Dessert

Gluten Free Sopapillas

Published on by Kait Nolan
Last weekend, hubby and I got together with another couple for a fabulous Mexican themed dinner with flank steak tacos (amazing).  To go along with the theme, I decided to try making gluten free sopapillas.  Now, I don’t know about you, but the only ones I’d ever had were the kind made at our local Mexican restaurant with a deep fried flour tortillas drizzled in honey and cinnamon.  Tasty.  But I started looking around at recipes to convert to gluten free and discovered that there is, in fact, a wide range of what constitutes a sopapilla.  Some of them looked like beignets, while others resembled deep fried scones.  So I set out to come up with my own gluten free variation.  The end result wasn’t the prettiest but they were SERIOUSLY tasty with some local honey and cinnamon.  Made about 16.
Sopapillas
Ingredients 
  • 2 cups all-purpose  GF flour
  • 1 tbsp xanthan gum
  • 4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons shortening or lard
  • 3/4 cup water + more
  • 2 cups vegetable oil for frying
  • honey
  • cinnamon
Directions
  1. In a large bowl, sift together flour, xanthan gum, baking powder and salt.
  2. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
  3. Using hands, mix in water to make a smooth dough.  Now here’s where it starts getting a bit more difficult–you’ll want to gradually add additional water a tablespoon at a time, until you have a proper smooth dough that holds together.  I ultimately wound up using 1 1/4 cup of water, but this will vary a fair bit based on what kind of gluten free flour you are using (as they absorb at very different rates).
  4. Knead lightly on a floured surface (just enough to pull it together cohesively).  Cover, and set aside.
  5. Heat oil in deep-fryer to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
  6. On a silpat mat (or a lightly floured surface), grab globs of dough and press into thin circles (about 2 inches in diameter).
  7. Fry in hot oil, until golden brown, turning when dough puffs (it may not puff much–these are very dense).  The finished sopapilla will be just turning a little brown.  Remove, and drain well on paper towels.
  8. Top with a drizzle of honey and cinnamon.

 

Gluten Free Sopapillas
 
Save Print
Last weekend, hubby and I got together with another couple for a fabulous Mexican themed dinner with flank steak tacos (amazing). To go along with the theme, I decided to try making gluten free sopapillas. Now, I don't know about you, but the only ones I'd ever had were the kind made at our local Mexican restaurant with a deep fried flour tortillas drizzled in honey and cinnamon. Tasty. But I started looking around at recipes to convert to gluten free and discovered that there is, in fact, a wide range of what constitutes a sopapilla. Some of them looked like beignets, while others resembled deep fried scones. So I set out to come up with my own gluten free variation. The end result wasn't the prettiest but they were SERIOUSLY tasty with some local honey and cinnamon. Made about 16.
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Gluten and Dairy Free
Ingredients
  • 2 cups all-purpose GF flour
  • 1 tbsp xanthan gum
  • 4 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons shortening or lard
  • ¾ cup water + more
  • 2 cups vegetable oil for frying
  • honey
  • cinnamon
Instructions
  1. In a large bowl, sift together flour, xanthan gum, baking powder and salt.
  2. Cut in shortening until mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
  3. Using hands, mix in water to make a smooth dough. Now here's where it starts getting a bit more difficult--you'll want to gradually add additional water a tablespoon at a time, until you have a proper smooth dough that holds together. I ultimately wound up using 1¼ cup of water, but this will vary a fair bit based on what kind of gluten free flour you are using (as they absorb at very different rates).
  4. Knead lightly on a floured surface (just enough to pull it together cohesively). Cover, and set aside.
  5. Heat oil in deep-fryer to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
  6. On a silpat mat (or a lightly floured surface), grab globs of dough and press into thin circles (about 2 inches in diameter).
  7. Fry in hot oil, until golden brown, turning when dough puffs (it may not puff much--these are very dense). The finished sopapilla will be just turning a little brown. Remove, and drain well on paper towels.
  8. Top with a drizzle of honey and cinnamon.

Dairy Free Salted Dark Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Published on by Kait Nolan

I get all kinds of recipes in my inbox from all kinds of sources.  Some get tossed immediately, some go into the recipe file to try, and some get shunted over into the convert to allergen free file.  This recipe for salted oatmeal cookies with dark chocolate from Real Simple fell into the latter category.  I wanted to try to make these both dairy free and a little bit healthier.  This was my first experience baking with coconut palm sugar (supposed to have a lower impact on the glycemic index than regular sugar), and I have to say I was very pleasantly surprised.  It already has a sort of brown sugary flavor to it in the first place, and I added a tablespoon of molasses to amp that up.   I also swapped out coconut oil for the vegetable shortening, and Earth Balance for the butter.  I wound up omitting the additional sea salt sprinkled on top (a good decision–what’s inside is just enough to balance the sweet).  These salted dark chocolate oatmeal cookies were lovely, filling, and chewy.   Original recipe claims to make 2 dozen.  I got 18 cookies, approximately 2 inches across.  Note: These are NOT gluten free.  I’ve not had a lot of good luck making gluten free cookies (other than straight peanut butter, which just don’t use flour).  Presumably you could swap the flour for an all purpose GF blend, and add perhaps 1 tsp of xanthan gum, but I’ve not yet tried this myself.

