Cranberry walnut bread

Bread is the hardest thing to make gluten-free. The main thing that keeps a slice of toast together is gluten and when you take that out the slice just crumbles in your hands before it makes the toaster. Because gluten-free bread obviously doesn’t have gluten, the magic ingredients to ensure the slice stays in one piece until it reaches your mouth is good quality xanthan gum. Making sure your batter binds with the xanthan gum is crucial in making gluten-free bread.

Ingredients

• 1 ½ cups gluten-free flour
• ½ cup almond meal
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp baking soda
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp xanthan gum 
• 2 eggs beaten
• ¾ cup orange juice
• ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 cup monk fruit sugar (or any sugar of your choice)
• 2 tbsp oil 
• 1 tsp orange peel
• 1 cup coarsely chopped cranberries
• ½ cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Directions

• In a large bowl, combine the gluten-free flour, almond meal, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and xantham gum.
• In a small bowl, whisk the sugar, orange juice, apple sauce, eggs, and oil. Pour into the dry ingredients and add the orange zest and mix just until moistened.
• Gently fold in the cranberries and walnuts making sure you don’t knock out any of the air.
• Spoon the batter into a greased and dusted loaf pan. Bake at 350° for 55-60 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. 
• Cool the loaf in the pan before removing to a wire rack to cool completely.
• It’s great for any breakfast recipe, my favorite is caramelized onion with Havarti cheese.