Gluten-Free Bacon & Onion Wheel

This Gluten-Free Bacon & Onion Wheel is an ideal snack or appetizer to enjoy with your family and friends. The preparation of this gluten-free dough may sound intimidating, but it is quite easy to shape. The satisfaction that comes with gazing at your masterpiece—and then eating it—is well worth giving this recipe a try.

Course Baking

Keyword Bacon, Gluten Free, Onion

Servings 1 wheel

Author A Couple of Celiacs (Mary Thompson)

Ingredients

Levain

40 g active starter
80 g warm water
40 g buckwheat flour
40 g brown rice flour

Wheel

40 g millet flour
70 g tapioca starch
75 g sorghum flour
40 g oat flour
20 g quinoa flour
15 g teff flour
5 g salt
220 g warm water
100 g warm milk
15 g pure maple syrup
24 g whole psyllium husk
4 g flaxseed finely ground
White rice flour as needed

Filling

130 g diced bacon 3 strips
200 g diced onion 1 large onion
½ tsp salt
⅛ tsp black pepper
80 g sour cream

Glaze

10 g gluten-free soy sauce at room temperature
10 g pure maple syrup at room temperature
10 g water at room temperature

Instructions

Reactivate your starter the day before you plan on building the levain. A good time to do this is when you get up in the morning, to allow the starter 6 to 8 hours to become bubbly and active. You will need 40 grams for the levain and at least 20 grams left over for maintaining your original starter/main culture.
Build the levain:
Using a kitchen scale, weigh 40 grams of active starter in a clean 500-milliliter jar. Vigorously mix in 80 grams of warm water, then add 40 grams of buckwheat flour and 40 grams of brown rice flour. Ferment the levain for 6 to 8 hours, or until it is bubbly and has risen to a peak, before mixing it into the dough.
Mix the dough:
In a large bowl, combine the millet flour, tapioca starch, sorghum flour, oat flour, quinoa flour, teff flour and salt. In a medium bowl, combine the warm water, warm milk, maple syrup and levain. Sprinkle the psyllium husk and flaxseed on top of the levain mixture. Immediately whisk the ingredients to prevent lumps from forming. Pour the levain-psyllium mixture into the flour blend. Mix the dough well by hand, or with a kitchen mixer fitted with a dough hook running at medium-low speed, until all the ingredients are fully incorporated.
Ferment:
Form the dough into a ball, then place it in a 4-cup (1-L) proofing bowl. Cover the bowl with its lid and place it in the oven with the light on. Let the dough rest for 30 to 60 minutes, or until the dough begins to rise a little. Place the covered bowl in the fridge overnight for the bulk fermentation.
Shape:
The next day, remove the dough from the fridge and leave it at room temperature for about 30 minutes, until it is warm enough to work with. Meanwhile, cut two 10½-inch (26-cm)-diameter circles of parchment paper. Set the parchment paper aside. In a medium skillet over medium-low heat, combine the bacon and onion. Cook the mixture for 6 to 8 minutes, until the bacon is crispy and the onion is translucent. Drain and discard the excess fat from the bacon and onion mixture, and then leave the bacon and onion to cool while you shape the dough.
Lightly dampen a work surface with water. Transfer the dough to the prepared work surface. Knead the dough with wet hands to form it into a ball. Lightly dust the dough’s surface with the white rice flour, and then knead the dough for 1 to 2 minutes, until it is smooth and holding together well. Cut the dough in half. Weigh each half to ensure each one is 398 grams. Shape each piece of dough into a ball. Place a dough ball on each of the parchment paper circles. Flatten each ball with your hand, and then roll it out into two 10-inch (25-cm) round disks.
Mix the salt and pepper into the sour cream, spread the sour cream on top of one dough disk, then evenly spread the bacon and onion mixture on top of the sour cream. Carefully flip the second dough disk directly on top of the filling and peel off the parchment paper. Gently smooth the top layer of dough with your hands. Seal the outer edges together by pinching them with your fingers. Place a small glass—such as a shot glass—in the center of the dough circle to make a ring indentation, being careful not to cut all the way through the dough. Cut the dough into even quarters, being careful not to cut into the center ring. Cut each quarter segment in half to make eight segments, again being careful not to cut all the way to the center. Then, cut each of the eight segments in half to make sixteen segments, again being careful not to cut all the way to the center. Gently twist each segment three times to form 16 twisted bread sticks that are still attached to the center. Remove the shot glass and score several lines to form a star shape in the center circle. Transfer the dough, still on the parchment paper, to a large pizza stone.
Proof:
Cover the dough with a damp tea towel and let it rest at room temperature—ideally about 72°F (22°C)—for 2 to 3 hours. The proofing time depends on the temperature of your kitchen. If the temperature is a little colder, place the dough in the oven with the light on. In the summer warmth, it can be left on the counter, and it may benefit from less proofing time. When the dough has proofed enough, it will have risen and will feel soft, puffy and spongy on top.
Bake: Preheat the oven to 450°F (232°C). In the meantime, prepare the glaze. In a small bowl, whisk together the soy sauce, maple syrup and water. Set the glaze aside. Bake the wheel on the pizza stone for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven’s temperature to 375°F (191°C) and bake the wheel for 20 minutes. Remove the wheel from the oven and brush the glaze on top. Bake the glazed wheel for 10 minutes, until it is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. If you like the wheel a little crispier, you can bake it for an extra 10 minutes at 350°F (177°C).
Serve the wheel warm from the oven. Cover any leftovers with beeswax wraps and place them in the fridge. You can also reheat the wheel the following day in a 350°F (177°C) oven for 10 minutes.