Potato-Egg Bread

Hand-mixing instructions

Put warm water, yeast, and sugar in a large bowl, and stir until dissolved. Wait 5 to 15 minutes for the yeast to proof, until it has developed about an inch of foam. Stir down and add glutinous rice flour and potato starch, stirring carefully to minimize lumps (I recommend a small hand-mixer). Once the batter is smooth, add potato flour slowly¹.

Add the eggs, and stir until smooth, then add the oil. Add the pectin slowly, then start adding the xanthan gum. If you are using a handheld or light mixer, the xanthan gum will quickly become too much for it; switch to a spoon or heavy mixer.

When the last of the xanthan gum has been stirred in, start adding the rice flour, about 1/8 C at a time. If, near the end, you are having real problems getting it to take the flour at the bottom of the bowl, add a tablespoon of water and continue. The dough should be just short of sticky; it will not stick to a light touch, but will stick when pressure is applied.

Turn the dough out on a well-floured board and knead for two minutes. It will stick to your hands and the board; add more flour and continue. It should smooth out a bit more under the kneading. When finished kneading, let it rest while you grease a medium bread pan (if it's good teflon, don't grease it).

Put the dough in the pan, slash the top with a razor blade or sharp knife, cover it with a cloth or a piece of greased plastic wrap, and let it rise until doubled.

Preheat the oven to 375°, and bake the loaf for 30-40 minutes, until it's golden and has a hollow sound when tapped². Turn out onto a cooling rack.

Electric mixer instructions

Combine warm water, sugar, and yeast in the mixer bowl; stir to dissolve. Combine all dry ingredients except the 1½C regular rice flour in a large bowl and set aside.

When yeast has thoroughly proofed (an inch of foam or more, about 15 minutes), start mixer on low power, and start adding the dry ingredients to the yeast mixture. Add a bit at a time, then allow it to blend. Add half of the dry ingredients, then add the oil and eggs, blending well. Add the other half of the flour mixture, switching to the dough hook when necessary. It will stiffen up considerably as the potato flour and xanthan gum start to work; if you ever add the ingredients one at a time, you'll need to switch halfway through the potato flour.

After adding all of the dry mixture, blend thoroughly, then add the last 1½C of rice flour a bit at a time to avoid splashing. Be patient. When it has all been added in, scrape down the bowl and mix for about two minutes.

When finished, the dough will be solid but sticky, like a cross between cake batter and frosting. Pour into a greased or Teflon medium bread pan, smooth out the top as best you can, and allow to rise until double (mine usually rises in about the time it takes to heat the oven). Bake at 375° for 30-40 minutes or until it's brown and sounds hollow when tapped; turn out immediately onto a rack.

I recommend making more than one loaf at a time with a mixer, as it is much easier to do so. I've also had the same recipe make bread that's a little sticky in the middle when I make it with a mixer, versus when I do it by hand; I'm going to start taking down the water by a quarter-cup to see whether that solves the problem. I suspect it depends on the size of the eggs you're using at any given time.