How to Make Gluten-Free French Bread

Craving bread on a gluten-free diet?
No need to settle for less than the best!
Learn to make your own gluten-free dairy-free french bread.

Have you tried making gluten-free breads before, and failed?

If so, you are not alone.

Baking bread without gluten can be very tricky. The batter has to have just the right consistency because gluten forms the essential structure that a loaf of bread needs to rise and maintain its shape.

Gluten helps to form air pockets, so yeast becomes trapped and keeps the bread light and moist. For that reason, a lot of gluten-free bread recipes fall flat on their faces -- literally.

At least, that has been my experience.

No matter how many different gluten-free bread mixes I tried, before I realized that I needed to avoid whole grains and fiber to heal, most of those loaves fell or caved in on the side as soon as I took them out of the oven.

But I don't give up easily.

For several years, I was bound and determined to make a loaf of GOOD gluten-free bread. Bread that came out looking like traditional bread. Bread that tasted like regular bread. And bread I wouldn't react to.

I'm happy to say that I finally succeeded.

I did have to change the direction I was coming from. I switched from trying to make a large loaf of full-sized whole-grain gluten-free sandwich bread to making a large loaf of soft and white French bread instead.

But the results were so astonishingly good that I want to share the recipe with you today, so you can learn how to make a decent loaf of gluten-free bread that your family will absolutely love.

For Celiacs, Bread is a Big Deal

For most families, bread is a big deal.

In our cultural environment, having to go without bread is not an option for people who are not paleo, low-carb, or grain-free. And that's how it's been for hubby and me.

In fact, when we first moved to the Orem, Utah area and there was lots of gluten-free products available there, hubby started craving gluten-free:

• breads
• crackers
• frozen pizza
• frozen waffles

And all sorts of gluten-free foods we couldn't get our hands on before.

While the slightly lower altitude did help me produce an acceptable loaf of French bread made from a Sun Flour Mills French Bread and Pizza mix, certified to contain up to 5 ppm of gluten, (no longer available), most gluten-free products on the market today have whole grains and fibers that are difficult to digest.

Plus, you can literally choke on the cost.

High Cost of Gluten-Free Bread Mixes

For a while, I tried a variety of gluten-free bread mixes available locally. Smith's grocery store, Harmon's grocery, and even our local Macy's offered a wide variety of gluten-free products and mixes. A few I tried were:

• Gluten Free Pantry French Bread Mix
• Sun Mills Gluten-Free French Bread & Pizza Mix
• Pamela's Gluten-Free Bread Mix

But I wasn't happy with the results, so I kept working on creating and perfecting my own recipe. 

I was desperate for an affordable gluten-free bread recipe that would work and taste as close to traditional homemade bread as possible. Spending $7 or $8 for a single loaf of bread wasn't practical.

Since hubby was in business for himself back then, I needed a homemade recipe that was easy on the budget, didn't fall before I took it out of the oven, and it was simple enough that I could use the same recipe in a variety of ways.

While I haven't succeeded with a basic gluten-free sandwich bread (still), I did find the secret of making terrific gluten-free French bread and rolls. Surprisingly, it wasn't really about the flour mix or how you measure the flours, as other gluten-free bloggers and websites told me it was.

Nope.

It was about the pan.

What Makes Gluten-Free French Bread Different?

Chicago Metallic Commercial II Nonstick French Bread Pan 
made a huge difference in the texture and look 
of the finished loaf of bread.

Traditionally, French bread is made with water instead of milk, so there's no milk substitutes to chase down for those who need their gluten-free bread to also be dairy free.

It's also more economical to make your gluten-free bread with water rather than milk. This loaf is much smaller than traditional sandwich bread, so structure is less important.

You bake the loaf in a special French bread pan, pictured above, which gives the bread its characteristic shape and crispy crust. In my experience, this French bread pan is essential.

For us, it is not optional.

Gluten-free versions of French bread won't hold their shape without a special form.

