The Making of Gluten Free Sourdough Bread

I am a bread lover! I can't help it! However, my bread eating days came to a screeching halt after a realization that gluten was the reason for several chronic health problems that I was having. Needless to say, I was pretty bummed out. In the beginning, gluten free bread was just depressing for me. A far cry from the wheat bread I loved and made several times a week. I thought that I would never again enjoy a sandwich made with tender, flavorful bread. Though, as time went on, I learned to make pretty good gluten free bread. Mastering this art had become an obsession for me. Everything that I knew about bread baking had to be relearned. Gluten free bread is nothing like wheat bread. I tried in vain to create a dough that could be kneaded, yet still produce a soft loaf of bread that was edible the next day. That never happened!

Gluten Free Artisan Sourdough At Last!

Since starting a gluten free diet several years ago, I have longed for a great loaf of sourdough bread! This is one of my favorite types of bread. I attempted to make sourdough bread in my early gluten free days, but never made what I would call "good" sourdough. Several were very tasty but the texture was another story. Not even close! I simply didn't have enough experience baking gluten free bread back then. After years of relearning how to make bread, I figured I would give it another shot. After all, I have gotten pretty good at making gluten free bread.

Gluten Free Sourdough Starter

A gluten free sourdough starter isn't much different than wheat based starter. Both start with flour and water and over time produce a healthy batch of natural yeast for sourdough bread. I have tried several different flour combinations for the starter you see above. Finally coming up with one that I really like! It's simply two parts sorghum flour, one part white rice flour and one part teff flour. This combination makes for a really healthy starter and a good tasting sourdough.

Tender Gluten-Free, Vegan Sandwich Bread

I came up with this recipe for my daughter and her family. They are on a vegan, gluten-free diet. This was my first egg-free, dairy-free loaf of sandwich bread. I was skeptical at first, but this loaf of bread was amazing! Far exceeding my expectations! Probably the softest loaf of sandwich bread that I have made so far. I used a natural dough enhancer and 1/2 cup of soaked white bean flour in this recipe, my new secret weapons against dry, crumbly gluten-free bread! Here is a link explaining how to make them as well as malted buckwheat flour. This bean flour leaves no beany taste or smell. The results are absolutely worth the effort!