Gluten-free cereals can be appreciated by anyone and offer many unique flavors, colors and textures that especially those who eat only products with gluten have not yet discovered.
The use of gluten-free flours is a great way to amaze our palate.
Most of the flours with or without gluten are available as whole flours that contain bran and germ together with the endosperm and in a “white” or “light” version where all or most of the bran and germ have been removed.
WHY CHOOSE WHOLEMEAL FLOURS?
| Wholemeal flours bring a rich flavor and color to a baked product and affect its consistency.
They contain a high percentage of proteins, fiber, vitamins and nutrients. |
WHY IS IT BETTER TO CREATE YOUR OWN FLOUR MIXTURES AT HOME?
Very often packaged mixes of gluten-free flours are not quality products:
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WHY USE MIX FLOURS?
| Flours that are gluten-free do not contain gluten proteins so they are not able to create structure with the same ease as gluten-based baked products.
Those who must temporarily or forever eliminate gluten from their diet but do not know the taste and texture of gluten-free flours very often prefer baked products made with a mixture of flours and starches that come closest to the consistency of products with gluten. |
KNOW THE PECULIARITY OF THE FLOURS
| The most popular gluten-free flours are made from rice and sorghum.
These grains contain enough protein to promote the structure and have delicate flavors that weaken the taste of some pseudocereal flours such as amaranth and quinoa. |
| The oatmeal obtained from the grains may have a slightly bitter aftertaste.
Per evitare questo inconveniente tritiamo in farina i fiocchi di avena. |
| Amaranth and quinoa have a complex herbaceous flavor that lends itself well to savory recipes with vegetables or sweet products with strong flavors such as chocolate, coffee, spices.
Their taste can be softened “denaturing”. |
| Canehua flour has the same density as quinoa flour and in the kitchen it can be used in the same doses, but it has a great advantage, its nutty flavor is much more delicate.
It does not require “denaturation” and goes well with any type of sweet or savory recipe. |
The flours of:
they do not have a predominant flavor and can cross the border between sweet and salty. |
The flours of:
they can change the color of the dough and incorporate unique flavors. |
| Legume flours are often used for leavened products due to their high protein content.
The combination of cereal and legume flours creates healthy and balanced doughs but also used alone, legume flours are an excellent nutritional choice. Some people may notice a distinct bean flavor and aroma in raw doughs, but they will dissipate after cooking but also “denaturing” before using them for any type of dough. |
| The flours of nuts (almonds, walnuts, hazelnuts etc.) and oilseeds (sunflower, sesame, pumpkin seeds etc.) they are all unique ingredients that require a little more practice and information.
All can be added to give an extra touch, and almond and hazelnut flours work well as standalone flours in some recipes (think of macarons, flourless chocolate cakes and paleo cuisine). |
| Flax seed flour is a little more complex, combined with water it turns into a gelatinous binding substance which is an excellent substitute for eggs and is wonderful to add to any baked product to increase fiber.
It is a very delicate flour that rancid easily, buy whole flax seeds and mince them at the last moment before using them in your dough. |
| Chestnut flour must be chosen with care and if it is of quality it has a light beige color or slightly more accentuated, some flours of too dark color are also very bitter because they can be obtained from chestnuts that are not completely free of the external pericarp or with defects.
It is better to consume it fresh because it is easily altered, if in doubt, taste it a little even raw, if it is bitter, unfortunately it cannot be used anymore. |
| Coconut flour is extremely rich in fiber and its use as the main ingredient in an article will require the use of recipes other than traditional pastry and bread making.
Its ability to absorb liquids is a great advantage in gluten-free products that tend to dry out, you will have less dry and crumbly products, but always remember to change the amount of liquids present in the recipe, add the same amount of coconut flour and of liquids (30 g of coconut flour requires 30 g of liquid). |
HOW TO CREATE FLOUR MIXTURES
The flour mixtures are generally composed of:
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| Knowing the density of the flours is also fundamental to start creating our favorite blends.
A good starting point to protect our health is to create mixtures composed of a percentage of at least 80% of flours from the medium and heavy density categories and a percentage not higher than 20% of flours from the light density category (use them occasionally they are starches and have a high glycemic index, to avoid abusing with the use of starches you can also add boiled potatoes in a percentage equal to 10% on the weight of medium and / or heavy flours especially in the doughs that will have to rise). On 250 grams of mix: 50 grams can be starches ◊ 200 grams must be heavy and / or medium flours. |
| As you become familiar with flour and gluten-free cooking, you can create blends that adapt better to your personal tastes, also decreasing the percentage of starches.
Experiment by creating different types of blends and you will experience pleasant changes in flavor and texture. As a general rule, to create mixes with different flavors, replace the gluten-free flours within the same group using the same weight in grams. |
GROUPS OF FLOURS
Heavy flours:
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Medium flours:
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Light flours:
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