Dry Onion Soup Mix

Ever wanted to use a recipe calling for Lipton's Dry Onion Soup/Dip Mix and then, realize that you don't have it or forgot to get it.  This recipe for Dry Onion Soup/Dip Mix can be adapted or adjusted to your need.  You can use more or less ingredients or more or less of the amounts of the ingredients.

I used to keep packages of Lipton's Dry Onion Soup/Dip in the pantry. I used it for making dips, hamburgers, meat loaf, roasted potatoes, quick spaghetti sauce, slow cooker roast beef and many other recipes.   For a long time, the original dry mix was gluten free.  But Lipton changed their recipe and included a yeast extract from barley as an ingredient.  Unilver, which makes Lipton products, states that it is made in a facility that processes milk, eggs, soy, wheat, sesame seeds and sulfites.  That makes the Lipton's Dry Onion Soup/Dip Mix cross-contaminated from ingredients which can cause allergic reactions or intolerant gluten reactions.  As stated on the back of the box, these are the ingredients:

Onions (deyhydrated), salt, cornstarch, onion powder, sugar, corn          syrup, hydrolyzed soy protein, caramel color, partially      hydrogenated soybean oil, monosodium glutamate, autolyzed      yeast extract (barley), natural flavors, disodium inosinate,       disodium guanylate and sulfur dioxide.      Made in a facility that processes milk, eggs, soy, wheat, sesame       and sulfites.

The critical ingredients for the dry onion soup mix are dried minced onion, beef bouillon powder, onion powder, crushed celery seed and sugar. It can be made solely with those ingredients. There are many good Copycat recipes for Lipton's Dry Onion Soup/Dip mix but I thought something was lacking in them which hinted -- this is not Lipton's.

Of course, I'll just have to get over the corn syrup and caramel color which means it won't be as sweet and will be a lighter color.  There is new research on caramel coloring  but still not conclusive that it causes cancer in humans.  The disodium inosinate and disodium guanylate are for savory and meaty flavor.  Those can be replaced with powdered broth and spices.  The sulfur dioxide is used for preservation and longer shelf-life. Since huge amounts are not being made by us, preservation will not be a problem.

So to the kitchen I went. Since my diet has to be gluten free, I started with gluten-free dehydrated diced onions.  Herb Ox bouillon from Hormel Foods is gluten-free and gives the meaty flavor.  (If you don't have to worry about the gluten, any dried bouillon brand you like will do as well as any brand of dehydrated onions.)   The spices used to substitute for the flavorings are onion powder, celery salt, paprika, ground black pepper, parsley flakes and a small amount of turmeric for the earthy taste. The turmeric also adds color.  The savory spices are garlic powder, cumin and Old Bay Seasoning.  Corn syrup can be replaced with sugar or a sugar substitute of choice.


Linda's Version of Dried Onion Soup/Dip Mix

• 1 ½ cups dried minced onion (gluten-free if needed)
• ⅔ cup beef bouillon powder (gluten-free if needed)
• 2 ½ tablespoons onion powder
• 1 teaspoon celery salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar or the equivalent of a sugar substitute
• ¼ teaspoon paprika
• ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
• 3 teaspoons parsley flakes
• 1 teaspoon turmeric
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon cumin
• ½ teaspoon Old Bay Seasoning

Change any combination and amounts of the ingredients you like.  Experiment to find what you like.  Combine all ingredients and store in an airtight container. About 4-5 tablespoons equals a single 1¼-ounce package of Lipton's mix.

Make It Sourdough - The Gluten-Free Starter

Gluten Free Whole Grain Sourdough Starter

The above sourdough starter was made with a a blend of gluten-free flours and warm filtered water, nothing added to encourage the fermenting process.  (The recipe can be seen below). The starter has a doughy and yeasty aroma -- great!  It is a little over 2 months old. 

Sourdough bread is made by fermenting dough.  Remember the symbiotic relationships you learned in biology?   Naturally occurring strains of lactobacilli and yeast work together to make the starter. Done properly, the bread has a tangy to sour taste with a hard crust.  It's texture is somewhat like French bread.

The Food Science of Sourdough Starter

When flour and water are combined and left to ferment, natural enzymes in the flour break down the starch to glucose.  The yeast uses the glucose as food and gives off by-products which the bacteria can use.  The bacteria then gives off by-products which the yeast can metabolize and produce carbon dioxide.  The carbon dioxide then helps the bread rise. The lactobacilli in the dough produces acetic acid, which gives sourdough bread its mild sour taste. The long natural fermenting process of water and flour, without any additives, will produce a starter. The sourdough starter is then used to leaven and flavor bread.

The starter of flour and water will usually live as the maintenance of feeding occurs either on the countertop or in the refrigerator.  The feeding and temperature help keep a balance between the bacteria and yeast, thus becoming and remaining a balanced and stable sourdough starter. That symbiotic relationship is very important for the sourdough starter.  If it fails, the sourdough starter will die, sour too much and will have a rotten smell. The starter then must be discarded and started again.

Research is showing that sourdough breads are better for diabetics and celiacs because the fermenting process improves digestability and lowers the glycemic index of wheat  flour (and some gluten-free flours.)  This research states that fermenting lowers the glycemic index of sorgham and teff flours.  Even though research is showing that the fermenting of wheat flour improves the digestability and glycemic index of the flour, those with celiac disease and gluten intolerance should not eat wheat sourdough breads, for now.

