<<Disclaimer: Verify this information before applying it to your situation.>>

Despite continued controversy and the fact that some celiacs have 
allergies to oats, uncontaminated oats have been scientifically determined 
to be safe for the majority of celiacs.  There are very few gluten-free 
oat bread recipes available on the internet, so I decided to contribute 
this Oat-Navy Bean Bread recipe I developed and have been enjoying for the 
last few weeks.  It is simple and inexpensive to make, and it tastes far 
better than those gluten-free bread concoctions made with rice, potato, 
tapioca and/or corn flours and starches.  The recipe produces a 
satisfying, wholesome, hearty tasting bread with a hint of apple-cinnamon, 
high in fiber and protein.  The bread has a soft, chewy texture.  Its 
downside is that it does not rise very high during baking and lacks 
crispness when toasted.  Bread made with oat flour alone has an overly 
chewy, rubbery texture.  The navy bean flour complements the oat flour 
extremely well and improves texture.  This is a recipe in progress and may 
possibly be improved by adding Expandex Modified Tapioca Starch which is 
advertised to increase bread height and crispness.  I have no experience 
with Expandex.  So experimenters out there who have Expandex on hand, try 
your luck!

For oat and navy bean flours, I bought bulk organic oat groats for $1.39 a 
pound at my natural food store and bulk navy beans (aka small white beans 
or Haricot beans) for only 65¢ a pound from my discount supermarket bulk 
food department.  The whole oat groats and navy beans can readily be 
inspected for any wheat or other grain contaminants which can be removed 
before grinding the groats and beans into flour with either an inexpensive 
coffee grinder or a more expensive grain mill.  At these prices, this 
gluten-free oat bread costs about the same as a loaf of wheat bread off a 
store shelf.  I found virtually no contamination present in either the 
bulk groats or the beans.  You are welcome to spend $10 plus shipping for 
2 pounds of certified gluten-free oat flour it you desire.

Oat gluten completely lacks the binding and elasticity characteristics of 
wheat gluten.  It is necessary to use 1 egg and 1 teaspoon xanthan gum per 
cup of flour to provide sufficient binding for the batter dough to trap 
the gas produced by the yeast enabling the dough to rise.  Egg substitutes 
probably will not work very well.  When the batter dough rises above the 
loaf pan rim, the dough will not hold its shape and will spill over the 
loaf pan edge.  Therefore, an extra deep loaf pan is preferred over 
standard 2-1/2" to 2-3/4" deep loaf pans.  A half dozen years ago I bought 
a couple of now discontinued Ekco 12" x 4-1/2" x 3-1/4" (inside depth) 
loaf pans for only a few dollars each at a closeout sale.  This is nearly 
an ideal size loaf pan for a 3 cup flour gluten-free bread.   You still 
can buy a loaf pan in this size today, but it isn't so cheap (see below.)  
Another loaf pan to consider is the Wilton 16" x 4" x 4-1/2" angel food 
loaf pan.  With this extra, extra deep Wilton pan, you can bake the 
equivalent of 2 full sandwich height medium bread loaves at once (see 
below.)

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Gluten-Free Oat-Navy Bean Bread Recipe:

Dry Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups Oat Flour
1-1/2 cups Navy Bean Flour
1/2 cup Nonfat Dry Milk
2 Tbsp. Granulated Sugar
1 Tbsp. Xanthan Gum
1-1/2 tsp. Cinnamon 
1-1/2 tsp. Salt
1 packet (1/4 oz.) Dry Fast Acting Yeast 

Wet Ingredients:
1-1/2 cups Apple Juice, very warm (microwave)
3 Tbsp. Molasses
3 Eggs, large
1-1/2 Tbsp. Margarine, melted (+ 1 Tbsp. to brush on top)
1 tsp. Apple Cider Vinegar

Combine dry ingredients in a snap-lid plastic container and shake until 
well mixed.  Combine wet ingredients in a mixing bowl (a light-weight, 
stainless steel bowl is easiest to handle.)  Warm oven to about 130°F.  
Grease a 12" x 4-1/2" x 3-1/2" (preferred) or a 9-1/4" x 5-1/4" x 2-3/4" 
loaf pan.  Use a hand electric mixer (I use dough hooks) to blend 
ingredients.  Briefly beat and blend wet ingredients.  Gradually beat 
small portions of the dry ingredient mixture into the wet ingredients.  
Beat dough for several minutes until a thick, sticky pudding consistency 
is achieved.  Transfer dough from mixing bowl to loaf pan using a rubber 
spatula to scrape dough, keeping dough in one piece.  Plunge rubber 
spatula rapidly up and down into dough to evenly distribute and level 
dough in loaf pan.  Brush 1 Tbsp. melted margarine over top of dough while 
smoothing out the dough surface with the pastry brush.  Turn off warmed 
oven.  Place the loaf pan into warmed oven and allow the dough to rise.  
Remove loaf pan from oven when dough has risen near top of pan.  Set loaf 
pan aside and preheat oven to 375°F while allowing the dough to continue 
rising slightly above pan height.  Place loaf pan into preheated oven and 
bake for approximately 30-35 minutes until loaf is well-browned and sounds 
hollow when thumped.  Turn out loaf onto cooling rack and allow to cool 
before slicing.  Store loaf in plastic bag and keep in refrigerator.

Hints:
Cut ingredient amounts by 1/3 for a 8-1/2" x 4-1/2" x 2-1/2" loaf pan.  
Increase amounts by 1/3 for a 16" x 4" x 4-1/2" loaf pan.  For melted 
margarine, place margarine in small bowl in microwave for 10-20 seconds.  
If you have a milk intolerance, try a soy substitute or just leave it out.

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Note:  If your email of this post is corrupted, go to the Celiac List 
archives to view the correctly displayed post and links which follow below:

< http://listserv.icors.org/archives/celiac.html >

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Suggested Extra-Deep Loaf Pans:

Kaiser La Forme Nonstick 12" Loaf Pan
< http://loaf-pan.kaiserbakeware.com/Bread-Loaf-Pan.html >
< http://www.cutleryandmore.com/details.asp?SKU=4934 >
Measures 12" x 4-1/2" x 3-1/2".
Made in Germany.
Item #:  630922 
Size:  12" 
Capacity: 8.5 cup 
Price:  $26.00  

Wilton Long Loaf Pan
< http://www.wilton.com/ >
Bake classic cakes or breads. Legs provide proper support for cooling 
angel food cakes. 
16" x 4" x 4-1/2" deep.
Aluminum. 
Long Loaf Pan
Item #:  2105-1588 
Price:  $13.49 

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Oat and Navy Bean Nutrition Facts

The World's Healthiest Foods - Food List
< http://www.whfoods.com/foodstoc.php >

Navy Bean Nutrition
< http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=88 >

Oat Nutrition
< http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=foodspice&dbid=54 >
   
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