Giselle's Bread

For many people with allergies, the concept of developing more allergic responses is a growing concern. Many people start out with a response to one or two, maybe three or four foods, and before they know it, dependence on one food as a replacer for another leads to a positive test response for the replacement as well. Quite often this is true of soy, corn, rice, legumes and, unfortunately, eggs.

Why unfortunately? For many reasons. Eggs are an ideal binder. When making gluten-free breads, binders become exceedingly important and eggs serve the purpose very nicely. Take the egg away and the bread is often so crumbly it is not worth it to even bake it.

So, what to do if egg is now out of your dietary regime?

Eggs can be replaced with a number of alternatives. For example, if you want to have a nice plate of scrambled eggs of a morning, a soft tofu (providing you don’t have a problem with soy) will suffice quite nicely. This is especially true if you take to seasoning them to taste with a little dill, basil and paprika.

For baking purposes, the choices is a little difficult. Soy will work in some circumstances and the same soft tofu can be used in a rice pudding, a meatloaf or some cookies and muffins. Bread, however, does not seem to do as well with the water content in the tofu.

In those instances, a gel made from flaxseed works admirably. Vegans often use this alternative and while it takes time it does seem to work out nicely, as well as having the added benefit of sneaking in a little fibre in the from of the flax seeds.

By far my most favourite, and the least work intensive solution that I have found so far, is Agar Agar. Usually available in a dried format, this seaweed product comes in several forms and is often used in kosher diets because, unlike gelatin, it contains no pork products. My favourite form of Agar Agar is a elongated cube about one foot in length.

Recently, I published an article containing variations on something called Noah’s Bread. These choices all contained eggs. To honour an acquaintance who is a Celiac’s but is also unable to tolerate dairy and eggs, I experimented a little more and came up with this new variation on that same bread.

For Giselle

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups tapioca starch
2 cups sweet rice flour, chana flour or other GF flour mix of choice
1 cup corn starch
3 tblsp gfcf baking powder
1 1/2 tsp sea salt
1-2 tblsp GF vinegar or lemon juice
Agar Agar solution (see instructions below)
1 cup warm water
1 cup vegetable oil
1 cup Perrier or other sparkling water

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Be sure to set your rack so that the pans are not on the level closest to the element.
Break off a two - 3 in piece of agar agar and place it in 1/2 cup warm water. When the agar starts to soften, break it up with your fingers and then allow it to soak in the water for 10 - 15 minutes.
Stir. The dried product will have softened and rehydrated, but will not have dissolved entirely.
Mix the dry ingredients together, being sure to sift the flour. GF flours have a tendency to absorb moisture and to compact. Sifting allows them to be lightened and to have air injected between the particles.
Blend the liquid ingredients together, except for the sparkling water. Now pour in the agar solution and blend slightly with a spoon or whisk. The eggs do not have to be whipped, only lightly beaten.
Mix the liquid ingredients with the dry. Until you add the Perrier, the mix will seem quiet thick and clumpy, like a cookie batter. Once this is blended, add in the Perrier. This will cause the mix to bubble and hiss. And as Martha says, that’s a good thing. It indicates that your baking soda is active. Remember elementary school experiments in science. Yep, baking soda and vinegar make a lovely volcano.
Once you have stirred these ingredients all together, your batter should resemble a thick cake batter. Pour this into a prepared loaf pan and bake in the oven for 40 - 50 minutes for the loaf pan and 20 - 25 minutes for the muffins. When the loaf is cooked, a tap on the top of the loaf will produce a hollow sound. A toothpick inserted into the muffins will come out clean.
Remove the loaf and allow it to cool for at least a half hour before slicing it. If you are not going to use the loaf in the next couple of days, slice it and freeze it in portion according to your needs. Keep it in the refrigerator will cause it to go stale more quickly.