. I have a powerful gag reflex so I can’t go near stuff like xanthan gum, guar gum, fruit pectin, etc. Just wondering though, do you think fruit pectin instead of xanthan gum would be less offensive in this flour mix? Or would it not work at all?
Linda: I will admit that I don’t even notice the presence of the xanthan gum once it’s in the flour mix because it’s a relatively small amount. You can try fruit pectin and see how it works. My understanding is that it would be more like eggs than like gluten in baking. But, it doesn’t hurt to try it. 🙂
Thank you for this! Will be giving your flour blend a try this weekend. I’m newly GF (4 months) and am still in the dark “sad” phase of missing my baked goods…and with the holidays fast approaching, it’s not getting any better. I’ve tried the other blends and you’re right – the “healthier” flours are too strong-tasting…I want the end result to be yummy! I’ll post back after using this, but I’m hopeful right now, which I haven’t been in a while! Thank you!!! 🙂
Donna: I’m so sorry you’re still in the early phase! Please know that things do get better! And there is so much stuff that we CAN eat, it’s important to concentrate on those instead of on what we can’t eat. Hang in there!
This is simply the best flour mix I have ever used. Like every other GF baker I have tried every flour mixture known to mankind. I have learned alot. I used this mix for my favorite wheat “buttermilk pancakes” last nite for supper. OMG!!! My hubby was so pleased! Behaved like a all purpose wheat flour. I had come to believe I would never find a flour mix that I could exchange cup for cup in baking recipes. You deserve all the stars I could assign for cracking this!! Thanks!
Sarah: Yay! I’m so glad!
Thanks for providing this detailed explanation! Having been Coeliac for 10 years, Ive read about most of these issues, but I think you have covered it in a very clear and thorough way.
I havnt had time to read through your whole blog yet, but I wonder if it would be helpful to note that some brands of baking powder (in the UK aynway) contain wheat. Ive recently had 2 friends buy Doves Farm GF mix (rice, potato, tapioca, maize and buckwheat) and make the recipe on the back of the packet but include a baking powder made with wheat flour, so I wasnt able to eat any! Very annoying when they had gone to so much effort!
I also note that you dont mention gluten free codex wheat starch. Perhaps this isnt common in the US, and because of your family issues with wheat, you didnt feel it necessary. In the UK for Coeliacs who are able to tolerate this wheat which has been processed to remove the gluten protein, I find this is the best flour because it is obviously the so close to ‘proper’ wheat. However it causes a lot of confusion among people, even the pharmacists who dispense my prescription for GF flour.
Rebecca, Scotland
Rebecca: I don’t think the gf wheat starch is available in the US (at least last time I checked). I think that’s because it is currently not considered gluten-free here. But, I’m not entirely sure. I would guess that even if it was available, I wouldn’t be able to use it because of my wheat allergy. Then again, if the proteins are removed, maybe I could. I would need to explore this with my doctor if it becomes available. What do you like about it? It seems that if the protein (gluten) is removed, it would behave like other gf starches we have access to. It is the flavor that is good?
I’m so sorry about your experience with the wheat starch-containing baking powder–that is so annoying! In the US, I think most of the baking powders are gluten-free–and are labeled as such. That makes things much easier!
I know the despair and frustration you describe SO much and you have just given me so much hope I am so extremely excited to try this! Thank you SO much!
Tory: Yay! I’m so glad!! Happy baking!
My son has allergies to wheat, eggs, nuts, soy, dairy, among other stuff–(oats apparently too):( I LOVED to bake but break down in tears after hours and hours of searching for a recipe that uses flours like your mix but that I do not have to use eggs in. He loves pancakes muffins and cup cakes but it seems impossible without eggs. 1. Do you have a resource that i could use to get started GF baking with such limitations? 2. Also, do you have a recipe off the top of our head that I could use your mix and sub applesauce for the egg like I used to with wheat baking? 3. Last, he has a corn and bean allergy so i’m not 100% sure about the gums….any replacement ideas. I know….he’s a tough case:( He’s so sad about these allergies that I just want him to feel like a normal kid again with a muffin or pancake but money is tight so I cant waste money on experimenting too much. Thank you for any input!!!!!:)
Karen: I am so sorry you are encountering such difficulty finding things to make. I would recommend checking out my post about substitutions: https://artofglutenfreebaking.com/2012/08/lets-talk-ingredient-substitutions-with-some-substitution-recommendations/ At the end I include a list of links for sites that I recommend that contain gf baking recipes that have many of the limitations you do. It contains my recommendations for substituting for all of the ingredients you need to substitute.
Good luck, don’t get discouraged, and happy baking!!
I’ve been noodling around looking for THE perfect baking blend and can’t wait to try this! Thanks for doing all the research for me. ;o)
I am Allergic to Gluten and ALL grains including Rice & Corn and also Alleric to Legumes including all Bean and chickpea flours and Guar Gum… There’s a challenge for you!! If you have any good suggestions I’m always open to hearing them!
Lynnie: Oh man. I’m so sorry. I am wondering how you do with almonds? Almond flour is nice to bake with. Elana Amsterdam has two cookbooks out using almond flour–check them out!
Jeanne,
I’m having some trouble finding sweet rice flour, but came across a King Arthur pre mixed GF flour mix that can be shipped. it has all the same ingredients except it has cornstarch instead of sweet rice flour. If I get this, do you think it will affect the taste? My goal is to have the best tasting flour as close to wheat as possible. The ingredients on their site is listed below:
Our carefully tested blend of white rice and whole-grain (brown) rice flours, tapioca starch, and potato starch is perfect for all of your gluten-free recipes.
Thank you,
Joanne
Joanne: Greetings! Yes, you can use the KA mix. I think it doesn’t contain xanthan gum (I can’t remember). If it doesn’t use 1/4 tsp of xanthan gum per cup of flour for your non-yeasted recipes. Yeasted recipes require a different ratio of xanthan gum. 🙂
We are so happy to read this about the gf flour experimenting. Since 1999 we also have been reading and baking, and experimenting with pizza crust, cinnamon rolls, and popovers. Reading here the comments about begniets makes me envious. Yes, the bean flours have limits, so we also have moved on to other flours, knowing the long hours it takes to finally get a good repeatable recipe. Like our rollable risen cinnamon buns, it took months of tough buns, but they are now as good as the “airport” versions, although they toughen up a bit after several hours out of the oven. After those and then our Napolitan pizza crust success it was several years before we tackled the popovers, and those sure took a lot of oven time – but the results are better than any popovers we have ever eaten, anywhere. This gf baking can be done very well, thanks to the efforts of so many!!
Thank you very much for this flour guidance.
Best of success and joy,
Kent
Kent: Thank you! And it sounds like you are avid bakers, too! Yay!
