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Interior and Designer : Richard Tapp
Art Producer : Sue Bischofberger
Editor : Reina Glenn
Production Editor: Mia Moran
Production Manager : Michael Kay
Photography 2021 Laura Flippen. Food styling by Laura Flippen
ISBN : Print 978-1-64876-918-4
eBook 978-1-64876-261-1
R0
For all those who said goodbye to gluten and were told you would never break bread across the table again, Ill meet you at the table.
Contents
I was diagnosed with celiac disease more than a decade ago, and I still craved recipes for basic treats, like chocolate chip and peanut butter cookies or scones I could share over tea with a new neighbor. When my birthday rolled around, I wanted to be able to make cupcakes, or even a fancy layer cake, to share with friends and family. But most of all, I wanted to be able to make the foods I was used to eating before eliminating glutenlike waffles and pancakes, dinner rolls, muffins to munch on the way out the door. I missed the familiar foods and I struggled to find one cookbook that covered all the essential recipes I wanted.
In searching for gluten-free recipes for these beloved foods, I was fortunate to make the online acquaintance of many skilled gluten-free bakers. With their expertise, they had carved a path for the millions of home cooks who cant have gluten and offered much-needed support and encouragement.
After learning to cook and bake gluten-free, I sought to become one of those bloggers who had been such a lifesaver for me. Not long after starting my own gluten-free food blog, I found myself in culinary centers and grocery stores teaching others all I had learnedboth from culinary education programs and trial and error in my own kitchen. Many people I met, new to eating gluten-free, had not been home bakers but suddenly felt pressured to bake from scratch because there were limited gluten-free options in stores (and those available were unappetizing or expensive). Too often, my baking class attendees would be teary-eyed, sharing that they had been unable to bake a birthday cake, or even muffins, for a weekday breakfast because they simply didnt have the gluten-free baking knowledge to do so.
Many eliminate gluten because of a celiac disease diagnosis, nonceliac gluten sensitivity, gluten ataxia, or an autoimmune disease. For some, it is related to an allergy to wheat. Still others find that eating gluten-free eliminates inflammation in their body, or they simply feel better not eating gluten. Whatever your reason for eliminating gluten, learning to bake without it can be intimidating. If youre reading this book, you likely feel similar to my baking class studentsat a loss for how to make the baked goods you know and love.
This book is meant to be just like one of my classes, complete with all the information and advice you need to become a successful gluten-free baker. My goal is to teach you how to bake great gluten-free treatstreats so deliciously similar to traditional ones that no one would guess theyre gluten-free. Ive also tucked into this book all the support and encouragement I can squeeze in between the printed lines. Im cheering for you to be a successful gluten-free baker, and Im here to show you how.
GLUTEN-FREE
BAKING 101
Welcome to the world of gluten-free baking. This chapter will give you an understanding of what gluten is, its role in baking, and how you can successfully bake without it plus provide pointers on ingredients and kitchen tools that make gluten-free baking fun and enjoyable. My goal is to help you feel confident in the kitchen so you can bake delicious sweets and savory baked goods everyone will devour.
What is Gluten?
Before we start baking, lets dig into gluten : What is its function in baking? Where is it found in baking ingredients?
Simply put, gluten is the glue of baking. Gluten is the common term used for storage proteins, or prolamins, that are insoluble in water and naturally found in wheat, rye, barley, and triticale. The most frequently referenced prolamins are glutenin and gliadin, which are found in wheat and triticale. In addition to glutenin and gliadin, secalins in rye and hordeins in barley are also part of the family of storage proteins referred to as gluten.
Wheat has been cultivated for more than ten thousand years, but it wasnt until the twelfth century that it was milled into the flour that is now used for baking. Barley, much like wheat, has been grown for many centuries. In the world of gluten-containing grains, rye is a relative newcomer, having been grown for just about two thousand years. As much as modern agriculture has changed the way wheat, rye, and barley are planted, harvested, milled, and prepared, what hasnt changed is that each of these grains contains gluten.