Salted Dark Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies

Ingredients

  • 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick-cooking)
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
  • 3/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt
  • 1/2 cup Earth Balance, at room temperature
  • 4 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 1 cup coconut palm sugar
  • 1 tablespoon molasses
  •  large egg
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 6 ounces dairy free semi-sweet chocolate chips
Directions
  1. Heat oven to 375° F with the rack in the upper and lower thirds. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment.
  2. Combine the oats, flour, baking soda, and 1 teaspoon of the salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
  3. Beat the Earth Balance, coconut oil, coconut palm sugar and molasses with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until lightly and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture, mixing just until combined (do not overmix). Stir in the chocolate.
  4. Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart.
  5. Bake, swapping the pans halfway through, until lightly brown around the edges, about 10 to 12 minutes. Cool slightly on the baking sheets, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely.  Be sure to watch these as the bottoms will burn easily.

 

Dairy Free Salted Dark Chocolate Oatmeal Cookies
 
Save Print
I get all kinds of recipes in my inbox from all kinds of sources. Some get tossed immediately, some go into the recipe file to try, and some get shunted over into the convert to allergen free file. This recipe for salted oatmeal cookies with dark chocolate from Real Simple fell into the latter category. I wanted to try to make these both dairy free and a little bit healthier. This was my first experience baking with coconut palm sugar (supposed to have a lower impact on the glycemic index than regular sugar), and I have to say I was very pleasantly surprised. It already has a sort of brown sugary flavor to it in the first place, and I added a tablespoon of molasses to amp that up. I also swapped out coconut oil for the vegetable shortening, and Earth Balance for the butter. I wound up omitting the additional sea salt sprinkled on top (a good decision--what's inside is just enough to balance the sweet). These salted dark chocolate oatmeal cookies were lovely, filling, and chewy. Original recipe claims to make 2 dozen. I got 18 cookies, approximately 2 inches across.
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Dairy free
Ingredients
  • 2 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (not quick-cooking)
  • 1 cup all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled
  • ¾ teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt
  • ½ cup Earth Balance, at room temperature
  • 4 tablespoons coconut oil
  • 1 cup coconut palm sugar
  • 1 tablespoon molasses
  • large egg
  • 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 6 ounces dairy free semi-sweet chocolate chips
Instructions
  1. Heat oven to 375° F with the rack in the upper and lower thirds. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment.
  2. Combine the oats, flour, baking soda, and 1 teaspoon of the salt in a medium bowl; set aside.
  3. Beat the Earth Balance, coconut oil, coconut palm sugar and molasses with an electric mixer on medium-high speed until lightly and fluffy, 2 to 3 minutes. Beat in the egg and vanilla. Reduce the mixer speed to low and gradually add the flour mixture, mixing just until combined (do not overmix). Stir in the chocolate.
  4. Drop heaping tablespoonfuls of the dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart.
  5. Bake, swapping the pans halfway through, until lightly brown around the edges, about 10 to 12 minutes. Cool slightly on the baking sheets, then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. Be sure to watch these as the bottoms will burn easily.
Notes
: These are NOT gluten free. I've not had a lot of good luck making gluten free cookies (other than straight peanut butter, which just don't use flour). Presumably you could swap the flour for an all purpose GF blend, and add perhaps 1 tsp of xanthan gum, but I've not yet tried this myself.

