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YumI have to admit I took notice when Nameste started selling their gluten-free “Perfect Flour Blend” flour blend at Costco in five pound bags for around $10 (although it is $11.69 for a 3 pound page on the Nameste website). What a great price for a gluten-free flour – if it really worked they way they said it did. They promoted it as a cup for cup blend on the bag and on their website. Could it really be as perfect as they said it was?
From the Nameste website:
“This flour blend is well, just about perfect! Substitute one cup of our Perfect Flour Blend for one cup of wheat flour in your favorite everyday recipes. Now you can make grandma’s famous banana cake gluten free and no one will know!! (Because no gluten free flour can mimmick wheat flour exactly in every possible recipe, some more sophisticated recipes may yield less than perfect results.)……..”
I hadn’t tested one of their products myself in years, but I started thinking about it. I looked over the recipes using the “Perfect” blend up on their website. There were breads, cakes, pie crusts, muffins, brownies, in short, a whole array of baked goods. Interestingly, one of them was my angel food cake recipe from Gluten-Free Baking Classics, word for word, but without my name on it. Hmmmm……. I let them know. After several months and repeated emails, they corrected it —- and sent me some flour to test. I ended up with a huge sack of the stuff sitting in my pantry and I was determined to take it for a test run. I wanted this flour blend to work- it was inexpensive at Costco and more convenient to buy than Authentic Foods (because it was sold in a lot of grocery stores). But even more important, if people were using it in my recipes, maybe it really did work!
Testing Methodology
I have tested every all-purpose gluten-free flour blend on the market and all the rice flours available in the New York metro area. I use the exact same recipe whenever I test new flour – I make my vanilla cupcakes from Gluten-Free Baking Classics. It’s simple, basic and it doesn’t have a lot of ingredients. Any problems show up right away because there is nothing to hide behind (it is not a “sophisticated” recipe).
I actually go out of my way to illustrate my flour testing mythology in my basic baking class. I pass out samples of two vanilla cupcakes made with my brown rice flour mix, but each is made with a different brown rice flour: the first with Authentic Foods (my first choice rice flour) and the second with Bob’s Red Mill (my second choice rice flour). The cupcake made with the Bob’s Red Mill has a slightly tighter texture and is slightly smaller than the Authentic Foods one. It doesn’t rise as well, contracts more after baking and is slightly gritty (but far less gritty cupcakes made with other brands).
I also pass around two paper cups filled with plain brown rice flour for the class to feel: one has Authentic Foods (it is powdery like wheat flour) and the other has Bob’s (which has a slightly gritty feel). I often pass around two cups with those same two brown rice flours mixed up into my flour mix to show the class that potato and tapioca starch doesn’t actually cover up the grit, if it’s there.
The Test!
I employed my standard vanilla cupcake testing method to test Nameste’s Perfect Flour Blend. The mix contains sweet brown rice flour, tapioca starch, arrowroot powder, sorghum flour, xanthan gum. It has no potato, corn, dairy, which for some people, is an added benefit. Just as I did in the “Cup 4 Cup Test” here on this blog in February 2012, I used the original wheat version of my vanilla cupcake recipe (which I had used for more than a decade before being diagnosed with celiac) with the Nameste blend. I used Authentic Foods GF Classic Blend, my Brown Rice Flour Mix already made up in a bag ($11.50 for three pounds), in the converted version of the recipe. The only difference between the two recipes is that the wheat version uses 1 1/8 teaspoon baking powder instead of the 1 1/2 teaspoons used in the gluten-free version. I used the same oven and the same pan both times.
FYI FUN FACT! I now feel even more confident about using my cupcake test because America’s Test Kitchen’s copied it exactly (down to the pictures of cut-in-half cupcakes) in their The How Can It Be Gluten-Free Cookbook — which came out in March 2014 (on page 14). They wanted to compare their gluten-free blend to King Arthur’s and Bob’s Red Mill’s.
I opened the bag of the Nameste flour and felt it. It only had a small amount of grittiness. It wasn’t as fine as the Authentic Foods mix, but it certainly wasn’t as bad as most of the flours I’ve tried over the years. I had hope.
The two flours also mixed up in similarly and poured out into the cupcake pan the same way. You might remember that in the Cup 4 Cup test, there was already a huge difference between the two flour blends right in the mixing bowl; the Cup 4 Cup was gooey and glue-like because it had a huge amount of xanthan gum in it.
