Gluten Free Pineapple Upside Down Cake

Ever have to bring a dessert to a function and have no time to make something from scratch. There are lots of really great packaged gluten free product in the stores these days that can make your life a little easier.

I usually have a few things in my pantry for occasions that I need a little extra help. One of these products is Betty Crocker Gluten Free Cake Mixes. I have previously made wonderfully decadent chocolate cupcakes with the Gluten Free Devils Food Cake Mix. This time I was looking for something a little more festive. I saw pineapples on sale in a grocery flyer and decided for family Christmas function that I would make a Pineapple Upside Down Cake. Since I had a Gluten Free Yellow Cake Mix, all I need to purchase was a pineapple. I picked up a pre-cored pineapple from the grocery store instead of a can so I could cut the slices myself, a little thicker than the canned versions. But the canned ones would work perfectly as well.

I changed up the recipe slightly, as that is what I usually do. I did not have corn syrup in the house so I used maple syrup instead and I used the pineapple juice that came with the pineapple instead of the water. I also minced a little pineapple and added it to the cake mix. It took longer than the time stated to bake, close to 50 minutes. Watch the cake carefully in the oven and starting at the 30 minute mark check the cake every 5 minutes with a toothpick to see if it is done. When toothpick comes out clean remove from the oven. Do not over bake as the cake will be come dry. After trying the cake at dinner I would make a few changes the next time I try it. The topping is a little gooey, probably what caused the cooking time to change. So I would cut back on the butter and brown sugar a little. But the taste was amazing.

Betty Crocker's Pineapple Upside Down Cake (Gluten Free)

1/4

cup butter

2/3

cup packed brown sugar

2

tablespoons light corn syrup

9

slices pineapple in juice (from 16-oz can), drained

9

maraschino cherries, drained

1

box (15 oz) Betty Crocker® Gluten Free yellow cake mix

1/2

cup butter, softened

2/3

cup water

2

teaspoons gluten-free vanilla

3

eggs

1. Heat oven to 350°F. In 9-inch square pan, melt 1/4 cup butter in oven. Stir in brown sugar and corn syrup; spread evenly in pan. Arrange pineapple slices on brown sugar mixture. Place cherry in center of each pineapple slice.
2. In large bowl, beat cake mix, 1/2 cup butter, water, vanilla and eggs with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour batter over pineapple and cherries.
3. Bake 38 to 43 minutes or until surface is golden brown and toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Immediately run knife around side of pan to loose cake. Place heatproof serving plate upside down onto pan; turn plate and pan over. Leave pan over cake 5 minutes so brown sugar topping can drizzle over cake. Remove pan; cool 30 minutes. Serve warm or cool. Store covered in refrigerator.

Makes 9 servings

Christmas Cookies

Ask anyone what their favorite parts of Christmas is and I am sure food will be on the top of the list, specifically Christmas baking. A tradition growing up was my Mom and I in the kitchen in the weeks leading up to Christmas baking copious amounts of Christmas cookies. Baking sheet after baking sheet came out of the oven and the table would be spread with layers of newspapers with golden cookies from edge to edge. It was an endless conveyor belt of rolling dough, cutting cookies, baking them, and cooling before we could devour them. We made so many cookies they would last well through the winter in the freezer. Making memories by baking with children can be such a simple thing that can last well into adulthood.

Many Christmas cookie recipes can be simply adapted with a change to a gluten free all purpose flour mix instead of wheat flour and the addition of xanthan gum. I use Bette Hagman's Gluten Free Flour Mix, which is 6 cups rice flour (I use a combination of white and brown rice flour, more of the brown than white), 2 cups potato starch (not potato flour), and 1 cup tapioca flour. Blend this well and keep in an air tight container. I always have this on hand to use in recipes and for thickening. Sugar cookies and gingerbread are the simplest to adapt to gluten free. There are also many recipes that are naturally gluten free such as; meringues, chocolate barks and chocolate drop cookies, depending on the fillers.

Take the time to create new memories within your family and try some baking this Christmas. Put on some Christmas music and gather the family in the kitchen. Make sure you have all ingredients on hand before you start and have some fun. Licking the beaters and the messes come with the territory. But you would be surprised at how much that time you spend with your children can mean to them down the road. I have now taken up the baking of the Christmas cookies from my mother, as she no longer has kids in the house to eat the results, but I will always thank her for the memories.

