Starting to bake on the Low FODMAP diet

I have always loved baking, but when I started to follow the Low FODMAP diet it became a necessity. Those early days on the diet lead to me spending hours in the supermarket checking every label to little avail. Honey, apple juice and gram flour seem to pop up every where, especially in the gluten free isle.

The few products that I found which were Low FODMAP friendly often had quite a hefty price tag. Which is why I started my Low FODMAP bakery, to help provide more choice for those following the Low FODMAP diet and because I love to bake.

Here is a quick guide to Low FODMAP baking ingredients to get you started

Flours

Gluten free flours are sold in the free from section in most supermarkets. The Doves farm gluten free flour is available in most major supermarkets and is Low FODMAP friendly. It is a great blend of rice, potato, tapioca, maize and buckwheat. You can experiment and make your own flour blend however you will need to head to a specialised shop to find some of the flours.

Honey > Maple syrup

I really miss honey, it adds such a nice sweetness to bakes, but maple syrup is an easy substitution. It is a straight swap in a recipe.

Dairy

Small amounts of dairy are allowed on the restriction phase of the Low FODMAP diet. However there are easy swaps when it comes to milk, including lactose free milk, almond milk (only 2% of almond milk is made of almonds), rice milk and quinoa milk. Butter is low FODMAP but can also be easily swapped with lactose free butter or diary free sunflower or coconut based spread depending on your own tolerance levels.

Eggs

Eggs are low FODMAP - yay!

Raising agents

Bicarbonate of soda, yeast and baking powder are all low FODMAP, just make sure that you pick up the gluten free version at the supermarket.

Xantham Gum

When baking with gluten free flour, Xantham gum is an essential ingredient. It helps to recreate the bonds with the ingredients that you would achieve with a gluten flour. A little goes a long way!

Flavourings

Now to the best bit, what flavour of cake, biscuit or bread are you looking for. So many classics are Low FODMAP

Cake Flavours

• Lemon

• Carrot

• Chocolate

• Raspberry

• Blueberry

• Orange

• Vanilla

• Mint

• Strawberry

• Banana

Bread Flavours

• Rosemary

• Garlic (use garlic infused olive oil)

• Basil pesto (many pestos have garlic in them, so make your own or use ASDAs free from pesto)

• Roasted mediterranean vegetables (tomatoes, aubergine and peppers

• Classic sea salt

• Tomato

• Cheese (many hard cheeses have low lactose levels)

• Courgette

• Seeds (sesame, nigella, pumpkin)

• Olives

• Sun dried tomatoes (only 8g)