Gluten Free Dairy Free Chocolate Peanut Butter Lava Cake

Published on by Kait Nolan
One of life’s greatest joys (mine anyway) is half-baked cookies.  They’re warm and perfectly ooey gooey and just melt on your tongue.  I don’t know if it was intentional or accidental, but somebody somewhere discovered that half-baked cake is just as fantastic.  I imagine that’s exactly how chocolate lava cake was born. My pal Jay at Techsurgeons (web host extraordinaire! /shameless plug) shared this recipe with me a few weeks ago, and I converted it to be gluten and dairy free for Valentine’s Day (and added peanut butter because…peanut butter).  Oh. Dear. God.  So good!  This chocolate peanut butter lava cake is fantastic by itself or served with dairy free vanilla ice cream.  It’s best served fresh, but if you have leftovers, just nuke them for 40 seconds and the crater will reinflate.  Makes 6.
GF DF chocolate peanut butter lava cake
Ingredients:
  • 3/4 cup dark or semi-sweet dairy free chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli’s semi sweet)
  • 3/4 cup virgin coconut oil
  • 4 eggs at room temperature
  • 3/4 cup sugar
  • 1/4 gluten free flour (I used sorghum flour)
  • 6 tbsp peanut butter, divided
Directions:
  1. Preheat the oven to 400°.
  2. Melt the chocolate and coconut oil together in a saucepan over low heat.
  3. Mix the eggs and sugar together in a separate bowl and whisk for a few minutes.
  4. Add the flour.
  5. Add the egg mixture to the melted chocolate and mix until smooth.
  6. Pour the batter into 6 greased ramekins (the 1 cup size so there’s room for it to rise).
  7. Add 1 tbsp of peanut butter to the center of each.
  8. Bake for approximately 16 minutes.
Gluten Free Dairy Free Chocolate Peanut Butter Lava Cake
 
Save Print
One of life's greatest joys (mine anyway) is half-baked cookies.  They're warm and perfectly ooey gooey and just melt on your tongue.  I don't know if it was intentional or accidental, but somebody somewhere discovered that half-baked cake is just as fantastic.  I imagine that's exactly how chocolate lava cake was born. My pal Jay at Techsurgeons (web host extraordinaire! /shameless plug) shared this recipe with me a few weeks ago, and I converted it to be gluten and dairy free for Valentine's Day (and added peanut butter because...peanut butter).  Oh. Dear. God.  So good!  This chocolate peanut butter lava cake is fantastic by itself or served with dairy free vanilla ice cream.  It's best served fresh, but if you have leftovers, just nuke them for 40 seconds and the crater will reinflate.  Makes 6.
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Gluten and Dairy Free
Ingredients
  • ¾ cup dark or semi-sweet dairy free chocolate chips (I used Ghiradelli's semi sweet)
  • ¾ cup virgin coconut oil
  • 4 eggs at room temperature
  • ¾ cup sugar
  • ¼ gluten free flour (I used sorghum flour)
  • 6 tbsp peanut butter, divided
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 400°.
  2. Melt the chocolate and coconut oil together in a saucepan over low heat.
  3. Mix the eggs and sugar together in a separate bowl and whisk for a few minutes.
  4. Add the flour.
  5. Add the egg mixture to the melted chocolate and mix until smooth.
  6. Pour the batter into 6 greased ramekins (the 1 cup size so there's room for it to rise).
  7. Add 1 tbsp of peanut butter to the center of each.
  8. Bake for approximately 16 minutes.

Dairy Free Lemon (Not) Yogurt Cake with Freezer Fruit Compote

Published on by Kait Nolan

One of my favorite desserts that I’ve featured on the blog here before was my gluten free Lemon Yogurt Cake with Freezer Fruit Compote.  It’s like a pound cake but lighter, with a lovely bright lemon flavor that just hits the spot for spring.  Since I had 3/4ths of a package of silken tofu left from another recipe fail, I had to figure out SOMETHING to do with it.  As a vegan friend said she often uses it in baking, I decided to take the leap and try converting this recipe to be dairy free as well as gluten free.  The end result was moist, delicious, and–most importantly–indistinguishable from the original version.

Ingredients:

  • Nonstick vegetable oil spray
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose gluten free flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1 tsp xanthan gum
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 Tbs finely grated lemon zest
  • 3/4 cup silken tofu, blitzed in food processor or blender until smooth and creamy
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 lemon juice, freshly squeezed
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • special equipment
  • 8 1/2 4 1/4-inch loaf pan
  • For the compote
  • 2 lemons
  • 1 cup frozen blueberries
  • 3 cups frozen strawberries
  • 2 tbs Earth Balance Spread
  • 2 tbs coconut oil (you can do all of this OR Earth Balance, I was just working with what I had)
  • 2 tbs sugar

  Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Coat pan with vegetable oil spray. Dust with flour; tap out excess.

2. Whisk 1 1/2 cups flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and kosher salt in a medium bowl.

3. Using your fingers, rub sugar with lemon zest in a large bowl until sugar is moist. Add tofu, applesauce, eggs, and vanilla extract; whisk to blend. Fold in dry ingredients just to blend.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth top. Bake until top of cake is golden brown and a tester inserted into center comes out clean, 50–55 minutes.

5. Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert onto rack; let cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

6. To make the compote:

7. Melt the Earth Balance and coconut oil over medium heat.

8. Dice the strawberries  a little and add to the pan.

9. Add the blueberries.

10. Juice the lemons over the pan (careful not to lose any seeds)

11. Add the sugar.

12. Stir well and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until cooked down and kind of syrupy.  This may take quite a while.

