Assume you are asking about gluten free cup for cup to wheat flour. No, the ratio of liquid to dry is different with GF and really only works with recipes developed for GF, even though it is touted as an equal. There is a lot of chemistry involved in GF baking because the ingredients react differently than all purpose wheat flour. You can try it but you may be disappointed. I prefer to mix my own GF mixes and use recipes that already have that chemistry figured out.

Nancy

Oops, I should have been clearer. Cup for Cup is a Bob's Red Mill product. It is a gf flour blend that says it can be used in recipes written for a typical all purpose flour. I asked DH to pick some up at the store. I thought it would be cheaper than bread mixes. Turns out, it's not much cheaper if any.

This all makes sense but I'm looking for personal experience with the product. I know that I've seen it referenced here, but don't remember the specifics.

I've used it, although I prefer the King Arthur Flour blend and am now working on my own blends. I'm afraid I didn't bake bread with it, though, I used it for biscuits, which were passable, and for some muffins which were also not bad. It worked well in this lemon bar recipe, though, which everyone agreed were as good as the "regular" ones I make. I couldn't find the potato starch for the mix she uses, (I only had potato flour), so used Bob's Red Mill GF.

Gluten Free Lemon Bars (the Way Lemon Bars Should Be)

Author: Jeanine Friesen

Blog: Faithfullyglutenfree

Ingredients

For the crust:

• 1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1/2 cup granulated sugar
• 2 cups all-purpose gluten-free flour blend (see Note)
• 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
• pinch salt

For the Filling:

• 7 large eggs, at room temperature
• 2 1/2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 tablespoons grated lemon zest (4-6 lemons)
• 1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (I needed 6 lemons to get 1 cup)
• 1 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour blend (see NOTE)
• Confectioners' Sugar for dusting

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Line a 9x13-inch baking pan with parchment paper, so the paper rises up the sides (I had it run up the 13" sides, and left the 9" sides bare). (This will make removing the squares much easier, as you can lift them out once they are cooled.)
3. For the crust, in the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Combine the flour & salt, and slowly add to the butter/sugar mixture while the mixer is on low. Mix just until it is combined. Dump the dough into your 9x13-inch pan, and using hands dusted with gluten-free flour, press the dough evenly over the bottom of the pan, building up a 1/2-inch edge on all sides.
4. Bake in preheated oven for 20 minutes, or until very lightly browned. Remove from oven and cool on wire rack. Leave the oven on.
5. While the crust is baking, you can prepare the filling. For the filling, whisk together the eggs, sugar, lemon zest, lemon juice, and gluten-free flour. Pour over your pre-baked crust and bake for 30-35 minutes, until the filling is set. Let cool to room temperature.
6. To remove from pan, cut along 9" edges, and use the parchment paper to lift the bars out to a cutting board. Using a sifter or wire sieve, dust the top of the bars with confectioners' sugar. Cut into squares, and serve.

Notes

The all-purpose gluten-free flour mix that I use is from Cybele Pascal. It is as follows: 4 cups superfine brown rice flour, 1 1/3 cups potato starch (not flour), 2/3 cup tapioca starch.

Annie

The question it sounds like you're asking doesn't really work. It's like asking if King Arthur bread flour will work in the bread machine. The responses will all be questions about what kind of bread machine with which settings, and what recipe are you using. If you're using the machine as a mixer, yes, you can make bread with Cup 4 Cup, but kneading is unnecessary. Mix it and go right to the rising/proof cycle. Will it work in the particular recipe you have in mind? What's the recipe? As we've said above, you probably need to adjust it. Do a Google search and you'll find bloggers who've made gluten free bread successfully in their bread machines.

You generally need a binder in gluten free baking. The difference between Cup 4 Cup and other gluten free flour blends is that it already contains the xanthan gum, which makes things stick together, so you don't have to do calculations and conversions when adding it to your cake recipe. There's more to it with yeast rising, however, and you'll likely need some modifications.

The description of original (blue bag) Cup for Cup from their website:

Cup4Cup’s Original Multi-Purpose Flour has the taste, texture and
performance of regular flour and is useful in almost all baking and
cooking recipes that do not require yeast. Substitute 1:1 for regular
flour into your favorite recipes for homemade cookies, cakes and
cupcakes, quick breads, pie crust, gravy and sauces, scones, muffins –
even homemade pasta! Cup4Cup lets you concentrate on the fun of baking
gluten-free without having to worry about altering other ingredients.
Enjoy all those family recipes you’ve missed for so long, and have fun
creating new ones at the same time.

On their FAQs page:

Can I make bread with the Cup4Cup Original Flour?

The
Cup4Cup Original blend is most similar in composition to all-purpose or
pastry flour, making it suitable as a replacement for regular flour in
recipes for cakes, cookies, muffins, pies, biscuits, quick breads,
sauces, in pasta dough and as a coating for frying. We do not recommend
Cup4Cup as a gluten-free flour replacement in bread recipes that require
yeast. This is because Cup4Cup lacks the structure and composition to
mimic the rise and texture of yeast-based wheat breads. With that,
making bread with Cup4Cup is not impossible; it’s just that the recipe
will require some modifications and experimentation. For example, we
have been able to modify a brioche recipe and develop Brioche Rolls
using Cup4Cup. If you would like the recipe for our Brioche Rolls please visit our Recipe section.

