Wheat-Free Yeast Bread

I stumbled across this recipe on the Glutenfree.com forum.  I have tried for years to find a descent yeast bread recipe that didn’t have wheat in it.  I tried this recipe like I have tried others – with little hope for a successful outcome.  And since I use my own wheat-free flour blend I never know if it will work in a gluten-free recipe.

To my surprise, it worked!  They rose a little and tasted amazing.  I’ve made crescent rolls, pizza, and flat bread with this recipe and I am very excited about it.  The dough is very sticky – so you have to have a lot of wheat-free flour in reserve to dust your surface with and the dough so you can roll it out.  My favorite way to make it is to roll it in as best of a rectangle I can, and then cut it into squares.  After baking, they usually are just thick enough to cut carefully cut down the center with a bread knife and then they can fit in the toaster, or be filled with sandwich makings J  You can find the original recipe for Mrs. P’s Gluten Free Yeast/Crescent Rolls here:  http://forums.glutenfree.com/topic4073.html

I adjusted a few things including my own flour blend, but I also reduced the amount of xanthum gum because I have learned that if I have too much of it – it upsets my stomach too (the whole purpose of eliminating wheat!).  Here it is…

 (Note that it is Wheat-Free NOT Gluten-Free)

Wheat-Free Yeast Bread (doubled)
4 ½ teaspoons yeast
Almost 2 cups milk (I heat in the microwave for a minute and a half and then cool slightly)
½ cup sugar
1 ½ teaspoon salt
2 eggs
8 Tablespoons margarine (plus some additional melted to brush on top of baked bread if desired)
3 cups Wheat-Free Flour mix (below) with additional to roll out dough
1 ½ teaspoons xanthum gum

Wheat-Free Flour Mix

4 cups oat flour
2 ½ cups brown rice flour
1 cup potato starch
1 cup corn flour
1 cup tapioca flour or starch

Directions:

Mix the dry ingredients in a medium size bowl (yeast, sugar, salt, Wheat-Free Flour Mix and xanthum gum.  Then cut up margarine and add it to the bowl.

Blend the margarine into the dry ingredients with an electric mixer.

Add the eggs and blend until dough is crumbly (see below).

Add the milk and blend until the dough sticks together and resembles a thick batter (see below).

Generously dust your surface with the Wheat-Free Flour Mix.

Drop some of the dough into the center of your dusted surface with a spoon and 
generously dust the top of the dough.

Roll dough gently, adding more Wheat-Free Flour Mix as necessary to prevent sticking.

Gently cut dough into squares with a knife.

Transfer the squares (and excess if desired) to a parchment paper lined cookie sheet with a Wheat-Free Flour Mix dusted spatula.  Let the dough rise until double (30-60 minutes).  Bake in a pre-heated 450 degree Fahrenheit oven for about 10-12 minutes.

Remove from the oven and gently brush the tops with melted margarine (if desired).

 

Cool on the cookie sheet and then store in a large plastic re-sealable bag.  I’ve been able to keep the bag on my counter for a few days and then I transfer it to the refrigerator to preserve it for a slightly longer time than it lasts on the counter.   
Once it has been refrigerated it will crumble easier – but still tastes great.

 Enjoy!

Wheat-Free Flour Mix

 After much trial and error, I have finally found a custom flour mix that I like.  I use it to replace wheat flour in most recipes (muffins, cookies, waffles, etc.).  I even use it to bread meats and for a yeast bread recipe that I will post in the near future.   It holds together fairly well and I prefer the taste of it to some gluten-free flour mixes.  Without further ado... here it is: 

(Note that it is Wheat-Free NOT Gluten-Free)

Michelle’s Wheat Free Flour Mix

4 cups oat flour
2 ½ cups brown rice flour
1 cup potato starch
1 cup corn flour
1 cup tapioca flour or starch
½ cup flax seed meal (optional)

I dump it all into an empty #10 can, put the plastic reusable lid on it, and then shake it up in the can while rotating it at the same time.  You could also mix it in a large bowl with a whisk, but some of the flours/starches are very fine and like to get everywhere.  I keep a copy of the recipe right on the can lid so it is easy to reference when I need to refill my mix.

You can find potato and tapioca starch at a specialty food store or at many types of ethnic markets.  For the oat flour I put rolled oats in the blender, or oat groats in my electric grain mill.  I also grind the brown rice in my electric grain mill. 

Happy Wheat-Free baking and cooking!