13. Let cool a bit and spoon over each slice of cake.  The compote will keep in the fridge for several days.

 

Dairy Free Lemon (Not) Yogurt Cake with Freezer Fruit Compote
 
Save Print
One of my favorite desserts that I've featured on the blog here before was my gluten free Lemon Yogurt Cake with Freezer Fruit Compote .  It's like a pound cake but lighter, with a lovely bright lemon flavor that just hits the spot for spring.  Since I had ¾ths of a package of silken tofu left from another recipe fail, I had to figure out SOMETHING to do with it.  As a vegan friend said she often uses it in baking, I decided to take the leap and try converting this recipe to be dairy free as well as gluten free.  The end result was moist, delicious, and--most importantly--indistinguishable from the original version.
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Gluten and Dairy Free
Ingredients
  • Nonstick vegetable oil spray
  • 1½ cups all-purpose gluten free flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1 tsp xanthan gum
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • ¾ tsp kosher salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 Tbs finely grated lemon zest
  • ¾ cup silken tofu, blitzed in food processor or blender until smooth and creamy
  • ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 lemon juice, freshly squeezed
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • special equipment
  • 8½ 4¼-inch loaf pan
  • For the compote
  • 2 lemons
  • 1 cup frozen blueberries
  • 3 cups frozen strawberries
  • 2 tbs Earth Balance Spread
  • 2 tbs coconut oil (you can do all of this OR Earth Balance, I was just working with what I had)
  • 2 tbs sugar
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°. Coat pan with vegetable oil spray. Dust with flour; tap out excess.
  2. Whisk 1½ cups flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and kosher salt in a medium bowl.
  3. Using your fingers, rub sugar with lemon zest in a large bowl until sugar is moist. Add tofu, applesauce, eggs, and vanilla extract; whisk to blend. Fold in dry ingredients just to blend.
  4. Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth top. Bake until top of cake is golden brown and a tester inserted into center comes out clean, 50–55 minutes.
  5. Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert onto rack; let cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.
  6. To make the compote:
  7. Melt the Earth Balance and coconut oil over medium heat.
  8. Dice the strawberries  a little and add to the pan.
  9. Add the blueberries.
  10. Juice the lemons over the pan (careful not to lose any seeds)
  11. Add the sugar.
  12. Stir well and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until cooked down and kind of syrupy.  This may take quite a while.
  13. Let cool a bit and spoon over each slice of cake.  The compote will keep in the fridge for several days.

Gluten Free Friday: Double Chocolate Brownies

Published on by Kait Nolan

In the holiday season, we’re inundated with all kinds of sweet treats—almost none of which are gluten free.  It’s the south.  We deal.  My concession one night was to make up a batch of gluten free, slightly healthier homemade brownies.  These are rich, moist, and delicious.  Nobody would know they were gluten free or lighter.  This makes a 9×9 pan of 12 brownies at 172 calories and 6.75 grams of fat.

Ingredients:

  • 2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 1/3 cup dark cocoa powder (heaping)
  • 2 eggs
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup Splenda
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ¾ cup gluten-free flour mix (I used Bob’s Red Mill)
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1 cup milk chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees

2. Line an 8 x 8 baking dish with foil and spray with cooking spray.

3. Mix everything but the chocolate chips until you have a nice smooth batter.

4. Add the chocolate chips.

5. Pour into prepared baking dish.

6. Bake for 25-30 minutes (don’t overcook!).

7. Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then carefully remove the foil insert and fold it down to enable easy cutting.

Printable version.

 

Gluten Free Friday: Double Chocolate Brownies
 
Save Print
In the holiday season, we’re inundated with all kinds of sweet treats—almost none of which are gluten free.  It’s the south.  We deal.  My concession one night was to make up a batch of gluten free, slightly healthier homemade brownies.  These are rich, moist, and delicious.  Nobody would know they were gluten free or lighter.  This makes a 9x9 pan of 12 brownies at 172 calories and 6.75 grams of fat.
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Gluten free
Ingredients
  • ⅔ cup unsweetened applesauce
  • ⅓ cup dark cocoa powder (heaping)
  • 2 eggs
  • ½ cup granulated sugar
  • ¼ cup Splenda
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract
  • ¾ cup gluten-free flour mix (I used Bob's Red Mill)
  • ½ tsp salt
  • 1 cup milk chocolate chips
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  2. Line an 8 x 8 baking dish with foil and spray with cooking spray.
  3. Mix everything but the chocolate chips until you have a nice smooth batter.
  4. Add the chocolate chips.
  5. Pour into prepared baking dish.
  6. Bake for 25-30 minutes (don't overcook!).
  7. Allow to cool for 5 minutes, then carefully remove the foil insert and fold it down to enable easy cutting.
  8. Printable version

Gluten Free Friday: Lemon Icebox Pie

Published on by Kait Nolan

I love pie.  I love pie so much that growing up I had birthday PIE instead of birthday cake.  My favorite is one of the easiest around, lemon icebox.  The only component of this that has to be adapted to be gluten free is the graham cracker crust.  I used this recipe from About.com and the graham style crumbs from Kinnikinnick (Amazon FTW!).  You would never know that this wasn’t regular graham cracker.  Well, except for one small detail.  After the pie has chilled, the crust tends to stick to the dish.  I’m not sure why and I haven’t sorted out how to solve this problem.  Perhaps spraying the pie dish with cooking spray first?  If you figure THAT out, let me know.  Serves 6-8.

