Gluten Free Peasant Bread

When I was little, we used to bake bread...and devour it immediately after it came out of the oven. At my apartment, my bread eating habits have not changed, however my diet has. In the gluten-free world, I've found most breads to be dry, crumbly, crusty and not in a good way. With this recipe, the perfect crusty outside and chewy inside join together, resulting in baked perfection. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Prep Time: 2 hours 10 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Total Time: 2 hours 40 minutes

Makes 1 loaf

Ingredients:

• 1 cup lukewarm water, it's important that it is not too hot!
• 1 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp rapid rise yeast
• 1 cup white rice flour
• 1/2 cup brown rice flour
• 1/3 cup tapioca flour
• 1/3 cup buckwheat flour
• 2 tsp xantham gum
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 2 egg whites
• 2 tbs butter, to coat the pan

Instructions:

1. Combine the water and sugar, pour the yeast over the water, no need to stir, and let proof for 10-15 minutes until frothy. 
2. While the yeast proofs, combine the flours, gum, salt, and egg whites. 
3. Once the yeast has proofed, pour it over the flour mixture and combine with a spatula. 
4. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rise in a warm place for 1.5 to 2 hours.*
5. Butter an oven safe bowl or loaf pan. Transfer the dough to the buttered bowl or pan and cover with plastic wrap. Place in a warm place, I set mine on the oven while it preheats, and allow it to rise for 30 more minutes while the oven preheats to 425F. 
6. After the second rise, bake the bread for 30 minutes. Remove the bread from the oven, invert it onto a wire rack, and allow it to cool or don't and dig in!

Notes
*I will turn my oven on to 350 F for 1 minute, then turn it off again. This creates a warm space for the bread to rise.

Adapted from Alexandra Cooks