I would REALLY recommend getting (buying or library) a copy of America's Test Kitchen "The How Can it be Gluten Free Cookbook". The best thing about the entire book is the information and comparisons they've done testing gluten-free ingredients and for the commercial flour blends (page 11); and the book includes blends you can make yourself. You'll learn more from this book about gluten-free baking than nearly any other book out there.

But saying all that, I found the recipes too high in carbohydrates due to the high-glycemic ingredients, including large amounts of rice flour and starches used in the recipes - which I avoid since they can have other health-related ramifications. ATK just love those highly-refined ingredients!!! But even though I'll never make the recipes, I think this book is a must-have for anyone trying to bake in a gluten-free world for all the basic science in contains. I develop recipes using sorghum flour and need every tip/trick I can find.

Bob's Red Mill GF All-Purpose Baking Flour isn't anything like Cup4Cup - completely different mixture of ingredients. Here are the comments for Bob's Red Mill - Our tasters did not like the distinctive and "off-puffing" taste of bean flour in the baked goods. There were numerous complaints that items tasted "like fish," and most panelists picked up strong "earthy" notes. However, structurally and texturally, this blend performed especially well. Biscuits, cookies, and cakes were slightly more dense than desired but pretty good.

Grainlady Note: For anyone making their own bean flour, I would suggest you use small white beans since they have the least amount of "beany" flavor. You can help neutralize the beany flavor even more by sprouting the beans first, then dehydrating them until completely dry, before milling them into bean flour. It will also increase the nutrients, make the bean flour easier to digest, and reduce the phytic acid.

-Grainlady

Does your bread machine have a gluten-free setting? If not, I would not try the sub. GF breads are just a different animal entirely and simply subbing flours does not seem to work well. Of course, you could try it and see for curiosity sake but Bob's Red Mill flours are generally expensive so it depends on how you would feel about the money if it does not work.

I finally had time to look for a bread machine recipe that was somewhat successful - which is saying a lot in the world of gluten-free bread. I made it when I first went gluten-free and it uses Pamela's Baking and Pancake Mix - http://www.pamelasproducts.com/bread-made-in-bread-machine-made-with-baking-pancake-mix/ 

The few times I've made it, I use the bread for making French Toast or toast. I've never found a gluten-free bread I could use for a sandwich, only toasted or grilled sandwiches.

After the first time in the bread machine I decided to use the hand-held electric mixer recipe instead (much faster and easier than the bread machine): http://www.pamelasproducts.com/bread-made-with-baking-pancake-mix/

I've found gluten-free breads bake better in dimpled pans, such as Norpro pans. This 8" x 4-1/2" pan is perfect for the bread recipe linked above.: http://www.amazon.com/Norpro-Inch-Nonstick-Bread-Pan/dp/B000SSTWSA 

Tip: cover the pan with plastic wrap while the dough is rising, BUT, be sure to spray it first with pan spray so the dough doesn't stick.

The one bun-type bread I make that we use frequently (for sloppy joes, burgers and bean burgers, ham/cheese sandwich....) is a Flatbread that is really easy to make. I bake it in my 6-hole muffin-top pan. If you are interested in that recipe, I'll be happy to post it.

-Grainlady

Grainlady, I'd be interested in your bun type recipe for my Celiac girl.

plllog-

This is a recipe I found on-line (address unknown). I double the recipe to make 6 flatbreads in my muffin top pan. I've found I can easily change the flour products in the recipe, so use what you have on-hand, including gluten-free all-purpose flour. I always use coconut flour because it absorbs so much moisture and add a lot of fiber, and I think banana flour would work just as well as coconut flour, and the others I'll use whatever I have on-hand. Sorghum and millet flour are soft grains and easy to mill in a coffee/spice mill. I also use Masa corn flour or fine cornmeal for a different flavor. You can make this recipe in less than 20-minutes. -Grainlady

GLUTEN-FREE FLATBREAD

1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

1 egg

1 T. coconut flour (I also use banana flour)

1-1/2 t. sorghum flour

1-1/2 t. millet flour

1/8 t. baking soda

1 t. dried minced onion (I also add 1/2 t. dried dill weed for "Dilly Bread" flavor)

Preheat oven to 400°F. Mix all ingredients in a bowl until well combined. Using your fingers, divide the mixture into 4 equal portions and spread in flat circles (about 4-inches each) on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake for about 13-minutes, until the flatbreads are golden (check often.... they go from perfect to burned quickly). Remove from the oven and cool on a cooling rack. Serve warm or at room temperature. Makes 4 rounds.

Grainlady Notes:

These are thin flatbreads. The recipe suggests using 2 of them (whole, not sliced) per serving (one as the top bun and one as the bottom bun), but I carefully slice them in half and use one per serving. Grill the top and/or bottom slices and use them for an open-face sandwich.

To slice each flatbread: I use a plastic lid from a cottage cheese or large yogurt container (one that measures 1/4" deep at the edge of the lid and about 4-1/2" across the lid) as the slicing guide. Lay the flatbread on the inside of the plastic lid; with a long serrated bread knife, slice the bread using the lip of the lid as your slicing guide.

I keep a stack of these in the freezer (wrap each pre-sliced flatbread in a fold-top plastic sandwich bag, then place them in a container or freezer bag). You can grill the flatbreads in a pan or on a griddle over medium heat to toast them for a burger bun, but do NOT butter them first - the butter steams the flatbreads. They grill best on a dry pan/griddle. For a grilled sandwich, once again, don't butter the outside of the flatbread.

-Grainlady

Thanks so much, Grainlady! I especially appreciate the usage notes for the young lady.