If you simply plop the dough down on a cookie sheet and smooth it out to look like a loaf of French bread, (what I used to do before going gluten free), it will spread sideways as it rises, rather than upward, and won't hold its shape.

If you plan on using the bread for a sub sandwich, you might be able to get away with that, but for a traditional loaf of French bread (if you want it to look like French bread), you'll want to make the investment of buying a French bread pan.

It's worth every penny I spent on mine.

With its non-stick dual coating, the pan is easy to clean and wash, without a lot of hassle. The bread never sticks, and only takes a moment to hand-wash after it cools down enough to handle. 

The pan is dishwasher safe, if that's important to you, but the company does recommend hand-washing to extend the life of the pan.

Its uniqueness is the perforated design that allows air to circulate freely, while the loaf bakes.

This particular pan is large enough to bake two loaves at once, but you can just bake one loaf or even smaller loaves if you like. Since there is just two of us, I always bake one loaf at a time.

I haven't tried to make small dinner-sized rolls with this recipe yet, because those would take extra flour and be much heavier, but I have made sub-sandwich rolls by using 1/3 to 1/2 of the batter for each -- they came out great!

Unlike the other gluten-free bread recipes I have tried, gluten-free French bread has never fallen on me.

Since French bread is only a few inches high, after baking, it doesn't have to stand up as tall as a loaf of sandwich bread would. The bread is quite forgiving, in that you can substitute honey or maple syrup for the sugar, and you don't have to weigh out your flours.

I simply use a measuring cup.

This recipe uses a variety of starches, but if you live at a higher altitude, you might want to use more tapioca and less potato or cornstarch. In my experience, tapioca starch retains the most moisture, allowing the bread to stay soft for 2 or 3 days.

Gluten-free dough is wetter and stickier than dough made with all-purpose flour, so the day's humidity won't affect the outcome of the bread either.

Since a French-bread pan is made to bake 2 loaves,
you can divide the recipe in half or thirds
to make smaller sandwich buns.

The best news is this:

It tastes exactly like traditional French bread. Dinner guests and family can't tell the difference. Guaranteed!

Gluten-Free French Bread

Makes 1 loaf, about 4 to 6 servings

Ingredients:

• 1 tablespoon active-dry yeast or instant yeast
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 1 teaspoon pure cane sugar
• 1 cup white-rice flour
• 1/2 cup tapioca flour
• 1/2 cup corn starch or potato starch
• 2 tablespoons pure cane sugar or honey
• 2 teaspoons xanthan gum (I use NOW Foods)
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 lightly-beaten egg
• 2 tablespoons oil
• 3/4 cup warm water

In a coffee mug or measuring cup, combine yeast, 1/4 cup warm water, and teaspoon of sugar. Stir well; set aside until it becomes nice and foamy.

If you're using instant yeast, you can just add the yeast to the dry ingredients and the warm water to the wet ingredients without proofing the yeast ahead of time if you want to.

In the bowl of a heavy stand mixer, combine rice flour, tapioca, corn starch, xanthan gum, and salt. With the beater paddle of your stand mixer (don't use the dough hook because it won't knead properly), lightly stir the ingredients together.

I usually do this at medium speed while I'm whisking together the rest of the ingredients.

In a small bowl, lightly whip the egg with a wire whip. Add the oil and very warm water. The water can be a bit warmer than usual because the cold egg will cool it right down. You want the mixture to still be warm after beating in the egg and oil. If it's not, the bread will take much longer to rise.

Add the foamy yeast and stir just enough to combine everything.

With the stand mixer running on medium speed, dump the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Turn the mixing speed up to medium-high and allow the mixer to kneed and beat the dough for 3 minutes.

I usually allow the mixer to run while I'm preparing the pan.

Although the manufacturer says the pan is non-stick, I have never put that to the test. I've always given it a light spray of non-stick cooking spray. I do this over the sink, but you could place the pan on top of a large cookie sheet if you'd rather do it that way. You only need to spray the side of the pan you're going to use.

