I'm not a professional baker, I just fiddle around in the kitchen until stuff tastes good to me. If you have suggestions for improving this recipe, please share them!
In the meantime, enjoy :)
Ingredients
¼ - ½ cup flax seeds,
freshly ground
¼ cup chia seeds
2 cups water
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1 tsp dry active yeast
1 cup warm water
1 tsp honey
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4 ½ cups gluten-free flour blend
1 tsp salt
1 Tbsp caraway seeds, or other herbs (e.g.
thyme, rosemary, and tarragon)
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2 Tbsp olive oil
Directions
Stage one (flax/chia):
Place flax, chia and water in jar and mix well. Leave in
fridge at least four hours and up to five days (overnight is fine!).
Stage two (making dough):
Add yeast to warm water with honey stirred in (or skip this
step if you don’t believe in proofing).
Put flour in mixing bowl, add salt and caraway seeds (or
other herbs). Mix well.
Add olive oil, chia-flax mixture, and yeast mixture to dry
ingredients and mix until there are no more lumps. Cover and let rise at least
three hours, overnight in a cool place is fine. No need to knead! It will have
a consistency like mousse after it rises – this is good.
Stage three (second rise):
Oil and flour two non-stick bread pans.
Split dough in half with spoon and gently scoop into the
pans. Cover and let rise three-four hours (not more!).
Stage four (bake):
Preheat oven to 425°F (~220°C). Bake for 30 minutes. Do not
open oven door until the very end or it will be ruined!
Lower temperature to 405°F (~200°C). Bake for 15-20 minutes,
until golden brown. Remove from pans and let cool before slicing.
Notes
Flour blend: You can either buy a pre-mixed gluten-free flour blend or make your own from bulk flours you buy. Gluten-free flours that work well in a mix are millet, garbanzo, rice, sorghum (strong flavor!), buckwheat (also strong flavor!), fava bean, amaranth, quinoa, and potato.
Baking time: The baking time is entirely dependent on the amount of water in the recipe. If you add more water, you will have to bake it for longer or it will be doughy inside. Absolutely do not open the oven door while this is baking, or it will never get hot enough inside to cook all the way through! Add the extra baking time on at the end, after lowering the temperature.
Chia and Flax: These soaked seeds seem to be what gives the bread its structure in the way that gluten would have provided a structural network of support. They also happen to be highly nutritious, so that's a bonus. The idea for using them came from Celeste's cousin's husband, Sam, who is a professional baker - so credit goes to him for that one!
Notes
Flour blend: You can either buy a pre-mixed gluten-free flour blend or make your own from bulk flours you buy. Gluten-free flours that work well in a mix are millet, garbanzo, rice, sorghum (strong flavor!), buckwheat (also strong flavor!), fava bean, amaranth, quinoa, and potato.
Baking time: The baking time is entirely dependent on the amount of water in the recipe. If you add more water, you will have to bake it for longer or it will be doughy inside. Absolutely do not open the oven door while this is baking, or it will never get hot enough inside to cook all the way through! Add the extra baking time on at the end, after lowering the temperature.
Chia and Flax: These soaked seeds seem to be what gives the bread its structure in the way that gluten would have provided a structural network of support. They also happen to be highly nutritious, so that's a bonus. The idea for using them came from Celeste's cousin's husband, Sam, who is a professional baker - so credit goes to him for that one!
