Gluten-Free Baguettes (Egg-Free, with flax “eggs”!)

Many of you who are baking the gluten-free breads from the books have asked about making the dough without eggs– here’s a decent swap:

Gluten-Free Baguettes:

Add the following to our Gluten-Free Crusty Boule recipe in place of the eggs:

2 tablespoons whole flax seeds (makes enough to replace 2 large eggs)

1/3 cup water to mix with flax

To make the egg substitute:

Grind the flax seeds in a Spice Grinder until it is a fine powder.

Stir together the powered flax with 1/3 cup of water.

After the mixture has sat for about 3-5 minutes will get gelatinous and quite egg like.

For more details on how to mix and use the dough see chapter 9, page 297 in The New Healthy Bread in Five Minutes a Day. You can also find more details here.

Once the dough is well chilled reach into the bucket with wet hands and pull out 1/4 of the dough.

Dip your hands in more water to prevent the dough from sticking to your hands as you work.

You want to press, squeeze and gently pull the dough into the shape of a baguette. This dough has no stretch to it, so you can’t pull it too hard or it will rip apart. The good news is that you can always just press it back together.

If the dough is too soft to form in your hands then just place it on a thin sheet of parchment and form the loaf with wet hands right on the paper. Try to handle it gently so as not to compress all of the air bubbles out of the dough.

brush with water and then loosely drape with plastic wrap. Let the dough rest for 40 minutes.

Preheat your oven to 475°F for 30 minutes with a Baking Stone on the center rack and a Broiler Pan on the bottom rack.

Sprinkle with seeds (these are the mixture from The New HBin5 on page 81).

Place the baguettes, on the parchment, into a Baguette Pan. This way the bread keeps its lovely shape and you can get more into your oven at one time.

Using a sharp Serrated Bread Knife slash the baguettes at a diagonal three times 1/4-inch deep down the loaf.

Place the baguette pan onto the preheated stone, add 1 cup of hot water to the broiler pan and bake for 30 minutes.

Allow the bread to cool on a wire rack and then enjoy!

Related Posts:

Video on Gluten-Free Dough

Gluten-Free Crusty Boule recipe

Gluten-Free Naan

Gluten-Free Crock Pot Bread

Note: BreadIn5.com is reader supported. When you buy through links on the site, BreadIn5 LLC earns commissions.

408 thoughts to “Gluten-Free Baguettes (Egg-Free, with flax “eggs”!)”

  1. I’m a Vermonter and a long time KA flour user – I was so bummed out when I got diagnosed with gluten, wheat, soy, dairy, flax and nut allergies. I just loved making bread. Now so happy to see you offer some gluten free mixes and flours. I agree Chia seed or Salba seed is the way to go for egg replacer. The commercial egg replacers are yucky! Hope you get “Expandex” food starch helps with gluten free baking! Can’t wait to try your new flours!

  2. As a gluten-free baker and blogger, I’m infinitely curious about these products! Also, I’m posting a gluten-free chocolate brioche roll on my blog this week that’s based on your GF brioche recipe. 🙂

  3. In Healthy Bread in Five Minutes A Day, at least one of your GF breads calls for soy flour. Can you recommend a good substitute for soy for those of us who cannot tolerate both gluten and soy? Many thanks!

    1. Brook: I think you should be fine just increasing the other flours in the recipe to make up for the 1/2-cup of soy, should be a big deal but might take some experimentation.

  4. I have ALWAYS used only King Arthur flour!!
    These recipes look fabulous — can’t wait to try them all!!

  5. I love KAF, had my first experience with them recently thanks to my grocers catalog. This baggette looks and sounds delicious. I am constantly seeking new GF recipes and this is now on the top of my list.
    Thank you Zoe and Jeff! By the way, my younbgest daughters name is Zoe (pronounced Zo E), always nice to see someone else with the same name.

  6. My family has been enjoying artisan in 5 bread daily for many months now, thanks to your fabulous books and website. I am GF and have been trying to get my bread to come out as terrific as the loaves I make for them, but so far just haven’t mastered the GF loaves as easily. Will keep trying, though. Thanks to both of you!

