Yeah, for me she’s like a rock star, but in a gluten free baker, cookbook author, food manufacturer consultant extraordinaire sort of way.  She is the author I always recommend when people ask me what gluten free cookbook to get because her recipes work, are tasty,  and she usually has alternative ingredients if you have other allergies or intolerances.  And she couldn’t be a nicer person.  I was so pleased to meet her.

At the Gluten Free Culinary Summit, Carol Fenster shared a great recipe from her new cookbook 1,000 Gluten-free Recipes. It is the gluten free twist on the no-kneed five day bread that has been all over the recipe boards credited to professional baker Jim Lahey.  It makes a bread that uses an extended fermentation, making a bread with a nice slight sour dough type of flavor and a good texture.  Also, the bread can sit in your fridge for up to five days allowing you to bake off the bread as you need it.  You can bet I am going to have fun experimenting with this recipe!

You can get this fab recipe and 999 others in Carol Fenster’s new book 1,000 Gluten-free Recipes.  I gotta tell you, back when we first started being gluten and dairy free, if it wasn’t for her pizza crust recipe, I don’t know what we would have done.  Also, all of her substitutions (tips on how to do things, egg, dairy, etc. free)  helped me feel much more confident when I was ready to branch out in experimenting with gluten free baking on my own.  Thanks, Carol!

Carol very kindly gave me permission to share with you a table she made on how she thinks about blending flour blends.  I find this very informative and I am sure this will be a great asset to my baking experimentation.  She says, “My formula for flour blends is part art and part science, developed over nearly 20 years of gluten-free baking.”   



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A formula for blending flours to maximize their performance traits:


High-protein, mild-flavor flour gives structure/stability to baked goods – 30 to 40%

Starch-based flour (potato starch or cornstarch) lightens/softens crumb –30 to 40%

Tapioca flour provides mouth-feel, crispier crusts, and better browning – 30 to 40%

  1.     Additional, complementary flours for fiber/nutrition/taste (optional) – 10 to 15%


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Carol Fenster’s new cookbook:

(Shameless plug from me, because I love it so much:)

You are going to want this one!  It’s the Joy of Cooking for the gluten free world.  This cookbook is HUGE!

Some things I can’t wait to try:

    Mesquite Flour Apple Muffins

    Chocolate Latte Muffins

    Arepas

    Kolaches

    Soft Pretzels

    Teff-Corn Polenta

    Mexican Chocolate Layer Cake with Cinnamon Frosting

           ….mmmmmm….

Thank you, Carol, so much for sharing this information with us.  I appreciate all you do for the gluten free community!

If you would like to contact or learn more about Carol Fenster, please check out her website at savorypalate.com.