I know there's an awful lot of perfectly good GF bread recipes out there in the world already, but I wanted one that fit the following criteria:
- Has a flavor
- Isn't gummy
- Doesn't fall apart if you look at it the wrong way
- Is made predominantly of whole grains rather than starches
- Doesn't require a proprietary store-bought blend of flours
- Doesn't require a homemade flour blend that needs to be mixed in bulk in advance
- Quick and easy enough to prepare on a weeknight, and/or multiple weeknights in a row, viz.
- Doesn't require an electric mixer
- Gets very few dishes and measuring cups dirty
In addition, it's egg-free, gum-free, and can be made vegan. I don't have a problem eating eggs, gum, or dairy, but raw eggs in dough can potentially get a bit dodgy if you're letting sourdough rise for 8-12 hours, and gums require lots of electrified mixing in order to be effective.
The result is denser than store-bought bread, but not Dwarf-bread dense, and full of whole-grain flavor that goes equally well with sweet or savory accompaniments. For the first 48 hours or so, it's sturdy and flexible enough to slice for sandwiches. After that, it starts to crack more easily, but is still nice when toasted and slathered with butter, or eaten with soup.
