Our Favorite Gluten-Free Bread

favorite gluten free breadsThe two questions I am most often asked is “What’s our favorite gluten-free pasta?” and “What’s our favorite gluten-free bread?” I answered the pasta question in a blog post about a year ago (and will update with some new ones!) and am finally answering the bread question today.  Can’t wait for you to read and let me know your favorite gluten-free bread too!

Background

Great tasting gluten-free bread can be one of the most difficult things to find once you start a gluten-free diet. 

With “regular” bread, gluten acts as the literal glue that holds the bread together and gives it it’s great rise and texture.  So not every gluten-free bread does the best job of replicating it.

But, just because you’re following a gluten-free diet doesn’t mean you don’t want to or can’t enjoy a great bread!

In the 10 years since my son was diagnosed with celiac disease, we’ve tried looootttssss of gluten-free bread.  Some has tasted like cardboard or been gritty, just like the jokes about gluten-free bread.  But other gluten-free bread has been really good!

Unfortunately,  over the years, sometimes our favorite gluten-free bread is from a company or bakery that closes but we always seem to find a new one!

And in this post, we share all the breads we’re currently enjoying.

favorite gluten free breads-large

An overall tip

In our opinion, nearly all store-bought, gluten-free bread tastes best when toasted. 

When it’s not toasted, it can sometimes have that gritty texture. But toasted, the texture is much more like it’s gluten counterpart.

But we have had amazing gluten-free bread at restaurants, bakeries and homemade that tastes great not toasted, so don’t despair!

Disclosures

Here I’m sharing our favorite store bought bread we use for sandwiches, french toast, stuffing and the like, as well as our favorite bakery bread and bread mixes if you’re inclined to make your own bread.

These are all brands we use regularly and purchase on our own.

From time to time, several of these brands have sent me packages of their newest products and for that we’ve always been grateful, and I always let you know when we receive gifts.

But at this point, I have no business relationship with any of the following brands (except GF Jules – who’s bread mix we love and for whom I’m an affiliate)

As an aside, purchasing through an affiliate link generates a small percentage of the sale for me, but does not change your cost at all.  So purchasing through an affiliate link helps me fund this website and all the recipes I share, so thank you!

Our Favorite Breads

Today our fridge and freezer has 7 different brands of bread and 2 bread mixes. We have a variety because we tend to like them for different reasons and for different meals.

Here’s a peek inside our pantry and what we love about each of these brands:

schar breadsSchar Gluten-Free Artisan Bread :  We  have been using Schar bread almost since my son was first diagnosed with celiac disease. It it easily available and reliable. Note, this bread is found un-refrigerated in the gluten-free aisle generally.

The slices are a good sandwich size, the texture is good and my son likes it toasted in the morning with eggs. 

They have multiple varieties of bread. My son prefers the Artisan White. I prefer the Artisan Multigrain or 10 Grains & Seeds

While we also like that they have multiple shapes of bread. We often have their Ciabatta bread in the house. It makes really yummy garlic bread, just saying. 

Also, Schar is a brand I have worked with from time to time because we love and use their products.

schar bread ingredients label

 

canyon breadsCanyon Bakehouse Bread: Canyon Bakehouse is one of the brands we have been purchasing since my son first went gluten-free as well.  Their breads are almost always found in the freezer section of grocery stores.

And Canyon Bakehouse is one of my favorite, readily available breads.  They have multiple varieties and they all have great flavor and texture. 

We’ve been lucky enough recieve samples of Canyon Bakehouse new products from time to time and they are always delish!

This Summer we were particularly excited to receive a box that included their bagels and Hawaiian bread!

 

against the grain breadAgainst the Grain:  This is another brand we have enjoyed for years. They were the first bread we found in a baguette shape and we have been loyal to it ever since! It is found in the freezer section at grocery stores and it readily available. They also have rolls and plain pizza crust which we’ve used.

But it’s the baguettes we go back for. It has a great shape, texture and taste. My son loves them for garlic bread and we use it when making homemade Italian meatballs.

 

everybody eats breadEverybody Eats: This is a brand we first learned about from Bistango, a restaurant in NYC. They served it to us while waiting for our meal (a real treat!) and we loved it so much, we asked what it was and where we could find it. 

Everybody Eats is a bakery (wholesale, I believe) in Brooklyn, NY. We now purchase their baguettes online and the arrive quickly and still frozen.  The bread has an amazing texture, like a great baguette and great flavor too.  And, it is the bread we use when making gluten-free stuffing.

udis breadUdis:  Udis is probably one of the most widely known and used in the United States. We used their bread for many years but haven’t recently just because we prefer others.  When we do have it, it tastes best when toasted or made for a grilled cheese in our opinion.

We do however, like their hamburger buns and always keep a pack in the freezer. They are a good size and they don’t seem to have the issue of “holes” that their sandwich bread does.

 

gluten free bakery breadThe Gluten-Free Bakery Bread: This a brand that we used many years ago when a local store carried it.  The Gluten-Free Bakery Bread is made in upstate NY and sold mostly locally I believe. 

Recently a friend (who also has a child with celiac disease) re-introduced me to it. She purchases it from Fresh Direct (a food delivery company for NY and CT friends!).  This is my favorite of the moment! The slices are big, and it has a great texture and flavor.

 

bakery breadBakery bread! As I mentioned earlier, some of the best bread we’ve had has been homemade from restaurants or gluten-free bakeries. 

We love the bread, for instance, at Georgies Diner (and their sister Shoreline Diner) in New Haven, CT.  It is thick and has great texture and flavor. They used to sell loaves of it but stopped doing so. 