Cookies pictured (from left to right): Chocolate Truffle Brownies (baked in mini muffin pans), Sugar Snowflake cookies, Gingerbread Men and Women , Peppermint Meringues.

Gluten Free Gingerbread Cookies

Several years ago I printed out a recipe for gluten free gingerbread cookies from the internet. The author of the online posting said that she had modified the recipe from a Parents Magazine recipe and adapted it for gluten free using Bette Hagman's featherlight mix. I made the recipe back then and made notes on the page that I wanted to try this recipe again and make a few adaptations of my own. At the time I found that the cookies needed more flavor to them, more spice. Today I tackled this recipe and I think I found the perfect combination.

The original recipe called for 4 1/2 cups of gluten free flour mix, which I thought was a lot, so the first time I made these I halved the recipe and I am glad that I did as it made 60 cookies (at 1/8" thick) with 3" gingerbread wo/men cookie cutters. This recipe would also make a wonderful gingerbread house.

Gluten Free Gingerbread Cookies

2 1/4 cups gluten free flour mix

                 [I use Bette Hagman's original gluten free flour mix]

1 tsp xanthan gum

3/4 Tbsp ground cinnamon

1 1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/2 whole nutmeg, grated

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup butter, softened

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

1 lg egg

2/3 cup molasses

In medium sized bowl mix the flour, xanthan gum, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and baking soda with a whisk until completely combined and set aside. In a large bowl or stand mixer cream together the butter and brown sugar. Add the egg and then the molasses. Slowly add the flour mixture to the molasses mixture, a little at a time, mixing after each addition. The dough will be stiff but sticky.

Divide the dough into two disks and wrap in plastic wrap. Refridgerate for at least 2 hours. The dough can be made several days in advance and kept refridgerated until baking.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Dust surface well with gluten free flour mix before rolling out dough to 1/8" thick. Cut out cookies with desired cookie cutters and place on parchment lined cookie sheet 1" apart. Combine extra dough to roll out again. Bake for 10 minutes or until cookie feels crisp and removes from baking sheet easily. Transfer to cooling rack to cool completely and continue to bake remaining cookies.

Once cookies have cooled you can decorate with frosting and gluten free candies of your choosing.

This is a very sticky dough so flour your rolling surface well prior to and during rolling. These cookies like to puff up when baking, so roll them as thin as you can (1/8").

Comfort Meals: Broccoli Macaroni and Cheese

Ever get a craving for one of those boxed macaroni and cheese dinners, you know the ones that come with a package of cheese sauce right in the box. Since becoming gluten free I miss the convenience that those types of dinners bring. In 15 minutes you can have dinner ready from start to finish which is a good thing when you come home from work late and want something fast. Now things need to be made from scratch, making sure you have all the right ingredients on hand. This usually takes more time than those convenience dinners took, but the efforts are usually way worth it.

Tonight was one of those nights.

I came home with nothing in the fridge, starving and looking for comfort food.

I decided to make a macaroni and cheese dinner that was as simple and quick as the boxed versions.

Easy Broccoli Pasta and Cheese Dinner for Two

Step One: Boil 1 1/2 cups of gluten free noodles. Any short cut gluten free noodle will do. I love MolinodiFerro La Veneziane corn pasta. It tastes just like wheat pasta and comes in a variety of shapes and sizes. Today I used the "gnocchi" which look like shells. Defrost 2 cups of frozen broccoli in microwave for 5 minutes. While pasta is cooking shred 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese and 1 cup of a really sharp extra old cheddar cheese and set aside.

Step Two: When cooked to desired taste drain pasta and broccoli.

Step Three: Add 2 Tbsp of butter to the pot you cooked the pasta in, once melted add 1 1/2 Tbsp of a gluten free all purpose flour mix. Whisk until the flour is incorporated and cook until it starts to smell like shortbread baking. Add 1 cup of milk slowly while whisking continuously (add 1/2 cup more milk if you like a thinner sauce, 1 cup if you like a thick cheese sauce). Cook whisking continuously until it thickens. Add freshly ground pepper to taste and a very small pinch of onion powder for seasoning. When sauce is thick, whisk in shredded cheeses.

