Gluten Free, Vegan Millet Bread (Mock Cornbread) Recipe

I realized several years ago that my body doesn't tolerate corn well. I used to make fun of my grandmother for complaining about the same ailment. She would always say that she loved popcorn, but it didn't love her. I thought she was just being fussy... and now I completely get it. She wasn't being fussy... she just doesn't like the side effects of corn. And neither do I. 

Yet, one of my favorite foods is cornbread. I really hated having to give up cornbread. It's naturally gluten free. A few months ago I really wanted cornbread. I wanted to find a safe, gluten free, side-effect free recipe for a non-corn "cornbread." 

Enter millet flour. I've used millet flour since I started a gluten free diet. Natalie told me about millet flour and ever since I've been a fan. Millet flour is finely ground hulled millet grains. It's a light yellow color, very similar to corn actually. It can be finely ground or coursely ground and has a light texture. It's wonderful in gluten free baking because it has a very mild taste and does not overwhelm baked goods. It's also a very lightweight flour and helps to create very light & fluffy gluten free baked goods.

Millet flour not acid forming and is considered one of the least allergenic gluten free flours. Therefore it is easy to digest and is a great option for baking.

I am so impressed with this flour as a substitute for corn. I made this millet "cornbread" last night and I think I could have eaten the entire pan. The millet flour created a just slightly dense cornbread (mostly due to the fact that I made it egg free) and it had a perfect "cornbread" crumb & crust. We ate this with a bowl of chili and it was a perfect "cornbread" side. If you try it, I would really love to know what you think!

Gluten Free, Vegan Millet Bread (Mock Cornbread) Recipe
free of gluten, soy, corn, rice, dairy/casein, and eggs
created by Carrie Forbes of Gingerlemongirl.com
printer-friendly recipe.

Dry Ingredients:
1/3 cup sorghum flour
1/3 cup arrowroot starch
1 cup millet flour
1 teaspoon xanthan gum  guar gum -or- just leave this out altogether
2 teaspoons corn free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons sugar

Wet Ingredients:
3 tablespoons coconut oil, melted (or other oil of your choice)
1 tablespoon EnerG Egg Replacer + 1/4 cup warm water -OR- 2 eggs
1 cup unsweetened almond milk + 1 tablespoon lemon juice -OR- 1 cup buttermilk

Directions:
Heat oven to 425 degrees. In a mixing bowl whisk together all dry ingredients. In a small bowl mix together all wet ingredients, it's okay if the coconut oil clumps up a bit when added to the cold ingredients. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix together thoroughly with a fork into a wet batter. Place a heavy-bottomed oven-safe skillet or cast iron pan with 2 tablespoons of coconut oil or butter in it into the preheated oven for 5 minutes. Allow the oil to get hot enough to sizzle when a drop of water is flicked into the pan. Holding the hot pan with an oven mitt pour the millet bread batter into the pan and spread it evenly around the pan. Place back in the oven and bake for 18-20 minutes until golden brown and a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool for 10 minutes before serving.


Carrie's Notes:

• I love using a cast-iron pan for this type of quick bread. It gives the millet a super delicious crispy crust! 
• This would also be delicious if it were made with eggs, but I am out of eggs this week, so it was great to create an egg-free alternative. The bread still rose well and had a great texture. 
• Any type of oil, other than olive oil would be great for this bread. I don't recommend olive oil because it might have too strong a flavor for the light tasting bread. 
• Any type of non-dairy milk should work fine for this bread. I recommend mixing the lemon juice with the non-dairy milk and letting it set for about 3-4 minutes before adding it to your wet ingredients. It will thicken up like a buttermilk.