Differing Opinions on Making Sourdough Starters

The opinions for making sourdough starters are endless.  If you research, explore and experiment making sourdough starter, you will find your easiest and favorite way to make it. If you don't succeed the first time, try again using the same method or try another method. I found I prefer the simple, nothing extra added, method.  Your choice could be different.  Use your choice of methods, as long as you get a good tasting and lasting starter. If done correctly, a sourdough starter should take only a little attention after the starter is balanced and working.

In the past, I used wheat flour to make the sourdough, but those days are gone  I now have to go the gluten-free route.  Several authors and bakers state that gluten-free starters are more difficult to make and sustain. Several bakers state that it is best made only with rice flour, white or brown.  Other authors are a little more lenient in the flour they say must be used.  I do not make it with rice flour because rice flour has a high glycemic index and it also contains a higher percentage of arsenic.

I feel I have to be careful in stating whether to use wild yeast or commercial yeast when making a sourdough starter.  I found collecting wild yeast relatively easy because I have made bread for years.  The Joy of Cooking cookbook states that making a sourdough starter is easier with wild yeast organisms if yeast baking has often occurred in the kitchen.  The wild yeast are plentiful in the air where yeast baking has occurred. The Joy of Cooking recommended using commercial yeast if little to no yeast baking had occurred in the kitchen.  Sharon Kane, The Art of Gluten-Free Sourdough Baking, says that commercial baker's yeast (Saccharomyces cerevisiae), a more powerful yeast, can't be fermented completely as wild yeast (Saccharomyces exiguous) can.  Bob delGrosso states that a simple starter of water and flour can last for a very long time if maintained correctly.

Some bakers disagree with the idea that wild yeast is in the air.  Some state that yeast is naturally on the grains of the flour. Some state that the white film on a grape is yeast.  Some encourage using whole grapes, cabbage leaves, water kefir, or kumbucha to help the yeast grow.  Once the yeast  is established, the cabbage leaves or grapes are removed from the starter. Sharon A. Kane in The Art of Gluten-Free Sourdough Baking uses water kefir to get the starter fermenting quicker.  She says there are fewer failures making the starter with water kefir. She also believes that a gluten-free starter should be made fresh with every loaf -- since she can make a starter in three days using water kefir.  She also thinks that a gluten-free starter gets weaker with each use.  Jessie Hawkins, The Vintage Remedies Guide to Bread, does not share that opinion. She is a purist when making sourdough starter. She states that to get all the nutrition and healthy benefits from sourdough, it should be prepared with wild yeast as it was before the production of baker's yeast in the late 1800's,

There is a theory by some researchers that fruits and vegetables, such as potatoes,  have specific bacteria that produce lactic acid which cause the fermentation to occur quicker.  That same bacteria creates sauerkraut. I find that the natural fermentation will occur in about 5-7 days without the fruit or vegetables. I agree with Bob delGrosso that feeding the starter is the most important part of starting and keeping a healthy and balanced starter.  I like this experiment, by Bob, using the scientific method.  I think he was disappointed that he was unable to prove his hypothsis. He was not able to make a definite conclusion about not using cabbage with a sourdough starter.

Gluten-free sourdough starter is different from gluten sourdough starter.  Gluten-free sourdough starter needs to be feed twice a day whereas gluten starter is fed once a day. It, also, takes much more starter to bake gluten-free sourdough bread. For most gluten-free sourdough bread recipes, the dough is half starter and half gluten-free flour. Most wheat versions use a ratio of 1part starter to 3 or 4 part flour.) These two facts would be a reason to make a larger amount of the flour blend used in the starter mix.

Making the Sourdough Starter

My sourdough starter mix uses this flour blend:

97 grams (1 cup) teff flour
97 grams (1 cup) buckwheat flour   } or 290 grams of one in this group ( I used all three as written)
97 grams (1 cup) amaranth flour

290 grams (2 cup) sorghum flour
290 grams (2 1/3 cup) millet flour
145 grams (1 cup) oat flour
229 grams (1 3/4 cup) bean flour  } can be one kind or combination of bean flours

I've included the conversion for cups of flour but the more accurate measurement is grams. The conversions will give a smaller amount of the flour blend because I didn't include the extra teaspoons and tablespoons of flour needed for the accurate conversions.   (It took some time to convince myself to use a metric scale but I found using a scale is much easier and faster than using volume measuring.)

When I make the above flour blend, I double the ingredients. Doubling the recipe gives a huge amount of flour blend but the starter needs to be fed everyday when on the counter; the flour will be used up quickly.  If you would rather use other flours, check out these substitutions.  If you like, brown rice flour can be substituted for the teff, buckwheat, and amaranth flours.

Whisk all the flours together.  The flour blend should be one color after it is combined.  Store in an airtight container and use it when making the sourdough starter and feeding the sourdough starter.

Directions:

First Day:  (It should have the consistency of thick gravy)
To make the starter, combine the mix and filtered water in 1:1 ratio.  (I used 2 cups of the flour blend above and 2 cups filtered water). Mix throughly with whisk (incorporating lots of air)  and pour in a glass container that will hold at least 1/2 gallon.  Cover with several layers of cheese cloth, an unbleached coffee filter or kitchen towel.  Secure with a rubber band.  If using unbleached coffee filter, make several pinholes so that the naturally occuring wild yeast spores can enter, if the theory is true. At any point, the yeast needs the oxygen for aerobic growth.