Step Four: Add drained pasta and broccoli to cheese sauce and heat until broccoli is hot. Serve immediately. Makes two servings.

Start to finish this dish took no time at all. You can make it faster by cooking the sauce in a different sauce pan at the same time as boiling the pasta and defrosting the broccoli, but I wanted to make a one pot dish that would make cleanup easier. Of course like any dish you make yourself the additions can be what ever you like. I used broccoli as that was what I had on hand and it goes nicely with the cheese sauce. You could add a chopped tomato and turn the cheese sauce into a rose sauce. The possibilities are endless.

Making Your Own Gluten Free Crepes

While we can't all get to a creperie whenever we want, we can make our own crepes at home.  

Metro grocery stores carry their own Irresistibles Gluten Free Pancake Mix that can be pretty plain on it's own, but it is all in what you do with it. You can change the gluten free pancake mix into a crepe mix with one simple step. All you need to do is cut the pancake mix in half when following the recipe on the back of the packaging. Using a pancake mix can make the art of crepes a very simple thing.

Metro Pancake Mix to Crepes Recipe

1/2 cup Irresistibles Gluten Free Pancake Mix

1 lg egg

9/10 cup milk

2 Tbsp canola or vegetable oil

1 tsp pure vanilla extract (optional)

butter for frying (I always use butter for crepes, pancakes or french toast)

1. Preheat crepe pan or skillet over med-high heat or electric griddle to 400 degrees F. Lightly grease pan or griddle.

2. Add egg to a 4 cup measuring cup, add milk until it reaches the 1 cup measure (this makes measuring the 9/10 cup of milk easier) and then add oil. Add Gluten Free Pancake Mix and whisk until completely smooth. Mixture should be thin like cream. Add more milk if necessary.

3. Pour batter from measuring cup onto griddle slowly to the count of four, and quickly but gently turn pan around spreading batter until a large crepe forms and the batter stops flowing around pan.

4. Flip crepe over when crepe has lost its sheen on top and edges are slightly browned. Cook for an additional 2-3 minutes until the bottom has turned a slight golden brown and the crepe comes loose from the pan.

5. Remove crepe from heat and set aside until ready to fill. Continue cooking the crepes until all batter has been used greasing pan slightly between crepes.

Recipe makes approximately 7 7-8" crepes.

Fillings can vary from anything sweet or savory. All you need is your imagination and the filling and topping options are endless.  

My traditional filling is 2 Tbsp of 2% cottage cheese for each crepe, then rolled up and topped with strawberries and maple syrup.

I have also tried a savory filling of pulled pork and shredded extra old cheddar cheese, topped with salsa and sour cream.

These crepes also freeze very well. Just layer the crepes between layers of wax or parchment paper and freeze flat in a zip top bag. To defrost, defrost on counter and heat gently for a few minutes on both sides in a crepe pan or electric skillet until pliable. They are then ready to be filled.

Marky's Crepes & Waffles

This week I visited Marky's Crepes & Waffles and had a wonderful dinner. Marky's Crepes and Waffles is located at the intersection of Richmond and Dufferin streets in London, Ontario. They offer a variety of options for both waffles and crepes, but sadly only the crepes are offered as gluten free options. It is also disappointing that the gluten free crepes cost an additional $1.40.

Before ordering I inquired into the cooking method and was happily surprised when the owner, Milica Markovic, answered all my concerns. She mentioned she was nutritionist and understood the concerns I had about cross contamination. While they do not use a separate surface to cook the crepes she did take the time to clean the surface before cooking my gluten free crepe. She also cleaned the stainless steel spatula and explained that she uses a separate wooden tool used to flip the gluten free crepes. I asked her if all her crepe options were gluten free and she said yes. I then inquired about the toppings and she retracted her earlier statement and said that not all her toppings were gluten free. She explained which toppings were not safe, and that she would omit those toppings if I ordered that crepe. Make sure you inquire about toppings before you order to ensure your crepe is fully gluten free.

I ordered the lemon crepe and found it was delicious. I was a little surprised when she only topped my crepe with icing sugar and lemon juice when the description also included a lemon filling, even though she did not mention the lemon filling when listing the not safe toppings. None the less the crepe was delicious and very satisfying. I will be back to try other gluten free crepes.