Ingredients:

  • 1 prepared pie crust, store bought or using this gluten free recipe
  • 1 can sweetened condensed milk (note that this is not evaporated milk)
  • 2 lemons
  • 1 small container of Cool Whip (I know, this is probably some kind of foodie sin, but go with it)

Directions:

  1. Zest one lemon, then juice them both.
  2. Mix the zest and juice with the sweetened condensed milk until well combined.
  3. Pour the filling into the pie crust.
  4. Top with the Cool Whip.
  5. Chill for at least a couple of hours, until filling is set.
  6. Enjoy!

 

 

Gluten Free Friday: Lemon Icebox Pie
 
Save Print
I love pie.  I love pie so much that growing up I had birthday PIE instead of birthday cake.  My favorite is one of the easiest around, lemon icebox.  The only component of this that has to be adapted to be gluten free is the graham cracker crust.  I used this recipe from About.com and the graham style crumbs from Kinnikinnick (Amazon FTW!).  You would never know that this wasn't regular graham cracker.  Well, except for one small detail.  After the pie has chilled, the crust tends to stick to the dish.  I'm not sure why and I haven't sorted out how to solve this problem.  Perhaps spraying the pie dish with cooking spray first?  If you figure THAT out, let me know.  Serves 6-8.
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Gluten free
Ingredients
  • 1 prepared pie crust, store bought or using
  • this gluten free recipe
  • 1 can sweetened condensed milk (note that this is not evaporated milk)
  • 2 lemons
  • 1 small container of Cool Whip (I know, this is probably some kind of foodie sin, but go with it)
Instructions
  1. Zest one lemon, then juice them both.
  2. Mix the zest and juice with the sweetened condensed milk until well combined.
  3. Pour the filling into the pie crust.
  4. Top with the Cool Whip.
  5. Chill for at least a couple of hours, until filling is set.
  6. Enjoy!

Gluten Free Friday: Reese’s Pieces Cookies

Published on by Kait Nolan

Hubs and I have had a monstrous sweet tooth lately.  One of the things I haven’t really made since our conversion to gluten free is homemade cookies.  We tried one of the store-bought gluten free cookie mixes and it was terrible.  Dry as dust and literally crumbled TO dust.  Not a keeper.  As with all things gluten free, homemade is better.  I checked my copy of You Can’t Believe It’s Gluten Free, my go to cookbook for new recipes.  I adapted the recipe for the potato-based chocolate chip cookies (p. 356) and subbed out Reese’s Pieces for the chocolate chips.  These made a very cakey, soft cookie.  The one thing I’d do differently would be to press the cookies out and THEN just press the Reece’s Pieces into the cookies rather than mixing them in (they all kind of sunk to the bottom).  The original recipe claims to make 36 cookies, but as a rule cookbooks ALWAYS claim cookie recipes make like 3 dozen when really they only make like 20 cookies, because who wants nanocookies?

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup butter
  • 1/2 cup brown sugar, firmly packed
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1 cup potato starch
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
  • 1 1/4 teaspoons xanthan gum
  • 2 small packs Reese’s Pieces

Directions:

  1. Preheat the oven to 375.
  2. Grease your cookie sheet.
  3. Cream the butter and sugar.
  4. Add the egg and beat until light and thick.
  5. Add the water and vanilla and beat until well combined.
  6. Add all the dry ingredients except the candies.  Beat until thick and creamy.
  7. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet.
  8. With moistened fingers, press to a 1/4 inch thickness.
  9. Gently press the candies into the tops of the cookies.
  10. Bake for 8 to 9 minutes, until lightly browned.
  11. Carefully transfer from the cookie sheet to a rack and let cool completely.

