Pastry, pancakes and waffles can be made with rye flour although the results are heavier than with wheat, partly because rye flour is only available in wholemeal form. Putting the rye flour through a fine sieve first improves the quality by removing the larger pieces of husk from the flour, and adding some baking powder helps too. Pancakes can also be made with maize or barley flour, and taste pleasant although they are slightly rubbery – beat plenty of air into the mixture just before frying to improve the texture. Buckwheat flour is fairly protein-rich and makes a good pancake batter, but should be mixed with other flours to dilute the strong taste. Gluten-free mixes for pastry and pancakes can be bought by post and generally give excellent results.
Pasta made with gluten-free flour is obtainable by post. Or you can try rice noodles, obtainable in Chinese groceries, or buckwheat spaghetti, from healthfood stores.
Soya flour, gram flour and lentil flour are rich in protein, as well as carbohydrate. They can be used in baking, combined with other flours (see above under Gluten-free flours) and tend to improve the texture of pastry and pancakes.
Rice flour, potato flour, banana flour, chestnut flour, yam flour and other exotic flours are mostly low in protein. They are useful for making puddings and biscuits, or for thickening sauces (see below). Chestnut flour tastes sweet and nutty and is pleasant in shortbread or in a crumble topping for fruit, although it is rather heavy.
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