The Best Gluten Substitutes

So you want to go gluten free? This doesn’t mean you can never have bread again! There are lots of great substitutes, and lots of not so great substitutes. Thanks to my own experiments and adventures in gluten free food, I’ve tried lots of them and the following are my highlights of the best and worst gluten free products.

Gluten Free Baking Flours

If you’ve ever tried just subbing in rice flour and had a baking fail, don’t be discouraged. Every alternative baking flour has unique properties, strengths and weaknesses. There are actually lots of options when a recipe calls for flour – you just have to know what’s out there.

Use this handy chart from glutenfreeandmore as a guide to gluten-free flour mixes for all your baking.

If you can’t tolerate a certain flour or you’ve run out, find another flour in the same column (not row) and use it as a substitute. While not identical, the flours in each column have comparable baking characteristics and serve a similar function in building the structure in a particular recipe. Here are two blends you’ll want to keep on hand:

All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour Blend

Use this blend for all your gluten-free
baking.
1/2 cup rice flour
1/4 cup tapioca starch/flour
1/4 cup cornstarch or potato starch

Each cup contains 436 calories, 1g total fat,
0g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 0mg cholesterol,
99g carbohydrate, 3mg sodium, 2g fiber, 5g protein

Self-Rising Gluten-Free Flour Blend

Use this blend for muffins, scones, cakes,
cupcakes or any recipe that uses baking
powder for leavening.
1 1/4 cups white sorghum flour
1 1/4 cups white rice flour
1/2 cup tapioca starch/flour
2 teaspoons xanthan or guar gum
4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Each cup contains 514 calories, 3g total fat, 0g
saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 0mg cholesterol, 113g
carbohydrate, 1163mg sodium, 8g fiber, 10g protein.

Gluten Free Pizza

This one is a biggie and one of the things most Americans would be the saddest to give up with their glutens. Food markets have caught on though and there are lots of options now if you know where to look!

Domino’s Pizza has a gluten free crust option and you needn’t give up your frozen pizza nights either. Amy’s, Freschetta, Kashi, and Udi’s all make a pretty darn tasty gluten free frozen pizza. Others I’ve tried range from cardboardy to okay, so I stick with these.

Gluten Free Crackers

You can get some really tasty gluten free crackers now in mainstream grocery stores. Glutens are what makes bread puffy and soft, and since crackers are preferred flat and crunchy, just about any nut based or rice flour cracker is going to meet your cracker needs.

Gluten Free Cookies

If you’re looking to bake your own, check out these traditional recipes that are already gluten-free. If you want to buy some pre-made at the store though, look carefully at the ingredients lists, as food manufacturers use gluten in lots of things other than flour.

Top store bought GF favorites are:

 Trader Joe’s Crispy Crunchy Chocolate Chip Cookies

 Lucy’s Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies (and many others I haven’t tried)

Lucy’s has quite the variety and you can get them on Amazon or in many grocery stores.

More Gluten Free Yumminess

If you want plenty of interesting recipes, my go-to website for consistently good gluten free cooking is gluten free goddess

Bon appetit!

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