For those of you that bake and cook with gluten-free flours often, you know that it can be a pricey endeavor.  You can get five pounds of all-purpose flour for like a nickel but 2 ounces of any type of gluten-free flour costs all the gold in China as well as your firstborn child.

Ok, maybe it’s not that dramatic, but you get the idea.

For awhile, I had relegated myself to shelling out the extra dough when it came to gluten-free flour but then I started to think about it.  Most of the flours I bought weren’t blends, they were just straight up one-ingredient flours.  Almond, brown rice, quinoa, oat, buckwheat, corn, coconut… all flours made with just one thing.

I can make things with just one ingredient in my own kitchen.

I have a blender/food processor.

Why am I paying an arm and a leg for these things again?

So I started saving money and making my own flour at home.  If you have a decent blender or food processor you can do the same thing.  Heck, if you have a pretty crappy blender or food processor you can get by making a few of these on your own.  I did until I got a new food processor.

Here are four of my favorite flours to make at home and a few ideas on how to use them!

Oat Flour

This is probably the easiest and cheapest flour to make.  All you need are regular rolled oats and you can make your own oat flour.

• 1 cup regular rolled oats = a little less than one cup of flour.

1. Pulse oats in a food processor or blender until you have a fine flour like texture.

Uses: Great for cookies and quick breads. I like to use it as a binder in lentil meatloaf or meatballs too.

Buckwheat Flour

Even though it has the word heat in the name it’s still gluten-free.  You will want to find plain buckwheat groats, not roasted.

• 1 cup buckwheat groats = about 1 cup of flour

1. Toast the plain groats in a dry pan over medium-high heat until nutty and fragrant, about 5 minutes.
2. Pulse the groats and then blend into a fine powder.

Uses:  I like using it to make pancakes, bread, and crackers.  It also makes a nice crispy crust for pork or chicken if you mix it with a few spices, salt, and pepper.

Quinoa Flour

You might need a little bit more powerful blender or food processor to grind up the tiny quinoa seeds.  A smaller bowl or pitcher work better if you have one of those.  You can use any color quinoa you like but I like to use white quinoa because it has a more neutral flavor.

• 1 cup quinoa = less than 1 cup of flour

1. Toast the quinoa in a dry pan over medium-high heat until fragrant and golden, about 2 to 3 minutes
2. Blend in a food processor or blender until you have a flour consistency.  This might take a bit longer than other DIY flours.

Uses:  I have been using this a lot in rolls and breads because it gives a nice nutty flavor, you can also use it for my cauliflower pizza crust!

Coconut Flour

Perhaps the best smelling flour in the bunch, I like this because it lets me use up the leftover coconut from my coconut milk!

• 1 cup coconut shreds = less than 1 cup of flour
• If you are using leftover shreds from making milk let them dry out on a pan completely before continuing.

1. Preheat your oven to the lowest setting (mine is 200 and it worked just fine) and toast the dried coconut shreds until golden.  About 20 to 30 minutes
2. Let the shreds cool then pulse them in the blender or food processor until you have a flour-like texture.

Uses:  I use coconut flour a lot around here for things like pancakes, avocado fries, and desserts like these chocolate PB bars.

 

So there you go!  You can make your own gluten-free flour for a fraction of the cost at the store.  Just make sure to store all these flours in an airtight container to maintain freshness.