What an amazing dedication. Thank you for all the great info. Can’t wait to start baking with this mix. I still have 5Kg of white flour left from the time I didn’t know how bad gluten was for health What shall I do with it? compost? :0)
Andrea: I’m glad it’s helpful!! Also, if your flour is opened, then yes–compost it. If it is in an unopened bag, you can give it away to a pal. That’s what I did when I was diagnosed. It was so freeing to get all of the gluten baking stuff out of my cupboards!!
Hi Jeanne:
I have stumbled across your website after searching for the best gluten-free flour mix and am glad I found it !
I have recently been diagnosed as gluten & dairy intolerant which makes sense after years of digestive woes. I have also been told that I need to stay away from potatoes, in fact any in the nightshade family. Which absolutely kills me because I love potatoes and tomatoes.
So many of the mixes both store brands and homemade recipes, call for potato flour or starch – I was getting concerned I would have a hard time with this diet. I have two children who have severe nut allergies so I found that limits some recipes I have discovered over the web. Your post detailing your own personal trials and experiences are very helpful to a newbie.
I plan on buying the flours and trying your mix tomorrow. Thank you!
Lorrene: Yay! I’m so glad! Please let me know what you think!
Hello,
I’m not wheat-intolerant, but I do think I feel better when I eat rice than when I eat wheat.
Is it possible to use brown rice flour in place of the white rice flour, and then just throw in the mochiko? I’m trying to eat more brown rice these days as I feel better on it than on white rice–too starchy. Thank you!
Kiyoko: Yes, you can substitute more brown rice for the white rice. It will make the mixture a bit more gritty.
just read all your research, so happy someone has done all this for me.. my daughter has been GF for 3 years, she had Ulcerative colitis, just changed all her diet, and found out she is wheat, oats, corn ,rye and slightly rice intolerant, (OH JOY) think this flour might work,
thanks Helen
Helen: Oh, good! Please let me know how it works!
I was super excited to try your gluten free flour mix when I noticed you said it is a substitute for wheat flour. Do you have any great tasting recommendations for white flour? I know wheat is healthier but I tend to use a blend of wheat and white flours when I cook. I’m into baking and those recipes tend to use white flour. I’m supposed to be gluten free but I like tasty food too much and continue to eat gluten items. You seem to have experimented a lot and I and my budget would love to benefit from what you have learned. Thank you in advance!
Sarah Jane: I think you misunderstood. I used the term “wheat flour” to mean non-gluten-free flour. This mix mimics regular (wheat) all purpose flour–the stuff you buy in the store to bake with. I think what you thought was that it mimics “whole wheat” flour–which it does not.
Perfect! Thank you!
Hi Jeanne,
I have read recently that Powdered Fruit Pectin can be used in place of Xanthum Gum and is much less expensive. Have you heard of, or tried this before and what are your thoughts on it?
Thank you for all your hard work and TIME put into your research!! =)
Becky: Pectin has the binding qualities but not the elastic qualities of xanthan gum. Even though xanthan gum is expensive, you only use a tiny amount per cup of flour. So, I find that my xanthan gum takes a relatively long time to go through!
I was also wondering something on this topic would Bob’s Red Mill Guar Gum work, its half the price here in NY. My husband I are just starting Gluten Free this week so it is good to have your expertise.
Kate: yes, you can use guar gum in the place of xanthan gum, but I don’t think it works as well as xanthan gum. Take a look at my Gluten-Replacers post (under Baking Tips) for more on this topic. Also, realize that 1 package of Bob’s Red Mill xanthan gum makes something like 56 batches of my flour. 🙂
Hi…I have just made a carrot cake for the first time using your flour mix and I am very pleased…ecstatic actually. It worked so much better than any other mix I’ve ever tried :o)
One question, in your commentary before the recipe you mention that 1/4 t rounded of xanthan gum to 1 cup of flour is the norm but in your recipe for the mix, it calls for 2 scant t of xanthan gum to 4 1/2 cups of all the other flours combined which seems to me would call for only a bit over 1 t of xanthan gum in the mix.
I found my cake to be a bit on the chewy side (but so much better than any other I’ve made using any other gf flour mix) so I wondered if this was a result of too much xanthan gum.
I’m so grateful to have found your site and can’t wait to try your other recipes.
Thank you so much for all your hard work on the research!
Michael
Michael: You’re right–it actually is between a 1/4 of a teaspoon and a 1/2 of a teaspoon per cup. That’s why I say a scant 2 teaspoons. I wanted to make the flour recipe as easy as possible to make. Also, if your baked goods turn out too chewy (or gummy), it might be too much xanthan gum. What cake recipe were you using?
I just make a triple batch of your basic flour mix and made the Soft Sandwich bread which rose like a champ, but after cooling, sank about an inch. I used Fleischman’s yeast and followed all instructions.
Should it have cooked longer than the 30 minute total?
The taste was marvelous and I can’t wait to try to French baguette and pie crust recipes tonight! This site is wonderful and you are very much appreciated. Looking forward to your book in the fall.
Regards,
Georgia
Georgia: The bread will sink if it rises too high during the rising time. I would recommend letting the loaf rise just barely to the top of the pan before baking. 🙂
I just made your flour blend last night for the first time and haven’t tested it yet (my husband only went GF 2 weeks ago). I came across a recipe I want to try and it calls for 2 cups of gluten free all purpose flour, and 2 tsp xanthan gum. I put the xanthan gum in the all purpose flour when I made it, but that’s how much is in the entire batch of flour, so what do I do? leave it out? Or add a little bit, or add the full amount? I don’t want to add too much, but what would even happen if there was too much?
Loni: There are so many variables here. If the recipe is not yeasted, and there is no other xanthan gum in the recipe, I would just use my mix without any added xanthan gum.
I just used this flour blend for the first time in a normal (gluten-containing) recipe as a replacement. It worked really well in this brownie recipe, which was my fave before my son was diagnosed. I’m so happy. No yucky mixes for us!
http://www.kingarthurflour.com/recipes/deep-dark-fudgy-brownies-recipe?recipe_id=R734
Thank you so much! Since discovering that my GF son & husband cannot tolerate corn, I have been struggling to replace the cornstarch and still have my GF baking turn out! I am so excited to make things from the research you have already done!
Alexis: Yay! I’m so glad this is helpful!
I have a question. I just prepared a double batch of this flour blend based on weight, not volume, because the flours were so fine I was afraid to trust myself with volume measurements. However, it did seem at times like I had a whole lot more volume-wise for the weight measurement than you indicated. I guess the flours sort of compact when you put them in a measuring cup? Sorry for the ignorant question–this is literally my first time baking gluten-free other than from a mix and I am on a steep learning curve! Another question–the Indian grocer had Sorgum flour and the Asian grocer had Red Sorghum flour. Apparently Sorgum=Sorghum but is there a taste difference between the regular Sorgum and the Red Sorghum?
