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GLUTEN FLOUR SUBSTITUTES
There are many different flours nowadays that can substitute wheat. None of them has the elasticity characteristic of wheat, so you will need to add gums or gelatine or psyllium husk to recreate the same effect:
Dove’s plain white flour is a blend of rice, tapioca and potato flour with xanthan gum.
Dove’s self-raising flour is like the plain flour but with baking powder
Rice flour is the main flour used in most of the blends, however it can be a bit
Teff flour is an Ethiopian grain, containing good quality protein. It tastes nutty and sweet.
Potato flour is a light flour, used often as a thickener and also good to hold moisture in baked products.
Gram (or chickpea) flour is heavy but really tasty. it needs blending with other flours.
Sorghum (jowar) flour is very similar to wholewheat flour, but slightly bitter in taste, so it needs to be blended with other flours. Either buy this one or Buckwheat flour to give wholewheat effect.
Tapioca flour is very light and adds a chewy texture to bread.
Buckwheat flour is quite dark, so good for wholemeal effect and nutty in flavour. Very versatile flour and you can also make pasta or pancakes with it. You need to buy the gluten free version as it is often contaminated otherwise.
Oat flour is very similar to wholewheat again and also has the same texture as wholewheat flour with rusk in it, so perfect for biscuits like digestives or in scones.
Ground Almonds is a gluten free and carbohydrate free flour, very good for moistening the texture of cakes. It is quite heavy so it often needs to be mixed with other flours. Nutty but quite bland in flavour. I use it a lot.
Coconut flour is high in fibre, protein and good fats and low in carbohydrates, so it ideal for those of you who wish to cut down on carbs or on a paleo diet.
In my cupboard I always have Dove’s farm self-raising and plain white flour , rice flour and buckwheat flour. These flours cover all the main recipes I make, but then I also keep the tapioca flour as a thickener and to moisten certain doughs and oats flour for biscuits and scones as it is very similar to wholewheat flour.
GLUTEN SUBSTITUTE
Because the above flours do not contain gluten, they also lack the elasticity of wheat and therefore you need to add that in the form of gums or gelling fibre:
Guar gum is made from fermented mushrooms. It is used if xanthan gum causes you problems.
Xanthan gum is made from fermented beans and therefore can sometimes cause bloating, however I never experienced this problem. It is widely available in supermarkets.
GELLING AGENTS
In some recipes you will need to using extra gelling agents to bind the recipe together. The more common ones are:
Psyllium Husk is an undigestible fibre that when mixed with water it becomes like a jelly. It is often used to gently move the bowels in the intestines, to control appetite and to control blood sugar level. In recipes it is used to bind.
Milled flaxseeds or linseeds are very high in Omega 3 fatty acid, they lower cholesterol and they are high in finer and low in carbohydrates. Make sure you get the milled ones because as whole they will just go through your digestive system. You can also sprinkle them on your yoghurt or porridge in the morning. Best kept in the freezer as they can go stale easily.
Agar agar is a vegetable based gelatine that I use instead of animal based gelatine. You will need this product if you intend to make mousse, bavarois and jelly and you don’t want to use animal gelatine.
Gelatine leaves are made of either pork or fish. This is the pork based gelatine and here is the fish based gelatine
SUGAR SUBSTITUTE
Some recipes I have seen on healthy food blogs & recipes use maple or agave syrup. Both these syrups, similar to other natural sources of sugar like honey , still contain high levels of fructose and therefore will act and will be metabolized in the body like sugar. So here are the best sugar substitutes you can use in recipes that do not affect your blood sugar levels:
- Xylitol– used as sugar substitute for diabetes, in medicine to treat middle ear infection and to prevent tooth decay, although recently there is a debate on tooth decay prevention studies results.
- Stevia– is extracted from the leaves of stevia rebaudiana and found to lower blood sugar levels in diabetics and to reduce high blood pressure
- Yacon Syrup–it is a tuber like sweet potato. Long-term consumption produced beneficial health effects on obese pre-menopausal women with insulin resistance. It benefits gut health and has a prebiotic effect, and it may also have a minor appetite suppressing effect in the obese. However it is very expensive.
- Brown Rice Syrup– it has high glycemic index (higher than sugar) and it contains traces of arsenic, although it is fructose free
- Erythritol– After much toxicology and clinical studies, erythritol has been found to be safe for consumption as a sugar substitute, it is fermented corn, heat stable, non-caloric, non-glycemic and anti-oxidant. However some studies in rats found it to be carcinogenic.
Now in my opinion of baker, xylitol and erythritol are the more similar substitute to sugar, while stevia is super sweet and has a similar after taste as sweeteners. However I normally use stevia to sweeten dairy based cakes like cheesecakes or whipped cream as I find that you do not taste the aftertaste there. Both products are expensive, but you need very small amounts. You can find both xylitol and stevia in all the major supermarkets as well as health food shops. The Hyperlinks will also give you Amazon deals, which are cheaper than the supermarket prices.
I have tried Yacon Syrup and brown rice syrup and they are both a good substitute for when there are molasses in a recipe (like ginger bread biscuits) or for binding the ingredients together like in biscuits or icing. The syrups are not a good substitute for recipes that involve the ‘buttering’ method (when you whip butter with sugar) for many cake recipes.
