Navigating trends can be a challenge, especially within the realm of gluten-free baking. Enter these new grain-free contenders to surprise and delight Paleo and gluten-free bakers with a shift towards health and taste. Paleo lovers, welcome to the next generation of gluten-free, grain-free baking!
What is Cassava Flour?
Cassava is a starchy root vegetable used as a dietary staple in over half of the continents including Africa, Asia, and Latin America.
The flour is often confused with tapioca flour, which is a bleached, extracted starch from the cassava root. Tapioca is often used as a thickening agent, whereas cassava flour is used just as you would wheat flour. Otto’s Cassava Flour even differs among competing cassava blends as it incorporates only young, tender roots, producing a significantly smoother flour texture.
Traditionally, cassava root is peeled by hand, fermented, and sun-dried. The smell and taste of sun-dried cassava flour is often described as “sour,” “fermented,” or “musty.” Otto’s Cassava Flour is thoroughly peeled, baked, and ground into a beautifully consistent flour. This proprietary method leaves no chance for mold or fermentation to develop.
There is naturally occurring cyanide in cassava root, mostly concentrated in the peel, which Otto’s proprietary method thoroughly removes. The rest is taken care of by heat when the root is cooked. Each product batch is lab tested to ensure that the final product is completely safe to eat.
Otto’s Cassava Flour is Autoimmune Protocol (AIP) friendly and Certified Paleo by The Paleo Foundation.
And the best part, cassava flour can be used in a 1:1 substitution for most baking projects! The only exception would be any recipe yeast-based recipes. However, Otto’s website has formulated yeasted recipes that work including a Paleo Pita Bread, Grain-Free Tortilla, a French-style, and sandwich bread.
What is Green Banana Flour?
Who knew unripe bananas could be used to make baked goods? The process begins with fresh, young green bananas from organic orchards. The bananas are picked green and peeled while the fruit contains its starch, before it has a chance to ripen into sugar. The fruit is dehydrated using a slow, low-temperature drying process allowing the product to retain its high vitamin and mineral content. Once dehydrated, the fruit is then milled into fine flour that can be incorporated into a variety of gluten free dishes, mimicking the characteristics of wheat flour – with only a subtle, delicious flavor added. Let’s Do…Organic Green Banana Flour is perfect for use in baked goods, gravies, smoothies and shakes, breads, pancakes, pastries, pasta and more!
Not only is this flour packed with nourishing mineral content—particularly high in iron and potassium, green bananas are also known to contain a resistant starch (RS2). This type of prebiotic starch is nutritionally acclaimed to promote healthy gut flora aiding in digestion while also triggering the body’s sense of fullness. When substituting Green Banana Flour in recipes that call for wheat flour, simply use 25% less flour. For example, if a recipe calls for 1 cup of wheat flour, use 3/4 of a cup of green banana flour instead. No extra eggs or additional liquid is necessary.
For specific recipes that incorporate green banana flour, visit: www.edwardandsonsrecipes.org/
What the HECK is Tiger Nut Flour?
I know, right? First, a tiger nut is not even a nut, nor any part of a tiger’s anatomy. The tiger nut is actually a small root vegetable, originating around 2 million years ago in the heart of Africa, and a major source of nutrition for our Paleolithic ancestors. In fact, it is estimated that tiger nuts constituted for roughly 80% of the ancient, ancestral diet.
Similar to the nutrient value of green banana flour, tiger nuts also contain resistant starches that benefit healthy gut function and digestion. Additionally, about one ounce of tiger nuts contains 2 grams of protein, 19 grams of carbohydrates (10 of which are fiber), 7 grams of fat, and a solid helping of magnesium, iron, and zinc.
Because tiger nut flour is light and has a slightly sweet and nutty flavor, it allows bakers to cut back on added sugar. It tends to work well in combination with other flours and starches such as coconut flour, almond flour, gluten-free oats and arrowroot or potato starch.
The flavor profile yields a sweet, nutty flavor that, when milled into fine flour, can be used in a variety of both savory and sweet gluten-free recipes. Another added benefit is that, unlike any gluten-free flours before, Organic Gemini Organic Tiger Nut Flour can rise in baking!