It wasn’t until the batters were baking that I started to see a more significant difference. The cupcakes made with the Nameste flour didn’t rise nearly as high in the pan, and then as the cooled, they contracted more than I expected. In fact, they looked pretty puny. They also had a fairly flat top instead of having a typical cupcake dome (even the Cup 4 Cup cupcakes had a dome), but were only fractionally lighter in color.
So how did the Nameste cupcakes taste? They actually tasted fine. There were no weird off-flavors and only a hint of grit. The sorghum flour didn’t even stand out as much as it might have because there was relatively less of it than there was of the sweet brown rice flour and the two starches (sorghum was the last ingredient other than the xanthan gum). But they weren’t tender like the Authentic Foods cupcakes; the texture was tighter and tougher. You had to pull them apart more purposefully -although they weren’t rubber-like. They were certainly edible. We could eat them. But they wouldn’t be my first choice. Even Bob’s Red Mill brown rice flour makes a nicer looking cupcake when used in my Brown Rice Flour Mix, and it tastes just as good, if not better than the Nameste blend. I’d rather spend a little more money for the Authentic Foods GF Classics Blend (actually the Nameste flour is about the same amount of money if purchased online, and not at Costco) and have the cupcakes turn out as well as possible.
Enthusiastic Test on Shortbread Cookies
Still, I wasn’t quite ready to give up on this flour. I thought to myself – if the flour won’t work really well for a light and tender cake, perhaps it’ll work better for cookies. I made a batch of shortbread cookies from Gluten-Free Baking Classics using the Nameste flour blend. The original wheat version of the recipe was very simple and basic (not “sophisticated”): flour, sugar, butter, vanilla and tiny bit of salt. The only change I had made to my gluten-free version was to add xanthan gum. If there was ever a recipe calling out for a flour blend that made tighter, firmer baked goods, it was a shortbread cookie. But nope. It didn’t work well. Here is where that little bit of grit made a difference. The ratio of butter to flour did not work as well with the Nameste flour as it did the very fine Authentic Foods (the cookies made with the Nameste melted a bit), and you could feel the grit on your tongue when you ate the cookies.
Over-Eager Test on Bread
The huge bag of flour was looming large over my waste-not-want-not ways. One more try. How about bread? The Nameste website contained a sandwich using this blend along with milk and eggs. Their recipe contained an extra 1/2 cup of starch in a total of 4 cups of flour. I wasn’t sure exactly what this meant, but I decided continue with my testing anyway. I didn’t want to use a complicated bread recipe that used a lot of ingredients. So I used my submarine sandwich bread recipe (the one I used in the Psyllium husks powder test here on this blog); it’s a simple, basic recipe that is very close to the original wheat recipe (and this is supposed to be a cup for cup flour). I tried making the recipe with the same amount of water as my converted recipe and produced a loaf that was so dense and gooey and small that I had to throw it out. In fact, it rose during the rising but then tightened and basically collapsed during baking; the baked loaf wasn’t higher than the wet dough was to start with. We couldn’t even eat it. I tried one more time with less water and it was not a lot better, maybe a tad bit higher. That last loaf also ended up in the garbage.
So what do I think after all this?
First, I can’t quite picture exactly what is coming out of the pan for other bakers who claim they are getting good results with this flour. If you are one of them, and you are reading this, please write me! I’d especially like to see a picture of what my angel food cake looks like when made according to the recipe on the Nameste website (with the extra 1/2 teaspoon of xanthan gum that the person who posted it left in even though the mix already has it).
Second, I’m not sure I understand why Nameste used sweet brown rice flour, which is the whole grain equivalent of sweet rice flour, as a main ingredient. Sweet rice flour, whether brown or white, is typically added in small amounts to gluten-free baked goods to provide a bit of tenderness. But in large amounts it will create a more compact, and sometimes damper, baked good. It certainly did here.
And why did Nameste use arrowroot powder if they were already using brown sweet rice flour. Arrowroot in any quantity can give certain gluten-free baked goods a kind of dampness. Sometimes people substitute a very small amount of it when they are trying to replace potato starch, but it seems a bit redundant when the first ingredient is sweet rice flour. And yes, I know some gluten-free bakers say you can also replace tapioca starch with arrowroot. You can, but your baked goods will be damper than they would be otherwise. I also thought perhaps they were using arrowroot to compensate for the dryness of the sorghum flour, but there isn’t that much sorghum, so that doesn’t make sense either.
