Blogger Becky from Gluten Free Cuppa Tea shows us that baking without gluten doesn't have to be scary

<p>If you&rsquo;re new to the world of gluten-free baking, then you&rsquo;ve come to the right place.</p><p>Becky from <a href="http://glutenfreecuppatea.co.uk/" target="_blank">Gluten Free Cuppa Tea</a> started her blog 4 years ago and hasn't looked back since. She's drawn from her experience to bring you 7 crucial tips that all gluten-free bakers need to know.</p><p>"Baking has always been my passion and I refuse to let a little gluten stand in the way of that," Becky told us. "There&rsquo;s no reason that baking gluten-free can&rsquo;t be the same, if not better than baking with gluten. Follow these 7 tips and I promise that you&rsquo;ll be gluten-free star baker in no time!"</p><h2>1. Gluten-free flour power</h2><p>Before you rule out flour from all of your future bakes, you might want to head to your local Asda&rsquo;s Free From aisle. There you&rsquo;ll find <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cooking-ingredients-sauces/asda-free-from-gluten-free-plain-flour/910000399829" target="_blank">gluten-free plain</a> and <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cooking-ingredients-sauces/asda-gluten-free-self-raising-flour/910000399918" target="_blank">self-raising flour</a>. Unlike traditional flour with gluten, these gluten-free flours are blends of lots of different flours and starches.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><img alt="flour-power" class="ci-image ci-original" src="https://ui3.assets-asda.com/dm/flour-power_GL?scl=1"></p><p>This blend of different flours and starches is a delicate harmony which help compensate for the lack of gluten and elasticity found in traditional flour. The Asda gluten-free flour is a blend of rice flour, potato starch, tapioca starch, maize flour and buckwheat flour. A winning combo!</p><h2>2. Xanthan Gum</h2><p><a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/chewing-gum/doves-free-from-gluten-xanthan-gum/910002668735" target="_blank">Xanthan gum </a>(pronounced ‘zanthan&rsquo;) is every gluten-free baker&rsquo;s secret ingredient. Without getting all scientific on you, it&rsquo;s simply used as a substitute for gluten in baking. As you might know, the proteins found in gluten give any bake a welcome elasticity and a slightly chewy texture.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/chewing-gum/doves-free-from-gluten-xanthan-gum/910002668735" target="_blank"><img alt="gum" class="ci-image ci-original" src="https://ui3.assets-asda.com/dm/gum_GL?scl=1"></a></p><p>Without gluten, you can be left with a crumbly texture that doesn&rsquo;t hold together &ndash; that&rsquo;s where <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/chewing-gum/doves-free-from-gluten-xanthan-gum/910002668735" target="_blank">Xanthan gum </a>comes in. Adding a very small amount of this comes in handy when you&rsquo;re baking cakes, but especially with biscuits or other more dense bakes.</p><h2>3. Always be wary of decorations and sprinkles</h2><p>When I used to bake with my Mum as a kid, decorating used to be my favourite part (apart from eating them of course). We&rsquo;d layer on tons of sprinkles, decorations and have great fun doing so. But if you&rsquo;re baking gluten-free, make sure you always, always read the labels of cake decorations first. Most cake decorations, such as hundreds and thousands (and most sprinkles in general) contain wheat starch.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cakes-sweet-treats/asda-free-from-choc-orange-buttons/910000400730" target="_blank"><img alt="choc-orange-buttons" class="ci-image ci-original" src="https://ui3.assets-asda.com/dm/choc-orange-buttons_GL?scl=1"></a></p><p>Why not try using free from <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cakes-sweet-treats/asda-free-from-choc-orange-buttons/910000400730" target="_blank">chocolate buttons </a>from the free from aisle instead?</p><h2>4. Use gluten-free cereal where needed</h2><p>If you&rsquo;re making my fave rice crispy or corn flake cakes, do make sure you pick up the gluten-free version of those cereals from the free from aisle.