This is the feeder which has been whisked to incorporate air.

Let the starter sit in a warm (or at least not cold) place on the counter.  For the next three days, do not adding anything to the starter but, stir the starter at least once a day for the three days.

Second Day:
Stir the starter at least once this day.

Third Day (or the day it bubbles):  (Look for the hooch - it is the layer of somewhat clear liquid )
If there are bubbles or hooch on the third day, whisk 1 cup of Starter Mix and 1 cup filtered water in a small bowl.  Stir the feeder into the jar of starter and mix well with a spoon or spatula. Replace the cover and rubber band. Any time there is hooch, feed the starter!  Too long and to much hooch will kill the starter.  Some sourdough bakers feel that the hooch is waste from the bacteria and yeast and pour the hooch off. Others stir it in with the feeder.  I choose to stir it in with the feeder.

Fourth Day:
Stir the starter at least once a day.  Do not add anything to the starter, unless there is hooch.  If there is hooch, feed it.

Fifth Day:
Feed it by whisking 1 cup of Starter Mix and 1 cup filtered water in a small bowl.  Pour in the starter and mix. The Sourdough Starter is ready to use.

Some starters take more than 5 days to be ready.  Patience and persistent monitoring is needed.  If the smell is not that of yeast and baking bread, or if there is a colored mold growing on it, throw it out, clean the container and start again.

This recipe was adapted from Dummies.com.  The original recipe for the starter included brown rice flour and sweet rice flour.  I do not use rice flour and substituted the teff, buckwheat, and amaranth flours for the brown rice flour and oat flour for the sweet rice flour.


Important Facts to Remember About A Sourdough Starter

When beginning the starter, the combination of the flour and water, hopefully, in a few days will grow yeast and lactobacillus bacteria.  But it is important to remember that there will also be other strains of bacteria growing in it.  It does not become stable for at least a week or so.  It took mine 2 weeks to become stable. Feeding it water and flour encourages the yeast and lactobacillus to grow and overtake the other bacteria.  To maintain a healthy starter, it needs to be feed the 1:1 ratio of water and flour.

Refrigeration and Freezing of the Starter

The starter can be slowed down by placing it in the fridge but it still must be fed once a week to sustain it.  It can be feed as little as 1 tablespoon of flour and 1 tablespoon of filtered water per two cups of starter.  I feed it, once a week, 1/4 cup flour blend and 1/4 cup water whisked together, incorporating lots of air.  When ready to use again, it will take about 2 -3 days to get it ready.

Day 1 :  When ready to use it for baking, remove from fridge and let it come to room temperature.
Day 2:   Feed it with 1:1 ratio flour and warm water.   Feed the starter twice more this day.
Day 3:  The next morning, feed it again.  If a dome forms in 2-3 hours, it is ready.  If not ready, feed it again 3 times.  When foamy, it is ready, though, I read that the new flour added takes about 7 hours to be completely fermented.

If you are really tired of the starter, stick it in the freezer.  When ready to use it, take it out of the freezer and thaw.  When it can be stirred, follow the directions above for refrigeration Day 1- Day 3.

This is a great website with information to help with care of the sourdough starter.  Other resources are listed below that helped me. In a few days I will post recipes for soft wraps, pancakes, waffles and other breads to use with the sourdough starter. This web page gives other great uses for the sourdough starter.  Who knew -  chicken feed and compost conditioner?
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Make It Sourdough - Gluten-Free Sourdough Wraps, Waffles & Pancakes
Make It Sourdough - Gluten-Free Sourdough English Muffins
Make It Sourdough - Gluten-Free Sourdough Basic Sourdough Bread #1

Resources

"Does Fermentation Break Down Gluten In Sourdough Breads and Beer" Gluten Free cooking.About.com. Web. 19 May 2014.     <http://glutenfreecooking.about.com/od/glutenfreebreads/f/Does-

Fermentation-Break-Down-Gluten-In-Sourdough-Breads-And-Beer.htm>

"Does Yeast Grow Faster with or without Oxygen? - Homework Help - ENotes.com Web.19 May 2014  <http://www.enotes.com/homework-help/yeast-cells-can-carry-out-both-fermentation-336231>

"Food & Function." Influence of Sourdough on in Vitro Starch Digestibility and Predicted Glycemic Indices of Gluten-free Breads - (RSC Publishing). Web. 19 May 2014.<http://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2014/fo/c3fo60505a#!divAbstract>

"Foods to Lower Your Blood Sugar: Sourdough Bread | Reader's Digest."Reader's Digest. Web. 19 May 2014.   <http://www.rd.com/health/healthy-eating/foods-to-lower-your-blood-sugar-sourdough-bread/>

"Gluten-Free Sourdough Starter." - For Dummies. Web. 19 May 2014.>http://www.dummies.com/how-to/content/glutenfree-sourdough-starter.html>

Hawkins, Jessie. The Vintage Remedies Guide to Bread: Unlocking the Mysteries of Grains, Gluten and Yeast. Franklin, TN: Thistle Publications, 2012. Print.

"Healthier Cereal Products." Potential of Sourdough for Healthier Cereal Products. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S092422440400202X>

Kane, Sharon A.  The Art of Gluten-Free Sourdough Baking:  Blending An Old World Technique with Allergen-Friendly Ingredients. eBook format by eBookIt.com, 2012. 