Bottom line: I think Nameste might have something here if they took out some or all of the sweet brown rice flour and replaced it with regular brown rice flour. Once that is done, they could reduce the arrowroot a bit until they came up with a flour that is really a cup for cup replacement for wheat flour. But right now, I don’t think it works the way it is promoted and advertised- as a “perfect” cup for cup replacement for wheat flour.
Hey there, Annalise! I love your new book, but haven’t had time yet to bake a lot of the new things I want to try.
I’m glad you’re still testing and reporting on the new products that keep coming out. I long ago accepted that your Classical Blend, your bread flour mixes and your recipes are the gold standard. No more tests and trials for me!
No one—not even the nutrition experts—are using as “scientific” an approach to gluten-free baking as you. Your knowledge of conventional baking combined with your very logical methodology have satisfied all this family’s GF baking needs.
Hi there Shawn!
Thank you for all your support and your very careful testing over the years (you are mentioned in the front of my book, you know)!
I can’t wait until you have a chance to try some of the new recipes. Let me know how you make out!
Very best to you,
Annalise
Annalise, Thank you much for doing all of the work for us!
Hi Pam!
You very welcome! And I haven’t forgotten your Texas Sheet Cake- fear not!
Very best,
Annalise
I’d like for you to clarify something about your testing method. It sounds like you are using an “unconverted” wheat-based recipe for the Namaste flour, and you are use a “converted” GF recipe for the Authentic Foods’ flour. So you are using the 1 1/2 teaspoons of leavener for the recipe with Authentic Foods flour, and 3/8 teaspoons less than that with the test flour (in this case Namaste). Is that correct? If so, a difference in texture and rise is only to be expected. And while I get that these GF flours are advertising themselves as one-to-one replacements, for wheat flour, it doesn’t make much sense to me to compare them based on a modified recipe for only the Authentic Foods flour. If the Authentic Foods flour needs extra leavening, it is also not a one-for-one replacement. So why compare them that way?
hi!
I do it because they advertise their product as a cup for cup replacement for wheat flour in wheat recipes. Unsuspecting new bakers wouldn’t think about adding extra leavening. I’m trying to give readers an idea of what a classic (easy to make) recipe would look like if they used this blend. Nameste doesn’t say add more leaving. Or reduce the liquid. Or add extra starch to the recipe. They only say that you might have to tweak it for more sophisticated recipes. I’m trying to show people what you’d get if you take them at their word.
But you have a point– in a sense. Someone might look at that poor cupcake and say – “why not add another 1/2 teaspoon more baking powder to give it the lift it needs?” And in fact, I did (because I’m a bit OCD about my testing). But it didn’t really make much of difference. (I also tried it my pizza crust recipe two ways and a muffin recipe. You see, I really didn’t want to give up on this flour.) I really believe it is the flours in their blend that caused the wet, dense version of my cupcake, and that no amount of baking powder will make it the way it is supposed to be. But I’m always open for more input. I’ve got a curious mind!
What do you think?
Very best to you,
Annalise
I think when you show a side-by-side photo of a cupcake made with two different flours, it needs to be from the exact same recipe. I do understand your point about the label claim, but I’m not sure that’s what really interests your readers the most. Perhaps we’d like to know how it performs in YOUR recipes. At any rate, I’d like to see the same recipe used for each flour – I feel that would be more informative.
You also have to be aware of the appearance of a conflict of interest. I do not doubt your integrity at all, let me make that clear. But it is in your best interest, if you wish to be seen as an objective source, to make sure that no one can have the slightest doubt. And using a slightly different recipe for each flour could raise a doubt.
For the record, I have not used either flour blend. I like to mix my own. I do buy Authentic Foods flours because of the fine grind – the perform better than other brands in my experience (and being GF for 14 years, and a lifelong avid cook, that’s a lot). My sister, who is not GF and experienced with GF baking, bought the Namaste blend at Costco before I visited her this Christmas, and used it for all her Christmas baking. I can’t even remember everything she baked, but I know there was a banana-berry bread, which came out very well, pecan sandies, which were fantastic, and some M&M cookies, which I think were fine, but I can’t remember because I only ate one (just not a big fan of M&M cookies). These were all regular wheat recipes that she’d converted. That’s the only time I’ve had anything baked with that flour.
