3 Gluten Free Flours You Should be Using and Easy to Make Recipes. We all know of the traditional baking flour we see in many baked goods, which is made out of wheat. But how baking with gluten free flour instead? The biggest complaint I hear with gluten-free flour is that the food doesn’t taste as good or it’s difficult to bake with. I felt that way too, mainly because I was substituting gluten free flour options for regular flour, but I once figured out the correct type and amount of gluten free flour to use, the end result is just as good as wheat flour!
BROWNIE RECIPE: https://youtu.be/ZGA4hw6u32U
LEMON BAR RECIPE: https://youtu.be/Bh6GeVX8Wqg
PEANUT BUTTER COOKIE RECIPE: https://youtu.be/ugzfsJUJgYE
I switched to mainly gluten free diet due to my ulcerative colitis and I’ve been making a lot of gluten free recipes. In today’s video, we’ll discuss three different gluten free baking flours that I’ve been using, go over the health benefits and I’ll show you a recipe that I’ve made with each one, for a total of three amazing gluten free recipes! Hopefully one of these recipes will become your favorite gluten free flour recipe.
Number 1 - Oat Flour
In addition to being a great source of protein and low in fat, oats have a lot of great health benefits as well. They are also high in soluble fiber. Why is soluble fiber so important? Soluble fiber can help reduce the absorption of cholesterol into your bloodstream, which can lower your bad cholesterol and may help reduce heart disease.
Are oats gluten free and is oat flour gluten free? The answer to both of those questions is yes, but because of cross contamination from wheat, barley and other flours that contain gluten, oats can’t be labeled as gluten free unless they are processed in a separate facility, so please be careful when preparing foods with oats, as people on a gluten free diet cannot have them be cross contaminated. So be sure you’re purchasing certified gluten free oats. For my gluten free brownie recipe, I turn to Bob's Red Mill. Bob's Red Mill gluten free oat flour, made from Bob's Red Mill gluten free oats. He also has a line of conventional oats, label just Bob's Red Mill Oats and Bob's Red Mill Oat Flour. These products are not processed in a separate facility and do have some cross contamination.
Number 2 - ArrowRoot Flour
ArrowRoot Flour is also known as ArrowRoot Powder and ArrowRoot Starch, but they are all the same thing. Arrowroot flour is basically a starch. It’s often used as a thickening agent in sauces in place of cornstarch in cake and bread recipes. Since Arrowroot flour is a starch, people sometimes wonder if arrowroot powder is gluten free, and yes, it is!
Many corn starches are made from genetically modified corn, so arrowroot flour is a healthier alternative that can use to replace corn starch. It’s allergen friendly and virtually tasteless, which makes it easy to use in most any dish. It’s high in B Vitamins and is higher in protein than most other starches available. I made these delicious lemon bars with this arrowroot flour from simply organics.
Number 3 - Coconut Flour
Coconut flour is simply the meat of the coconut that has been dried and ground up into a flour. Like the Arrowroot flour we discussed above, coconut flour is different than a lot of other flours since it isn’t a grain or nut, so is coconut flour gluten free...of course!
Coconut flour is very high in protein, fiber and healthy fats. Coconut flour can be a little difficult to work with when cooking. It’s very absorbent. Due to this, you can’t directly substitute in a 1:1 ratio and a little can go a long way. It can also clump and be very dry, so make it is mixed well and you have enough moisture in whatever you are making.
Also keep in mind that different coconut flour brands can have different consistencies, so you’ll want to check out the batter of what you are making and making sure it’s the desired consistency.