Make Vegan Gluten-Free Bread In A CrockPot!

When I published a recipe for a Soft Wholewheat Bread made in a Crockpot, a few people asked me if there was a crockpot recipe for vegan, gluten-free bread?  Well, the short answer is, there ARE a few such recipes on the Interweb... so hurrah!   

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But, of course, I want to have a recipe that I can make right away and made some adaptations to various of the recipes I came across to fit my particular old crockpot that doesn't accommodate a bread pan like some of the long, oval slow-cookers do (I'm using the word "crockpot" to also refer to slow-cookers and electronic pots like Instant Pot that have a slow-cook program on their menu). 

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This is my old slow-cooker or crockpot. It's pretty basic-- on/off, high, low-- no way to set a timer, no pre-programmed recipes, etc. I bought it for our older son who was off to University far away. After he married, the crockpot returned to me. For years it just sat in a cupboard, because, you know, InstantPot. But when the IP broke down (they do, and I do miss it), I went back to using this little workhorse. Made by Rival. It has a good size Corningware pot insert, and an airtight, glass lid. 

Besides accommodating the size of my cooker, I also like to have a recipe that uses what I most often have around the pantry and in the fridge. I do a fair amount of inventive cookery and baking and do have bits and pieces of a lot of ingredients, but I also have a stock of stuff I use more frequently. Sooo, I have a big bag of brown rice flour and almost as much tapioca flour. I need to use them. I don't remember what the original rationale for procurement was, but they won't live healthy forever, right?

So, no surprise, my recipe includes brown rice flour and tapioca flour, as well as ground flaxseed, millet flour, and oat flour. Each of these three last items was ground up in my Vitamix. I had the other bread-making ingredients on-hand as well, so this is a recipe I can use, myself, in future forays with the crockpot style.

You, on the other hand, may want to use a flour mix that you enjoy or find reliable to bake with, and that is okay too. The idea is to make up a small boule (ball) of dough to put in the crockpot to cook. Here is my recipe-- you can use my ingredients, or your reliable favorite flour mix, and just follow the method described below for the "baking". 

TOOLS TO MAKE THIS RECIPE:

*Small mixing bowl for the yeast, water, and sugar mix

*fork or whisk for above

*high-speed blender or coffee bean grinder to make flours from seeds or grains

*stand mixer, bread-making bowl, whisk, and hook attachments (or just the whisk)

*scraper or spatula

*crock pot, Instant Pot or slow-cooker, with a lid and a toothpick for steam release

*lightly oiled parchment paper to make a nest to hold the boule while it 'bakes'

*heat-resistant gloves

*toaster oven (or regular oven) to broil the top of the bread for a golden finish

*measuring spoons, cups, and a liquid measuring cup

INGREDIENTS TO MEASURE OUT FOR THE RECIPE 

(1 "FLATBREAD" OR "BOULE")

2 teaspoons + 2 tablespoons of sugar (divided)

1 1/4 cup warm water + 2 tablespoons (all together)

2 teaspoons of active, fast-acting yeast

3 cups of Gluten-Free Flours below (or 3 cups of your regular Gluten Free flour Mix):

--2 cups brown rice flour

--1/4 cup millet flour (I ground dry millet in Vitamix)

--1/4 cup tapioca flour (also called starch- same thing)

--1/4 cup oatmeal flour (I ground rolled oats in Vitmix)

--1/4 cup flax seed (I ground flax seed  in Vitamix)

2 teaspoons xanthan gum

1 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons of oil (I used olive oil)

METHOD: 

1. Put lightly oiled parchment into crockpot. DO NOT PREHEAT THE CROCKPOT.
2. Add yeast, warm water, and 2 teaspoons of sugar to the smaller bowl. Whisk to activate the yeast, and set aside.
3. In the mixing bowl with the stand mixer, add all the flours, the salt, the remaining 2 tablespoons of sugar, and xanthan gum. Whisk on low speed until well blended, and then add yeast mixture and oil, attach the dough hook and turn to high speed for 2 minutes. Stop and scrape as needed. 
4. Wet your hands slightly (or wear plastic gloves) and quickly collect the dough, shape into a boule (ball) and place it in the centre of the parchment nest. The dough will not be smooth and nice as wheat dough, but somewhat sticky and lumpy looking. No worries. Smooth the surface somewhat (a slightly wet hand helps). Using a sharp knife or the edge of the scraper, slice three (quite shallow) parallel lines or an X in the boule. This will help in the baking process and the expansion.
5. Put a toothpick between the lid and the rim of the crockpot to allow steam to release as the bread cooks.
6. Do something else for two hours. DO NOT BE TEMPTED TO PEEK UNDER THE LID
7. At 2 hours return to the crockpot, unplug it and carefully, using anti-heat-protective gloves, remove the bread to a cooling rack or into your broiler (toaster oven or regular oven) and broil for a few minutes (3-5) until golden brown on top (the bottom will already be crusty golden.
8. Continue to cool for about an hour. Slice. Store on the counter in plastic wrap or zip bags for up to 4 days.
9. Makes about an 8-slice bread-- the slices will be the shape of your boule, of course. It is a fine crumb, soft, fairly moist bread. It improves with 'age' (up to 4 days, I hear, but fresh bread never lasts more than a couple of days with us). Great for sandwiches and as a side with soups or salads.

Nutritional Information per Serving (assuming 8 slices):

1. Calories: Approximately 240 calories per serving

2. Protein: Approximately 3.5 grams per serving

3. Carbohydrates: Approximately 46 grams per serving

4. Fat: Approximately 6 grams per serving

5. Fiber: Approximately 4 grams per serving

6. Sugar: Approximately 4.5 grams per serving

ANOTHER FLOUR BLEND TO TRY:

In lieu of the 3-cup blend above, you might like to try this blend (just tried it myself and I am very impressed:)

2 cups of toasted quinoa flour (I made the quinoa flour in my Vitamix and then toasted it in a dry wok, flipping back and forth to achieve a golden tint and a delightful aroma- about 5-15 minutes on medium, depending on your amount of flour-- this replaces the bitter taste that some often find with quinoa flour)

1/2 cup of oat flour (I made mine in my Vitamix)

1/4 cup of arrowroot starch (or other starch, such as corn, tapioca, etc.)

1/4 cup of flax meal (I grind mine in bulk in my Vitamix and store it in a jar with a lid in the fridge)

Replace the 2 cups of brown rice flour and the other flours with the above. Proceed with the same other ingredients and method.