 

 

Gluten Free Friday: Reese's Pieces Cookies
 
Save Print
Hubs and I have had a monstrous sweet tooth lately.  One of the things I haven't really made since our conversion to gluten free is homemade cookies.  We tried one of the store-bought gluten free cookie mixes and it was terrible.  Dry as dust and literally crumbled TO dust.  Not a keeper.  As with all things gluten free, homemade is better.  I checked my copy of You Can't Believe It's Gluten Free , my go to cookbook for new recipes.  I adapted the recipe for the potato-based chocolate chip cookies (p. 356) and subbed out Reese's Pieces for the chocolate chips.  These made a very cakey, soft cookie.  The one thing I'd do differently would be to press the cookies out and THEN just press the Reece's Pieces into the cookies rather than mixing them in (they all kind of sunk to the bottom).  The original recipe claims to make 36 cookies, but as a rule cookbooks ALWAYS claim cookie recipes make like 3 dozen when really they only make like 20 cookies, because who wants nanocookies?
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Gluten free
Ingredients
  • ½ cup butter
  • ½ cup brown sugar, firmly packed
  • 1 egg
  • 2 tablespoons water
  • 1 cup potato starch
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 2 teaspoons baking powder
  • ¼ teaspoon salt
  • ½ teaspoon vanilla
  • 1¼ teaspoons xanthan gum
  • 2 small packs Reese's Pieces
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 375.
  2. Grease your cookie sheet.
  3. Cream the butter and sugar.
  4. Add the egg and beat until light and thick.
  5. Add the water and vanilla and beat until well combined.
  6. Add all the dry ingredients except the candies.  Beat until thick and creamy.
  7. Drop by rounded spoonfuls onto the prepared baking sheet.
  8. With moistened fingers, press to a ¼ inch thickness.
  9. Gently press the candies into the tops of the cookies.
  10. Bake for 8 to 9 minutes, until lightly browned.
  11. Carefully transfer from the cookie sheet to a rack and let cool completely.

Lemon Yogurt Cake with Freezer Fruit Compote

Published on by Kait Nolan

I ran across the original version of this recipe in an issue of Bon Appetite while sitting in a TIRE shop of all places, and I KNEW I had to make it.  I’m a big fan of pound cake, but of course not the big calories.  The recipe was described as a lighter pound cake with a bit more going on.  I made the easy conversion to gluten free by switching to a gluten free all purpose flour and adding in some xanthan gum.  The end result was marvelous and definitely a keeper recipe.  But it was still a bit higher in fat and calories than I liked, and I wanted to try a version subbing out applesauce for the oil and swapping out some of the sugar, plus amping up some of the lemon.  This version came out marvelously  and I dressed it up even more with a freezer fruit compote.  Doesn’t that sound fancy?  It’s so super simple.  Serves 12 at 205 calories and 5 grams of fat.

Ingredients:

 

  • Nonstick vegetable oil spray
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose gluten free flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1 tsp xanthan gum
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 1/2 cup stevia
  • 1 Tbs finely grated lemon zest
  • 3/4 cup vanilla Greek yogurt
  • 1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 lemon juice, freshly squeezed
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • special equipment
  • 8 1/2 4 1/4-inch loaf pan
  • For the compote
  • 2 lemons
  • 1 cup frozen blueberries
  • 1.5 cup frozen strawberries
  • 1.5 cup frozen peaches
  • 4 tbs unsalted Butter
  • 2 tbs sugar

 

 

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Coat pan with vegetable oil spray. Dust with flour; tap out excess.

2. Whisk 1 1/2 cups flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and kosher salt in a medium bowl.

3. Using your fingers, rub sugar with lemon zest in a large bowl until sugar is moist. Add yogurt, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract; whisk to blend. Fold in dry ingredients just to blend.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth top. Bake until top of cake is golden brown and a tester inserted into center comes out clean, 50–55 minutes.

5. Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert onto rack; let cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

6. To make the compote:

7. Melt the butter over medium heat.

8. Dice the strawberries and peaches a little and add to the pan.

9. Add the blueberries.

10. Juice the lemons over the pan (careful not to lose any seeds)

11. Add the sugar.

12. Stir well and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until cooked down and kind of syrupy but while some of the fruit is still intact.

13. Let cool a bit and spoon over each slice of cake.

 

 