"Lactic Acid Fermentation in Sourdough." The Fresh Loaf. Web. 19 May 2014.  <http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/10375/lactic-acid-fermentation-sourdough> 

"Potential of Sourdough for Healthier Cereal Products | DeepDyve."DeepDyve. Web. 19 May 2014. <http://www.deepdyve.com/lp/elsevier/potential-of-sourdough-for-healthier-cereal-products-Dd0StCO4hE>

Rombauer, Irma S., Marion Rombauer. Becker, and Ethan Becker. Joy of Cooking: 75th Anniversary Edition - 2006. S.l.: Scribner, 2006. Print. <http://www.thejoykitchen.com>

Gluten Free French Toast Muffins

Whole Grain Wild Yeast Sourdough Starter 

I've been experimenting with gluten-free sourdough bread made with a wild yeast starter.  Sourdough bread is a very good bread for diabetics. (This is one of many websites explaining why). Put a gluten-free diet on top of that, and sourdough bread is certainly a good idea. I'm not quite ready to share the experiments of my adventure in good gluten-free sourdough bread using wild yeast. Wild yeast is exactly that; they are the yeast in the air we breath. They are captured in the flour and warm water as a starter and used to make the dough rise with no commercial yeast. I have the starter of whole grain sourdough starter (with no rice flour) perfected and stable. The bread from my starter and flour blend is not in a sharing situation yet. The share is getting closer, though.

I am going to share one of my failures.  I made some very sad gluten-free sourdough baguettes. Gluten-free bread failures are usually cubed for crutons or stuffing or crushed for bread crumbs.  I broke these baguettes in half and threw them in a zipper bag.  

The sourdough failure tasted good and it did rise but never to an acceptable extent. I could have done a couple of things. The dough had been rising for 6 hours in a baguette pan. I could have let it rise longer by putting it in the fridge but I didn't have enough room in the fridge for the baguette tray and it was getting late at night; so,  I baked them.  Another problem with the dough was that it was much too sticky.  The original recipe called for rice flour. I do not use rice flour because it has a high glycemic index and not good for diabetics.  I substituted a mixture of my whole grain flour blend and my all-purpose flour blend; needless to say, the adapted recipe needs several adjustments.  The orginal recipe by the Gluten-Free Doctor was firmer and could be slightly manipulated and formed.  This dough could not and I didn't want to add much more flour because I know adding more flour makes gluten-free bread dry and crumbly. I pretty much knew that these two baguettes were failures before I put them in the oven.  Because the flours are expensive, I didn't want to throw them out. I baked them.  As it turned out, so glad I did!  The toasted crumbs are excellent for many uses and I found a wonderful use for the bread cubes.

Sad Gluten-Free Sourdough Bread Failure

I accidentally happened upon a blogger's website, laurelofleaves.com.  Her website and Facebook page are incredible.  She isn't exactly a gluten-free cooker or baker but her recipes are healthy and easy to adapt to gluten-free. It was this recipe, the French Toast Muffin,  that led me to her site.  As I read the recipe, I realized those muffins were made with sourdough bread. Bingo! Those ugly loaves weres were still sitting in the kitchen in the zipper bag.

I went to the kitchen to whisk the eggs and added coconut milk, stevia, cinnamon, vanilla and cinnamon and sugar free maple syrup.  I cut half of one of the baguettes into cubes and soaked them in the egg mixture for 5-10 minutes.  (I was so excited about the experiment that forgot to note the time).  I then placed the bread in muffins cups and spooned the remaining milk mixture over the bread and baked them. That bread failure turned out delish and the recipe is a keeper! Next time I make these, I will add more bread cubes in each cup because the muffins were small.  As usual, gluten-free bake goods fall in height as they cool.

 I can imagine this muffin recipe with blueberries or raisins, maybe bananas and shredded coconut. How about using sausage or ham or chicken?  Would the muffins be great as savory with kale, spinach, cheese, and savory herbs?  As I try other recipes, without the sugar and maple syrup, I'll update. 

Gluten Free French Toast Muffins  (6 servings)

Ingredients:
Several slices of gluten-free sourdough bread, cubed

2 eggs

1 tsp. cinnamon

1 teaspoon sweetener of choice (I used stevia)

1/4 c. coconut milk

1/2 - 1 teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon pure maple syrup (I used sugar-free maple syrup -  :-( 

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Combine eggs, sweetener, milk, vanilla and maple syrup in a medium size bowl and whisk lightly.

Taking a handful cubes of bread at a time, soak them in the mixture, then arrange them inside a muffin pan cup. Repeat with the remaining slices of bread until your muffin pan is full. If the bread absorbs more of the egg mixture than expected, make more egg mixture as needed, even halfing the recipe if necessary.  Spoon any remaining egg mixture over the bread in the cups.

Drizzle the tops of the muffins with a bit more maple syrup, then place them in the oven for 25 minutes.

(The orginal recipe stated to bake for 20 minutes but egg mixture wasn't completely done in that time.  I baked 5 more minutes.)

If I wasn't diabetic, I would sprinkle the muffins with powdered sugar or even lightly glaze them.  My choice was to lightly drizzle with sugar-free maple syrup just before eating. I could have made a sugar-free cream cheese glaze with cream cheese, vanilla extract, stevia and cream.  That experiment is for another day.

Store the remaining muffins in a zipper bag in the refrigerator or freeze for later use.  (I microwaved a cold muffin for 15 seconds and it was warmed perfectly.)

If you are using a 12-cup muffin pan, double the recipe.

