(The Nosher via JTA) – To be a gluten-free baker (and eater) years ago was to be a disappointed baker (and eater). Delicious, high-quality gluten-free products were virtually impossible to find, and trying to make gluten-free goods from scratch was equally frustrating since there was little information out there to instruct the home baker.
But today is quite a different story. Blogs, websites, and cookbooks solely devoted to gluten-free baking abound, with no end of tips, recipes, and suggestions for alternative flours, creating flour blends, and duplicate GF (it even has an abbreviation now!) versions of every cookie, bread, and cake imaginable.
No one in my family has celiac disease, or even a gluten sensitivity. But I have found, over the years, that we ALL tend to feel better if we reduce the amount of white and wheat flours in our diet. And while I “could” make my own flour blends for baking, I am a huge fan of what I call the “cup-for-cup” packaged blends that are widely available. These commercially produced blends are meant to be used as an exact substitute for flour in any recipe, and for the most part, you’d never know the difference.
I say “for the most part” because I’ve found the greatest success when using these flours in sturdier baked goods – cookies, quick breads, and denser cakes. Like coffee cake!
Unlike an angel food or layer cake, coffee cake made with a gluten-free blend is virtually undetectable. A generous addition of sour cream provides incredible moistness and you can never go wrong adding in chocolate chips. Instant espresso puts the “coffee” in this cake, and the chocolate streusel topping and cinnamon-sugar is simply a traditional must.