Overview: Gluten-Free Flours for Baking

March 23, 2023 Julia Haberecht
Ratgeber

Gluten-free Baking in a Wood-fired Oven

If you want or need to engage with the world of gluten-free baking, you'll quickly realize there's an enormous variety of options, and personal preferences play a significant role. You certainly don't have to miss out on delicious pizza, bread, cakes, & more. Combined with an authentic Italian wood-fired oven, new recipes become pure indulgence. The Valoriani Baby Wood has proven to be a special expert for gluten-free baking.

Overview of Flour Types

The range of alternatives to conventional flour types is huge. We have compiled a small overview of gluten-free flour types and their uses here.

Very important: Gluten-free flours do not possess the adhesive and binding properties like conventional wheat or spelt flour. These must be replaced, which can be achieved by adding starch and binding agents.

Popular Gluten-free Flours for Baking:

Cornmeal (slightly sweet/nutty) - Pizza, bread, cake
Buckwheat flour (nutty/spicy) - Bread, savory pastries
Millet flour (sweet mild) - Muffins, sponge cakes, light quick breads
Chickpea flour (nutty) - Pizza, cake
Sweet potato flour (nutty/sweet, pumpkin/chestnut note) - Sponge cakes, muffins
Quinoa flour (nutty/slightly bitter) - Pizza, bread
Amaranth flour (nutty) - Pizza, bread, cookies
Almond flour (nutty) - Cakes, muffins

Starch Flours:

Cornstarch & Potato Starch & Rice Flour are very mild and can be used for both savory and sweet dishes
Coconut Flour (sweet) - Sponge cake, muffins
Lupin Flour (slightly nutty) - Breads, pastries
Rice Starch (mild/slightly nutty) - Sponge cake
Soy Flour (nutty flavor) - Breads, cakes
Teff Flour (sweet/nutty) - Cookies, cakes
Tapioca Flour (relatively neutral) - Cookies

Suitable Binding Agents:

Psyllium Husk/Egg Whites
Locust Bean Gum
Xanthan Gum
Glutinous Rice Flour
Chia Seeds
Arrowroot
Guar Gum
Protein

Adding a bit of yogurt or quark can increase the moisture in the dough. This makes cakes moister.

Differences in Baking:

The one-to-one implementation of gluten-containing recipes with gluten-free flour should absolutely be avoided
Ingredients should all be at room temperature
The dough should be kneaded for a longer time, at least 5 minutes. Our tip: Our dough kneader Bernardi My Miss Baker
allow sufficient time for swelling
Use top/bottom heat instead of convection + place a bowl of water in the oven