A flour by any other name...

I am a huge fan of nutritional diversity.  Sure, I fall into dinner ruts where the same foods make frequent appearances on my menu plan.  I think we all do that.  For me it is one part ease, one part comfort, and one part trying to nourish children (who like repetition).

I am forever playing with recipes to pump up the nutritional content.  Or to shake up the nutrients in a familiar dish.  I often make a muffin recipe using slightly different flour combinations to alter the nutrition it holds.  And I love trying new gluten free flours. I do!

When I came across a mention of using sprouted gluten free flours, I was enthusiastically ready to jump on board.  Why?  Because I have come across so many articles lately on the benefits of sprouting seeds and grains prior to consumption.  So, of course I turned to Amazon to see if they had something to offer.  They do!

I ordered sprouted buckwheat flour and sprouted millet flour, the two available sprouted organic gluten free flours currently available.  And?

I love them.

I love the difference they have made in the texture of my baked goods.  Really.  I did not expect such a notable difference in the performance of sprouted flour.  I feel like the texture more closely resembles gluten containing recipes.

And the flavor? Awesome.  I've always used buckwheat flour sparingly because it has a strong flavor that comes across as somewhat spicy to me.  I always reduce the cinnamon in recipes using buckwheat flour because of this.  Is that weird?  The sprouted buckwheat flour has a lighter color and a much milder flavor.  I love it.  The flavor of the millet does not seem to change with sprouting though.

One more difference?  I tried Authentic Foods superfine sorghum flour.  Again, the texture of baked goods was impacted far more than I anticipated.  I won't go back to regular sorghum now.

My husband, who is my biggest baked goods critic, has offered up praise on several occasions since switching.  The kids have exclaimed that the muffins are especially good today and asked what flour I used.  (Can you tell they are used to me playing with flours?)

If you haven't tried straying from your familiar gluten free flours, I encourage you to play a little.  You might be happy you did.