    1. Hi Tala,

      It is a very different way of handling the dough. What are the issues you are having with it? Perhaps we can help you get a better result?

      Thanks, Zoë

  7. Thank you Zoe!! I made your gluten free boule a couple weeks ago and was wishing I could find an egg substitute for my friends who can’t handle any dairy – and here you are with the answer just when I needed it. (God timed that well 🙂
    I’m doing a soap demo in a couple weeks and wanted something gluten/egg free to take for some of the ladies.
    Enjoy your holiday!

  8. Success! I made a half recipe of the GF Olive Oil Bread (from HB in 5) using the flax and water instead of egg and it turned out fabulous! No difference in volume or baking times. The loaf has a more whole grain feel, and certainly more fiber, than the egg version. Also made pizza with it and that was delicious, too.

    1. Hi Carol C,

      Thank you for letting us know that you tried the egg substitute in another recipe. I have not yet tried it, but will let people know you had success!

      Thanks, Zoë

  9. My sister just sent me a KAF catalogue and I’m definitely sending an order tomorrow morning. I had no idea I could ever again have those crusty, seedy, wonderful breads. I’d pretty well convinced myself that I no longer liked bread. Ha! These look too gorgeous not to try. Guess I won’t buy those smaller sized jeans after all!

  10. ooo…this is a great giveaway! I love your blog, and always am inspired to try new flours and ideas when reading your blog.

  11. I can’t wait to try the egg replacement. My wife is vegan, and I’m gluten-free. So we almost never eat the same thing.

  12. I am currently reading your book Healthy Bread in 5 min a day, and i love that you’ve provided a mass/volume table for ingredients on page 36, however, i am disappointed this doesn’t include gluten-free ingredients. I’ve done some searching on my own and come up with conflicting data for several of them (including tapioca starch). Do you have an updated table available that would include and of the GF ‘flours?’ Thanks a bunch!

  13. Thanks! I cant wait to make these for a friend who couldn’t have the Gluten Free recipies with eggs. Now I can make her bread! Thanks.

  14. I can’t wait to try this recipe! I have severe food allergies, including eggs. Baking is limited when you can’t use eggs and many substitutes have dairy (also allergic to dairy). Thank you so much! I have your books and have loved the 5 minute method. Keep up the great work.

  15. These look GORGEOUS and DELICIOUS! I’ve been looking for KAF Ancient Grains since I heard about it, and can’t find it. I miss the shape and crustiness of baguettes, but not the kleenex taste of white bread. This looks just perfect!

  16. Thanks for the egg-free version! This is so great for us as your child has 36 food allergies.

  17. My mom ordered me HBin5 for my birthday last week and I cannot wait to try out the Gluten Free recipes!
    When I heard about you and your book via Shauna’s blog, I knew I just had to have it! Thank you so much for taking the time to perfect recipes for those of us with a gluten intolerance. Its a huge blessing!

  18. I have never baked before but love eating healthy. I love your book and now bake bread almost daily. I have a second refrigerator just for my flours, nuts and yeast. When mixing the ingredients I only use half of the vital wheat gluten the receipe calls for because of the negative info. regarding gluten. I am ready to order my flours and gluten free is all I will use from now on. I love your breads and have enjoyed sharing them with my friends. I am going on a mission trip in August where I plan to specifically cook and bake with the local village women. Again thank you,
    Connie

    1. Connie: Hope it’s clear– if you’re switching to gluten free, you can’t use any vital wheat gluten at all?

  19. Jeff and Zoe, I got on the Dianne Rehm (Public Radio) show today! The author of 52 Loaves was talking that you really have to knead the dough. I got on as a caller, and represented the people who are unable to knead dough, due to hand problems of various kinds. He didn’t like no-knead bread, but I told him that 2 people can bake the same recipe and have different results. I said that I have been able to make wonderful no knead breads for most things, except bagels (which I feel the structure of kneaded dough works better in the water bath). I told him that I am baking with a group online and baking thru Artisan Breads in Five Minutes a Day. Yes, I gave us a plug!