Emily: Because the flours are lighter than wheat flour, they will “fluff” up more when you mix them. Also, the sorghum flour I use is “white sorghum” flour–I use the ones from Bob’s Red Mill or from Authentic Foods. I would recommend using the one you can find and see what happens. Also, you might want to check on the packaging to see if the sorghum flours you are buying are marked “gluten-free.” If they aren’t, there may be a potential for cross contamination with gluten. Happy baking!
Aloha Jeanne,
I want to bake my own bread using your GF flour recipe as I now buy Ezekiel bread. I am also trying to follow the best I can, Blood Type ‘O’ diet. Some recipes call for potato starch and tapioca starch, can I just use ALL tapioca starch instead as potato is not good for Type ‘O’?
Also, would I be able to replace the White Rice flour with Quinoa flour in your recipe?
I look forward to hearing from you soon as I wanted to bake GF bread today since it is a Holiday.
Robbie: If a recipe calls for potato starch, you can use all tapioca starch–that should be fine. And you can use quinoa flour (or just more brown rice flour) for the white rice flour. That will make the mix more “whole grain” and more grainy, FYI. Also, please note that the regular Ezekiel bread is NOT gluten-free. Happy baking!
hello, this is very good information. Will you publish a cookbook which includes all the useful information and recipes?
Elizabeth: I do have a book coming out in October!! Check out there details here.
Hi!
I am newly GF and think your website is great!
I am sure this has already been asked before, but how to i make the AP flour, self raising?
Thank you!
Alison
Thanks for this question, Alison! I just put up a reply as a post!
Hi I attempted many awful bread and have subjected my family to all of them to the extent where they no longer will attempt anymore!
please can you send me a light weight bread receipt! My Internet connection is extremely slow! Thanks Kerry
Kerry: I have several bread recipes on the site. Go to my Recipes page and see which ones look good to you.
I’ve been playing with flours for the last three months of being gf. I’m psyched to try yours because you have the exact same philosophy as I do. I’m going to try your blend today in pancakes but I have no brown rice flour. I am going to replace the BRF with the sorghum for now because it’s all I have! But I will definitely try your exact blend once I get some more BRF. Thanks for your hard work. I three months of research, yours is the first blog I felt compelled to comment on. THANK YOU!
Kati: Yay! And sorghum is what I recommend in the place of the brown rice flour as a substitution, too. Happy baking!
Hi Jeanne,
I had a very succesful batch of waffles made with this gf flour absent the sweet rice four (made up for it with more brown & white). A great taste! The batter needs to be very thin as seperated beaten egg whites are folded in to get those nice fluffy waffles. However to accomplish this I need to double the liquid compared to wheat flour recipe.
What is the role of the sweet rice flour? I can only find this at Uwajimaya in $1.79/lb boxes and Bobs Red Mill where cheapest is $34.5/25lb ($1.38/lb).
Thanks, Bill
Bill: Greetings! And I love that you are making the flour mix your own. I find that the sweet rice flour adds some binding characteristics and smoothness. But, if you substitute other flours for it, that sounds good to me!
I found your website this morning, and have been reading it all day! I went out and got all the ingredients for your gluten-free flour mix, and am SO excited to start baking again. (It’s only been a couple of months, but I can’t even describe how much I miss it!)
One quick question for you: When measuring the various flours into the mix, as well as when adding the mix into recipes, do we pack the flour into the measuring cups? Or have it loosely measured? Each gf flour mix I have found says different things about this, and I’m not entirely sure how to measure yours.
Thank you so much for all of your dedication and hard work! It is GREATLY appreciated 🙂
Rachel: Greetings! I dip, tap the cup lightly on the side of the flour container (gf flours are lighter and more prone to static electricity than wheat flour) and then level with the back of a knife or a ruler. And thank you!
Hi! I was just wondering how long this mix would last if I made it in a big batch and put it in the fridge or freezer? How do I know if it has gone bad?
Thanks!
Lauren: It would last a long time in the freezer. It would last for several months in the fridge. It lasts for a couple of months on the shelf, depending on how hot your kitchen is. You will know if it is bad because it will have a bitter taste and smell. It should have a fairly benign “floury” smell when it’s new. 🙂
Jeanne,
I love to make traditional boiled bagels and bread.
I noticed in one of your earlier posts you said “….adapting yeast-based recipes to gluten-free requires more tweaking than simply using a gf flour.”
Do you recommend other adjustments to your gf flour recipes to accommodate baking with yeast?
Thank you! Bill
Bill: You usually need to add more yeast, more xanthan gum, and sometimes more liquid. And maybe other tweaks. I haven’t examined the process closely enough to determine if there are across the board tweaks–I’m sure there are. If you are familiar with breads, I would experiment knowing that gf flours need more oomph from more yeast. Also, you will need more xanthan gum to provide the structure.
Thank you so much!!
Jeanne,
I am getting ready to make my first gluten free wedding cake. I am excited to try your flour as it appears that many people have had great luck with it. I wanted to know before I begin, should I mix my cakes the way I normally would in my recipes even though I am using GF flour? I have read that you need to adjust mixing techniques when using GF flour, what is your rule of thumb? Thank you!!
Hi, Jeanne.
Sorry if this got asked earlier but I did a quick read-through and didn’t see anything, so: why are the gram measurements for the 1 C indicated in your flour mix all different (1.25 C / 170g brown rice flour, 1.25 C /205g white rice flour, etc)? Why is that (do you use a scale to measure out your ingredients for this mix)?
Lastly, when you mix these ingredients, how do you do that — in a food processor or by hand?
Thanks, and looking forward to trying this out.
Teebodo: I include volume (cup) measurements as well as weight (gram) measurements for most of my recipes. I do this because many of my readers live outside of the US and use weight measurements instead of volume. I mostly use volume and then double check via weight to make sure the recipes are written correctly. Also, I measure all of the ingredients into a large glass jar and turn and shake it for about a minute. You could also stir it by hand or do it in a mixer or a food processor. Do what’s easiest for you–just make sure it’s well mixed! 🙂
Hi,
I’m living the paleo lifestyle and I’m very interessted in your flour mix, because I have kids and sometimes I need a replacement for wheat flour. The only thing which is not paleo style is the brown rice flour. Would there be a possibility to replace it with an other flour? Why do you use brown rice flour? Is it the taste or does it make the handling better? Could I replace it with almond flour, coconut flour? An oter starch?
Would be more than happy if you could help me.
Thanks.