The "Classic" Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookie

Growing up the chocolate chip cookies that were baked at home were hard and crunchy. My mom always over baked them and they always ended up hard. I never realized that cookies could be anything different. That is until I was in high school. The cafeteria during first period always had fresh baked chocolate chip cookies. Cookies that were more than undercooked, gooey in the center and sweet. These are the cookies I now crave and missed when I first went gluten free. There are many store bought cookies that taste perfectly fine, but they are hard, crunchy and or crispy. Not the soft baked, chewy, gooey ones that I was looking for. Then I found the perfect recipe.

This recipe debuted on the Food Netwook show Good Eats, episode Sub Standards. They looked so good I immediately went online and printed the recipe. I have been in love with these cookies since then. I did make one adjustment to the recipe in that I do not cook them as long as the recipe says. I usually only cook for 10 - 11 minutes. This makes the perfect gooey center cookie.

The Chewy Gluten Free
Recipe courtesy Alton Brown, 2007

8 ounces unsalted butter, approximately 1 cup

11 ounces brown rice flour, approximately 2 cups

1 1/4 ounces cornstarch, approximately 1/4 cup

1/2-ounce tapioca flour, approximately 2 tablespoons

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 teaspoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

2 ounces sugar, approximately 1/4 cup

10 ounces light brown sugar, approximately 1 1/4 cups

1 whole egg

1 egg yolk

2 tablespoons whole milk

1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract

12 ounces semisweet chocolate chips, approximately 1 1/2 cups (I substitute a dark chocolate bar chopped into small pieces for the chocolate chips. Just measure the chopped pieces to make a cup and half.)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottom medium saucepan over low heat. Once melted, pour into the bowl of a stand mixer.

In a medium bowl, sift together the rice flour, cornstarch, tapioca flour, xantham gum, salt and baking soda. Set aside.

Add both of the sugars to the bowl with the butter and using the paddle attachment, cream together on medium speed for 1 minute. Add the whole egg, egg yolk, milk and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Add the chocolate chips and stir to combine.

Chill the dough in the refrigerator until firm, approximately 1 hour. Shape the dough into 2-ounce balls and place on parchment-lined baking sheets, 6 cookies per sheet. Bake for 14 minutes, rotating the pans after 7 minutes for even baking. Remove from the oven and cool the cookies on the pans for 2 minutes. Move the cookies to a wire rack and cool completely. Store cooked cookies in an airtight container.

As a huge time saver I will often make a double batch, and once I have shaped them into balls I freeze them on a cookie sheet and then transfer to a Ziploc bag and keep in the freezer until the cookie craving hits. I then bake just as many cookies as I need straight from the freezer for 11 minutes, turning once. This way I always have fresh baked cookies in the house.

A Versatile Cookie Recipe

Don't they look good...

With the holidays coming I am playing around in the kitchen, trying new recipes and changing up ones I know work. A few years ago I found a really good gluten free basic cookie recipe on Celiac.com when I was looking to create gluten free holiday cookies. Since then I have adapted them in different variations. It is classified as a sugar cookie, but when baked crisp almost has the taste of a shortbread. The thicker the cookies the softer they will be. If you wish a nice crisp cookie, roll the dough out to 1/8 - 1/4 inch thick and cut your cookies out and bake for twice as long.

Soft Sugar Cookies (Gluten-Free)

By Scott Adams

Published 12/26/2007, Found on Celiac.com

Ingredients:
2/3 cup shortening [I use butter for all my baking instead of shortening]
3/4 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
4 teaspoons milk
2 cups gluten free flour [I use Bette Hagman's original gluten free flour mix]
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon xanthan gum

Directions:
Cream first 3 ingredients, then add egg and beat until light and fluffy. Stir in milk. Stir together dry ingredients and blend into creamed mixture. Divide dough in half and chill for one hour [or longer until the dough is stiff].

Roll (slightly thick) out on lightly gluten free flour surface (You may need a little gluten free flour on the rolling pin if it sticks). Bake on greased cookie sheet 6-8 minutes at 375F (I used parchment paper and just pulled off the parchment paper and let them cool on the parchment paper on a cooling rack). Be careful as the cookies are fragile when warm.