    They had a wonderful poem on the air, which I would like to share:

    Bread
    By E.J. Mudd

    Mix flour, water yeast and salt.
    If the phones rings, don’t answer.
    Your fingers are a sticky mess.

    Let dough rise in a nice, warm place.
    If the phone rings, don’t answer.
    You’re creating.

    Knead till satiny. Divide into loaves.
    If the phone rings, don’t answer.
    You’re sculpting.

    Bake in hot oven till crisp and brown.
    If the phone rings, don’t answer.
    You’re in aromatherapy.

    Take out and eat a piece at once.
    If the phone rings, don’t answer.
    You’re in heaven.

    Judy

  20. I was diagnosed with Celiac before it was really a well known disease, at the age of two. I even went through some clinical trials and biopsies to see what types of flours I could tolerate (I rate pretty high up on the scale of intolerance.) I have alwasy purchase rice flour from an Asian foods grocery – which is really inexpensive, but in baking can lead to some varying results. Super excited to try the KAF!!

  21. Great looking breads! I have used a silicone baking sheet to roll out or work with gluten-free doughs for breads, pies, and cookies. The silicone sheet keeps things from sticking and really helps.

  22. Making good gf bread is a great desire for me. I’m encouraged by the instructions you provided! Can’t wait to try it!

  23. Wow, your bread looks so yummy! I can’t wait to try this recipe. I am going to ask our local “health food store” to stock KAF products! Sounds wonderful!!!

  24. help! I’ve had this problem a few times now, so I must be doing something wrong. Even after dusting the bread while it sits, and dusting the pizza peel with cornmeal, the dough is sticking to the peel, doesn’t want to slide onto the baking stone, and if I can get it there, it sticks to the stone and I lose the bottom of the bread when I try to get it out of the oven (which is always a struggle since it’s sticking).
    Thanks for any advice. 🙂

  25. Hi – Saw you both at Lit feast in Chicago last year(downpour and had to cancel your program) great to meet you both have loved your book. What a difference a year makes it is hot dry and 80 here for weekend weather report. I use King Arthur Flours and would love to try their new products thanks for the giveaway.

  26. Hello Jeff and Zoe! Congrats on this wonderful book, I am a medical school student with gluten intolerance and lactose intolerance. i am always looking for new quick recipes to add to my repertoire, i stumbled across this website yesterday and immediately went out and purchased Hbin5. Now I have a quick question about using the Gluten Free Boule as a base dough for some of the other recipes in the non-gluten free section — can you do that? Also, for the Gluten-Free Brioche, on page 252 it says that you can substitute that dough for the pastries – but how do you know which ones? I am concerned because on one page it says that the gluten free dough can not be shaped so how could you make it into doughnuts, bagels or crescent rolls? any guidance on which recipes can be translated both in the pastry section and in the other sections would be helpful.

    1. Vanessa: Sure, you can swap in the GF dough for the regular doughs. Consistency may be different and the GF is weaker structurally– you’ll see what I mean. Should be OK pretty much anywhere, including the pastries except probably the doughnuts and bagels– won’t stand up to the boiling oil or water. Crescent rolls will probably work but get a little flat. Otherwise give it a try.

  27. Oh, I am so excited to try this! Thanks for looking into this…you folks really listen to your readers. Thank you!

  28. I just wanted to get back to you and let you know that I did manage to make bagels with the brioche dough. What I did was just roll the dough out thick and then cut out bagel shapes on parchment paper. I transferred that parchment to a baking stone and then let them bake with the same instructions to bake the brioche bread but just a little longer on the time. The eggwash and sugar made them taste really sweet and nice. With some diary-free cream cheese they were really great!

  29. Baguettes…having problems shaping them…suggestions? LOVE LOVE LOVE your book- you’ve turned be into a baker! Thank you.

  30. just wanted to let you know i’m a vegan so i use the flax egg replacement method in everything and it works very well with your soft sandwich bread too!!! i can keep a batch in the fridge a little longer than a week that way b/c there’s no worries about the egg!!!

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