cherry pecan pot bread with salted maple butter, gluten free

Contrary to the name, this cherry pecan pot bread does not contain marijuana! It get's its name from the terra cotta pot in which it is baked. The pot helps give this gluten-free, egg-free, and dairy-free loaf a roundish form and contributes to a thick, crunchy exterior. The chopped pecans and cherries add a bit of texture and sweetness that are intensified when toasted and slathered with salted maple butter!

The weather in the Bay Area has been just plain wacky. 

One day I'm working out in the garden, finally getting around to potting my heirloom tomatoes, and the next day I'm dodging rain drops and covering up the barbeque. 

Even though I loved the little reprieve from watering the plants, I was still anxious to get back in the garden and get a little dirty working with my pots. So while the rain fell lightly outside, I pondered what bread to make for this month's gluten-free ratio rally. Then it dawned on me: I would make pot bread! It's one of my favorites to make. I've never been disappointed using this technique.

Before I began, I washed and then soaked a terra cotta pot in water. The soaking is important because the pot is porous and retains water. When you bake the pot it actually gives off steam and helps create a nice thick crust to the loaf. 

This recipe is also great because the clean-up is nominal. Just lift the parchment paper out of the pot, transfer the loaf to a cooling rack, and toss the paper. 

Now it wouldn't be a gluten-free ratio rally without a ratio! In my recipe I used a 1:2 ratio of liquid to dry ingredients. The recipe contains a small amount of oil and yeast, but the amounts are small. Feel free to swap in your favorite gluten-free flour blend (or stop in the bakery if you are local and try ours!). 

This recipe is part of the monthly series, the gluten-free ratio rally (#gfreerally on twitter). This month's host is Karen Robertson of Cooking Gluten Free who chose bread! For more gluten-free bread recipes, check out what the other rally-ers made:

• Adina of Gluten Free Travelette made  Seedy Sandwich Bread
• Angela of Angela’s Kitchen made Our Family’s Basic Gluten Free Dairy Free Bread
• Aunt Mae (aka ~Mrs. R) of Honey From Flinty Rocks made Chia Millet Bread
• Brooke of B & the boy! made Buckwheat-Oat Bread
• Claire of This Gluten-Free Life made German Vollkornbrot (Seeded Bread)
• Erin of The Sensitive Epicure made English Sandwich Bread (gluten-free & egg-free)  
• Jenn of Jenn Cuisine made Gluten Free Boule
• Jonathan of The Canary Files made Gluten-Free, Vegan Mediterranean Soda Bread
• Karen of Cooking Gluten Free! made Gluten Free Sandwich Bread/Gluten Free Naan
• Meaghan of The Wicked Good Vegan made Vegan Gluten-Free Bread
• Meg of Gluten-Free Boulangerie made Ciabatta (gluten-free, egg-free/vegan)
• Monika of Chew on This! made Amaranth Skillet Flatbreads, Amaranth Mini Pita Rounds
• Morri of Meals with Morri made No Knead Sun-dried Tomato & Basil Flatbread
• Pete & Kelli of No Gluten, No Problem made Gluten-Free Challah
• Rachel of The Crispy Cook made Gluten Free Chickpea Sandwich Bread
• TR of No One Likes Crumbley Cookies made Gluten Free White Bread
• Tara of A Baking Life made Gluten-Free Sandwich Bread & Boule