Hope this recipe, in its many forms, works for you.  

Note Taking - Gluten Free Baking: Lesson 1

Note Taking on Gluten Free Baking:
Lesson 1

Note Taking on Gluten Free Bread Lesson 1:  An Adventure in Baking and Scientific Learning about gluten-free ingredients from books, cookbooks, websites  and from bloggers.

My notes were in so many places. I was spending too much time searching for notes about baking gluten-free. I decided I needed to consolidate them.  I now have a place I can return to find my notes and you can return to find the notes, if you need them.  Nothing is written in stone, except I cannot have no wheat, barley, rye, or any of the relatives of wheat.

The first thing I learned by experience is to forget everything I ever learned about baking with gluten.  With my degree in Family and Consumer Science, I learned in college how to bake perfectly with a check off list --grades were always on the checkoff sheet. I got grades on the number of checks I got for perfect baking techniques. Notice the technique lists on this sight for 4H judging of baked goods.  I used a simular list to grade my student's products when I taught Foods in Family and Consumer Science. I'm not sure that gluten-free biscuits and muffins can meet all the requirements on the list of gluten products.  

I had a very difficult time giving up gluten baking because I knew the characterics of a perfect loaf of bread, a perfect muffin, or a perfect roll.  The experience of kneading bread is therapeutic, the manipulation of the dough is creative and the smell of the baking is stimulating. Not releasing the knowledge of gluten baking, I had some miserable gluten free baking failures. Gluten-free baking is very different than gluten baking. After the embarrassing failures, I learned the difference and took on the rules for gluten free baking.

As I began my adventure in gluten-free baking, there were plenty of mentors to follow, whether bloggers or cookbook authors.  Among my favorites are Teri Gruss, MS - website, Nicole Hunn’s books and blog,  Carol Fenster, Ph.D. books and blog, Carrie S. Forbes books and blog, Bette Hagman's books, William Davis, MD books and blog, Robert Landolphi's blog and books, and the website and e-magazine, Living Without. These people and their work made it easier to take charge of my situation and so began my lessons in gluten-free living.

1. The first part of the lesson was learning about gluten free flours.  Gluten free flours are not only different from gluten flours but each gluten free flour is different in taste, characteristics, weight, and how they can be used. Gluten free bread is usually made from several flours and at least one starch to mimic gluten bread. Gluten-free whole grain flours, high protein gluten-free flours, nut flours and binders are listed below. 

With the gluten free flours, the starches to combine with the gritty flours could be tapioca starch, arrowroot starch, potato starch, sweet potato starch, cornstarch, and maybe potato flour.

Combining different flours has another purpose.  It helps make the flour blend be more nutritious. (For foods, the reason beans and rice are eaten together in a meal is because it makes it a more perfect protein food, a good meat alternative. These two foods with imperfect protein (lacking some amino acids) can be made perfect by combining them.) Mixing several types of gluten-free flours can help make a gluten-free bread or pasta product have a higher protein, vitamin, and mineral count, which makes it more nutritious.

   2.  Gluten is made up of two proteins which act as the binder in gluten flour.  This site 
        shows a lab completed in a college foods class, a culinary school class or maybe a high    
        school to show the presence and properties of gluten.  This additional site also explains  
        how gluten is develop from kneading the dough. 

        The gluten acts as a structure to hold the bubbles of carbon dioxide produced by yeast 
         or other leavening agents which make the bread rise. Gluten is the structure that helps   
         the bread to stay in the rising position once the rising is finished and the bread is taken 
         out of the oven.  Without the binder or structure molecules, the bread would collapse. 
         So, something in gluten-free flour has to replace the gluten.   

Binders

Binders need to be used in gluten-free flours to replace the gluten.  It helps give the characteristics of gluten by providing elasticity, bounce, and moisture. Many gluten-free foods use xanthan gum and guar gum, which work great as binders but have little nutritional value.  The gums give some people digestive distress and/or allergic reactions.  These rules are generally used for using the gums:

• When making bread and pizza dough, add 1 teaspoon xanthan gum or guar gum for each cup of the gluten-free flour blend.
• When making cakes, muffins and quick breads, add 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum or guar gum for each cup of ghe gluten-free flour blend.
• When making cookie and bar recipes, add 1/2 teaspoon (or less) xanthan gum or guar gum for each one cup gluten-free flour blend.
• Since xanthan gum and guar gum have different properties, half of each can be used in the recipe.

Slurries, which have high nutritional value, can be used as binders for structure, elasticity, and moisture.  These slurries can be used as a substitute for xanthan gum and/or guar gum. (Binders do not need to be used in gluten-free muffins, pancakes and cookies.)

1.  Gretchen Brown in Fast & Simple Gluten-Free, uses 1 part golden flaxseed meal to 2 parts hot water.  That certainly will help with the lighter colored bread because the regular flaxseed shows up as dark particles in the dough.

2.  Gluten Free Girl, Shauna Ahern, uses a slurry of 15 grams of flaxseed meal, 15 grams of chia seeds and 60 grams of boiling water in a multi-grain bread recipe.  (I've used this one with success!)

3.  This website has a slurry of water and chia seeds to use in baking.  When the slurry is frozen, it can be used in shakes, smoothies, and slushies.

4.  This website explains how to use psyllium, Konjac powder, and Agar Agar as binding agents.

5.  Gina Kelley at Gluten Free Gourmand also explains how to use chia, flaxseed, and pysllium as binding agents.

Xanthan or guar gum are good for beginning gluten-free bakers because either gum can be whisked in with the flours. Many bakers who suggested using the slurry binders still use the gums in some of their recipes so learning to use both is probably a good idea.  Using the gums first gives gives the new gluten-free baker a way to contrast the difference between the binding agents -- the gums and the slurries.  

Other Ingredients to Help Binding Agents

Generally, eggs, buttermilk, pectin, agar agar and gelatin help in binding and emulsifying the ingredients.  They also add moisture and enhance the taste to baked goods.

Expandex has been used commercially and is now available for the gluten-free baker.  It helps the baked gluten-free doughs rise better, gives a nice crust, and gives the product a longer shelf life. It memics gluten. It is described by a  GFME Newsletter as either modified maize or tapioca starch.  It has been modified genetically or by heat and is not a natural product. For that reason, I need to see more research on the product before I begin using it.

A dough enhancer can be used to help any dough, whether with or without gluten, rise better which, of course gives more volume.  It, also, will give bread better texture and improve the shelf-life of bread. Vinegar is a dough enhancer that is usually seen in gluten-free bread recipes.  Powdered dough enhancers can be substituted for the vinegar and can be purchased from grocery stores or online.  A homemade dough enhancer can also be made with fewer ingredients than the commercial product.  Those ingredients in this recipe can be (but not limited to) ascorbic acid, pectin and ginger.  (The taste of the enhancer can't be detected in the bread.) I usually quadruple the recipe and keep it in a little jar.  A few bloggers believe that it should be made fresh for every recipe.

Gluten-free Dough Enhancer Ingredients

Gluten-free Flour Substitutions

Many gluten-free bakers must make recipe substitutions in flour, starches and binders for several reasons.  They may be unable to find a certain flour or starch, a certain diet may prohibit the use of the ingredient,  or they currently may not have the ingredient on hand.  After years of baking gluten-free, many bakers have the substitutions memorized, but that is not something some of us find a primary chore.  Sometimes its better to check for appropriate substitutions.  

Some gluten-free bakers insist that substitutions are never appropriate for a product they develop. (Remember, many of the gluten-free flours have different properties.) Making substitutions may change the texture, taste and look of the product they developed.  If the appropriate substitution is chosen, the changes should be minimal. Flexability is also a key in using substitutions.  The resources for the following substitute list came from bloggers, gluten-free flour and starch companies, and gluten-free cookbooks and experimenting.  (I always make substitutions for rice flour because of its high glycemic index and arsenic.) This is not a complete list because more and more gluten-free ingredients are produced every year.  If you would like to add to the list, leave me a note.  Suggestions are always welcome.

Some of the Flours, Grains and Grouts Found from the List Below

Substitutions for Gluten-Free Flours, Starches, and Binders 

	Description	Substitution flours
Protein Flours
Amaranth flour	gritty flour	teff, buckwheat, quinoa, brown rice, millet
Bean flours (garbanzo)	fiber flour	brown rice, fava, Green or Yellow Pea, most any bean flour
Brown Rice flour	gritty flour	sorghum, GF oat
Corn flour (masa harina)	gritty flour	any gritty flour, sorghum
cornmeal	very gritty	uncooked polenta or grits (coarser than cornmeal)
Buckwheat flour	gritty	quinoa, millet, oat, rice
Green or Yellow Pea flour	fiber flour	brown rice, fava, garbanzo, most any bean flour
Millet flour	gritty	sorghum, corn flour, rice, quinoa, buckwheat, Montina
Oat flour	gritty	millet, sorghum, rice
Potato flour	starch	used in small amounts like gums
Quinoa flour	gritty	buckwheat, amaranth, millet, rice
Quinoa flakes		rolled oats or processed rolled oats(quick oatmeal)
Sorghum flour	gritty	brown rice, oat
Soy flour	fiber	soya, garbanzo, brown rice, quinoa
Soya flour (roasted soy)	fiber	soy, garbanzo, brown rice, quinoa
Teff flour	gritty	brown rice, quinoa  (there will be taste difference)
Nut Flours
Almond flour	high-protein	other nut flours, tapico + coconut
Chestnut flour	high-carb	almond flour, hazel nut, other nut flours
Coconut flour	fiber, protein	difficult to substitute (special formulas need)
Starch flours
Tapioca flour/starch	starch	arrowroot, potato starch, cornstarch
sweet potato flour	starch, fiber	arrowroot, potato starch, cornstarch, tapioca flour
arrowroot starch	starch	tapioca, potato starch, cornstarch
potato starch	starch	tapioca, arrowroot, cornstarch
Hydrocolloids  (binders)
Flaxseed meal	fiber, protein, omega-3	chia seeds, xanthan gum, guar gum
Chia seeds	fiber,protein, omega-3	xanthan gum, guar gum
psyllium seed husks	fiber	xanthan gum, guar gum
xanthan gum	fiber	guar gum, (flaxseed meal + chia seeds + psyllium )
guar gum	fiber	xanthan gum, (flaxseed meal + chia seeds + psyllium)

Additional Ingredients

hemp seeds                   protein & fiber

montina flour                protein

mesquite flour              protein

Some additional facts about the gluten free flours

Baking gluten free usually means using a combination of flours and starches. Gluten free bakers buy commercial blends (there are many) or make their own blends.   How to do that will be included in Lesson 2.

Carefully check that the purchased oat flour, rolled oats or oat groats are gluten free.  Oats in themselves do not have gluten but can be easily contaminated in the fields by other wheat crops and can be easily contaminated when processed.

In her blog, Halle states that Quinoa flour tastes better and becomes finer if roasted in the oven.  Her directions can be followed here.  Before using, wash quinoa grains until the rinse water runs clear. The reason quinoa needs to be rinsed is here.

Rice flours have a high glycemic index.  This means that it raises blood sugar levels very quickly.  Rice flours and rice bran, also, have higher levels of arsenic. Rice grown in California has a lower level of arsenic.

Legume flours add elasticity to breads, rolls, and wraps.  Bean flours can include chickpea (garbanzo), fava beans, northern beans, blackeye peas, lentils, green pea, yellow peas, pinto beans, and many more.
Many times combination of the bean flours are used and they are easily milled.  Many people do not like the flavor of the beans and some have gastric sensitivity to the bean flours.  I, personally, like the flavor they give breads. Bean flours are usually used in small amounts in flour blends.

Several sources state that teff grains are to small to grind in a home grain mill.  Websites for WonderMill Grain Mill, Blendtec Mill, Ribest Wolfgang Grain Mill, KoMo Fidibus and probably others state they can successfully mill teff.  I own a Blendtec and have no problem milling teff grains.  The point being made is that most all the grains are cheaper to mill at home, using grains or grouts.

Weighing vs Measuring Cups

Weighing gluten-free flours is easy.  One does not have to spend a lot of money on a scale.  The scales can be found on the internet and in stores for less than $25 and they work just fine.  I first fought having to weigh out the flours until I weighed the flours of a gluten-free recipe I had made several times using measuring cups.  I notice a positive change in how the bread rose and I also noticed that it didn't fall as much as it was cooling.  The texture was also lighter.

At that very point, I started weighing the flours. I can measure the flours faster in grams than measure with a cup because the flour should be carefully spooned into the measuring cup and then leveled off. Measuring wheat flour is easier to spoon in a cup because it it slicker and finer than many non-gluten flours.  Remember, many of the gluten-free flours are gritty. It  is so easy to get air pockets in the measuring cups. Think how much easier it is to quickly spoon it in a container on the scale. Also, notice the different weights of the gluten-free flours, which means the densities are not the same. Weighing the flours adjusts for differences in densities since density is mass divided by volume.

For now, these are my notes for learning about gluten-free flours and binders. I feel more organized because all my notes on this subject are in one place, but -- I realize that I'll be back to add new notes.

Lesson 2 will contain my notes for blending these flours for different products.  There will be interesting blends for unique flavors and properties.



Other Resources:

Carla Spacher http://glutenfreerecipebox.com/gluten-free-recipes/

Gluten Free Made Easy Newsletter, March 2014

http://glutenfreecooking.about.com/od/glutenfreeingredients/tp/20-Gluten-Free-Flours.htm

http://www.bobsredmill.com/recipes_detail.php?rid=1219

http://www.ehow.com/info_12329344_substitute-gram-besan-flour.html

http://www.ehow.com/info_8061603_substitutes-coconut-flour.html

http://www.ehow.com/info_8486192_glutenfree-substitutes-millet-flour.html

http://www.food.com/recipe/dough-enhancer-for-gluten-free-bread-416515

http://www.foodsubs.com/Grainoth.html

http://www.glutenfreegigi.com/resource/substituting-gluten-free-flours-and-starches/

http://www.livingwithout.com/issues/4_1/gluten_free_flour-1073-1.html

http://www.wikihow.com/Sample/Gluten-Substitution-Chart

http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-potato-flour.htm



Disclaimer:  I have not received any compensation for any commercial products on this web page.

Passing Up the Cream of Anything Soup

Do you recognize the following ingredients?( WATER, MUSHROOMS, VEGETABLE OIL (CORN, COTTONSEED, CANOLA, AND/OR SOYBEAN), MODIFIED FOOD STARCH, WHEAT FLOUR, CONTAINS LESS THAN 2% OF: SALT, MONOSODIUM GLUTAMATE, SOY PROTEIN CONCENTRATE, DEHYDRATED CREAM (CREAM [MILK], SOY LECITHIN), YEAST EXTRACT, FLAVORING, DEHYDRATED GARLIC.) These are some of the ingredients found in most canned condensed creamed soups, varying slightly depending on the flavor.

From where do some of the ingredients originate? What would be the source of the flavoring? What starch is used for the modified food starch?  Want the MSG?  Soy Lecithin is in many of the processed foods we eat.  Do we need to limit the soy lecithin in our diet after reading the included source of information? 

 It is getting almost impossible to limit the toxic chemicals and harmful ingredients even if we eat only fresh fruits and vegetables. Yep, we can eat organic and try to limit the amount of toxic ingredients we know we are eating but, it is getting more expensive to eat that way and be healthy. Then, for some people, there is the hidden dreaded wheat, which for some, the body cannot tolerate.  

I gave up using the recipes that use creamed soup because the soup is thickened with wheat. Also, many of the other ingredients in the canned soups are preservatives that allow the soup to sit on shelves for years. I thought it took too much time to make gluten-free soup and then start the recipe in which to use it. This one simple dry master soup mix can help.  After reading many webstites about canned soup and homemade canned soups, I combined many of the ideas and came up with a few ideas myself . The main site from which came the idea was food.com.  

