Happy Andes Gluten-Free Baking Flour 4 lbs. - Quinoa-Based Ingredients for Baking - Healthy Alternative for Brownie and Cake Recipes - No Rice, No Xanthan Gum, and Non-GMO (64 Ounces)

Happy Andes flour arrived and I have used it with all my favorite sweet and savory recipes. So happy to have found a great product and highly recommend this for everyone who needs to be gluten-free or bake for friends who need to avoid gluten. I found out that the manufacturer had a misprint on the protein content. Quinoa is the protein source and an excellent Superfood. I highly recommend Happy Andes Gluten-free Flour. Packaging is superior and there is a donation made to Happy Little Faces - preschoolers in Peru!

I used the quinoa flour for biscuits but they tasted horribly bad! Left a strange aftertaste in my mouth. The smell when I opened the bag was rancid and stalled smell but since I haven’t used it since bought, and I thought it would taste and smell better if I mixed half and half with regular wheat flour but it didn’t help at all. So I’m thinking of giving the biscuits I made to the dogs instead of eating them and throw the rest of the flour in the compost. The dogs will probably like the biscuits because it’s pretty natural food, but for us, no way!! I definitely will not buy any kind of flour from there anymore.

If you are purchasing this quinoa-based flour for the protein content, know that there is none. Quinoa, touted as a superfood is an excellent source of protein and other nutrients when used in whole form, milled or otherwise. The quinoa in this particular flour blend is "instant quinoa powder" and judging from the nutrition facts on the back of the bag, stripped of all the good stuff that makes quinoa a superfood. When compared to another popular brand, pure, whole quinoa flour, has 4g of protein per 28g; Happy Andes has 0g of protein per 45g. Other gluten free flour alternatives: whole coconut flour has 3g of protein per 14g; blanched almond flour has 4g of protein per 14g. As a gluten-free flour substitute, Happy Andes Baking Flour does have its merits. It's soft (I believe due to the addition of tapioca), has a lovely, light nutty aroma and delicious in the cake recipe I tried on the back of the bag. Compared to whole quinoa, the flavor is much lighter, which makes this a better substitute if that is your goal. Additionally, you don't have to find other flours to blend Happy Andes with to lift the texture, like you might with other dense gluten free flours as listed above. I followed the cake recipe exactly as instructed, using sucanat as my integral sugar, and adding a teaspoon of orange zest. The cake I made had a whopping 5 eggs required for 2 cups of baking flour. This gives you some indication of how much work the eggs need to do to leaven the batter. Is the tara gum in the blend even required when you're using this many eggs to bind? The eggs were separated, whipping the whites first to fold in last to provide even more loft. However, the initial batter was quite dense and I had to use my electric mixer to incorporate the whites, rather than my spatula as I would a traditional airy chiffon cake. Putting it in the pan I was skeptical as there was no flow to the batter at all. Turns out that the cake was delicious. It had a very distinct eggy flavor, a bit custardy, but it cooked throughout and had a nice, moist crumb. When I had first cut it, I was alarmed as it looked uncooked, but when I bit into it, I was completely satisfied. The texture was more like a brownie than a cake. Now I have to try the brownie recipe on the back of the bag. I'm looking forward to playing with this flour in other recipes. I'll probably try a few other methods and leavening agents to give this flour some loft -- as much as I love eggs, I think the recipes on back require too many. As far as beneficial nutrition profile goes, this flour is expensive and I daresay overpriced. As a gluten-free alternative, I think it's worth a try to see if you like it in your own favorite recipes, as you will save money without the need to blend with other flours like most gluten-free baking recipes call for.

I've started doing more baking recently and came across this flour alternative made from Quinoa. Some reviewers commented that there was zero protein content listed on their bags. However the bag I received says it has 5g protein per serving. So far I'm happy with it and love the taste!

Do not like the smell or taste of this flour for any of my gluten free baked goods

Awesome product! Thinking of the multiple things I can make... spaghetti, bread, etc. Always like taking some meals with health food in it to my parents and this makes it super ideal.

This is a great gluten free alternative to a regular baking mix made from quinoa. I made some pancakes from it and they were amazing 😊

The baking flour arrived in broken package. And the baking flour is gone bad even though it's still within it's expiration date.