Gluten Free Crusty French Bread Variation Recipes

GLUTEN FREE FRENCH BREAD

Steps:

• In the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer, place flours, xanthan gum, salt, and egg replacer (if used).Blend with mixer on low.
• In a small bowl dissolve the sugar in the water, and add yeast.
• Wait until the mixture foams slightly, then blend into the dry ingredients.
• Add the butter, egg whites, and vinegar.Beat on high for 3 minutes.
• To form loaves, spoon dough onto greased and cornmeal-dusted cookie sheets in two long French-loaf shapes or spoon into special French-bread pans.
• Slash diagonally every few inches.If desired, brush with melted butter.
• Cover the dough and let rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, 20 to 25 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes.
• Remove from pan to cool.

GLUTEN FREE FRENCH BREAD

Steps:

• In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, place the flour, xanthan gum, tapioca starch/flour, and yeast, and whisk to combine well. Add the salt, and whisk again to combine.
• Create a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the water, egg white, honey, vinegar, and butter, and mix to combine.
• Beat the mixture with the paddle attachment with the stand mixer on medium speed for about a minute. The dough will clump.
• Increase the speed to medium-high and continue to beat until the dough begins to stick to the sides of the mixing bowl and looks "whipped" in texture. Transfer the dough to a container with a lid that seals tightly, cover, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 3 days.
• When you're ready to shape the dough, turn the chilled dough out onto a flat surface lightly sprinkled with tapioca starch. Dust the top of the dough lightly with more tapioca starch, and turn it over a few times and knead it gently to smooth the dough.
• Using a large knife or bench scraper, divide the dough into 2 equal portions.
• Working with one piece of dough at a time, dusting very lightly with more flour as necessary to prevent sticking, shape the bread into a cylinder, pinching together any breaks in the dough to seal them.
• Position the palms of both hands right next to one another on the top of the cylinder of dough. Roll the dough first away from your body and then back toward it as you move your hands in a half moon motion away from one another, toward the edges of the dough.
• The shape should be thicker in the center, tapered toward the ends. See the video for a visual of shaping the dough.
• Place the shaped rolls a couple inches apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. Cover with lightly greased plastic wrap and place in a warm, draft-free environment and allow to rise until risen to about 150% of its original size.
• Rising will take longer in a dry, cool environment, and less time in a warm, humid environment. Do not place it in a heated oven, to any temperature, to rise, or you risk killing the yeast.
• As the bread dough is nearing the end of its rise, preheat your oven to 475°F and position the top rack a bit higher than the center of the oven. When the rise is complete, uncover the baking sheet.
• Using a small, sharp knife or a lame held at a 45° angle to the dough, slash each roll on top 3 times at evenly spaced spots on the dough about 1/4-inch deep. Spray the tops and sides of each roll liberally with cooking oil spray.
• Place the baking sheet on the top oven rack, toss a few ice cubes on the floor of the oven, and quickly close the oven door.
• Bake for 18 minutes, and rotate the baking sheet one half turn. Continue to bake for about another 5 minutes or until lightly golden brown all over and an instant read thermometer inserted into the thickest part of the roll read about 190°F.
• For a softer crust, wrap the hot rolls in a tea towel as they cool. Allow to cool for at least 10 minutes before serving.

GLUTEN FREE CRUSTY FRENCH BREAD VARIATION

Steps:

• In the bowl of your mixer, place all dry ingredients (flours, salt, gum, etc) , except for those used in step 2 and blend on low for about 1 minute to fully integrate all ingredients (or you could sift it, but this is the lazy way).
• While you're sifting, mix yeast and sugar into the lukewarm water in a mug or bowl. If after 5-10 minutes your mixture is not foaming, your yeast is dead. Start again. You should smell yeast and have something that looks like beer head on the top of your water. You absolutely cannot make this bread rise without yeast, so this is not a step to skip.
• Add the butter and vinegar to the mixer, fully integrating before you begin to add your eggs. I usually add the whole egg and while it's mixing, separate the whites into a separate bowl and then dump all three in at once. Last, but not least, add the yeast slurry (but only if it's properly proofed! See step 2).
• Mix on medium-low until everything is integrated. I like to beat for an additional minute or two on high to be sure that everything's nice and slapped around. This is also where I add any herbs or seasonings I want to integrate into the batter (frequently 1 tbsp of garlic granules, 2 teaspoons rosemary and 1 tbsp black pepper, but use what you like).
• Now, this is where you have a decision to make. This recipe makes great rolls, ok buns and wonderful bread.
• For rolls: Find two muffin pans. Fill the cups about half way until you run out of batter. You won't probably get two dozen, but you'll get something like 18 or so.
• For buns: Using a Texas muffin pan, fill each slot equally.
• For bread: Scoop all the dough into a regular loaf pan. The loaf usually draws up a little for me during baking, making it really easy to get out.
• Whatever you choose, allow the dough to rise at least an hour. I've left for the grocery and come back as many as 3 hours later and still had a really great rise. Cover loosely with cellophane to keep bugs and things out. :) After you've given it proper rise time, sprinkle with a topping (if you like) and insert into a 400°F oven.
• Bake rolls for about 25 minutes and then check for doneness, buns for about 30 and check and bread for 45 minutes. If the bread has a hollow sound when you thump it, it's done. It will be really crusty (and that's the way we like it).