I added a few ingredients to the dry creamed soup mix which I thought made it taste better.  I, also, added the cream of celery because in my former self, I used cream of celery soup in some recipes. The recipes for the soups can be made more complicated if there is time, but the soups can also be made quickly if needed. There may be other ingredients which would make the mix better. If so, will you share your ideas?

You can always make it fresh without using the Master Soup Mix. The recipe made by Laura on this blog looks fantastic!  This blogger, Paula Rhodes,  also seems to make great creamed soups.  If I was going to serve soup as the main course of a meal, I probably would make it their way, even using their recipes. But using the creamed soup as an ingredient in a another recipe, well, this Master Soup Mix works for me.

Dry Master Soup Mix 

Ingredients:

2 cups powdered milk

3/4 cup cornstarch

1-2 teaspoons onion powder (or to taste)

1 teaspoon dried basil

1 teaspoon dried thyme

1/4 - 1/2 teaspoon pepper (or to taste)

1/2 - 1 teaspoon garlic powder (or to taste)

One to two tablespoons of dried minced onion can substitute for the onion powder.

                  -----------------------------------------------------------------

Directions:  

In a bowl, whisk all ingredients and place in a jar with tight fitting lid.  Store on shelf until ready to use.

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Directions for making soups:

1.  To make the soups, add ingredients as listed below.  In a microwave bowl, whisk ingredients until there are no lumps.  

2.  In the microwave on high,  cook 1 minute.  Whisk until smooth. Microwave 1 more minute and whisk until smooth.  Microwave and whisk until it is the consistency of condensed cream soup.  (The times will vary depending on the microwave.) Use immediately as you would a can of condensed soup or as directed in the next step.

The creamed soup can be stored in refrigerator a few days or be frozen in ice cube tray. (Freezing in ice cube tray makes thawing much faster.  Also, something to remember, in most ice cube trays, one cube is 2 tablespoons.) 

Once frozen, pack in a labeled freezer container or labeled freezer zipper bags   To use, thaw and whisk until smooth.  Then, use just as you would a can of condensed soup.

            

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Each recipe makes the equivalent of 1 can of condensed soup

To make condensed cream of beef:

Add 2/3 cup Dry Master Soup Mix to 1 cup beef broth.  Optional: small diced pieces of cooked beef

To make condensed cream of chicken or turkey:

Add 2/3 cup Dry Master Soup Mix to 1 cup chicken or turkey broth. Optional: small diced pieces of cooked chicken or turkey.

To make condensed cream of vegetable:

Add 2/3 cup Dry Master Soup Mix to 1 cup vegetable broth. Optional:  small diced pieces of cooked vegetables 

To make condensed Cheddar cheese soup:

Add 2/3 cup Dry Master Soup Mix to 1 cup milk and 2 cups fresh grated sharp Cheddar cheese.

Salt to taste since not using broth. (This can also be used for a cheese sauce.)

To make condensed cream of mushroom:

Saute 1/4 cup onions and 3/4 cup mushrooms.  Add 2/3 cup dry soup  mix with mushroom broth or vegetable broth. If in a hurry, rather than saute them,  pulse the onions and mushrooms until small but not a paste, and then add to the dry soup mix.

To make condensed cream of celery: (Two methods)

Method 1.  To 2/3 cup Dry Master Soup Mix, add 1/2 cup pureed celery, 1/2 cup water or vegetable broth, 1/2 teaspoon celery salt (if using water or salt free vegetable broth) 1 teaspoon celery flakes.

Method 2.  Saute diced celery.  Add 2/3 cup soup dry mix with 1 cup celery broth or vegetable broth.  Can also use celery salt if no salt in broth.  One teaspoon celery flakes add more celery flavor.

The amount of diced celery would be to your taste.  Start with 3/4 cup diced celery.

Since Method One for the condensed cream of celery soup, seems to be the most complicated, these are the steps for making it.

Condensed Cream of Celery:  Method One

1.  Roughly chop 4-5 stalks of celery.

 2.  Place the chopped celery in food processor.

3.  Process the celery until it looks like a slushy.  The sides will have to be scraped down several times. It made a little over a cup of puree.  Humm, looks like a smoothie.

4.  Then measure out 1/2 cup and add 1/2 cup water to it.  Vegetable broth could be substituted for the water.  If more celery flavor is needed, use more celery puree and less water. (What do with the left over pureed celery?  Freeze it in an ice cube tray and when frozen, then placed it in a labeled freezer zipper top bag.  Even better, use a vacuum sealer. The enzymes will still be active so it should not be stored a long period.  See idea one and idea two for longer storage.) 

 5.  Measure out 2/3 cup of the Dry Master Soup Mix to a microwave bowl with the cup of puree and water.  Add 1 teaspoon of celery salt and 1 teaspoon of celery flakes.  Whisk until there are no lumps.  Microwave 1 minute on high.  Whisk until smooth.  Whisk another minute and microwave 30 seconds if needed. Then, whisk until smooth.  Depending on the microwave, microwave another 30 seconds if needed.  The soup should have a condensed consistency.

It took less than 4 minutes, after the celery was pureed, to make the condensed celery soup.  How quick is that?  

Most any condensed soup can be made using the Dry Master Soup Mix. If the condensed soup is going to be used for a meal, whisk a cup of the liquid of choice in the condensed soup until smooth and warm to desired temperature.

Anyone got ideas for asparagus, broccoli, or spinach soups using the Dry Creamed Soup Mix?