Today’s recipe for this impressive loaf of Gluten-Free French Bread comes from my friend Iris Higgins. Iris is the author of the highly praised gluten-free cookbooks The Essential Gluten-Free Baking Guide Part 1 and The Essential Gluten-Free Baking Guide Part 2. She is graciously sharing several recipes on gfe that were on her previous gluten-free site, The Daily Dietribe.
Although Iris’ original site is no longer active, you can still get her most popular recipes for FREE by downloading her e-book, Gluten Free Fan Favorites RIGHT HERE. You can read more about Iris and her new focus at the very bottom of this post.
Iris has shared Paleo Zucchini Coconut Waffle Wraps and Lemon Bars previously on gfe. Today she’s sharing this beautiful and delicious gluten-free French Bread recipe. I will have several more wonderful recipes from her here on gfe in the near future.
Iris says: “This delicious bread comes the closest to French bread I’ve had since going gluten, egg and yeast free. It has a crispy outside with a soft and chewy inside. Note that I use white rice flour, which is NOT the same as sweet white rice flour. I don’t recommend changing the flour, so if you can’t have white rice flour, experiment at your own risk.”
This recipe is not only gluten free, but it’s also egg free, with a dairy-free option, which also means it’s easily made vegan. Plus, there’s no yeast–which means there’s no additional time needed for the dough to rise before baking. Are you amazed yet? I certainly am. As you can probably tell from the photo, this French bread is crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. That’s just the way that French bread should be!
Oh, by the way, another bonus is that this recipe does not require a special French Bread pan. You only need to shape the dough into a French bread loaf before baking.
For more gluten-free French Bread recipes, see the Top 20 Best Gluten-Free Bread Recipes, part of A Bountiful Bread Basket series here on gfe. I love that we have all these wonderful gluten-free bread recipes from which to choose!
Gluten-Free French Bread Recipe
Gluten-Free French Bread
Iris says: “This delicious bread comes the closest to French bread I've had since going gluten, egg and yeast free. It has a crispy outside with a soft and chewy inside. Note that I use white rice flour, which is NOT the same as sweet white rice flour. I don't recommend changing the flour, so if you can't have white rice flour, experiment at your own risk.”
Ingredients
- 1 cup milk (dairy or non-dairy; see notes for another option)
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- 3 tablespoons whole psyllium husks
- 1 tablespoon oil (canola, olive, etc.)
- 1 tablespoon unsweetened applesauce
- 1 3/4 cups white rice flour (254 grams)
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly oil a baking sheet.
- Stir together milk and apple cider vinegar. Let sit for a minute, then stir in psyllium and let sit for 5 minutes. After 5 minutes, stir in the oil and applesauce.
- In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. Make a well in the middle, pour the wet mix in and stir. It will eventually get clumpy and you'll need to knead it until it comes together in a dough. Alternatively, you can use a food processor to mix them together.
- Form into the shape of a French bread, about 8 inches long. Place on baking sheet and brush liberally with extra oil.
- Bake for 40 minutes. Allow to rest at least 20 minutes before cutting.
- Note: Make sure your oven is preheated so you can get the bread straight into the oven. It won't rise much but you want to make sure the baking soda and baking powder are working in the oven.
Notes
One reader substituted water for the milk and said the resulting bread was softer and kept longer.
Courses Bread
More About Iris
Iris Higgins, MA, is a certified hypnotherapist and the creator of The Goldilocks Movement, a virtual retreat where she teaches women to embrace their creativity and hone their intuition. She learned to follow her intuition by doing the opposite. For years, she ignored what her inner wisdom was telling her, and it affected her mental and physical health. After years of depression and mysterious headaches and fatigue, she decided to make a commitment to following her instincts and embracing the unknown. Now headache free and full of energy, she continues to happily embrace the unknown while living with her boyfriend and their young son in Prescott, AZ.
Sofy says
I’m French, avoiding gluten, and I’m very umpressed with your recipe! I miss baguette so much! Thank you!
Shirley Braden says
Hi Sofy–It’s so good to see you here at gfe again! I hope you really enjoy this recipe from Iris! 🙂
Shirley
Alisa Fleming says
This bread looks amazing and fits Tony’s diet well! I have all on hand but the white rice flour (need to get some!), so I may have to “experiment at my own risk” with sorghum flour! 🙂
Shirley Braden says
I’m so glad this recipe works for Tony’s diet and I agree that it does look absolutely amazing, Alisa! I’m in a baking mood now that cooler weather has arrived and I can’t wait to try this recipe myself. Iris is such a skilled baker and I believe she tried some different flours, but I’m not sure how many and which ones before deciding that white rice flour was the answer. I will be interested to see how your experiments go, of course! 😉
Shirley
Kate says
Can I use psyllium husk powder instead of whole husks?
