May 3rd, 2017

Author: donich_admin

More wheat-free baking

After the revolting wheat free pastry I made the other day – I had another more successful attempt.

This time – 150g Dove’s gluten free plain flour sifted with 1 heaped tsp xanthan gum.  Rub in 75g butter (or vegan margarine) until like breadcrumbs.  Then mix in a lightly beaten egg, and enough cold water to make a slightly softer and wetter dough than you would for “ordinary” pastry.  Make into a ball – and then knead gently for five minutes or so until smooth and pliable (unlike ordinary pastry dough – gluten free “likes” a bit of a knead).  Then use as shortcrust pastry.

I made an open custard and apple flan with this and it wasn’t bad – certainly a lot better than my first attempt.  It still was a bit hard compared to my usual efforts though so I will keep trying to improve the recipe.

On a better note – I made R’s favourite cake which is an adaption of Mary Berry’s Black Forest cake – only made with raspberries rather than cherries because neither of us like the taste of preserved cherries.  Instead of the wheat flour, I used Dove’s gluten-free self-raising with a heaped tsp xanthan gum – and it turned out 100% the same as when I’ve made it with wheat flour.  This is a seriously yum cake – too fattening for everyday consumption though.