We have been on the gluten-free journey for seven years now. There was learning curve fraught with tears and desperation. Then came the trial and error of buying almost every box and bag of all the different brands. Followed by the economic reality of not being able to buy prepared baked goods all the time. So we started trying out all the different mixes available.
Up until last month, my favorite brand has been the 1-2-3 Gluten-Free line. We never went wrong with any of their boxes. And then on a whim because it was there, I bought a bag of Bob’s Red Mill Gluten Free 1-to-1 Baking Flour. It is a little pricier than other gluten-free flour…but I thought what the heck – if it works, then it’s worth it.
Seriously – Life Changing. It Is Worth It!!
We started by making some scones with it when our kiddos had to stop eating anything with yeast in it. YUM!
(Not to *crush* or anything…but…Bob’s Red Mill complimented us on these scones in the comments!!)
And then we made some basic rolls for Christmas that were A.Ma.Zing. We were making them every day for a while, and we just enjoyed them for dinner again last night. YUM.
The “icing on the cake”? I followed a recipe in a cookbook (we-ell…kind of…more on that below) and they turned out B-E-A-Utifully!! After seven years of decent cupcakes…I now have FLUFFY CUPCAKES!!! Life-changing, really, when you love to bake from scratch and not a box.
So here is what we made using THIS recipe from Weelicious as a starting point.
Our modifications:
We substituted bananas in the batter because we didn’t have any beets in the house (or so I thought – just found one in the tortilla drawer of all places!)
Since one of our kiddos is allergic to cane sugar, we use THE ULTIMATE SWEETENER® made from birch.
Instead of using beets to color the frosting, we used frozen cherries.
Note on using fruit juice as a coloring agent …It always comes out lighter than I imagine when I’m juicing the fruit. We had the same challenge when we used raspberries in THIS cupcake recipe this summer. Try using more than you think you need – probably twice as much.
Next time I make frosting, I will use the fruit juice before adding the milk as I blend the ingredients; and then add milk as needed for a smoother consistency.
I hope you have as much baking with this flour as I do…literally a whole new world of recipes has opened up to us because now I am not limited by any boxes!! I will definitely be trying the allergen-free I recipe I used this summer again with this flour so we can bring some rockin’ gluten-free treats for a tea-party we are attending on Sunday.
Huge thank you to Bob’s Red Mill. I imagine they have some idea of how grateful a family like ours is to be able to bake from scratch again, or they wouldn’t have invested in the time and the energy to bring this product to market.