(NOTE: Don't use "baking" spray, as it contains wheat flour. Baking spray is not gluten free!) 

Carefully scoop the dough out onto the side of the pan that you sprayed, directly down the middle, using globs of dough close together, to form a long line like shown below.

With a knife, smooth the dough together, the best you can, forming it into a traditional-looking French bread shape.

Don't flatten the dough too much, unless you intend on making sub-sandwiches out of it. The flatter the dough is, the flatter the bread will be.

Lay a piece of plastic wrap over the top of the pan, and set it in a warm place to raise for a couple of hours.

I used to have a sliding glass door that led out into the back yard, which let in the perfect amount of sunshine and warmth on a sunny day. Now, I just stick the pan in a warm place, but a window sill also works well.

During the winter, I usually heat the oven for a couple of minutes at 200 degrees, turn the oven off, and then set the loaf in the oven to rise. If your house is warm, you can just leave the bread sitting on the counter.

Once the dough has risen, preheat your oven to 350 degrees. 

Bake the bread by setting the French bread pan directly onto your oven rack, without the cookie sheet underneath it, for about 30 minutes.

Be careful not to over bake it, as the loaf is much smaller than a traditional French bread and will bake more quickly. Allow it to cool on the pan for 5 minutes before removing.

We like a soft crust, so I used to immediately roll the loaf in plastic wrap. The plastic will cause the loaf to steam a little more and allow the crust to soften up, but at sea level here in Texas, this prevents the loaf from cooking all the way through. 

It's better if I let it cool for 10 to 15 minutes before wrapping it up.

I realize that a lot of people like crusty French bread, so directions for doing that are below. Let the bread cool inside the plastic wrapping before cutting. That will give you a soft crust. 

For an attractive look, you can slice the bread on the diagonal like I did in the photo above the recipe. You can also cut the loaf into 4 pieces, and then slice each piece horizontally for mini sandwiches, garlic bread, or French-bread pizza.

Gluten-Free Crusty French Bread

If you like your French bread crusty, you need to set a pan of water into the oven just below the rack where you're baking your bread. That will humidify your oven and give you a nice crust.

You'll also want to bake the bread for an extra 5 minutes, and then let it cool on a rack without wrapping it in plastic.

The bread will be quite difficult to cut if it's too hot, so allow it to cool slightly first. Then use a serrated bread knife to slice it into serving pieces.

Storing Gluten-Free French Bread - Options for Leftovers

This gluten-free dairy-free French bread recipe is wonderful the day I make it. By the following day, it will have begun to dry out since it has no preservatives in it like it would with a gluten-free bread mix, but it will still be soft enough to eat without toasting.

It's best if you wrap it in foil and reheat it in the oven at 350 degrees for about 10 or 15 minutes.

I tried to freeze it directly out of the oven, as that seems to be the typical recommendation within gluten-free circles these days. Just after it had cooled enough to handle, I wrapped the loaf in plastic and then dropped it inside a large zip-lock freezer bag to help it retain moisture, but that didn't make any difference.

Once thawed, the bread was exactly the same as if I'd left it on the counter overnight, so I didn't see the point of doing that.

I now simply reheat it in the oven and it softens right up!

If you have a medium-sized family or larger, need a welcomed pot-luck item to take with you for a social event or family gathering, keeping gluten-free French bread soft and moist won't be a problem if you make the bread the same day as the event.

If you have a small family or are not big bread eaters, you still have a couple of options for the leftovers.

One option is to use the French bread fresh the day you make it and then plan to use the dryer leftovers the next day for garlic bread or a toasty cheese sandwich. Even a gluten-free French bread pizza would be an excellent way to use up day-old bread. Normally, we make garlic bread or French toast for breakfast.

You can also use day-old gluten-free bread for:

• stuffing cubes
• crushed fine bread crumbs
• a tasty bread pudding
• French toast

If you freeze the leftovers the day you bake it, you could then use it later on for any of the above ideas.