Gluten Free Help at a Science Fair!

I had the wonderful opportunity to be involved and help a young man out in his quest to achieve success and stature in his local Science fair, not to mention have success with his endeavors in his gluten free baking. Let’s see his questions and how we can not only help him but all of you who may have some questions as well.

You can read our exact correspondence and his wonderful questions which are answered below:

 

Dear  Miranda Jade, I am doing a science fair project on changing ingredients in gluten-free bread to try and make the bread rise. I’m going to measure the height of each bread and add different ingredients into each batch of bread as well, such as: Coconut flour, buckwheat flour, brown rice flour, and rye flour ( please see link on rye not being gluten-free! – Miranda ). I learned about what you do from your website and am wondering if you can help me with my project. I would like if I could interview you for my experiment so you could help me learn more about my topic. Sincerely: Jacob

 

Hi Jacob,

What a great project! My name is Miranda Jade. I would be more than willing to answer your questions and help you as much as I can as I am running the GlutenFreeHelp.info now.

1. What do you do in your job/line of work? I have a gluten-free reference site. I research celiac disease and gluten sensitivity in order to help others. I also write many gluten-free recipes to make eating gluten-free much more enjoyable for those who cannot eat gluten or just wish to live a gluten-free life style.

2. What skills are most useful to you in your job? My extensive knowledge of what celiac disease is really helps me with my job. I also have a strong desire to help others who are struggling with living gluten-free. When you love what you do it makes it very easy to work hard at it.

3. What got you interested in your profession? I was misdiagnosed for many years and in and out of hospitals trying to figure out why I was so ill. Finally I found out I had celiac disease. I knew there had to be many others just like me and I felt I needed to help them.

4. How do you find that science helps you in your everyday life and or job? Science helps me a lot with my life and job. I use it in my research of celiac disease and in many ways when baking and coming up with new delicious recipes.

5. What do you think is the most important lesson/information you have ever learned regarding science? The most important information I learned about science would be in regards to health and the human body. There are so many branches of science that apply to many different fields but in my line of work understanding the way the body works and how it has developed has been very useful to me.

6. Do you think my plan is a valid experiment? I do think your plan is a valid experiment.

7. What would you suggest to improve my experiment? Most flours will rise but unlike wheat flour, many gluten-free flours are a bit heavier. The gluten in wheat flour is going to make that bread much more fluffy and airy whereas a few of the other flours will be a bit denser. The mixture of baking soda and baking powder always helps me have fluffier baked goods.

8. Would you be willing to help with my research/experiment? If not, do you know someone who would be able to help?  I will do my best to help you as much as I can. You are more than willing to ask me any questions you come across while doing your experiment.

9. What ingredients have you tried when making gluten-free bread and what were the results? I’ve made gluten free breads with all sorts of flours. The trick is getting very finely ground flours. Many gluten free breads are a mixture of flours. Try looking at the ingredients of a few gluten-free breads and you will see what I mean. Many that are rice also have things like tapioca, potato, etc in them. It’s all about finding just the right amount of different flours to get you the flavor you desire.

10. Is there something you do when making gluten-free bread that makes it more successful? I just practice practice practice. It’s all about trial and error. There are so many wonderful cook books out now a days with truly delicious recipes in them. You can even find them online. First start with a basic recipe and once you find one you like play with it to be exactly how you like it.

11. What was your biggest problem to overcome when making gluten-free bread?

A big problem with gluten-free bread is the flavor and fluffiness. Udi’s makes a gluten free sandwich bread that’s delicious. No matter how many times I try to make bread it just doesn’t compare to theirs. They have the science of bread making down to a T. 🙂

I hope this helps you and many others. Let me know if you have any other questions.

Best,

Miranda Jade Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

From our home to yours, Tina Turbin
If you have any questions or suggestions just email me at info (at) GlutenFreeHelp.info.