I do appreciate the work you are doing in GF baking, which is why I follow your blog and own your GF “Baking Classics” book.
hi!
I’m hear you, although I’m worried that you might be overly focused on that 3/8 of a teaspoon of baking powder. This particular test is only to compare a so-called “cup-for-cup” gluten-free flour blend in the original wheat version of my vanilla cupcake recipe (because it is advertised, promoted, and sold as a cup-for-cup flour) to the same recipe converted to use blend that has been my so-called standard for the last 12 years or so. The only difference in the recipe is amount of baking powder– and the amount of xanthan gum (because I know how much gum is in my recipe but we don’t know what they put into their blend). It is the same test I did for the Thomas Keller Cup-4-Cup and all the other “cup-for-cup” flours I test. It is not a test to compare a cup-for-cup blend in a recipe that has already been converted to gluten-free because that is not how the flour is sold. And as I mentioned, I did, in fact, repeat the test out of curiosity and added another 1/2 teaspoon of baking soda (and 1/8 teaspoon more than the 3/8 you discuss); it didn’t make any difference. My hope had been to be able to make a suggestion about possibly using it as a cup for cup –but with extra leavening.
One other thing I think I might mention: as I discussed in my post, when I’m doing a test to compare two different brands of flour in my flour blends, like Authentic Foods brown rice flour versus Bob’s Red Mill brown rice flour in my all-purpose flour mix, I do use the exact same converted recipe (because my blends are not cup-for-cup).
Thank you for allowing me to better explain what I am trying to achieve with these tests. When the test is for two flours that are advertised the same way (like plain brown rice flour), I test one way (I can use the same converted recipe). But when a company boldly proclaims their flour to be a cup-for-cup substitute for wheat flour, then I test it in a wheat recipe- not a converted recipe- and I compare it to the converted version of same recipe using a flour that is not a cup-for-cup blend. Lucky for me, the Authentic Foods flour is so good and has such a fine grind, that a I often don’t have to change a lot.
Thank you again for your active discussion about this!
Very best,
Annalise
I used the Namaste spice cake recipe for cupcakes and got the same flat look. Took forever to cook. I took them out after 35 mins, box said cook only 20 mins. Still did not appear done. It was done but a little greasy. I did follow the recipe but used egg replacer. Perhaps that was the problem. Have been using Egg R. for years in pancakes etc w no problem.
Hi!
Sorry,I haven’t used Egg Replacer in pancakes, but I’ve used it in several other kinds of baked goods (muffins and cakes). For me, it seems to work better in some kinds of recipes (heavier baked goods), and not so well in others. I’d say that since you were using their mix (which should work), the Egg Replacer might be the culprit.
Very best,
Annalise
Thank you for confirming what I had already been finding with the Namaste (not so) Perfect Flour Blend. I use it if I’m in a hurry or need a bit of thickening in a recipe. I used it recently for some oatmeal cookies and they came out pretty good. I am restricting my sugar consumption and am sticking mainly to recipes that call for very little sugar – so no cakes, cupcakes, etc.
Keep up the good work! You are an inspiration.
Edie
Hi Edie!
Thank you!!
Good to know I’m not entirely alone in not being able to create a stellar baked good with their Perfect Blend. Using it with an oatmeal cookie is an interesting idea, though. At least you wouldn’t notice the wetness and compression so much. Might have to give it a try so I can use up all that flour I have left!
Very best to you,
Annalise
I use this flour for everything and can make any normal recipe using it for wheat flour. My baked goods turn out scrumptious and those who are revolted by the concept of GF flour confess afterwards some items are even better. Their banana bread recipe is the best I’ve ever had. Not sure what went wrong for you, but I vcant live without it. Took me 2 years of throwing out other GF flours to find this one. Surely the formulary in the 5lb bags isn’t different?? Hope not, but they don’t carry it at my Costco…
hi!
I knew there were people out there who were able to use it! Thank you for writing me. Would you mind sending me a recipe (see the link to email here on this blog) that you really love that uses this blend (not the banana bread)? I’d like to try it. And to the best of my knowledge, the flour in both bags is the same.
Very best regards,
Annalise
I think I will pass on that “perfect” Namaste flour. I personally think your flour blend is as close to perfection as I can get. It is my go to flour blend. I make so many great recipes of yours. And yes, I like your scientific approach to it all. When I can I will get your latest cookbook. It sounds intriguing!
Hi Angela,
Thank you! I’m happy to hear you are enjoying my work. And I hope you’re able to get the new book – it has a lot of really good recipes and a lot more science.
Very best to you,
Annalise
I have used Nanaste for over a yr. We bake all my recipes withit. I had trouble withBibs RedMill new one to one. They add potato starc which does not work with yeast.
We make 3 loaves of bread a week in our bread machine, which is xa Namaste recipe. Best gf bread
Roberta
Hi!
I’m happy to hear you have been successful using Nameste’s Perfect Flour Blend. But I beg to differ about your contention that potato starch doesn’t work with yeast. It certainly does- and gluten free bakers have been using it for decades in yeast based products (including most many national brands sold in the store). But as you well know, palettes are varied. Thankfully, there is something for everyone.
Very best,
Annalise
Hi Annalise, Just wanted to say the decision to make the Orange Chiffon cake was a great choice. I loved the texture and taste of this cake. I shared a few pieces with a fellow celiac girlfriend and her University age son said to her, “Mom you would never know this cake is gluten free.” He loved it.
Your latest book is my favourite but each one has it’s own special reason to have it in my collection. The little extra tidbits and information makes for a good read. Thank you for sharing your vast knowledge of gluten free the way it should be. I never thought I could ever make such a wonderful gluten free amazing dessert. Thank you, thank you, Lynne
hi Lynne,
You are most certainly welcome. I’m so glad you are enjoying the new book! That Orange Chiffon cake is really a wonderful choice – I like it, too. And it was well received by my testers who found that it was much easier to make than they anticipated (especially if they had never made a chiffon cake before).
Hope you get to try a lot of the recipes —and that you are able to find some new favorites.
Very best regards,
Annalise
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So glad to run across this! My dog-eared copy of Gluten Free Baking Classics has been my go-to book since we figured several years ago that my husband’s GI issues were completely due to gluten and I’ve just purchased the updated edition for my son who has also developed a severe sensitivity. I’ve tried many other flour variations, but yours remains unequaled. So thank you! With regard to Namaste, I mostly agree with you, however, I do think that the chocolate chip cookies are excellent and I have tweaked their oatmeal cookie recipe a bit using pecans and cranberries which turns out great as well. Tried making biscuits though…not so good. I will probably keep Namaste around just for the cookie power since is so easy. Thanks again to you for your excellent flour blend and recipes which have sustained our family for many years!
Hi Erin,
Thank you for your very kind words about my recipes. It’s really nice to hear how my cookbook has helped you to produce really good gluten-free baked goods for your family.
I agree with you that the Namaste is better used for cookies where the extra wetness and moisture from their flour blend won’t be as noticeable. And my sister Claudia told me that she is able to use their blend in pancakes by substituting 1/4 cup of almond flour for their blend in the recipe (she was trying to figure out a way to use up her bag, too).
Thank you for writing!
Very best regards,
Annalise
I have been using the namaste flour without issues for awhile now, substituting it into recipes “cup for cup” like it claims you can do. But I find its better to convert the cups into grams and weigh out the namaste flour on a scale instead of using volumetric cups. I compared the mass of 1 cup of namaste and it had a higher mass than 1 cup of regular flour. It was over by about 20g, which made a significant difference.
Somewhat relatedly, the pancake recipe on the bag is completely horrible! Don’t try it, they puff up way too much and don’t cook all the way through. Substituting namaste into regular pancake recipe worked much better.
Hi Koko,
Sorry for the delay getting back to your post!
I do think the Nameste flour can be used more easily in certain types of recipes (like cookies perhaps) where the wetter texture isn’t as noticeable. Nice to know you’ve been able to use it more easily if you weigh it out in grams. And yes, I don’t understand the pancake recipe on their bag any better than you do. It’s good to know that it works in your own wheat pancake recipe. And as I mentioned above, my sister said she was able to use it in pancakes if she mixed in some almond flour.
Very best regards,
Annalise
“I’m not sure I understand why Nameste used sweet brown rice flour, which is the whole grain equivalent of sweet rice flour, as a main ingredient ..”
I take it you care a lot more about taste than health? I would think someone would rejoice over using a whole grain equivalent of anything. But I guess that’s just me.
I’ve had nothing but wonderful results from Namaste, and was heartbroken when my Costco stopped selling it.
So thank you for your recipes, because everything else I’ve found is just gritty, nasty, trash.
Hi,
My all-purpose flour mix is 2/3 finely ground brown rice flour (whole grain) and 1/3 starch. But there is a big difference between brown rice flour and sweet brown rice flour. Just as you said above, it IS the whole grain equivalent of sweet rice flour, which in my experience, shouldn’t really be used as the main component of any gluten-free flour blend. It should should be added in small quantities, when needed, to achieve certain textural qualities. I think Bob’s used it to try to do away with some of the dryness that is often associated with starchy, gluten-free flour blends. But in my opinion, he over did it.
I am happy to hear the Nameste blend worked well for you! I knew there musts be a lot of people who liked it when Costco started selling it. But now, after my test above (and others not included here), I don’t think it should be called a “cup-for-cup” blend as they purport on the package. It is particularly misleading to people who are new to gluten-free. My test above used a simple wheat cupcake recipe that I had successfully used for decades. But for the test, I made it with Bob’s blend. The result: it didn’t create a delicious cupcake that any of my taste testers wanted a second bit of.
Very best regards,
Annalise
The Namaste is good for pizza crust, drop bisciuts, shortbread, and as a gravy thickener. I am not really a baker but my husband would like to try making a gluten free cake from scratch. I’m glad to have read this so as not to have wasted that many ingredients. I plan to try to find the Authentic Foods blend. Do you know what stores typically carry it?
hi!
Unfortunately, Authentic Foods flours are not sold everywhere. And it seems to depend on where you live. For example, in my area, it’s only sold in a couple of stores. But in California, it’s sold all over. If you can’t find it locally where you live, I encourage you to order it from online retailers like Amazon or directly from Authentic Foods. I also usually recommend buying more than one bag so you can spread the shipping cost across several products. Authentic Foods has the finely ground brown rice I use in my blend, and it has GF Classic Blend -which is my mix already made up in a bag. (I do not have a financial agreement with Authentic Foods- they just make a really great flour.) I also like their Sweet Rice flour; I use a small amount in several of my recipes (pie crust, biscuits, and some cookies and other pastries).
I do like the Bob’s Red Mill xanthan gum best, if you have to xanthan gum. I have a couple of cake recipes on my old website- foodphilosohper.com. And there are some new ones here on this blog. My first book, Gluten-Free Baking Classics has a lot of basic, classic cake recipe, as well. Please let me know if you have any other questions.
Very best,
Annalise
OMGOODNESS!!!
My daughter was recently diagnosed as having Celiac’s and I have been a baker ALL my life, so when I came across the Namaste flour, I felt as if my prayers had been answered!!…… until this morning. And the other day. And the day before that. Holy COWS this is not even CLOSE to a one for one replacement!! and being a mom on the run, I was about to throw this bag away until I read all the comments. My results are as follows:
Muffins: too gummy, even when cooked through to the correct temp and the correct time. Almost rubbery.
cookies: peculiar texture and crumbly
pancakes: also, rubbery.
I have a selection of Red Mills in my pantry, but they’ve always daunted me, so I just sort of avoided them, but with all the pastries I’ve been throwing away lately, maybe it’s time to give them a shot! Also going to look for online ordering of the Authentic Foods.
Thank you SOO much and I’m going to scour your site for some more helpful hints!!!
Hi Heather!
You are very welcome! And thank you for contributing to the feedback on Namaste flour. I think it will be helpful for other new-to-gluten-free-bakers who might want to confirm that the reason their muffins bounced off the floor had nothing to do with them.
I really do wish wish Namaste would reconfigure their product to make it easier to use!
Very best,
Annalise
I made the angel food recipe from the Namaste website using their flour and thought it was delicious. It’s a bit more dense than the traditional cake flour recipes, but I didn’t mind. My husband even commented that it was really good without even knowing it was a gluten free recipe.
Hi Ashlee,
Yes, I would imagine that if you used their flour mix in my recipe, the angel food cake would be denser. But as you read above, their mix uses different flours than mine (like sweet brown rice flour, which is contributing to the dense-issue here) and it also contains xanthan gum. In my opinion, when they adapted my recipe on their website, they should have left out the xanthan gum from my original recipe. The cake doesn’t really need so much. If you make the recipe again, you might want to consider trying that one little adjustment.
