April 11th, 2011 
Nancy Welcome $5 Dinner readers! I’m so glad you stopped by. Real Food, Allergy Free features recipes that are free of the “top eight” or eight most common food allergens. All our recipes are egg, dairy, soy, wheat, peanut, tree nut, fish and shellfish free. For more allergy-friendly snack ideas like Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins click here.
I love oats! They are high in fiber and protein. They are proven to help lower cholesterol and fight heart disease. They are extremely versatile. We enjoy them as a traditional porridge, granola, granola bars, pancakes, waffles, cakes, muffins and other baked goods. I love how baked goods stay moist with oat flour.
Baking with oat flour can be really affordable if you make your own. All you need is a blender. Just toss some rolled oats (aka oatmeal) in the blender and blend until you have flour. Easy as pie! It takes about 2 ¾ cups oats to make 2 cups of flour.
Note: Many people who cannot tolerate wheat cannot tolerate oats. Oats are technically gluten free but some people still react. The jury is still out on why. If you have issues with gluten it is recommended that you purchase certified gluten free oats or avoid oats all together. We are blessed to be able to tolerate most oats.
Photo courtesy of suavehouse113.
Posted in
love the site! i dont even know how i came across it, but am sure glad i did. 🙂
im just curious, what kind of oats do you buy? do you buy mccanns? bobs red mill certified gf? an other? we do mccanns and haven’t noticed any reactions (GF/CF house here). i am very much aware that it isnt certified GF, but we havent had a problem here. thanks!
I actually just use quaker. I have also bought it in bulk from a local grain store. My daughter has a very mild delayed allergy to wheat so it is not important to us that it be gluten free.
So Quaker is definitely gluten free?
Quaker is NOT certified gluten free. We do not have issues with gluten but with wheat itself. I know the difference can be confusing. If you have issues with gluten you sould probably buy certified gluten free oats unless your doctor clears you to try regualr oats.
I know this was posted 5 years ago but I just wanted to tell you, Least Recommended are Rolled Oats and Quick Oats, that is Oatmeal. these are oat groats that have been steamed and rolled flat. Quick oats are steel cut oats that have also been steamed and rolled flat. This processing destroys the enzymes and exposes the oats nutrients. Rolled oats and quick oats do not have as much nutritional value as oat groats or steel cut oats due to being more processed. Quick oats have the least nutrition of them all because they have been processed the most.
The Best Type of Oats for Oat Flour are Oat Groats Oat Groats are whole oats with their husks removed that look similar to wheat. Not only do oat groats flow better through the electric grain mill but all their nutritional benefits are protected in their whole grain state, during storage or sitting on the shelf. These whole oat groats also retain more of their terrific oat taste for your homemade oat flour.
Second Best Type of Oats for Oat Flour is Steel Cut Oats Steel cut oats are oat groats that have been cut into smaller pieces, into thirds or so. Steel cut oats are more commonly found in stores than oat groats and are usually found in the bulk bins section of grocery stores. Steel cut oats do not keep there nutrition as long as oat groats but far longer than rolled oats. – See more at: http://www.grainmillwagon.com/making-oat-flour/#sthash.sz3RLENt.dpuf
Recommend soaking the oats overnight in a mild acid, warm water solution. The acid can be whey (as in you make it yourself), lemon juice, or vinegar. In the morning, rinse and dry it out in a dehydrator or on low in the oven.
This removes phytic compounds that inhibit digestion.
Ciao, Pavil
Great advice Pavil! I have gotten out of the habit of soaking my grains. I need to work on that.
[…] cup Gluten-Free Oat Flour (See how to make oat flour in the […]
I am so glad to read how easy it is to make oat flour! I can’t wait to try this! At what point do you recommend testing out whether or not a gluten-intolerant individual can tolerate oats? My daughter is gluten intolerant, and, so far, I’ve been using Bob’s Red Mills GF oats. It would be much cheaper if I didn’t have to worry about making sure they were GF! Thank you!
(Found you today through QECH!!)
That’s a great question! I think that would be a question for your doctor. We are dealing with a wheat allergy and not gluten intolerance so this is not an area I know a lot about. When you find out would you please let me know?
Only Oats is another brand that is gluten free and is about $4 for a big bag at London Drugs!
Thanks Megan!
[…] *Check out this great tip on oat flour! […]
I have never thought of using an oat flour. I do use an AP GF flour for all my baking needs, tho. But, this seems like it would be more cost effective and would add some flavor and alternative to my baking.
Thanks for sharing 🙂
You are very welcome! It’s not the same as ap mix, but I find it easy to make and more affordable.
Hi NancyI’d like to ask if it’s necessary to soak the oat flour overnight for better absorption of nutrients?
Hi Grace, One could certainly soak the oat flour overnight. I’ve gone through phases where I do regularly. Lately, I use it fresh.
Coffee grinders do an excellent job of grinding oats as well!
That’s right! Thank you Shelley!
I found you today when I was looking for a wheat, egg, dairy free receipe for oatmeal muffins. I just wanted to say thank you for posting this. My husband is allergic to wheat, dairy, egg and corn so right now I substitute the corn items from your recipes but if you ever find any that include no corn please let me know. Thank you again.
Welcome Kay!
To all regarding eating oats if you are on a GF diet. Oats tend to be contaminated in the fields since they are typically grown near or with wheat. So you need to eat GF oats to not have a reaction. I am very sensitive and have lived and cooked GF for 9 years now as a gourmet cook and helps clients as a Food Allergen-Toxin Health Coach. So I eat GF oats on occasion. Love my oatmeal cookies! Some clients cannot tolerate even GF Oats due to the similar molecular structure of oats & wheat during digestion. So proceed with caution. Good Luck! Coach Linda
Hi I live in Australia so its different here with regards to oats, gf oats etc. my daughter and nephew are intolerant to wheat so I would prefer not to use oats (besides them costing $$$ for 1kg)
What can I use instead of oats ? GF flour or SR flour ?