As it is a simple cookie recipe it can be changed up in different ways depending on what you wish them to taste like. I originally made them plain, and decorated a few with a citrus sugar on top. To make citrus sugar zest a lemon, orange, tangerine or lime into a small bowl with 1/2 cup of white sugar. Stir together and let sit for an hour or so for the flavors to develop and the sugar to dry slightly. Store unused sugar in an air tight container.

I have made them plain, rolled out and cut with star cookie cutters. Then decorated with a thick, coloured icing to look like snowflakes.

To give a maple flavor to the cookies I changed the vanilla extract to maple extract and decorated the top with turbinado/raw sugar mixed with maple sugar.

This time I took a different twist. I added the zest of 2 large naval oranges to the dry mix. As well I substituted 4 tsp of freshly squeezed orange juice for the 4 tsp of milk and changed the vanilla extract to a couple drops of lemon extract. Rolled the cookie dough into 2 2" thick logs and chilled them in the fridge for 2 hours. I sliced the log into 1/8 - 1/4 thick slices and placed them on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Bake 6-8 minutes for a soft chewy cookie and 18-20 minutes for a crisp cookie. Once the cookies cooled I melted a good quality dark (70% cocoa) chocolate bar and dipped the cookies into the chocolate to cover the tops. 1/2 of the cookie dough made approximately 24 cookies, with another log to keep in the freezer for later use. A friend commented that these cookies were addictive.

Lesson Two... Give into Cravings

As I mentioned before my one gluten weakness is pizza. A really great thin crust pizza that is soft and foldable just cannot be made gluten free. The reason is its the gluten that is developed in the kneading process that makes pizza crust so soft and pliable. Most gluten free pizzas have more of a cracker texture or a thick biscuit dough for a crust. While that may make a perfectly fine pizza for most people, I am looking for a New York style pizza that you fold in half to eat. That can be really difficult to find, especially in takeout.

I have attempted to order gluten free options from local pizza pizzerias and have not been really successful. Either the pizza is not good, or I have had gluten reactions to the cross contamination that runs rampant whenever you mix gluten and gluten free doughs.

I did find an eat-in gluten free pizza at Shoeless Joe's Sports Bar in London, Ontario, on Wonderland Rd that is pretty good. It comes in a small / personal sized pizza, I was told the crust is made by French Meadow and is only available in the US. Make sure if you are ordering you double check on the toppings. The first time I ordered it I was assured that all of the toppings were safe, and so I ordered the buffalo chicken pizza. Unfortunately it came with breaded chicken on it. The next time I ordered I double checked and was able to substitute grilled chicken for the breaded. A much better option. I will be back for this pizza, too bad it is not available in delivery.

I recently made my last attempt at ordering a gluten free pizza from a local pizzeria, Pizza Tonight. I had a huge gluten reaction as the cross contamination was terrible. The pizza itself was very tasty, but not worth the after affects.

I am sick of the bad pizza and gluten reactions so now I am attempting to find a good crust that I can make my own pizza at home. First up is Udi's Gluten Free Crust. I originally found it in the freezer section of many US grocery stores, and recently found at Metro in Canada. It is a nice thin crust that bakes up soft in the middle and crispy around the edges. I added a little too much cheese, but it was a very tasty pizza. And better, it was completely contaminate free as I controlled all of the toppings and the environment in which it was baked.



My First Pizza with Udi's Crust

My second attempt was much more successful as I did not add as much cheese and you can actually see the crust. It is not the foldable new york style crust that I originally set out to find, but it is a nice soft thin crust pizza. 

Second Attempt with Udi's Crust

Lesson One... Double Check Everything.

Someone once posted to an online group that I belong to that her stomach was angry with her and a thread went around about the terminology we use to describe how our bodies react to being glutened. We all agreed that we generally humanize our bodily symptoms of ingesting gluten containing foods. For years I have always said that my stomach/body was angry with me when I was feeling symptoms and could sympathize with the original posting.