Sumssums: As far as I know, none of my flour mix is paleo–it’s all rice and tapioca. I think you need to research other flour mixes are listed as paleo-friendly. I’m not really an expert on paleo baking mixes, so I’m not sure what to recommend.
Hi Jeanne,
rice and tapioca are safe starches, so I allow them in my diet. I’m eating rice and different kinds of tubers.
Yesterday I just replaced the brown rice with almond flour and I baked the pressed butter cookis. They are fantastic. So I think, my replacement should work fine.
Thanks a lot for this flour mix 🙂
Sumssums: Oh, good! I’m so glad!
Hi Jeanne, is there anything that I can use as a substitute for the glutenous rice flour? I can’t seem to find it my town. I don’t mind the taste of all the bean flours (in fact I love it!), and I can also get a hold of a few different flours, but not the sweet/glutenous rice!
Heidi: I would use potato flour (not starch). That’s usually the best substitute. 🙂
I have one question? Do you add the xanthum gum at the time of making the mix or add it as you go. I have been reading that it goes bad really fast (who knows what that really means sometimes when a twinkie is indestructible)
Thank you so much for sharing! I just found your site and am still reading.
Brandi: I add it to the time of mixing. I haven’t heard of xanthan gum going bad. I do use my mix very quickly, but I also store my extra xanthan gum at room temperature in a kitchen cupboard. I haven’t seemed to have had any problems, but I will do more research.
Thank you very much for your response!!! I will be shopping and making some flour today. My babies are missing baked goods and the mixes are just to crazy expensive!
Thanks again
Brandi: Yay! My pleasure!
I have now baked like 20 of your recipes with your flour.
OMG you are a goddess!!!
We have loved everything! Thank you soooooooo much for taking the time to share! You are my go to genius.
I think I may have told you this before but I can not say it enough!
Brandi
Brandi: Yay! That is so good to hear! I’m so glad to be of help!
Any idea about why the loaf would fall after rising?
Thanks!
Hi, I was just wondering about your all purpose flour used with egg replacer. I am vegan. Will it matter at all? I am new to gluten free-just learning. Thanks so much! Linda
Linda: The flour mix works as well as anything really does with egg replacers. What that means is that eggs provide a lot of structure to the baked goods in which they are used, so using a replacer will result in a flatter and more dense baked good. That’s just the way it goes with egg replacers. 🙂
I’m so glad you guys are having these discussions. I just went GF less than 2 weeks ago and got hit by a chocolate chip cookie craving that won’t quit, so I was searching for flour recipes (since, sadly, every chocolate GF snack I found in the store was so, so, so disappointing…). I admit to being one of those newbies that thought I needed to find a flour with flax seed or other healthy things in it. I don’t know why! I rarely bake and don’t even have much of a sweet tooth, so it’s not like I’ll be eating cookies every day. Regular flour was always good enough before, so thanks for knocking me over the head (kindly) to remind why my flour doesn’t have to be loaded with good stuff, it just has to taste good! I’m trying this flour with a cookie recipe this week – fingers crossed!!! 🙂 🙂 🙂
It drives me crazy when people tell me they think gf baking tastes weird and then I find out that it’s because bean or some other strong-tasting flour was used by the baker.
I knew when I saw this that I was in good hands. Thank you for this! I had tried another GF mix from another website which had, like, eight ingredients and half of them were there to make the flour taste “healthy”. I’m in your camp. Most of the time, I eat paleo. When I want a baked good, I don’t want gluten, and I don’t want it to taste like a health food product. I want it to taste good! You have made it possible for me to enjoy the occasional treat of my homemade cornbread without exposing myself to gluten. Thanks!
Steph: Yay! I’m so glad!
I am very eager to try this. My first venture will be a pizza!
Kathy: I’m glad this looks appealing to you! But realize that adapting yeast-based recipes to gluten-free requires more tweaking than simply using a gf flour. I would recommend trying the recipe on this site to get a sense for how the dough should behave! Happy baking!
Jeanne,
Thanks so much for your prompt response. I will take my behind to the store and get the brown rice flour. And now for another question… re your gf French cruller recipe: I followed the recipe, doubling the white rice flour in place of the brown, and it was a gf revelation… deelish! However, I tried to make some more from the remaining batter a few hours later, and the result was nothing like the first batches, soggy and not crisp at all. Is this a batter that just doesn’t sit well? Should I have refrigerated it even for two hours? My experience with pate a choux is that it’s good even the next day. Where did I go wrong? Gratefully, M
Michele: Hm. I’m not sure what happened. If it was only a few hours later, it should have been OK. One thing I’m wondering is if the few-hours-old batter absorbed the liquid in a way that required a longer frying time. Pate au choux batter works best when it is a bit “dry” which is what it is when you first make it. If you make it this way again, I would recommend frying it for a bit longer than the newly made batter. Also, if you do refrigerate it, be sure to bring it to room temperature before using it.
Hi Jeanne,
I stumbled on this site doing gf research and boy am I grateful! I am so excited to try your gf AP flour mix, but just one question: Can I double the white rice flour in place of the brown rice flour? I’m just trying to streamline and use what I have, and not make one more of my seemingly endless trips to the store. Thank you so much for your effort and generosity! M
Michele: Yes, you can. But be aware that the brown rice does bring with it some qualities that make the mix feel and taste like AP wheat flour. I would recommend using it if you have the option. 🙂
Do you mind elaborating on those qualities? It’s not easy for me to get brown rice flour and I was wondering if I could just use all white rice flour and maybe add in some other ingredients to mimic what’s missing. I love your blog btw, only just discovered it and am thrilled to see you don’t use any of the flours I can’t use.
Cocoa: During my research, I learned that all-purpose wheat flour is 80% starches and 20% protein and gums. And there is also a bit of a grain to it, which is where the brown rice comes in. You can certainly use all white rice flour, but I don’t think it is optimal. Don’t forget that you can order brown rice (and all of the other flours) online! Also, I’m so glad the blog is helpful for you!
Hi!
I so agree with you with all those cakes/breads tasteless or with an horrible taste. It’s like when you are vegetarian (I am), you are obviously on diet and eating green leaves without oil 😉 Well same goes for people who are on a GF diet! We all deserve the right to have taste in our plates 😉
I would like to thank you for the great effort you made on this research. My friend is on a GF diet and she doesn’t know how to eat/cook/bake as her whole world crumbled. As I love to cook I am always looking for dishes and desserts for her to eat and I’m so glad I found your website. I will give it a try but it sounds promising.
As well in France, this GF is not as important as in UK or US but it should and it’s good to see that we could educate a lot of people to offer GF bread or cakes and so on as well (but they need to be baked and store in a different place as contamination is easily done I read)
Thanks a lot for this
Alexandra
Alexandra: I’m so glad this is helpful for you!