Lemon Yogurt Cake with Freezer Fruit Compote
 
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I ran across the original version of this recipe in an issue of Bon Appetite while sitting in a TIRE shop of all places, and I KNEW I had to make it.  I'm a big fan of pound cake, but of course not the big calories.  The recipe was described as a lighter pound cake with a bit more going on.  I made the easy conversion to gluten free by switching to a gluten free all purpose flour and adding in some xanthan gum. The end result was marvelous and definitely a keeper recipe .  But it was still a bit higher in fat and calories than I liked, and I wanted to try a version subbing out applesauce for the oil and swapping out some of the sugar, plus amping up some of the lemon.  This version came out marvelously  and I dressed it up even more with a freezer fruit compote.  Doesn’t that sound fancy?  It’s so super simple.  Serves 12 at 205 calories and 5 grams of fat.
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Gluten free
Ingredients
  • Nonstick vegetable oil spray
  • 1½ cups all-purpose gluten free flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1 tsp xanthan gum
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • ¾ tsp kosher salt
  • ½ cup sugar
  • ½ cup stevia
  • 1 Tbs finely grated lemon zest
  • ¾ cup vanilla Greek yogurt
  • ½ cup unsweetened applesauce
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1 lemon juice, freshly squeezed
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • special equipment
  • 8½ 4¼-inch loaf pan
  • For the compote
  • 2 lemons
  • 1 cup frozen blueberries
  • 1.5 cup frozen strawberries
  • 1.5 cup frozen peaches
  • 4 tbs unsalted Butter
  • 2 tbs sugar
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°. Coat pan with vegetable oil spray. Dust with flour; tap out excess.
  2. Whisk 1½ cups flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and kosher salt in a medium bowl.
  3. Using your fingers, rub sugar with lemon zest in a large bowl until sugar is moist. Add yogurt, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract; whisk to blend. Fold in dry ingredients just to blend.
  4. Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth top. Bake until top of cake is golden brown and a tester inserted into center comes out clean, 50–55 minutes.
  5. Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert onto rack; let cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.
  6. To make the compote:
  7. Melt the butter over medium heat.
  8. Dice the strawberries and peaches a little and add to the pan.
  9. Add the blueberries.
  10. Juice the lemons over the pan (careful not to lose any seeds)
  11. Add the sugar.
  12. Stir well and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until cooked down and kind of syrupy but while some of the fruit is still intact.
  13. Let cool a bit and spoon over each slice of cake.

Gluten Free Friday: French Yogurt Cake

Published on by Kait Nolan

I ran across this recipe in an issue of Bon Appetite while sitting in a TIRE shop of all places, and I KNEW I had to make it.  I’m a big fan of pound cake, but of course not the big calories.  The recipe was described as a lighter pound cake with a bit more going on.  I made the easy conversion to gluten free by switching to a gluten free all purpose flour and adding in some xanthan gum.  And of course I dropped some of the fat and calories by switching to nonfat Greek yogurt instead of the whole milk version.  The end result was marvelous and definitely a keeper recipe.  Servings: 12 at 207 calories and 10 grams of fat

Ingredients:

  • Nonstick vegetable oil spray
  • 1 1/2 cups all-purpose gluten free flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1 tsp xanthan gum
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 3/4 tsp kosher salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 Tbs finely grated lemon zest
  • 3/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil
  • 2 large eggs
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • special equipment
  • 8 1/2 4 1/4-inch loaf pan

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Coat pan with vegetable oil spray. Dust with flour; tap out excess.

2. Whisk 1 1/2 cups flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and kosher salt in a medium bowl.

3. Using your fingers, rub sugar with lemon zest in a large bowl until sugar is moist. Add yogurt, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract; whisk to blend. Fold in dry ingredients just to blend.

4. Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth top. Bake until top of cake is golden brown and a tester inserted into center comes out clean, 50–55 minutes.

5. Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert onto rack; let cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

 

 

Gluten Free Friday: French Yogurt Cake
 
Save Print
I ran across this recipe in an issue of Bon Appetite while sitting in a TIRE shop of all places, and I KNEW I had to make it.  I'm a big fan of pound cake, but of course not the big calories.  The recipe was described as a lighter pound cake with a bit more going on.  I made the easy conversion to gluten free by switching to a gluten free all purpose flour and adding in some xanthan gum.  And of course I dropped some of the fat and calories by switching to nonfat Greek yogurt instead of the whole milk version.  The end result was marvelous and definitely a keeper recipe.  Servings: 12 at 207 calories and 10 grams of fat
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Gluten free
Ingredients
  • Nonstick vegetable oil spray
  • 1½ cups all-purpose gluten free flour, plus more for dusting
  • 1 tsp xanthan gum
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • ¾ tsp kosher salt
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 Tbs finely grated lemon zest
  • ¾ cup plain Greek yogurt
  • ½ cup vegetable oil
  • 2 large eggs
  • ½ tsp vanilla extract
  • special equipment
  • 8½ 4¼-inch loaf pan
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350°. Coat pan with vegetable oil spray. Dust with flour; tap out excess.
  2. Whisk 1½ cups flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and kosher salt in a medium bowl.
  3. Using your fingers, rub sugar with lemon zest in a large bowl until sugar is moist. Add yogurt, oil, eggs, and vanilla extract; whisk to blend. Fold in dry ingredients just to blend.
  4. Pour batter into prepared pan; smooth top. Bake until top of cake is golden brown and a tester inserted into center comes out clean, 50–55 minutes.
  5. Let cake cool in pan on a wire rack for 15 minutes. Invert onto rack; let cool completely. DO AHEAD: Can be made 3 days ahead. Store airtight at room temperature.

