Name: Gluten Free Bread Recipe (Crusty White Cob)
Prep time: 1 h 20 min
Cook time: 1 h
Total time: 2 h 20 min
Yield: 1
Cuisine: Bread
Ingredients: 500ml warm water; 14g dried active yeast; 2 tsp honey (or caster sugar); 28g whole blonde psyllium husk; 2 tsp apple cider vinegar; 460g gluten free plain flour (I use FREEE by Doves Farm or my homemade blend - linked in notes); 90g tapioca starch; 2 tsp fine salt; A little olive oil

Gluten Free Bread Recipe (Crusty White Cob)

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This easy gluten free bread recipes yields a delicious crusty gluten free cob (artisan boule) with a satisfying chewy, crunchy crust and soft bread inside. It’s wonderful warm from the oven and yet can also be sliced and frozen, for easy grab n go toast.

You need about 2 hours to make this loaf, although most of that time is hands off proving and bake time, so really it’s a nice and easy one to bring together.

I adapted this crusty white gluten free cob from my beloved crusty baguette recipe in my cookbook, Eat & Enjoy Gluten Free, so if you enjoy this bread I really think you’ll love my book! That baguette recipe has been getting the loveliest feedback, with people saying:

“Amazing baguette…I haven’t had one in 5 years. Even hubby enjoyed it and he isn’t coeliac!”

and

“I’ve just baked and eaten a baguette made from your recipe, what a surprise I had, not eaten one for over 10 years and I had to fight my wife (she’s not coeliac) off because it tastes so close to what I remember one tasting like.”

So you can trust that this gluten free bread will go down a treat in your household, if you have been missing proper crusty loaves and are fed up of the shop-bought stuff.

What Flour Do I Need for This Gluten Free Bread Recipe?

A simple combination of a gluten free plain flour blend (FREEE by Doves Farm) and tapioca starch. If you live in a region where that blend is not available, you can make it from scratch using my plain flour blend recipe. Do let me know if you have success with other blends and I can add details here. (Australian readers, I’ve been told that the White Wings Gluten Free Plain Flour works nicely).

The tapioca starch helps yield a lighter, fluffier crumb with some nice bounce (rather than being a crumbly bread). If you do not have tapioca starch you can buy it on Amazon or find it in health food shops, and even Ocado sell it. I buy mine from Shipton Mill.

What is Psyllium Husk?

Ahhh, this is the magic ingredient for our gluten free bread recipe and it really essential – do not skip it. Psyllium husk is a naturally-derived plant fibre that is a wonderful ingredient for gluten free bread making. It holds extra moisture in the bread crumb and acts as a binders, giving flexibility and improving the final texture of your bake.

Whole psyllium husk is widely available online and from health food stores. I buy this variety of whole blonde psyllium husk, rather than the powered variety as that acts slightly differently. If you use a brown psyllium vairety instead, your final loaf may take on a slightly purple hue!

Is This Crusty White Cob also Dairy Free/Egg Free/Vegan?

Yes this gluten free bread is also dairy free, egg free and vegan. As well as being nut free. The simple ingredients are gluten free plain flour, tapioca starch, psyllium husk, water, salt, sugar, cider vinegar and dried active yeast. Plus a little oil for brushing over the bread to help the crust brown during baking.

Which Yeast Do You Use?

I generally use the Allinsons Easy Bake Yeast, which is widely available in UK supermarkets. It is gluten free at the time of writing, but please always check the label.

Make sure that your yeast is still active, as it can lose it potency surprisingly quickly once opened (within a couple of months). If you find it does not foam when mixed with water and sugar, it is dead, even if it is still within date.

Once opened, storing your yeast in the fridge is a good way of extending it’s shelf life.

Gluten Free Bread Recipe (Crusty White Cob)

This recipe will make one large gluten free crusty white cob. You can double the recipe to bake two cobs at a time if you wish. It does freeze very nicely so I often double up, then slice and freeze the second.

If you need any help along the way or if you have questions, please do message me on social media (@myglutenfreeguide) or email me at laura@mygfguide.com. I’ll get back to you as soon as I can.

If you enjoy this gluten free bread recipe, please do leave a review on the recipe card below. Thank you in advance!

Laura xxx

Makes 1 Loaf

Gluten Free Bread Recipe (Crusty White Cob)

Prep Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

Cook Time: 1 hour

Total Time: 2 hours 20 minutes

Delicious gluten free bread in the form of an artisan crusty white cob. A crusty boule-style loaf with soft bread inside.

Ingredients

500ml warm water
14g dried active yeast
2 tsp honey (or caster sugar)
28g whole blonde psyllium husk
2 tsp apple cider vinegar
460g gluten free plain flour (I use FREEE by Doves Farm or my homemade blend - linked in notes)
90g tapioca starch
2 tsp fine salt
A little olive oil

Instructions

Add the warm water, the dried active yeast and the honey/caster sugar to a mixing jug and stir to combine. Leave to sit for around 5 minutes, or until a thin layer of foam has formed on top. If there is no foam, wait another 5 minutes - if there is still none, your yeast is dead and you'll need a fresh packet.

Tip the psyllium husk and the cider vinegar into the jug, stir well, leave to sit for a minute, then stir again and leave for 10 minutes. The psyllium will absorb the water and develop a thick gel consistency.

Add the gluten free plain flour, tapioca and salt to a stand mixer bowl or large mixing bowl and mix well, to combine.

Tip the contents of the yeast jug into the stand mixer bowl/mixing bowl. Mix on high speed for 5 minutes, until you have a nice ball of dough. Or if mixing by hand knead until you have a very smooth dough (it will start out quite rough and shaggy in texture, keep working it until smooth).

Very lightly flour your work surface and turn out the dough. Pat it into a a circle, then fold two edges up into the middle, then the other two, pinching the joins together to seal, to create a round and smooth cob/boule shape.

Line a medium-sized mixing bowl or round banneton with a clean teatowel or cloth. Place the dough into the bowl, cover with a clean, damp tea towel or cloth and leave to prove for about 40 minutes-1 hour, or until the dough has grown in size by 50%.

Preheat your oven to 220C (fan) and place a pan of boiling water on the lower shelf (this will help to create lots of steam in the oven to avoid your crusty cob being TOO crusty). Carefully turn the dough out onto a lined baking tray and brush all over with a little olive oil. Then score a hash on top of the cob (see image below).

Place into the oven and immediately turn it down to 200C (fan) - bake on the middle shelf for 1 hour.

Once baked, place on a cooling rack and leave to cool to allow the crumb to set. If you are desperate to tuck in, go for it, but it will be a bit tricky to cut - allowing it at least 30 minutes to cool will help the crumb to set. But my goodness that warm bread is delicious - enjoy!

Notes

To make your own gluten free plain flour blend, I recommend my recipe, which you can find here.

Like all fresh bread, this cob is best enjoyed on the day of baking. It will still bit fairly soft on day 2, but may need some refreshing in the microwave or toaster (certainly from day 3 onwards).

It freezes well, simply cool the cob then slice and wrap in cling film before freezing.