Now we love the bread at Modern Bread and Bagel in NYC, a 100% gluten-free eatery.  They have amazing bagels that taste like legit NY bagels and my son loooovvves their loaves of white bread. You can see from the snapshot above, you can purchase an entire loaf of bread, un-sliced, which is a treat in a of itself in the gluten-free world.

sliced bakery bread

The bread nice and crusty on the outside, soft and fluffy on the inside and tastes amazing!  It’s my son’s favorite bread for french toast because he can cut nice, thick slices.

My point in sharing this bread is not only to recommend Modern Bread and Bagel if you’re in or visiting NYC, but to encourage you to seek our local gluten-free bakeries if you’re lucky enough to live near one. Sometimes they have the best breads!

Favorite Gluten-Free Bread #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.comBread mixes: As you may be aware if you follow my Instagram Stories, we recently purchased a bread maker around Christmas.  We’ve been loving it so far! The bread is warm and fresh and has the BEST texture (like real gluten-ful bread)

We have been using the Pamela’s bread mix and recently received the GF Jules Sandwich Bread Mix and can’t wait to make it.

We used to make bread in the oven with the GF Jules Sandwich Bread Mix and loved it! It was so easy! No bread maker required! Not sure why we stopped, to be honest… But I’m glad we’ll be making it again soon!

Addendum: Tortillas

We have tried many gluten-free tortilla brands as well and I will add them to this post. But our favorite gluten-free tortilla right now is Siete Foods Almond Flour Tortillas.

Wrap up

Have you tried these brands? What’s your favorite brand? Are there any brands we need to try?

I’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments below!

18 thoughts on “Our Favorite Gluten-Free Bread

  1. So I’m 53 years old and I was just diagnosed with celiac disease in August of 2019. I never touched white bread , I only ate whole wheat with fiber and low sugar before I was diagnosed. But now because of my celiac disease and GERD, none if that whole wheat fiber rule matters. I’ve lost 25 lb I feel like I can eat all the bread that I want,LOL. Well, not really since carbs are hard on my GERD. But I have such a new weird perspective when it comes to bread. And I find that I agree with you on the Canyon Bakehouse bread and the Schar ciabatta. I didn’t care for Udi’s and Trader Joe’s has holes. Love that you wrote this article!

    1. Thanks for sharing Bridget! It is funny how your perspective changes when you have celiac disease — my son also went from eating whole wheat fiber breads to white bread… but thankfully, there are some tasty gluten-free ones!

  2. Thank you! This was so helpful. My daughter has Ehlers-Danlos hypermobility (hEDS) and mast cell activation syndrome/disorder (MCAS/MCAD). Many people with these disorders are sensitive to gluten and I’ve told my friends from this group about your site!

  3. It doesn’t seem so, but are any of these organic? Do you have concerns about glyphosate and other pesticides? Just trying to find the best option overall.

    1. Great questions Lindsay! While none of the breads seem to be labeled “organic”, I just checked a few and The Gluten Free Bakery Bread has the most organic ingredients of them all if you can find it. Schar products are made with non-gmo grains and many of the Canyon Bakehouse ingredients are non-gmo or organic. Personally, I am a huge fan of and purchaser of organic products, especially with produce, dairy and meat… unfortunately, with bread products, our first priority is to find safe, gluten-free products for my son so we sometimes have to opt for gluten-free over other certifications.

  4. This is a wonderful blog! As a 49 year old recently diagnosed with Celiac I’ve been buying so many different bread brands in the hopes of finding one I love. I agree Canyon Bakehouse Hawaiian is yummy! I also really like Three Bakers Rye Style bread it really tastes like rye bread (no seeds but I think you can also buy it with seeds) especially when toasted. It’s usually found frozen in the supermarket. I bought a package of Scharr Rye which was very dense. And then I saw it contains soy which I didn’t want. I will definitely try the ciabatta as I do love that. And I agree UDi’s isn’t great. Jersey Mikes uses it and I find it to have a weird texture. Thanks again for all the helpful info as always!!

  5. I really love the Against the Grain rolls. I prefer them to Udi’s hamburger rolls. They are especially delicious for egg sandwiches and sloppy joes. I also make grilled cheese out of them by reversing them: I cut them in half and then put butter or mayo on the soft, inside part of the roll and then sandwich the cheese inside between the two crusty outsides. It grills up nicely.

  6. I just want to say thank you for this post. My husband was diagnosed 6 weeks ago so we’re still in the fog of it all. We currently have 3 types of bread in the freezer. He seems to really like Trader Joe’s GF everything bagels. Just pretty pricey but he’s worth it. I too have heard great things about Canyon Bread But haven’t found it yet. I’ll check the freezer next time at the market. I really appreciate your blog/recipes and IG, , it gives me hope.

    1. You’re welcome! Unfortunately, it is a bit of trial and error finding a bread that your taste buds love, especially if you are diagnosed as an adult and are comparing it to gluten-full bread…. but there are some great ones out there, so hope he finds one he loves soon!

  7. My husband, daughter and son have celiac disease and their favorite bread is Canyon Bakehouse Heritage style bread.

  8. I love the Trader Joe’s GF whole grain bread! As you mentioned, it’s best toasted. Also the Bob’s Res Mill GF mixes (muffins, bread, pizza crust) are also great options for other breads when in a pinch

  9. This is very helpful! TY! Which one of these is a “soft bread” best used for my 5 yo who loves his peanut butter and jelly sandwiches without needing to toast it?

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *