Gluten Free Cornbread for Thanksgiving

As I mentioned my last post, for Thanksgiving every year since I was in Kindergarten I've been making pumpkin bread and cornbread.  Last week I made my pumpkin loaf recipe gluten free, and today I tried making my cornbread recipe gluten free.  It turns out this recipe is the one on the back of the corn meal bag, but over the years my mom and I had altered this one too.  The result is a rustic, moist yet fluffy cornbread that has just the right amount of sweetness.  And it tastes just like the version with all purpose flour.  It's perfect with cranberry sauce (which I plan to make fresh for the first time for Thanksgiving) or even just toasted with a little bit of butter.  It's simple, easy to make, and a perfect side for your Thanksgiving table!

Gluten Free Cornbread for Thanksgiving

Recipe adapted from Indian Head Corn Meal
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes
Makes 1 Loaf in a 8'' X 4'' load pan

Ingredients

- 1 cup corn meal
- 1/4 cup sorghum flour
- 1/4 cup brown rice flour
- 1/4 cup white rice flour
- 1/4 cup tapioca flour
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
- 3 tsp gluten free baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup + 1/8 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup shortening
- 1 cup of whole milk
- 1 egg, beaten

Preheat the oven to 425˚F and grease a 8" X 4" pan (I use shortening).

Mix the cornmeal, all of the flours, and the xanthan gum together.  No mixer is needed for this recipe. 

Add the salt and baking powder.  Mix til evenly distributed.

Mix in the sugar.  I said 1/4 cup + 1/8 cup because over the years we found it needed a little extra sweetness.  It is nowhere near as sweet as say a corn muffin though.  It just brightens the loaf a bit.

Cut in the shortening.  I use a large salad fork and cut in about 1/2 Tbsp at a time.  You basically just want to mash in the shortening using the back of the fork/spoon against the side of the bowl.  It should be well distributed and there shouldn't be any real chunks of it.  The mixture will get an even coarser, sandy like texture.

Mix the beaten egg into the milk.

Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet mixture.  It will have a coarse texture.  Make sure all of the dry ingredients are moistened.

Pour into a greased 8" X 4" pan.  Bake in the middle of the oven for 25-30 minutes.  I did 20 minutes, then it needed another 5 at least.  It still needed 2-3 minutes after that too.  You just want to make sure a toothpick comes out clean.  If the top starts to brown too much you can also cover it in foil.

Allow it to cool before you pop it out.  Serve warm.  It's wonderful served with cranberry sauce so it's perfect for a Thanksgiving table.  It stores well in an airtight container for a few days.  Any longer than 4 days I'd recommend refrigerating it.