The sugar substitute I use all the times are xylitol and stevia, sometimes brown rice syrup if the recipe has a molasses in it.
OTHER INGREDIENTS YOU WILL NEED
Oats are used for flapjack and for porridges. We eat porridge a lot in the morning, so it is a must in our household. Make sure you buy the gluten free ones as they are very often contaminated otherwise.
Maize flour is cornmeal
Gluten free baking powder will be used in a lot of recipes to leaven the cakes or bread. Make sure you buy the gluten free version.
Gluten free bicarbonate of soda is another raising agent, mostly used to make soda bread or scones. It is also often used in combination with an acidic substance like vinegar and lemon juice or buttermilk to raise the cake and bread even further.
Raw Chocolate powder is the 100% one, with no added sugar or chocolate mass which is full of fats. This is very bitter, so you need to get used to it, but all chocolate based recipes are made with this cocoa powder.
Dark Chocolate is also used to make ganache, chocolate toppings or brownies. If you use 60% chocolate you will add 44gr of sugar, 70% chocolate you will add 26gr of sugar every 100gr, with 80% dark chocolate you will add 21gr sugar per 100gr and with 90% dark chocolate you will add 7gr of sugar per 100gr. The products above are gluten free and the best price per kg, although it comes in 2.5kg bags, but they keep very well for a long time. I now use 90% dark chocolate, but I would suggest to start with 70% and work your way up, as it needs getting used to the bitterness. Also chocolate drops at 70%
Coconut oil is your best dairy free substitute for butter in recipes. It is very versatile and it can also be used for other purposes like as a mouthwash if you suffer from gingivitis. A must in your cupboard, without a doubt.
Coconut milk tinned is often used to replace dairy cream and to make curries, mousse and yoghurt. You can also buy the LIGHT one, with less fat. I often use Grace coconut milk as it is very silky and creamy.
Nut butters are another dairy substitute, although they are very high in calories. I don’t use them very often as my body can only tolerate a small amount of nuts, but you can substitute the oil/butter content in the recipes with your favourite nut butter: peanut butter, almond butter, cashew butter, sunflower seed butter, tahini/sesame seed butter, walnut butter and mixed nut butter.
Sunflower Oil is widely used in gluten free and dairy free recipes, so stock up on it.
Organic extra virgin olive oil is used a lot to make sauces, to cook with and to make various types of breads.
Spices like ground ginger, nutmeg, cajun spice, jerk seasoning, mixed herb spices, garam masala, coriander, himalayan sea salt, celery salt, ground cumin, cardamom seeds, vanilla pods, saffron, smoked paprika, oregano, berbere spice, sage, caraway seeds, cinnamon, all spice, sage, ground ginger, turmeric, fennel seeds, vanilla essence,
Dried fruits like: sultanas, dates, figs, prunes, goji berries, cranberries, desiccated coconut. Nuts like: walnuts, hazelnuts, almonds, peanuts, cashew nuts, pinenuts, black olives, instant coffee,
Organic products like cannellini beans, chickpeas, gluten free pasta, capers, sundried tomatoes, green split peas, stock cubes, brown risotto rice, brown rice vermicelli, tamari sauce, rice vinegar, tofu, balsamic vinegar, short grain brown rice, red kidney beans, green lentils, passata, savoiardi, apple cider vinegar, honey, gluten free puffed rice, vegetable gluten free suet, rice vermicelli, organic chopped tomatoes,
Nutritional yeast is used a lot in vegan recipes to provide extra vitamin B12. I tend to add it when I make cashew cream based spreads, as it tastes more cheesey.
DAIRY SUBSTITUTES
Milk, cheese, yoghurt and cream can be replaced as following and can be found easily at your local supermarket:
- Dairy milk with almond milk, hazelnut milk, coconut milk, rice milk or soya milk
- Hard cheese with tofu or bean curd for sauces
- Soft cheeses with hummus
- Dairy yoghurt with soya or coconut yoghurt
- Crème fraiche, fromage frais and cream with coconut or soya cream
- Butter and margarines containing dairy with soya spreads, coconut oil, hummus, peanut or other nut or seed butter
- Dairy ice cream with soya, coconut or other dairy-free types ice cream
- Milk chocolate with dark chocolate
EQUIPMENT
1lb loaf tin for making breads and cakes. I use this steel one as made of steel. Make sure you oil it well.
34 x 24cm rectangular baking tray are used to make larger cakes that you normally cut in square pieces.
24 x 18cm rectangular tray are used to make small cakes, normally 6 portions.
Heat diffuser can be used to make any dish that requires low heat and long period of cooking, like ragu’, stews, broths and casseroles.
20cm/ 8″ round cake tin is used for 4-6 portion cakes. A must have in the kitchen.
Muffin trays for making party cakes, muffins and fish cakes. You will also need muffin cases for them.
Ravioli case moulds, to make ravioli. i use them very often and they look great!
Spiralizer for making zoodles, tagliatelle etc with courgettes, sweet potatoes, beetroots and butternut squash
Tongs to pile up that pasta on the plate
Sealable jars in sizes: 200ml