Grainy Sandwich Bread to Die For!

A full flour bin with an extra bag in the freezer gives me the urge to bake. I've always thought it was more difficult to make successful gluten free bread than wheat bread, but this new-to-me flour is proving otherwise. And evidently it's foolproof!

The weather has been cloudy and cool in Seattle for a few days, so I decided to heat up my 50's style kitchen by baking bread. Yesterday I tried Jule's Shepherd's Yummy Sandwich Bread recipe for the first time. After reading through the recipe and thinking it was so simple even a child could do it, I messed it up. Yup. I threw the yeast in with the dry ingredients instead of waiting to mix it in after the liquid and dry were combined. Short of picking out every little grain of yeast, there was nothing for it but to proceed and hope for the best.

The bread rose to the top of the pan and smelled heavenly as it baked, browning beautifully. The texture was even, it was moist without being gummy, and the flavor ... wonderful.

Today I decided to try again and follow the recipe procedure exactly. The results are the same! This flour is forgiving, tastes great, and produces amazing bread and baked goods. An added bonus is that yesterday's bread is still delicious, needs no refrigeration, and doesn't need to be toasted to be edible, like most gluten free breads. It's almost too good to be true!

So, now that I've discovered Jule's All-Purpose Nearly Normal Flour, do I really need all those other flours and seeds? Well, the Teff makes great "bran" muffins, gingersnaps, graham wafers and gingerbread. The Buckwheat Flour is for soba noodles, the sorghum goes into Carol Fenster's Fabulous Flour mix that I use in flour tortillas (along with Jule's APNN), and the list goes on. Life would continue without my "flour arrangement," but there wouldn't be much variety, and I've heard that variety is the spice of life! I'm all for spice in my life.

Low Flour Alert!!

Alright, I admit it. The bottom of the flour container was starting to show and I didn't do anything about it, so it was no real surprise when I ran out of Jules' Nearly Normal All-Purpose Flour* in the middle of making tortillas. No surprise, but disappointing nevertheless. As it turns out, it forced me to create a recipe for the best tortillas I've ever made! My daughter and husband "I-prefer-the-taste-of-wheat" Hawk both like them better than commercially prepared flour tortillas! They freeze well and stay pliable even after reheating.

Fabulous Flour Tortillas -- makes 8

1 1/3 cups Jules' NNAP Flour*
2/3 cup Carol Fenster's Sorghum Blend**
3/4 teaspoon gluten free baking powder
2/3 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons vegetable oil or 1/4 cup of shortening
3/4 cup lukewarm milk

In a medium bowl, stir together the flour, baking powder and salt.

Work shortening into the dry ingredients with a pastry cutter or two knives until crumbly. Stir in the warm milk until the dough forms a ball. If you are using vegetable oil instead of shortening, whisk it into the warm milk to incorporate, then gradually add it to the flour mixture, stirring until it forms a ball. Continue to work the dough with the spoon or with clean hands to make sure everything is incorporated and to activate the xanthan gum included in Jules' flour mix.

Cover the dough with a damp cloth and allow it to rest for 10 to 20 minutes so the liquids have a chance to absorb the flour.

After resting, divide the dough into 8 balls of equal size, cover them, and let rest again for about 20 minutes.

Dust a clean pastry board or counter with cornstarch or gluten free flour mix. (Avoid using straight rice flour because it will make the tortillas gritty.)

One at a time, remove a piece of dough, keeping the remainder covered. Press it out into a 5-inch circle and using a rolling pin dusted with cornstarch (of gf flour mix), roll out the tortilla from the center to the edges until it measures slightly less than 1/4" thick.

Transfer the tortilla to a preheat dry skillet or griddle. When the tortilla begins to blister, allow it to cook for an additional 30 seconds, flip it, and cook the other side the same way.

Place the hot tortilla on a clean paper towel and cover loosely with foil to keep warm. If making these in advance to freeze, cool them on a wire rack, then stack fully cooled tortillas and seal in a zip-bag after forcing out most of the air.

These keep frozen for several weeks.

To serve frozen tortillas, thaw for a few minutes at room temperature, then heat for 15 - 30 seconds in the microwave on a damp paper towel. If heating a large quantity, wrap in foil and heat in a warm oven. They also heat well in a hot skillet.

** Carol Fenster's Sorghum Blend
1 1/2 cups sorghum flour
1 1/2 cups potato starch or cornstarch
1 cup tapioca flour
Whisk together until well blended and store, tightly covered, in a dark, dry place. If refrigerated, bring to room temperature before using. Makes 4 cups and the recipe may be doubled or tripled without adverse affect.

I'm going to www.nearlynormalkitchen.com to order more flour!