I’m glad you enjoyed it though! Perhaps you’ll try some other recipes of mine here on this site!
Very best regards,
Annalise
OK, I know you were testing their claim of “cup for cup” and I get your point. If I use cup for cup, my stuff comes out dry and thick. However, I did learn something from your reader comments today, and tried it.
I took a good ol’ Betty Crocker coffee cake recipe today and subbed out the cup of wheat flour for the gram equivalent of Namaste (which was considerably less than I would have used “cup for cup”). My muffins turned out AMAZING. 🙂 So what I learned today is that you need to sub out for weighing the flour – they maybe should put on their package “gram for gram” but maybe they think the average gluten free baker doesn’t want to have to dig out the scale….do they not know we use it like crazy anyway?? 😉 Regardless, thanks for your post and all the comments. I still learned something new. 🙂
hi Laurie,
You’re very welcome! And thank you for your input on using the Nameste flour. I agree that it can work well in certain recipes- depending on what your expectations are in terms of texture and density. And yes, the measuring technique could make a positive difference. I know it does with my flour blend!
Very best,
Annalise
Hi Annalise,
Thank you for taking the time to write this post and answer all the comments on here. I just bought a huge bag of the Namaste flour at Costco because I trusted the cup-for-cup claim. Made a super simple vanilla cake last night that ended up looking like gooey undoneness inside when I took it out of the oven! So disappointed and I’m not sure if you’d have any recommendations other than substituting with almond flour and measuring in grams that have been mentioned above? I’d really hate throwing out the whole bag (like I had to do with my cake) but I hated the gooeyiness.
Just in case it’s useful, here is the vanilla cake recipe I used:
1 cup unsalted butter softened
1 and 1/2 cups granulated sugar
4 eggs
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
2 and 3/4 cups flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole milk
Thank you so much!!!
Hi,
That’s a pretty basic recipe, and so I’m thinking that other than reducing the butter (by a couple tablespoons), and changing to a lower fat milk, adding extra baking powder, and using those suggestions for substituting some the Nameste flour with almond flour (along with measuring by grams), I’d use the flour for something other than cake– or just your losses and dump it. But then, you saw my own attempt at making cake with their flour here — failure. I also failed on simple, basic cookies and on a simple bread.
Anyway, my sister used her bag by mixing wit almond flour and making pancakes and waffles with it (and you can keep it in the frig or the freezer until you use it up by the way).
Let me know what you decide!!
Very best,
Annalise
I bought a bag of this at Costco and it tasted horrible. I threw it away. I don’t know if Costco sold me a stale bag or what. Love your books. My equivalent of the “cupcake test” is the “one pancake test” — if I can’t even make a decent tasting and performing pancake out of it — the simplest test on God’s Green Earth — then I just throw it away!
Hi James,
I’m so sorry your the Nameste flour test was such a disaster. If the bag does smell rancid (or tastes rancid) you should take it bake and get a refund! Otherwise, my sister had some success mixing her leftover (ie. not well liked) bag of Nameste flour with almond flour to make pancakes. She was able to use up the rest of the bag this way. I wish you much success with the rest of you baking efforts.
Very best,
Annalise
I know this post has seen some years, but I’ll throw in my $.02! I have used mainly Namaste’s perfect flour blend and early in my GF journey (now going on 5yrs), it did adequately. I didn’t expect GF baked goods to be exact replicas, so a cupcake with a little more moisture didn’t bother me. But THEN I had to go egg free as well (son with EOE) and, game changer. I absolutely cannot get a decent result. Just tonight I tried making GF vegan hot dog buns and while they looked lovely in the oven, the insides were dense chewing gum (I baked longer/lower too). The only things I find Namaste is reliable for are naan, tortillas (really good, actually!), asian dumplings, and calzones. Even then the result is more moist than I’d like. It does a great job thickening, however.
I’ve been going crazy with failed baking attempts, but I now have hope that the *flour* is the problem and not something like my oven/my recipe/my mind.
Hi Rebecca,
I’m happy to know that my post gave you helpful insight as to how you might refine your baking efforts in order to get the results you want. Please feel free to email me (you can find the link here on this site) if you have any other questions once you start tweaking your flour mix. I hope you are very successful!
Very best,
Annalise