Is there any way to substitute out the tapioca starch? My boyfriend and I are very sensitive to the taste (some kind of awful metallic grossness).
Thanks,
Molly
Molly: yes, you can substitute potato starch (not potato flour–they are two different things). Also, you might want to investigate tapioca starches from difference companies. I hear that people often find ones they like. I am not clear what the situation is with tapioca starch. I am beginning to think that it somehow goes bad. I run across bad tasting ts every so often. It’s strange.
This website is awesome! I have a GF friend and I needed someone to help me eat the delicious things a make so this is perfect. I have mixed together a batch of your AP GF flour. I have 2 specific questions, the recipe I’m using calls for 2 c regular flour, 1 tsp baking SODA, 5 eggs.
I’m subbing the GF flour here. Would you go ahead and add that amount of soda? And would you add baking POWDER even though it doesn’t call for it? Thank you!
Melissa: I would add a teaspoon of baking powder to the recipe. Baking soda usually isn’t enough all by itself to rise cakes and breads–although the large number of eggs will help it rise. So keep the soda and add powder. Let me know how it goes.
Ps
My concern is price. My local asian food store ( whhich is huge!!!) carries white rice flour for 77 cents per lb
glutinous white rice flour for 69 cents per lb
and tapioca starch for 70 cents per lb. Averaged out it is much much cheaper than bob’s. but i can not find an i expensive brown rice flour.
Kendra: Unfortunately, gluten-free flours are more expensive. That is mainly because they are considered unusual and so are not made on a large scale. I do think this will change at some point, but for now–we just have to budget carefully. Sigh.
SInce going back to baking and now baking my own gf breads I have discovered I need a stand mixer. I will be buyig a kitchenaid pro 6000this weekend and noticed it has a grain mill attachemnt.
My questions are as follows: Have you ever ground your own brown rice flour?
Is brown rice flour really just ground up brown rice?
Do you know if there is a particular variety of brown rice i should buy for grinding or should I just call the whole thing off and stick with store bought brown rice flour.
Thx
Hi!
I came across your blog when I was trying to see if I could replace all-purpose flour for a combo of gluten-free flour + xanthan gum. I have a cookbook that is completely gluten-free. I bought it because it also is allergy-free! My daughter is allergic to milk, eggs & possibly peanuts. Baking can be a little tricky. So, even though she doesn’t have celiac dz I bought this book because it was so highly recommended for people with food allergies (on Amazon).
Do you think I could substitute all-purpose flour for the gluten-free flour & xanthan gum in baking recipes? Would it just be a 1:1 replacement?
Thanks so much!!!
Tara: Let’s see. Are you asking if you can substitute all-purpose wheat flour in the place of my mix for my recipes? If so, the answer is yes–except for the yeasted recipes. Yeasted recipes are quite different. Happy baking!
When you say scant… are we talking more along the lines of 1 & 3/4? I noted that a commenter may have had adverse results from too much xanthan gum.
I am new to Gluten-Free and am craving chocolate chip cookies… I just want to be sure I have this right. Thanks for the help.
I also found your blog through Tartelette, and am SO glad that I did.
Rebecca: I mean just barely 2 tsp. But, with this tiny measurement, it doesn’t matter that much. Too much xanthan gum is more like 1 tsp per cup of flour. That’s where you would start noticing the problems. And welcome!!
I can’t believe I had forgotten your blog! I have been gluten free for a year and as a pastry chef I have been struggling and almost given up enjoying some recipes I loved. I hate the bean taste of many flowers, and didn’t have the time or patience to research, this is perfect, thanks!
I am going to try this mix asap! I am glad Helene of Tartelette posted about your mix.
I am your follower now! Thanks!
Laura: Yay! And I love Helene!!
I love yor flour bland. I have been using it for about 2-3 weeks now and it has turned out beautifully in everything I have done. Especially my beignets. They puffed. I made the changes you suggested addidn extra baking powder and egg and ta-da! it was magis. Also quick tip I used plastic wrap over the dough to roll it out since it was now more sticky. My kids are bak to enjoying pancakes or beignets for weekend breakfasts. Thank you soooo much !!!!!
Kendra:Ooo, your beignets sounds awesome! Thanks for letting me know of your success with the flour blend–yay! So happy to help!
Hi Jeanne,
Thanks for your reply. No, both the shortbread and the sables are a style of cookie that get’s rolled into a log and refrigerated for a minimum of 2 hours, then sliced and quickly thrown into the oven (and I refrigerate all my cookies before baking regardless). Also as mentioned I baked them side by side with the wheat flour recipe, so put the ingredients in at the same time. No difference. They both flattened and looked kind of bubbly. Hmmm. Well, I appreciate your taking the time to answer. I guess I’ll try again. If they do need to be tweaked, is there one ingredient you would suggest I add more to the mix? Or maybe I’ll just try adding more of the total flour. Also I was wondering how you mix your flour. I sifted mine like 4 times just to make sure the ingredients got all incorporated evenly (2 tsp of xanthan gum isn’t very much), but you don’t mention anything like that in your post. Do you follow any special method? Best, Dawn
Dawn: Hm. That’s so weird. When I get a chance (heh), I will try those recipes. I mix my flour by shaking and turning the container. I want to make sure I get everything mixed up well. But, I have also mixed it with a spoon with no problem. Shoot. Try again and let me know what happens.
Just tonight I was at Whole Foods and noticed they have brown rice flour in their bins and I thought maybe I should try to do something. I’ve been wanting to try gluten free baking not because I need to, but because I want to experiment. I enjoyed reading this post. Every word to see the process you went through. I’m with you on it all tasting good and being like baked goods we grew up on. Thanks for all your hard work.
Angela: Thanks for stopping by!
Hi Jeanne,
I was really excited to find this recipe. I have tried it now in 3 of my staple cookie recipes and only had success with one of them. Since you indicated that it could be substituted for “most” recipes I was wondering if you could give me your thoughts on this? The recipe that it worked in was from Cooks Illustrated, their peanut butter cookie. The two that didn’t work were a Chocolate Sable by Pierre Herme http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/07/style/tmagazine/sable_recipe2.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=pierre%20herme%20sable&st=cse, and my favorite Espresso Shortbread recipe from Fine Cooking. The Sable and Shortbread both flattened in the oven and came out looking like little flat rocks and the texture was not much better. Do you know why this happened? I would love to be able to bake using this flour, what should I do differently?
(Also: It should be noted that since I was baking at the holidays and needed the cookies to take to parties I baked batches using this flour and wheat flour side by side just in case they didn’t come out… the wheat flour recipes all came out perfectly so I know it wasn’t my mistake with other ingredients). Any thoughts you might have regarding this would be greatly appreciated.
