I really really feel for those of you who who live with a gluten intolerance or celiac disease! I’m making some dinner rolls, some coffee-cake, and the gravy for dinner at my MIL’s, all gluten-free, and I’ve spent more time reading and studying than I’ve spent cooking! All the different flours and flour blends, the gums and leaveners! The chemistry! The math! And you all who are afflicted by CD or gluten intolerance have to do this every day!
My first attempt at Parkerhouse dinner rolls was a qualified success. The original recipe mixed up so soupy that I had to add (I thought) a bunch more flour. When it still didn’t come together, I looked through some other, similar recipes and discovered they all have xanthan gum, which my recipe was lacking. So I dumped a tablespoon in and the dough came together enough for me to form the rolls by hand. I don’t think I let them rise enough before I baked them.
They came out looking and feeling like little bread rolls, rather than a traditional dinner roll. They looked and felt like bread, a little crusty on the outside (I used an absurd amount of butter), with a good crumb. But they taste like, well, nothing. They don’t taste bad, they just don’t taste!
I’m trying a different recipe today, one that includes some vinegar. I hope the vinegar will punch up the taste a little, although I know it’s there primarily for chemistry.
I didn’t foresee having to cook gluten-free very often, so I’m just using prepared flour blends; I hope that’s not a mistake!
I prepare menus and meals for Rose (my MIL) a few times a year, so if you have any suggestions about making traditional bread items gluten-free with the least amount of hassle, or any sure-fire recipes, please share! GF isn’t a diet, it’s a lifestyle, and it takes a lot of study and a lot of work, even if one is only an occasional GF cook.
My first attempt at Parkerhouse dinner rolls was a qualified success. The original recipe mixed up so soupy that I had to add (I thought) a bunch more flour. When it still didn’t come together, I looked through some other, similar recipes and discovered they all have xanthan gum, which my recipe was lacking. So I dumped a tablespoon in and the dough came together enough for me to form the rolls by hand. I don’t think I let them rise enough before I baked them.
They came out looking and feeling like little bread rolls, rather than a traditional dinner roll. They looked and felt like bread, a little crusty on the outside (I used an absurd amount of butter), with a good crumb. But they taste like, well, nothing. They don’t taste bad, they just don’t taste!
I’m trying a different recipe today, one that includes some vinegar. I hope the vinegar will punch up the taste a little, although I know it’s there primarily for chemistry.
I didn’t foresee having to cook gluten-free very often, so I’m just using prepared flour blends; I hope that’s not a mistake!
I prepare menus and meals for Rose (my MIL) a few times a year, so if you have any suggestions about making traditional bread items gluten-free with the least amount of hassle, or any sure-fire recipes, please share! GF isn’t a diet, it’s a lifestyle, and it takes a lot of study and a lot of work, even if one is only an occasional GF cook.
