Cooking with gluten free flour can be so difficult, but it doesn't have to be. I'm going to be reviewing Thrive Life's gluten free flour, going over nutritional information, and sharing some tips and tricks on how to cook with it!
Cooking with most gluten free flour blends usually results in a dense, crumbling mess that hardly resembles anything edible. I understand first-hand the frustration of attempting to cook gluten free! When we were first married, Kyle was avoiding gluten in order to improve his digestive health. I had never dealt with dietary restrictions before, and didn't know how to prepare meals that were safe for him to eat. I tried Thrive Life gluten free flour and never looked back. Kyle is now able to eat wheat again (for which I am extremely grateful), but I still use the Thrive Life gluten free flour regularly because his family maintains a gluten free diet.
Kyle's younger brother lives close-by, and we often have him over for dinner. I'll make half of our meal gluten free, which gives me a chance to compare how the flours perform. Seeing the side-by-side comparison has surprised me several times. I've made bread sticks, cookies, cakes, flat bread, biscuits, muffins, etc. Although there is a noticeable difference between the two products, I have continually been pleased with my gluten free bakes. I can't say that the flours are exactly the same, but the gluten free is really good.
Thrive Life Gluten Free Flour Nutrition
Not all gluten free flour blends are created equal. Ingredients could include anything from ground oats and almonds to corn and buckwheat. Even though all of these would qualify as being "gluten free", their nutritional value can vary greatly.
The top ingredient listed in this blend is brown rice flour. Brown rice flour is made by grounding brown rice into powder. Brown rice, as opposed to white rice, is considered a whole grain flour. Whole grain flours are better for your health (Goodson, 2023).
The ingredient list of the Thrive Life gluten free blend is simple: brown rice flour, rice starch, potato starch, xanthan gum and locust bean gum.
Cooking with Thrive Life Gluten Free Flour
The cooking ratio for this flour blend is 1:1. This means that if the recipe calls for one cup of all purpose flour, you can simply add one cup of this flour instead. I've noticed that I like to add a little more liquid than the recipe calls for. Gluten free products are infamous for being extremely dry and crumbly -- adding a little more milk or water can help.
Pan Chocolate Chip Cookies
I have a couple of gluten-free recipes that are tried and true. This pan chocolate chip cookie recipe is a family favorite. You literally will not be able to tell these cookies are gluten free. Just a couple of notes about the recipe -- I have found that butter works best. Kyle and I often eat plant-based for health, but I have found that butter substitutes don't work well with this particular recipe. You can find this recipe here.
Bread sticks
This truly is a favorite recipe within my family! It works so well with this gluten-free blend. Bread sticks are such a versatile bread that you can pair with almost every meal. I also appreciate how simple these are to make. For this recipe --
Dissolve:
1 T yeast in 11/2 c. warm water
Add:
1 T sugar
1/2 t salt
3-31/2 c. flour
Mix and knead 3 min. Rest 10 min. Roll dough out , cut into 1" strips with pizza cutter. Melt one cube butter. Dip bread sticks into melted butter and lay in cookies sheet. Sprinkle with garlic salt and Parmesan cheese. Raise 10 min. Bake at 375 for 20 min.
Biscuits
This recipe is one of my childhood comfort foods that I always asked my mom for. We usually pair the biscuits with a white gravy for dinners, but they are so good that you can just spread some butter over the top and eat them plain, too. These are one of my top gluten free recipes! You can find the recipe here.
Check out this gluten free flour blend! I've honestly been extremely impressed by it over and over again. If you would like to learn more about Thrive Life freeze dried food you can read more here about the convenience and nutrition that freeze dried food has to offer.
Sources
Goodson, Amy. “The 14 Best Gluten-Free Flours.” Healthline, Healthline Media, 7 Feb. 2023, https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/gluten-free-flours#TOC_TITLE_HDR_16.
Hi! Thank you so much for sharing these! I just got the flour and attempted to make bread - but it’s more like a brick. 😭 I’m excited to try these- for the biscuit and cookies- you are using 1:1 flour? Thanks again!