Gluten Free Friday: Blueberry Peach Crumble and a Review of Melt Spread

Published on by Kait Nolan

Right around the time we moved, I was offered an opportunity to try out Melt Organic Spread.  It took me a while to connect with the company owing to the whole lack of internet thing, and then the getting my kitchen organized thing.  But receive my free sample, I did, and I proceeded to try it out forthwith.  Here’s the description from the company:

Melt® Organic buttery spreads are North America’s first line of butter replacements made with organic virgin coconut oil in the perfect blend for rich and creamy taste and good health. Each variety of Melt supports healthy weight when replacing other fats in your daily diet

Melt’s perfect blend of healthy oils features virgin coconut oil — a stable, healthful saturated fat and a rich, fruit-based source of medium chain fatty acids (MCFAs) — smoothly blended with flaxseed, hi-oleic sunflower, palm fruit and canola oils.

As our flagship product, Rich & Creamy Melt® is the best tasting, organic alternative to butter or margarine. Rich & Creamy Melt cooks, bakes and melts just like butter, but with half the saturated fat and fewer calories.

Each square of Melt is delicious and nutritious: certified organic and kosher, trans fat free, soy free, gluten free and made with non-GMO, eco-social and fair trade certified ingredients. Each serving of Melt is a rich source of the ‘good fats’ with an ideal balance of Omega-6 to Omega-3 ALAs (that are optimally metabolized with virgin coconut oil), and has 425 mg of Omega-3 ALA (or 26% RDA) and Vitamin E (or 15% RDA). Melt does include a small amount of grass-fed organic butter fat for natural flavoring, so it is not Vegan or Dairy Free (emphasis mine).

I began easy, trying it out as a light spread alternative on my morning toast, spread over my waffles, in my gluten free blondies–all of which were quite delicious.  Color me surprised.  I’ve been hearing about the virtues of cooking with virgin coconut oil, but frankly, I find the taste of coconut oil by itself to be somewhat–funky.  This mix with healthy coconut oil is quite nice.  So then came the final test.  Pastry.  Because this product is supposed to behave just like butter in terms of cooking.   And, in fact, it did (though if you’re using Melt for pastry, I should put it in the freezer for about half an hour to firm it up a bit first).

Crumbles are kind of like upside down pie….a crumble topping is really just pastry dough you’re too lazy to make a crust with. Which, for someone like me who is terrified of making pie crust, makes them PERFECT. This recipe used frozen peaches and blueberries, but fresh would be marvelous. It just happened to be what I had on hand.  Servings: 4 at 376 calories and 10 grams of fat.

 

Ingredients:

  • 2 cups frozen peaches
  • 2 Tbs lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup Splenda
  • 1 tsp corn starch
  • 2 cups frozen blueberries

For the Crumble Topping:

  • 1/2 cup all-purpose gluten free flour
  • 1/4 cup sugar
  • 2 Tbsp light brown sugar, lightly packed
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/4 cup Melt spread (or unsalted butter)

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Place the peaches and blueberries in a large bowl with the lemon juice, splenda, and corn starch.
3. Toss well.
4. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes while you work on the topping.
5. For the topping, combine the flour, sugars, salt, and butter in a food processor or use a pastry cutter until the mixture is the size of big crumbles.
6. Pour into a pie dish, then sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly over the fruit.
7. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly.
8. Serve warm or at room temperature.

 

 

Gluten Free Friday: Blueberry Peach Crumble and a Review of Melt Spread
 
Save Print
Crumbles are kind of like upside down pie....a crumble topping is really just pastry dough you're too lazy to make a crust with. Which, for someone like me who is terrified of making pie crust, makes them PERFECT. This recipe used frozen peaches and blueberries, but fresh would be marvelous. It just happened to be what I had on hand.  Servings: 4 at 376 calories and 10 grams of fat.
Author:
Recipe type: Dessert
Cuisine: Gluten free
Ingredients
  • 2 cups frozen peaches
  • 2 Tbs lemon juice
  • ¼ cup Splenda
  • 1 tsp corn starch
  • 2 cups frozen blueberries
  • For the Crumble Topping:
  • ½ cup all-purpose gluten free flour
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • 2 Tbsp light brown sugar, lightly packed
  • ½ tsp kosher salt
  • ¼ cup Melt spread (or unsalted butter)
Instructions
  1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
  2. Place the peaches and blueberries in a large bowl with the lemon juice, splenda, and corn starch.
  3. Toss well.
  4. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 minutes while you work on the topping.
  5. For the topping, combine the flour, sugars, salt, and butter in a food processor or use a pastry cutter until the mixture is the size of big crumbles.
  6. Pour into a pie dish, then sprinkle the crumble mixture evenly over the fruit.
  7. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the top is browned and crisp and the juices are bubbly.
  8. Serve warm or at room temperature.