Dawn: Hm, I looked at the Pierre Herme recipe and that should have come out. The cookies should not have been like flat rocks. I am thinking that something must have been done differently to make them come out weird. If the butter was too warm when they went into the oven, then the cookies will come out flatter. But, they shouldn’t come out like rocks. I don’t know what to tell you other than to try it again. 🙂
Hi Dawn and Jeanne,
First of all, thank you Jeanne for the story and the excellent mix. I am new to GF baking and despite all the anxiety associated the carrot cake I made last night turned out perfectly. I really appreciate your sharing of your expertise and your openness to answering every single comment!
As for the sable and shortbread cookie, I do have some thoughts as I do bake quite a lot.
The word “sables” is another name for shortbread. The “short” in shortbread refers to the ingredients and process for making it – it misses leavening and the butter is typically cut into the flour to *avoid* the creation of gluten, so that the result is a crumbly sandy texture.
In the New York Times recipe, it calls for using a paddle mixer to mix the butter with the flour. While personally I don’t recommend this method for short and sable (sandy) cookies, because with wheat flours you’d still get a tough cookie, many recipes (including Martha Stewart) tells you to do this.
However in traditional French baking, if you are making a sable, typically the recipe will ask you to use a pastry cutter or two knives, and that is my preferred method for wheat baking so that you don’t create gluten and the end result is the lightest crumblyiest cookie.
Now, as I said I am just starting out in GF, I do have a theory about the sables and shortbread. If you are using Jeanne’s flour mix, there is xanthan gum which is a gluten replacer. But because sables and shortbread don’t need gluten, I would suggest trying a different flour mix, with only brown rice and white rice flours, mochiko, and ground almonds. I think it’s the gluten replacer that is making your sables and shortbread like rocks. (because if you use a beater in a wheat flour sable/shortbread recipe and beat for too long – causing gluten formation – your sables and shortbreads will turn out rock hard).
Hope this helps and happy baking!
Momo
Momo: Thanks for your ideas. I can’t find the other comment you’re replying to. But I will say that using too much xanthan gum would create a tough cookie. The other person can experiment using my mix and just not adding the xanthan gum. But I have to say, I make shortbread all the time with the mix–and they are fine.
Hi Jeanne!
The Rice flour at my local Asian store, has rice and water as ingredients. Also the Glutinous rice flour has glutinous rice flour and water as it’s ingredients. would these be the flours to use or should I look for something that does not contain water as an ingredient? The rice flour comes in a transparent pack with red lettering and the glutinous rice flour has green lettering on a transparent packet, I believe they are Thai.
here’s the glutinous rice flour
javascript:popupWindow(‘http://grocerythai.com/erawan-glutinous-rice-flour-16oz-pi-141.html?osCsid=9e0bd47500785c7abbc47303e3848fd2’)
Lese: If the package says “glutinous rice flour” then I assume that’s what it is. 🙂 Also, unless they are wet (which I can’t imagine they would be if they are called “flour,” they should be fine. I’m guessing that the water part is due to some part of the processing. They should be dry like wheat flour.
Great site, still taking my time and reading through everything. A note about rice flours at Asian markets in clear plastic bags: there are 2 different processes for making Asian flours, the dry method (milled dry rice) and wet method (milled soaked rice and then dried and packaged). Dry rice vs. wet rice flour has their own uses, especially in Asian pastry recipes. For non-Asian baking, it may be best to stick with dry rice flour or use less liquid. Good luck.
Irene: Interesting information! Thank you! I had no idea. I will do some research on how these react in Western baking. Thanks!
I love you!!!! This is incredible flour. My 31 yr old daughter had to go gluten free last year and with her sweet tooth it breaks my heart to listen to her ‘settle’ by saying…”It’s not great, but it will do.” I found your gf flour recipe yesterday and was thrilled to find all the ingredients in our small rural area. I made a family banana bread recipe and substituted your flour mix… DELISH!!! You would never know it is gf! I also made a carrot cake and it to tastes remarkable!!! I can’t wait for her to try them tomorrow…. THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!
Jan: Oh, I’m so glad!! Yay!
I also avoid corn and nightshades, so no cornstarch or potato starch for me. I’ve experimented with making a mix of white rice flour, sweet rice flour and tapioca, but definately want to try your mix with Brown Rice Flour. You mention Bob’s Red Mill and Authentic Foods as sources for flour. Regarding the Brown Rice Flour, do you recommend the Superfine BRF or will standard BRF be okay? Thanks so much!
Stephanie: I think superfine is what folks like best. But, the grind on both Bob’s RM and Authentic Foods brown rice flour is fine for me. Happy baking!
I think I must have done something wrong! I made the mix and tried the sandwhich bread recipe. The bread was pretty but totally tasteless and well weird. It was slimy and wouldn’t toast. I mean it really wouldn’t toast. So, I’m think I may have added too much of something. I’m just not sure what it was. Since, it was slimy I’m thinking it had to be a starch. I’m wondering if I added a protein, like almond flour if it would make a difference? I made a large jar of the mix so the whole thing is messed up!
Robyn: Hm. I would recommend trying this recipe again. I’m wondering if you added too much xanthan gum. That would make it slimy. I wouldn’t start adding other stuff until you have tried again. Other folks have had success with this recipe (and I make it a lot), so it’s a tried and true. Make it again and let me know how it goes!
My hubby has been on a GF diet for over a year, but would cheat just to get some treats every once in a while that tasted decent. When I saw Recipe Girl’s GF Pumpkin Cornbread this week, I was so excited to hear that she was able to fool others by using your GF mix. I’ve had various GF flours on hand (that I’ve been too intimidated to do anything with) so I decided to make up a batch of your flour today and make the hubby some coconut chocolate chip cookies. We tried them out today and I was doing a happy dance that they tasted like REAL cookies. He will no longer have to be “bad” to enjoy something delicious. I am looking forward to baking for him more often and trying this in other recipes as well. Even my two picky kids have gone back for more of “dad’s cookies” this evening. THANK YOU for sharing what you have learned so that others may live a more fuller life! I will definitely be looking at more things on your site to see what else you have learned.
Jules: Oh I’m so glad! Yay! thanks for letting me know.
Thank you so much Jeanne for your direction. I am going to try Biscotti next and will let you know how it tastes with your suggested flour blend. We will follow your blog from now on, enjoy it so much.
Jennifer and her gratefully satiated family.
One more final comment Jeanne,
Your blend consists of some portion of brown rice flour. You can assure your followers that this indeed is a healthy ingredient – and one need not feel compelled to add bean flour, or other flours, to ensure a healthy blend – this one has some element of ‘healthy’ already included.
Jennifer H
Jennifer: You are so right!