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><img alt="cereal" class="ci-image ci-original" src="https://ui3.assets-asda.com/dm/cereal_GL?scl=1"></p><p>Most traditional cereal brands of <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cereal-snack-bars/asda-free-from-corn-flakes/910001031812" target="_blank">cornflakes</a> or rice crispies will contain barley or barley-malt extract. Those are a big no for a gluten-free diet. Fortunately, you can pick up <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cereal-snack-bars/asda-free-from-corn-flakes/910001031812" target="_blank">free-from cornflakes</a> and <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cereal-snack-bars/asda-free-from-choco-snaps/910002333234" target="_blank">free-from choco snaps</a> which are totally safe and work perfectly in baking.</p><h2>5. Always use gluten-free oats</h2><p>If you&rsquo;re baking flapjacks or anything that calls for oats, make sure you use the <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cereal-snack-bars/asda-free-from-pure-porridge-oats/910000404570" target="_blank">gluten-free</a> version too. This can be a little confusing at first as oats don&rsquo;t actually contain any gluten to start with. People then often ask: why do we even need gluten-free oats to start with?</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cereal-snack-bars/asda-free-from-pure-porridge-oats/910000404570"><img alt="Free from porridge oats" class="ci-image ci-original" src="https://ui3.assets-asda.com/dm/gluten-free-porridge_GL?scl=1"></a></p><p>Well, non-contaminated, pure oats are actually gluten free but the problem comes with cross-contamination. Most commercial oats are processed in facilities which also handle wheat, barley and rye. This cross-contamination means that you&rsquo;re much better off using <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cereal-snack-bars/asda-free-from-pure-porridge-oats/910000404570" target="_blank">gluten-free oats</a> from the free from aisle.</p><h2>6. Try a pastry mix before you take on gluten-free pastry</h2><p>Pastry is one of the trickiest tasks when it comes to gluten-free baking. Thanks to the lack of elasticity provided by gluten, gluten-free pastry often struggles to bind together. Of course, a lovely shortcrust pastry is a little crumbly by nature too, so I&rsquo;m sure you can imagine what it&rsquo;s like without gluten… a crumbly mess!</p><p>That&rsquo;s why I&rsquo;d recommend you start off with a <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cooking-ingredients-sauces/asda-free-from-pastry-mix/910002336198" target="_blank">free from pastry mix</a> at first, so you know how the dough feels when it works. There&rsquo;s nothing worse than blaming yourself for a failed bake, when what you should probably blame is a lack of gluten!</p><p style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cooking-ingredients-sauces/asda-free-from-pastry-mix/910002336198" target="_blank"><img alt="free-from-pastry" class="ci-image ci-original" src="https://ui3.assets-asda.com/dm/free-from-pastry_GL?scl=1"></a></p><p>Also, if you look at the ingredients of Asda&rsquo;s free from pastry mix, you&rsquo;ll see our secret ingredient Xanthan gum in there too.</p><h2>7. If in doubt, use a baking mix!</h2><p>If you&rsquo;re at all worried about gluten-free baking, my best advice would be to start with a gluten-free baking mix. They&rsquo;re a lifesaver in a pinch and come in many different varieties too like <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cooking-ingredients-sauces/asda-free-from-vanilla-sponge-mix/910002336203" target="_blank">Asda&rsquo;s gluten-free vanilla sponge</a> or <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/product/cakes-sweet-treats/asda-free-from-chocolate-brownie-mix/910002336210" target="_blank">gluten-free brownie mix</a>.</p><p style="text-align: center;"><img alt="free-from-bakes" class="ci-image ci-original" src="https://ui3.assets-asda.com/dm/free-from-bakes_GL?scl=1"></p><p>All you need to do is add eggs, margarine, water and you&rsquo;re already halfway to a great gluten-free bake. You&rsquo;ll see that our faithful friend Xanthan gum is already in there too, along with everything else you&rsquo;d need. Job done!</p><p><em>Feeling inspired to create your gluten-free cake today? Make sure you stock up on everything you need at <a href="https://groceries.asda.com/groceries" target="_blank">Asda</a> or <a href="http://storelocator.asda.com/" target="_blank">pop into your local Asda store</a>. </em></p>

7 tips on how to nail a gluten-free bake every time

By Asda Good Living,19th October 2017

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