Gluten-free flour substitute
With half of our household on a gluten-free regime we can’t use “proper” (i.e. wheat) flour for baking cakes and biscuits as we’d like. We’ve tried a number of commercial alternative flour mixes with variable results, and have come back to making our own. Here’s what I use:
For each cup of flour in the recipe, use ⅓ cup tapioca flour, ⅔ cup rice flour, and 1 teaspoon of Xanthan gum.
I prefer the brown rice flour. It handles and tastes the same, but has more fibre and vitamins.
The secret ingredient is really the Xanthan gum. It may seem expensive, but you only use a little at a time and it really does make all the difference. Without it gluten-free flours are sticky and unpleasant to handle, biscuits run out flat, and breads are dry and crumbly. While Xanthan gum won’t make the gluten-free flour behave or taste exactly like wheat flour, it brings it close enough to make recipes work.
Important tip: mix the Xanthan gum with the other flours before adding to any wet ingredients, or it just won’t mix in properly.