Gluten Free Bread

I am not a big fan of the gluten free fad.  But I am a big fan of presenting my guests, family, and friends with food that they will enjoy and will not make them sick.  So when I give gifts of baking or bread, and when I have dinner guests, I make sure it is something they are comfortable eating. 

My mother is allergic to wheat, so I often bake with spelt or coconut flour.  I also have a friend with celiac, so I wanted to try a yeast bread that would be totally gluten free (spelt still has gluten).

It took a lot of digging to find this recipe, but I found one that didn't look like it was a two-by-four of a loaf.  It looked bubbly and fluffy.  And the blog about it sounded like it was great too. 

The blog is obviously trying to sell a particular brand of flours, but I bought mine at Bulk Barn (I love Bulk Barn), and began with the "bread mix".  This recipe calls for a certain ratio of flours, along with xanthun gum (to replace the gluten). 

My mother was coming over for dinner on Friday, so I baked this on Thursday and had a taste.  Hot from the oven, it was actually really good!  It was buttery and flavourful, and pretty soft. 

The next day, when we served it for appies with cheese and spreads, it had firmed up quite a lot.  In fact, without the spreads it was downright dry and hard.  Sigh. 

But then I tried toasting it.  And that improved it greatly.  It's got a nice flavour still, and the toasting softens the middle while adding a nice crunch and toasty-ness. 

So my verdict is that it's not as good as regular bread.  But that will always be the case because gluten is delicious.  But if you have to eat gluten free bread, this may be the best one I've tried.  It was really good hot from the oven, but after it cooled and stiffened it is still good as toast.