Hi Jeanne,
One more thing….can you explain in more detail for me , this paragraph?
“Please note that when I refer to a gf “flour mix” in my recipes I mean one that is designed to be used as a cup-for-cup substitute for wheat flour. I do not mean a pancake mix or a baking mix that includes other ingredients like baking powder, soda, vanilla, or salt. These types of mixes will not work well when you’re baking from scratch and using a recipe that calls for “flour.”
Thank you. Jennifer H
Jennifer: I once had a reader use a gf pancake mix (that contained baking soda, vanilla flavoring, and salt) as the flour in a recipe and then complain that the recipe didn’t work. So, I wanted to be clear that flour meant flour–not a mix for something else.
Hi Jeanne,
Really enjoyed reading this article. I am an avid gf baker with two celiacs in the family (not me) and seven years later, still learning new things all the time. With Christmas coming, I am making my list of baking ingredients and realize that I am weary of constantly adjusting recipes and experimenting with flours. I will try your well-researched blend and see how it works in our favourite recipes. I have a few questions for you.
How do you recommend I proceed when a recipe calls for a gf flour blend and it is assumed that the blend contains the usually essential x.gum, b.powder, b.soda and salt? What is your rule for adding these to a recipe which does not explicitly prescribe these as it is assumed it is already included in the gf flour blend? Yesterday I made sour cream blueberry muffins following the recommendations on glutenfreegoddess.com. See below.
“I used my trusty Pamela’s Ultimate Baking Mix for the basic flour mix in this recipe, but you can use any gluten-free baking mix you prefer. Just make sure it’s got some leavening in it, and a touch of xanthan or guar gum (think pancake mix). The leavening in Pamela’s Ultimate Baking Mix is equal to approximately 1 teaspoon baking powder and 1/4 teaspoon baking soda per cup of flour mix.” Does this sound reasonable, in your experience?
And then I read Bob’s Red Mill’s suggestions for quantities of X. Gum (on the back of his all-purpose baking flour), and I have followed these suggestions when the recipe leaves it out. Does this make good sense to you?
I rarely have disasters anymore but I am tired of trying different blends, either homemade or commercially produced – (too $$$) and now finally I want the convenience of making a large g0-to batch of a gf blend. And I also stared with Betty’s Gluten-free Gourmet and finally gave the book away about a year ago, primarily because I just didn’t like the gf ap-flour blends, they tasted way too heavy and bean-y and so I moved on. (I do, however, use Quinoa flour while I bake my way through “Quinoa 365” and feel good about this ‘healthy’ option, although it will never be the only one I use of course.)
What, based on your extensive experience, would you recommend to me as my rule of thumb to follow in my baking journey? I generally bake muffins, cookies, loaves and scones – food for a busy family who need yummy, satisfying and homemade baking which is not complicated to prepare. I use the internet a lot now for recipes, and the recipes vary drastically. Why can’t all gf recipes just be like regular recipes? If a regular recipe calls for flour, then one just adds flour. Then it may call for b powder, or some salt, or whatever. This is straight forward and involves no calculations. But noooooooooo…..gf baking is anything but straightforward, and I am no amateur. Grrrrrr
I have never written to a blog before but when I sat down to get the to bottom of finding the best-ever-all-purpose-gf-flour blend, your thoughts so closely echoed mine that I am now compelled to ask for your help.
Thank you very much for your consideration and time. I appreciate your expertise.
Jennifer Hutchison
Jennifer: to be honest, my answer would be to not use a recipe that assumes the flour blend contains things like salt, baking powder, baking soda, etc. I would steer towards recipes that call for just plain “flour” and then add the other stuff as needed by that recipe. Treat gf baking as you would wheat baking–use the flour as its own ingredient. Also, your questions actually need pages and pages to answer well, but following are a few thoughts:
Recipes vary drastically because the developers vary drastically. And each one has different levels of experience and different expectations. I would recommend using your own wheat recipes and adapt them to gf. You can check them against my recipes to see if they have the right mix of ingredients. The main thing I have found is that cakes and muffins need extra baking powder to rise well. The only thing I would say is to not try to adapt yeasted recipes, yet. They are a whole other bird from adapting the other recipes because you don’t need to knead them–you mix them like cake.
I hope this is helpful!
Thank you do much for this blog. I have been struggling with wanting to be a better baker, and have felt clueless since I entered the blogging world. I thought I would replace my good old unhealthy all purpose mix with a sorghum mix. Oh my did that go wrong!! I am embarrassed to say, but my poor kids ate it anyway. Thank you for putting it in purspective. I am going to have to try your mix.
Nicki
Nicki: Oh, I’m so glad the blog is helpful for you! And yes, I think the concept of making your flour mix “healthy” just confuses folks about gf baking and, I think, turns people off of baking altogether. Which makes me sad. Try the mix and let me know what you think!
Do I need to adjust your flour mix and/or baking recipes for high altitude…7,100 ft. and high desert.
Thanx
Hi Alima: I’m not super experienced with high altitude baking. But, I have readers who have reported back that gluten-free baking is actually easier at high altitude. GF baked goods have a hard time rising due to the lack of elasticity. Taking a bit of the pressure off, which is what happens at altitude, makes things rise higher and faster. I would use the recipes as is, but alter the rising/baking time to your needs. I think things will take less time to rise. And maybe less time to bake. Also, please report back to me, if you can–would love to hear how things are going!
YES! I soooo agree. I’ve had much the same thoughts and feelings about gluten-free flour blends. Years ago, I tried several famous brands before branching out to create my own gluten-free mixes in my own kitchen. Gluten-free baking is not all there is to gluten-free living. It bothers me that so many people get scared off from creating their own flour blends, being told that they won’t be getting much nutrition if they use a mix that doesn’t include “more nutrient rich” flours like bean, quinoa and teff. I totally agree. The mix I created for my kitchen is made of rice flour, sweet rice flour, potato starch and tapioca starch. As far as nutrition goes, isn’t that what fruits, veggies and meats – if you eat meat – are for? 🙂
Faythe! Exactly! I don’t eat brownies for my health! 🙂 And I agree–I am not sure why people make such a big deal out of adding “nutritious” flours to their GF blends when they would never bat an eye at using normal all-purpose flour if they could use it. You’re right–it does scare newbies away from the whole enterprise. Which makes me sad. Baking for everyone!!
This is amazing! Can this be made in bulk and stored? Must it be refrigerated or can it be stored in an air tight container? Do you typically make the mixture to order or prepare in advance? If this is confusing: can I double or triple the measurements and store it?
Thanks again.
KG: Yes, you can double or triple the recipe. That’s what I do! And it should be stored in a cool place. If you aren’t going to use what you make within about a month or so, I would store it in the fridge/freezer. The oils in the brown rice flour can go rancid if left out at room temperature for too long. Happy baking!
