This is kind of a big deal for me since gluten-free baking is complicated. The chemistry is almost completely different from “regular” baking, and I haven’t figured it out yet. I’m mostly okay with that — I’m more interested in cooking, anyway. And truth be told, I don’t really miss bread. I miss quick breads and cakes, but I don’t really miss bread-bread.

So, over at Gastroparesis and Gastronomy, MK posted a recipe for Fast, Fresh, Hot, Yeast- and Dairy-Free Squash Herb Bread.  It looked delicious, and the recipe she originally got it from mentioned it was made using a gluten-free flour mix. So, I tried it with one (Bette Hagman’s GF mix) and it didn’t turn out. It was toasty and hard in the middle, and sounded done when I thumped it, but it was realllly doughy in the middle.

Crunchy outside, doughy middle

After being mixed

Coming out of the oven

[Edit: Both times I made it, I ignored the advice to knead it. Gluten-free bread does not need to be kneaded (haha...). That's why there is no dusting of flour. Both times, I just used my hands to shape it (first time) and separate it into rolls (second time). I also just run cold water over the knife to make the cross.]

Fail. Did not work. Instead of just giving up, though, I wanted to see if I could get it to work, so I decided I would try using the same gluten-free mix, but split it up into little “rolls,” to see if they would bake faster. I disappeared from the blogosphere because I didn’t have time to try it out until tonight, but couldn’t get past it because it was bothering me. So, tonight, I ended up doing two things differently: 

I mixed it by hand (since my husband cleverly thought I might have over-mixed it…):

Mixed by hand

and I split it up into rolls (but then forgot to take a picture until they were in the oven…):

and then proceeded to bake them for approximately the 35 minutes suggested. Really, I just kept checking on them until they were about as browned as I wanted them to be on top:

Up close and personal

When they got out of the oven, I was eager to see how they worked, so I cut one open. It looked a little doughy, but worlds better than the last attempt. Then, I remembered my friend Frieda (who loves bread) told me that sometimes breads like this continue to bake while they’re cooling, and it’s important to let them. So, I did my best to be patient, and then took a peek. 

They look doughy, but surprisingly, they’re done. Mostly. I haven’t decided yet if they’re still a little doughy, or if they’re just soft and moist. They definitely bounce back when I touch them. So, I’m going to label this a success. Also, they taste really good. I especially love the herbs.

So, they’re gluten-free, yeast-free, vegan, low-fat and delicious. Hooray! Maybe next time I’ll try using Bette Hagman’s french bread mix and see if that’s closer to the texture I was expecting.

Even if you don’t have to eat gluten-free, try these. You won’t be sorry.