Shirley Braden says
Hi Kate–Welcome to gfe! My understanding is that whole psyllium husks are far more effective for binding and subbing for eggs than psyllium powder, so I wouldn’t necessarily recommend that substitution. However, if you decide to try the powder, please let us know how your bread turns out.
Shirley
demi says
i dont have psyllium here in my country.what can I use?maybe eggs?or xanthan or flax?thanks
Shirley Braden says
Hi Demi–It’s good to see you here at gfe again. 🙂 I don’t really know the answer as this is not my recipe and I haven’t worked with it yet. Traditional gf French bread recipes include both xanthan and egg whites. You could give those additions a try. Or you could check out the French bread recipes in this post as you don’t have to be egg-free, xanthan gum-free, etc. Let us know what you try and your results. Good luck!
Shirley
Ina Gawne says
Great recipe Shirley…love French baguettes, and an easy recipe too! 🙂
Shirley Braden says
Thanks, Ina. I’m so tickled to be able to share this amazing recipe from Iris! 🙂
Shirley
Roseann Hampton says
I have made this recipe quite a few times and absolutely love it!
Shirley Braden says
Hi Roseann–Welcome to gfe! I so appreciate you stopping by to share your success with this recipe. 🙂
Shirley
Monique says
This recipe looks like one of the easiest I’ve seen for a GF French Bread! And I love that there are no gums or weird ingredients in it. 🙂 Looking forward to trying this!
Shirley Braden says
Hi Monique–Welcome to gfe! 🙂 Yes, this recipe gets some raves for all those reasons. I’m planning to give it a try this weekend myself. The weather is turning cold and I can’t think of better comfort food than a freshly baked baguette!
Shirley
Raia says
This looks wonderful, Shirley! I love that it is yeast-free, too!
Shirley Braden says
Raia–I know, right? An amazing recipe! With a recipe this easy and this good, I’m ready to get back into gf bread baking. 😉
Shirley
swathi says
Delicious bread, thanks for sharing with Hearth and soul blog hop, pinning.
Shirley Braden says
Thanks, Swathi! Iris created an amazing recipe. Thanks for all the sharing!
Shirley
Bethany says
This bread looks so delicious!
Shirley Braden says
Thanks, Bethany. I’m so happy to share this recipe with everyone! 🙂
Shirley
rosy says
I’m allergic to psyllium, can you use anything else?
Shirley Braden says
Hi Rosy–Welcome to gfe! 🙂 Unfortunately, nothing can be substituted for the psyllium in this recipe per my knowledge. Although I didn’t create this particular recipe, its creator Iris has said that it works beautifully “as is,” but she doesn’t recommend substitutions. I suggest that you take a look at the recipes in this post and this post that might meet your needs. I truly hope there will be plenty of options for you!
Shirley
Caroline says
I made this loaf without psyllium and applesauce. I replaced it with 3 tablespoon ground flax, 1 tsp xanthan, and 1 tablespoon oil. It turned out well.
Shirley Braden says
Hi Caroline–It looks like you’re new here! Welcome to gfe! 🙂 Thank you so very much for taking the time to share this feedback. It’s really helpful for readers to know which changes can be made successfully! I don’t always have applesauce on hand and tolerate xanthan just fine, so your info is really helpful to me personally, too.
Shirley
Мила says
Hello! Tell me please;) How much is 1 cup milk in grams? In Ukraine is 250gr.)
Shirley Braden says
Hi Mila–Welcome to gfe! My research shows that 1 cup of milk equals 245 grams. Hope that helps! By the way, your blog is gorgeous! 🙂
Shirley
A says
This bread is really good. I made it first with soy milk and enjoyed it. Recently I tried subbing the milk with an equal amount of water. This made the bread even softer and it stayed fresh for longer. Both ways are great, but I definitely prefer water over the soy milk. Can’t speak to other milks since I haven’t tried those. Thanks so much for this recipe!
Shirley Braden says
A–First, welcome to gfe. 🙂 Thanks so much for taking the time to leave this comment and for sharing that water works better than milk. I’m guessing that water must work better with the psyllium than milk. Now I must try the recipe again! I know that Iris of Your Fairy Angel (she created this recipe) will be thrilled to hear this news and give it a try, too.
Thanks again!
Shirley