Recently I have been rethinking this idea and realized that why shouldn't my body be angry with me. Whether I ingested gluten intentionally or not I was the one who did it to myself. If it was intentional, then my body has every reason to be "angry" with me. If it was unintentional then I did not check things as carefully as I should have. Either way, it was my own fault that I am experiencing symptoms.

I recently experienced symptoms after eating a "gluten free" pizza from a local pizzeria. I am usually very careful in checking everything out before I eat it. But pizza is my one gluten weakness and I was excited when I heard they offered a gluten free option. It was my own fault because although I checked into the crust and was assured it is baked on its own aluminium pan, I did not follow up with all of the toppings and every possible cross contamination source. It was only when I was finished and throwing away the pan that I realized the bottom of the pan was covered in flour. My body had every right to be angry with me as I was the cause of its distress.

Lesson to be learned, double check everything and then check again.

The Ultimate Cake Challenge

In my opinion the ultimate dessert is a layered cake.

A layered cake is usually one of those things that we think is so complicated that we end up leaving it to the professionals and buying one for our special occasions. 

There are several problems with buying a cake, the most important being it can cost a fortune to get a really nice one, especially if it is gluten free. Most standard bakeries do not make gluten free cakes as you have to be super careful to avoid cross contamination. To get a safe gluten free cake there are many things to need to take into consideration to ensure it is safe to eat. You need to make sure that:

• ingredients are kept safe in sealed containers and different utensils are used, such as scoops, and they are cleaned regularly.
• the storage, baking, decorating areas (basically the entire bakery) is cleaned and sanitized after the regular cakes are made and prior to making anything gluten free.
• the batter is made at a different time so the gluten filled flours are not flying around in the air mixing with the gluten free batter.
• gluten free cakes need to be baked in separate ovens and pans from the regular gluten filled ones, which means having double the equipment.
• the decorating surface is clean and sanitized to ensure no crumbs from the regular cake get mixed in with the icing/filling and then spread on the gluten free cake. And I learned cakes can be very crummy as you are decorating them.

So most of us will seek out a gluten free bakery, which has a dedicated gluten free facility, to purchase our cakes. This is why they can cost so much.

Since a layered cake is for very special occasions we do not often buy these kinds of cakes and may not know the quality of the bakeries in our areas who do gluten free cakes. This comes down to the last issue, taste. Gluten free anything can be finicky. It can be dry, crumbly, tasteless, or even mushy. Even the regular store bought cakes have issues with taste, most often that they don't have any. Store bought cakes can often be too sweet as they are covered with too much icing and the cake itself does not have much flavor. The best thing about making your own cake is you can control all aspects of taste. You choose the cake flavors, the icing and the fillings.

I decided since I really do not like the regular store bought cakes that I was going to make the cake for the party I was hosting for my parents 40th wedding anniversary. Since I was making it, this would naturally be a gluten free cake. I used the Luscious Lemon Cake recipe by Mary Capone from the April/May 2012 Living Without Magazine that I earlier tried as lemon cupcakes and made a 2 tiered lemon cake. The lemon flavor in this cake counters the sweetness of the icing and makes a natural paring.

I can definitely say that if you are to attempt a feat such as this, make sure you have at least a full day to complete the entire cake. Baking two of each of the 6" and 9" cakes took the morning with the cakes cooling till the afternoon, then they needed to be carefully sliced in half. I made the lemon curd for the filling and the lemon butter cream icing. Again I reduced the amount of milk in the icing recipe to make a thicker icing that would set hard on the cake. Layering the cake with the lemon curd and icing filling and then icing the outside of the cake took the rest of the day. I left the cake in the fridge to wait until closer to the event to finish the decorations including adding the fondant flowers I had made a couple weeks earlier. I think the only thing I would change would be to make the cake closer to the event date so it is little fresher and not quite as dry. The lemon curd filling is a nice touch as it adds moisture to the cakes themselves.

If you can bake, you can make a layer cake. Decorations can be as simple as just icing the cake and adding confectionery decorations that can be purchased at local cake decorating or craft stores, or as complicated as you can make it. The only limit in decorating is your imagination. Gluten free cakes should not be a daunting idea. Just take your time, plan your steps, put on some music and go for it. Be adventurous and you will be surprised what you can accomplish.

