Mouth-watering baked goods bring joy to those who indulge in them at special events or “just because.” However, not everyone can enjoy a slice of cake or cookie as a fun treat. For some people, one pesky protein commonly found in baked goods, gluten, means they can’t enjoy most baked goods.
Offering gluten-free baked goods to customers is important to do to establish yourself as a successful bakery.
An Overview of Gluten
Wheat, rye, and barley contain a family of proteins called gluten. Gluten gives dough and batter its elastic texture and helps food like baked products keep their shape. Many foods contain gluten, from baked goods like cakes, pastries, bread, and cereals to salad dressings, soups, and caramel syrups. While many people enjoy foods that contain gluten without a second thought, plenty of people must avoid consumption of gluten completely.
Going Gluten Free
Going gluten free means avoiding eating foods and using products that contain gluten. People choose to go gluten free for various reasons. People with celiac disease, an autoimmune disease that makes people unable to properly digest gluten products, must adhere to a gluten-free diet to avoid illness and damage to the small intestine. Others experience gluten sensitivity where they feel ill or experience symptoms after eating gluten. Some people choose to go gluten free for personal reasons.
Restricting your diet to exclude gluten means needing to carefully seek out foods that avoid gluten products, including sweet treats like bakery items. Though gluten is extremely common in baked goods, gluten-free baked items can be made.
Gluten-free Products
To accommodate a gluten-free diet, bakers create original solutions to make delicious, gluten-free products. Gluten gives baked products their fluffy and sticky texture; so, to offer gluten-free baked goods, bakeries must use ingredients that make up for a lack of gluten.
Gluten-free flours such as almond flour and rice flour make great gluten-free substitutes. Gluten-free baking powders and baking sodas create a texture like the one gluten provides. Adding more eggs to a product helps it to stay intact.
Find delicious, gluten-free cakes, cupcakes, and more from Classic Cakes, a custom cake shop in Carmel, Indiana offering unique cakes made with the best ingredients.
