Gluten Free Honey and Oat Bread

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Brown Bread

I suppose most of my readers know by now that I like to use oats.  I put oats in my meatloaf, I use them to bread my chicken.  My cholesterol runs high so that is something I have just gotten used to since pre Celiac Diagnosis.  Oats are the first thing they tell you to add to your diet for good health. So I guess its no big surprise that I eventually put it in my bread. 

The bread I use most of the time is my Udi's copycat recipe. The copycat recipe looks and has the softness of a Wonder bread type product which my children love.  It is also a wonderful transition bread for those newly diagnosed because it most closely resembles the bread folks knew while eating gluten.  But as timie goes along, some of us may long for that brown bread back.  I used to be a whole wheat bread eater.  Not the dense coarse type, regular bread only brown.  I started with the Udi's copycat recipe I currently use, I toyed with it to create a gluten free Brown Bread.  I started with that recipe in its entirety and then halfed it and chaged the half ingredients up.  I dare not call it Whole Grain....LOL.  It does has some grain and fiber, but it still has plenty of starches.

Want to know a secret?  I used only egg whites in the first place becuase the yolk would make the bread look off color. Upon initial diagnosis with my daughter I was looking for "white" bread not yellow, cream or brownish bread.  That just reminded her that what she was eating was "diffrerent". Now if you ask her, she will gladly tell you...."Mommy makes the best bread ever". (Awh shucks)!  SOoooo........I am using the whole egg in this recipe as well. I switched one of the eggs and replaced it with flax meal.  The very first gluten free mommy I spoke to told me once to add flax to everything, it could not hurt.  At the time I had no idea what she was talking about nor why she would say this.  NOW (of course) I do.  ;-)

The taste and texture is so nice and soft.  The bread has a bit of chewyness but not too much.The honey gives it a lovely sweetness to offset the oats.  This is a very nice and enjoyable bread that gives you a warm comfortable feeling in your belly.  You can put your mind is at ease knowing that there is lots of good stuff in this bread.

Pictured here is a dinner roll ripped in half

1 cup Warm Boiled Water (110 degrees)
1/4 cup Honey
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon Yeast
1 Tablespoon Milled Flax Seed
3 Tablespoons Water
1/4 cup Oil
2 Whole Eggs
1 teaspoon Vinegar
2 cups Gluten Free Flour Blend
1 cup Quick Cooking Oats (pureed to a rough flour, see picture)
2 1/2 teaspoons Xanthan Gum
1-1/2 teaspoons Salt
1-1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder

Spray 9 x 5 baking pan with oil
Preheat oven to 170 degrees and turn oven off.

• Place water on your stove to Boil.
• Take a 2 cup capacity measuring cup and add One cup of warm tap water (cooled to almost exactly 110 degrees, you will need your thermometor for this).
• Add  honey and stir to dissolve.  This will help cool the water a bit.
• Add yeast, stir to dissolve and set aside to allow the foam to develop on top.
• Meanwhile Add Milled Flax and 3 Tablespoons of water in a small bowl.  Stir to fully combine and set aside. 
• Add Oil, vinegar and Eggs to mixing bowl with whip attachment and mix until fully combined.
• Add flax/water, yeast/hone/waterr mixture, flour, oats, gum, salt, baking powder in mixer bowl and whip for 3 to 4 minutes.   
• Place in an oiled 9 x 5 (standard meatloaf sized) baking pan.
• Place in oven that was previously preheated to 170 degrees to rise.
• Alow to rise for 35 to 45 minutes.  Bread when ready to bake will be about 1/2 to 3/4's inch over the top of the of the bread pan.
• While pan is still in oven, turn oven on to 350 degrees. 
• Set timer for 1 hour. 
• After baking, take bread immediately out of the pan and onto a cooling rack to cool.
• Once bread reaches room temperature, slice and enjoy!

Pureed Oats before adding to bread