Millet Bread
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This gluten-free millet bread is such a delicious recipe. It’s a healthy, affordable alternative to store-bought gluten-free sandwich bread.
One of the biggest challenges of a gluten-free diet is finding a decent loaf of bread to eat. The store-bought loaves tend to be very expensive and not so tasty.
It’s difficult to find a recipe that doesn’t contain at least 6 different types of flour in it. Who wants to buy all that flour? Also, the price of gluten-free flour is much higher than that of regular flour, which is discouraging. I know that some gluten-free folks give up on bread altogether because of these challenges.
I’m someone who could never give up bread. The convenience of a sandwich is a comfort that I need in my life. After going gluten-free several years ago, I tried a few bread recipes, but none of them came out well.
At the suggestion of a nutritionist, I started ordering millet flax bread from a bakery called Sami’s. For gluten-free bread, they have really good stuff, but it becomes expensive to order it regularly.
So after a while, I decided it was time to figure out how to make a good loaf of gluten-free bread myself. I’m happy to say that I’ve done it with this millet bread recipe. It’s soft and hearty, and it makes a great sandwich.
Millet Bread Tips
For this millet bread, the yeast needs to be properly activated first. Heat water to a temperature of 115 degrees, then mix the yeast and sugar together in the warm water. The mixture should become frothy within about 15 minutes. If it doesn’t get frothy, throw it away and use another package of yeast. The bread won’t rise properly if the yeast isn’t good.
After you place the dough in a loaf pan, cover it with a warm, wet kitchen towel and let it rise to the top of the pan. This takes between 45 and 90 minutes, depending on the temperature of your kitchen. If you let the dough rise too much, the millet bread loaf may collapse in the middle during baking.
This bread tastes wonderful right out of the oven, and it’s delicious the day it’s made. The texture isn’t as good the next day, so I like to freeze the portion I won’t be using the day it’s made.
For the best results, you can slice this millet bread before putting it in the freezer. Freeze it in pairs of slices so you can take out just enough for a sandwich. You can toast it, or defrost it on the counter until it reaches room temperature.
For the millet flour, you can buy millet from the bulk bins at Whole Foods and grind just the right amount into flour using a coffee grinder. Otherwise, I like Bob’s Red Mill for the millet flour as well as the brown rice flour, tapioca starch, and flax meal.
Visit my gallery of gluten free recipes for lots of other ideas of how you can enjoy gluten free snacks and meals.
Ingredients
- 2 tsp active dry yeast
- 1 tsp sugar (or honey)
- 1 cup water heated to 115 degrees
- 1 cup millet flour
- 3/4 cup tapioca starch
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 1/4 cup flax meal
- 2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 eggs
- 3 tbs olive oil
- 2 tbs honey
Instructions
- Proof the yeast by mixing the yeast, sugar, and warm water together in a small bowl or measuring cup. It will begin to get frothy after about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Combine the millet flour, tapioca starch, brown rice flour, flax meal, xanthan gum, and salt in a medium bowl.
- In a large bowl, mix together the eggs, olive oil, and honey. Add the yeast/water mixture. Stir in the dry ingredients and mix until fully combined.
- Transfer the dough to a 1 pound (9 inch x 5 inch) greased loaf pan.
- Cover the pan with a warm wet towel and let the dough rise. It should take between 45 and 90 minutes for the dough to reach the top of the pan (depending on the air temperature).
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
- When the dough has risen to the top of the loaf pan, bake it for 40 to 45 minutes. The loaf should rise a bit more while baking, and the top should be well-browned.
- Cool on a wire rack before removing from the pan. This tastes best the day it’s made. You can freeze any leftovers.
Nutrition
Price Breakdown
The ingredients for this recipe cost a total of $3.07, or $.26 per slice. It’s so liberating to be able to come up with an affordable, tasty loaf of gluten-free bread that I don’t have to order online. Try this millet bread for a great alternative to store-bought gluten-free bread.
Note: This post was originally published in 2012, and it was updated in 2020.
Does it matter which type of oven being used. I.e. convection vs conventional
This is made with a conventional oven. Bake time/temp may vary if you’re using convection, I think it depends on the particular oven.