Hi I look forward to trying some of your recipes – have had tummy troubles for years and happened upon an article on gluten intolerance and magically my tummy problems improved (although docs say I am not coelliac). I have also been diabetic for 27 yrs and wondered if you have any recipes that incorporate a sugar free diet. Great to know there are people out there that are prepared to give up their time to help others. Thank you. Claire = UK
Claire: I mostly have baking recipes here on the site–which usually include sugar or honey. I haven’t done much experimenting with sugar-free baking. You could experiment with my recipes using your own sugar-substitute. That’s usually what I recommend for folks. Thanks for stopping by!
Thanks for posting a gluten-free baking mix recipe. I will give this one a try!!!
Jeanne, I just found this site this morning and am really excited to try your flour mix. I’ve been trying to bake gluten free for the last three years and have also been very frustrated with having to use so many different flours for one recipe. Thank you so much for all your research and work you have put into this.
Tina: You’re welcome! Happy baking!
Jeanne, just found your website (with the help from a very dear friend) and I was interested in trying the flour mix for use in a pie crust. I’ve got Bob’s Red Mill Sweet White Rice flour on hand. Is that the same as the sweet rice flour in your ingredient list?
Sandi: Yes, it is the same thing! 🙂
I am glad I found your blog !!!
I stopped baking for years, because I could not figure out how to recreate the taste of my German pastries without the wheat flour.
I think I will try again :), this time with your mix.
Simona: Yay! I am so glad!
I just found this wonderful information – thank you for all the testing you did to find a great tasting blend. i do have a question, I have read that to convert a recipe to GF, you should increase the baking soda, and possible the liquid. Do you have a rule of thumb for that?
LS: the main things I look for are: 1) baking powder and eggs. If there isn’t baking powder, or much baking powder, I add more. And if there isn’t at least 1 egg per cup of flour, add more eggs.
Good to know. Thank you.
I am also a baker and I just went GF about 3 months ago and have been really confused about GF baking. Thanks for clearing up a lot of confusion for me. I was so confused and frustrated by GF bakers who promoted their “healthy” flour mixes as having more nutrition than other mixes. As if anyone who bakes a non-GF cookie is ever worried about that! I recently bought Bette Hagman’s book (the one that you referenced above) and I’m wondering if I can make her recipes using your flour mix (thank you for warning me off of hers).
Sue: her recipes are still pretty good. And my flour mix would be fine with them. One thing about Hagman is that she had a heart condition, so she was always looking for things that reduced the fat content of her baking. Just be aware of that when you use her recipes.
Well i’ve been asking around the stores for mochiko rice flour and nobody knew what i was talking about, so i googled, and here it’s called glutinous rice flour. (of which i cannot buy from our local stores :(, i did find it online at an asian grocer, so i ordered it and soooo cheap! so i’m excited to finally try your flour recipe…
Hi Jeanne,
This looks to be GF flour mix of my dreams as I am intolerant to both corn and potato.
I am going to mix the flours this evening and see how it comes out. I’m also looking forward to trying all your recipes.
The first are the Crazy Cakes.
I’ll let you know how they come out.
Cheers!
-Richard from Sydney, Australia
Richard: Yay! You’ll have to let me know what you think!
Hello Jeanne, I am also intolerant to corn and potato and also soy – so it has been a nightmare not to be able to find any gluten free bakery that also fits my other intolerances. I am so glad I found your site!! 🙂 I just ordered the sweet rice flour and looking forward to baking again.
Gi: I’m so glad that this is helpful! Yay!
I am 63 years old, & very new to this celiac thing, and wondering f there is a difference between wheat and soy wheat. I am wondering if I can still use the pkg. with the soy wheat in it.
Thanx
Gail
Gail: I’ve never heard of soy wheat. I’m wondering if the label is listing allergens and forgot to put commas between the two allergens? It should probably read: Contains: Soy, Wheat. That’s my best guess! Thanks for visiting!
Edited to add: Gail: I just looked up Soy Wheat on Google and there is such a thing! It’s a combo of soy and wheat–so it still has gluten. Gah. Why would they create such a thing?? Don’t eat it!!
Thank you for sharing the story on how you came up with your all purpose gluten free flour. Can’t wait to start baking with it.
I usually replace xanthan with gar gum. What has been your experience with doing that?
Chris: I’m embarrassed to say that I did that once a long time ago and I don’t remember how it worked. I’m assuming it’s OK. I would go ahead and do it and see what happens. I need to do more experiments with guar gum. I’m a dork. Your note reminds me to do that ASAP!! Let me know how it goes!
Um, will I have adverse effects if I accidentally grabbed tapioca starch instead of tapioca flour?
Nanette: No! Tapioca starch and tapioca flour are the same thing!! No worries!
you’re a genius! you’ve made this so amazingly simple, and i love that it is consistent with your recipes. plus you know i just ooze love for you and your craft!
Anna: Ah, thank you!! And I love to bake for you!!
Thank you SO much for doing all this research! I have a freezer absolutely FULL of so many different flours that will never be used (since they taste so gawd awful!!!) and this is the first mix that seems to be a perfect substitution for wheat flour.
And thank you also for bringing up the “healthy” discussion. This reminds me of the 70’s when I was all into ‘natural’ foods and tried making a banana birthday cake with whole wheat flour and honey. It was so bad, nobody ate it…blech!
I look forward to experimenting a LOT with your mix. 🙂
Donna: I’m so glad!! Let me know how your experiments go!
I suspect it’s not relevant at this web site, but there is no reason you can’t make a tasty cake using whole wheat flour and honey. If you substitute whole wheat for white flour, especially cake flour, and do nothing else to the recipe the result will be sadness. Whole grain flours are thirstier than refined ones, so you need to use a considerably greater amount of water.
As you see here, you have to learn to use the ingredients. The problem in your cake wasn’t the flour, but more that you hadn’t yet learned to use the flour.
-Mike
Thank you so much!! This flour mix is perfect and my whole family thanks you (they have been holding their breath while I re-learn to bake GF)!
Angela: Oh, I’m so glad!! Thanks for letting me know!
I love this all purpose flour mix! Thanks for doing so much research into finding the perfect blend. 🙂 It’s fabulous!
Oh I’m so glad! Thank you for letting me know!!
–Jeanne
I LOVE YOU! Thank you for the flour mix, my sister has been gluten free for years and I started in August. I love to bake but hate the grittiness of the gluten free flour pre-mixes. Your mix is incredible, I have my baking life back. A million Thank You’s. Carrie
Carrie: Yay! I am so very happy to hear that! You’re welcome! And happy baking!