Gluten free baking

fairy_lights

I want to bake a cake for a group of friends, several of whom are coeliac so it needs to be gluten free. Can I just use any old cake recipe and substitute regular flour for gluten free flour, or is it more complicated than that?
(My baking powder is gluten free anyway so that's not an issue)
I know gluten free cakes can end up quite dry so do I need to add something extra in to make it more moist?
:beer:

candlelight_2013

Yes, from my experience after adding the eggs add some milk, so that the mixture is wet but not sloppy. You can also add half gluten free flour and half ground almonds, that makes a nice plain cake so you could top it with lemon drizzle, but don't forget baking powder (you say you have this anyway) otherwise the cake is heavy

HTH

Candlelightx

indsty

Why not have a look online at :

https://www.coeliac.org.uk/gluten-free-diet-and-lifestyle/recipe-database/gluten-free-cake-making/

If your friends are "true" coeliacs rather than just "gluten free", then you do have to be careful of all your ingredients.

Out,_Vile_Jelly

I would practise a gluten-free cake first, as they can be unpredictable if you're not used to flour substitutes. They tend to be more torte than cake, and you may need some cream with it. If you try and exactly replicate a light, fluffy Victoria sponge you'll probably be disappointed.

My G-F friend makes superb brownies, which as they're supposed to be dense and fudgey, work well.

fairy_lights

Ground almonds are a good idea, I'll definitely use replace some flour with some to get the moisture content up.
I was thinking of maybe going for chocolate cupcakes with a vanilla buttercream, I don't think it matters so much if chocolatey things end up a bit dense and the buttercream will lighten it up a bit.
One of them is a true coeliac and the other two are gluten free for other dietary reasons, so I want to be as careful as possible not to poison any of them :rotfl:

Puddleglum

There are lots of gluten free chocolate brownie recipes. They are often made with ground almonds rather than flour. Totally yummy!

Nargleblast

Dove gluten free flour has some cake recipes on the back of the bag, brownies recipe is really good. Generally, with GF cakes, add an extra egg, a bit of baking powder and some extra liquid. Leave till almost cool before turning out or it might fall to bits.

Silvertabby

If you think that's difficult, try cooking for a family member who is gluten free AND diabetic !

Eyeore

Hi I am coeliac and find doves farm self raising flour the best. I just replace in whatever recipe. The only difference is that it will go dry after 2 or 3 days but rarely lasts that long! I use the standard sponge measurements for sponge and fairy cakes. Also I make a chocolate cake which uses oil rather than butter and it is as light as air and always requested for birthdays. With GF it is a bit of trial and error!

CRANKY40

Check that the true coeliac can have dairy before you add milk to any mix. Often they can't as if diagnosis has been made late the first part of the gut to be damaged is the part that digests lactose.

Pop_Up_Pirate

Silvertabby wrote: »

If you think that's difficult, try cooking for a family member who is gluten free AND diabetic !

Oh, that's easy. You just don't make cakes