Wheat Alternative FAQs
Real Food Living FAQ series DISCLAIMER: The Real Food Living FAQ and reprints are provided as information only. The comments contained in the FAQ are the opinions of our readers. Before making any radical changes in your diet, please talk with your personal health care provider. Vickilynn Haycraft, Editor
1. What are substitute flours I can try for wheat flour? 1. What are substitute flours I can try for wheat flour?
A. Here are some suggested substitutions for every cup of wheat flour:
Rice flour: Rice flour is best in bread and cake, it has a slightly grainy texture. When used in yeast products it doesn't rise well, it makes a good thickener however. The flavor is mild to bland. Here are a couple of different formulas suggested by
WFDigest readers: Barley flour is especially good in quick breads, muffins and cookies; it has a mild flavor but a heavier texture compared to wheat. It does not rise well in yeast breads. Use 1/2 to 1 cup for each cup of wheat flour called for. Oat flour is especially good in quick breads and cookies. It produces products that are slightly heavier textured than wheat products. It rises well in yeast breads and can be made fresh by whirling rolled oats in a blender. Use 2/3 to 1 cup for each cup of wheat flour. Potato Starch is best when it is combined with other flours and used to make cakes and cookies. The products are much heavier than those made with wheat flour, mixing with a lighter flour helps. It does rise well in yeast breads and has a strong flavor. It makes a good thickener for sauce, stews and gravies; it's also a good breading for fish or meat.
To substitute for each cup of wheat flour use one of the following: 2. Do I need to consider any other modifications when substituting non-wheat flours? A. Each flour has a different effect on the recipe. Rice flour is crumbly and usually needs to be mixed with a thickener such as arrowroot, potato starch or tapioca flour to hold together well when baked. Since non-wheat flours are heavier than wheat, you often need up to three times the amount of leaven per recipe. When you bake with spelt you use less liquids than with wheat and you also knead it less. 3. What are some alternatives to wheat? Two of the most common are spelt and Kamut®. They are available by mail order (although the shipping will be very expensive) in your local health food stores or through natural food co-ops. If there is no co-op in your area, you can start one. You can buy pre-made spelt or Kamut® baked items, like bread, but these are costly. If you don't have a grain mill, you'll need to buy the spelt or Kamut® in flour form and store it in the fridge.
Here's some information from Sue Gregg's "Breakfast" book about the two
grains: Kamut® (kah-moot)
Spelt:
Hope this helps clarify things a bit. Definitely worth experimenting with -- they are both yummy grains! 4. I just found out I have sensitivities to wheat. Can I eat spelt and Kamut®? A. If you or a family member have allergies to gluten, these may not sit well either. Some people sensitive to wheat can be OK if they have it only once a week in small amounts. Sometimes after removing an offending food for a period of time, the sensitivity will be gone when the food is re-introduced. This process is called a "challenge". CAUTION: If you have a family member who has celiac disease, it is VERY important that you talk with your healthcare provider before trying anything other than non-gluten flours. 5. I was told to try Amaranth seeds. What can you tell me about milling and using them? A. Amaranth seeds are very small and are best milled in a small seed mill or coffee grinder. You can buy the seeds and grind them at home (try some in your mill and see if they work OK) or you can buy the flour from the co-op. 6. HELP! HELP! HELP!!!!! I bought these wheat alternative grains. Every loaf of bread I've made is either crumbly or like a brick. PLEASE tell me we're not stuck with eating crackers! A. Here are some suggestions from WFDigest readers: "Spelt absorbs more water than other grains and so you must use more flour. Spelt bread is heavier than other gluten grains, at least ones I have made. I don’t like using spelt for that reason." "I personally like spelt for its delicious flavor and add it to many of my bread and roll recipes. But it is different than working with wheat or other grains. On the bag of spelt it suggests that you reduce the liquid of the recipe by 10-15%. I am not familiar with the recipe you used, but adapt my whole-wheat bread recipe. When I make the liquid reduction, I include the added honey and oil as well as the water and then reduce that by about 10% or so. I suggest you try reducing liquid first before adding more flour which is only going to make the bread heavier. Also, you *really* need to reduce the kneading time. Again my package says to reduce kneading time by 2/3. Do not knead for more than four minutes. By making these changes I have successfully made delicious spelt bread. Now...I must confess that I do add vital wheat gluten since we do not have any apparent wheat sensitivities. I am fairly certain that you would want to avoid that if you were trying to avoid wheat." "I tried out your friend's spelt bread. I think I just did a few more things right this time. I tried not to overknead it and actually left it slightly sticky. It is a little lighter this time. The taste is good, but I think the lightness could be improved a little."
"General guidelines for baking with non-wheat flours: "Use about one-and-one-fourth cups Spelt flour in place of one cup whole-wheat--or decrease the liquid from one cup to two-thirds to three-quarters cup. Hope that helps!" "Good bread from barley, oats or rye is a toughie! These are all low-gluten grains. It's the gluten that 'makes' a good bread loaf. There are some really good cookbooks out there that address this specific type cooking - mainly gluten free cooking. Usually libraries carry a good selection of these books. There is also lots of information on the web - do a search for "gluten free". One substitute for gluten is *xanthan gum*" 7. I need some help in cooking millet.
A. You can use a steamer. We cook millet often for breakfast, often with dried
apples. It's easy and I have yet to burn it. (After that statement the millet
will probably be black tomorrow 8. Where can I find some gluten-free recipes and cookbooks?
A. 8.1 Gluten-free products can be ordered from
A. 8.2 Some of our favorite alternative grain cookbooks are: 9. Where can I buy these grains? A. First, try your local health food store. Most have bags or bins for purchasing small amounts. If you wish to get larger amounts, you can order local co-ops or make special arrangements with the health food store. The phone number for the Kamut Association Of North America is 619-752-5234 (San Marcos, Ca) They will send you a list all the companies that have organic Kamut available to ship by UPS. 10. How about some recipes using flours other than wheat? A. Here are some from the Real Food Living readers:
HANDMADE SPELT BREAD
2 cups spelt flour Let sponge (sit in the bowl and get bubbly) for 15-20 min
Add to sponge:
Mix well and add to dough:
KAMUT BREAD for ABM This can also be made by hand for a 1 1/2 pound loaf.
Amount Measure Ingredient -- Preparation Method Place ingredients in your baking pan in order listed, or according to your manufacturer's instructions.
NO WHEAT CARROT CAKE Separate the eggs and set the whites aside. In another bowl, mix the egg yolks with the oil and honey and beat well. In a separate bowl, mix the dry ingredients together and fold wet ingredients in. Beat egg whites until stiff and gently fold into batter. Pour batter in two 8 inch cake pans that have been lightly spread with olive oil. You can also use an 9 x 13 baking pan. Bake in a preheated 300 degree oven for 50-60 minutes or until the center is done.
OAT COOKIES (wheat free)
Mix well in one bowl:
Mix well in another bowl:
Add the wet ingredients to the dry and mix thoroughly. These will not rise, but will be delicious!
FLAX SEED EGG REPLACER:
NO WHEAT PANCAKES
1 cup Rice Flour Mix wet ingredients well in a mixing bowl. In another bowl, mix the dry ingredients. Add wet to dry gently. Do not overmix. Bake on pre-heated griddle skillet, turning once. These will be tender.
Variations: Try millet flour instead of rice GLUTEN FREE COOKING TIPS:
Xanthan gum can be substituted for guar gum. GLUTEN FREE ALL-PURPOSE FLOUR
4 cups Brown Rice Flour
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