Bake Sale Goodies Day 2

After the success at the first charity bake sale we decided to have a second one. I wanted to bake something that was larger and more complicated so that we could charge more for them and hence make more for the charity. I was also craving something sweet and I knew exactly what to make. I decided to make Gluten Free Lemon Chiffon Cupcakes. 

These cupcakes come from a recipe in the April/May 2012 Living Without Magazine. The actual recipe is for a wedding cake, but I thought they would make perfect cupcakes. Boy was I right.

I previously made these for a family Easter dinner and was very disappointed in the results. The Easter attempt was not as successful as my initial attempt for my co-workers therefore felt like I needed to try again and perfect the recipe. While making them for Easter I guess I was trying to multi task and over baked them slightly and they became dry. These cupcakes need to be removed from the oven at just the perfect time and they will be soft and moist. Watch them carefully and when a toothpick comes out with just a few crumbs attached they are done. If the toothpick comes out clean, the cupcakes are over baked. The cake should feel slightly dense and spring back when you touch the center. Let them sit in the muffin pan for just a couple minutes and then remove them to cool completely on a wire rack so as not to over bake.

My two earlier attempts included a surprise in the middle. I made a lemon curd from the wedding cake recipe and piped it into the middle of the cupcakes with a piping bag and small round tip while both the cupcake and lemon curd were still warm and this made a nice gooey center to them. This time I wanted to practice some decorations for an upcoming project and made fondant flowers for the tops. The flowers were beautiful at first, but became soft and wilted due to the moisture in the frosting. Next time, either no flowers or place the flowers on after the icing has set. The icing recipe that comes with the original cake recipe is very fluffy and I found I needed to reduce the amount of milk to 3-5 Tbsp instead of 1/4 cup to suit my tastes.

Lemon Chiffon Cupcakes

adapted from Luscious Lemon Cake by Mary Capone
April/May 2012 Living Without Magazine

4 large eggs

2 cups sugar

1 cup milk

1 cup mild vegetable oil of choice

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (about 1 lemon)

                                                       1 Tbsp lemon zest (about 1 lemon)

                                                       1 tsp lemon extract

                                                       1 tsp pure vanilla extract

                                                       2 1/2 cups gluten free flour blend of your choice

                                                                [I use Bette Hagman's original gluten free flour mix]

                                                       1 tsp xanthan gum

                                                       1/2 tsp salt

                                                       1 Tbsp baking powder

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 standard 12 cup muffin pans with cupcake liners.

In a heavy stand mixer with a whisk attachment or with a hand mixer and a large bowl, beat eggs and sugar for 3 to 5 minutes.

In another bowl whisk together gluten free flour, xanthan gum, salt and baking powder. Zest lemon into the flour mixture.

In a small bowl combine milk, oil, lemon juice and extracts.

At low speed slowly add dry and wet mixtures to egg and sugar mixture just until combined.

Using 1/3 cup measuring cup, divide batter evenly between both muffin pans to make 24 cupcakes. Place in preheated oven and bake 18 - 22 minutes until cake center springs back to touch or toothpick inserted in center comes out with a few crumbs attached.

Once cupcakes are completely cooled decorate cupcakes as desired with your favorite icing recipe. For lemon chiffon icing recipe visit April/May 2012 Living Without Magazine.

Bake Sale Goodies

As I mentioned in my last post I recently tried a new recipe for brownies that I took to a charity bake sale at my work place. I have been looking for a good gluten free recipe for a really fudgy brownie for a long time and never found one that I liked as much as a gluten free brownie mix I loved. This was a recipe that I found in one of my sister-in-law's cookbooks that I read while I was visiting. As this recipe was named Chocolate Truffle Brownies I thought it had a good shot of filling my brownie sweet tooth.

I had never baked with Quinoa flour before and was curious. I found that Quinoa flour can be found in the Organic section of the grocery store and the only one I could find was by Bob's Red Mill.

Gluten Free Chocolate Truffle Brownies
From Quinoa 365: The Everyday Superfood by Patricia Green and Carolyn Hemming

Ingredients:
4oz unsweetened chocolate (4 squares)
3/4 cup butter
1 1/2 cups white sugar
3 lg eggs
2 tsp vanilla
1 1/4 cups quinoa flour
1/4 milk
1 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Lightly grease a 9" square baking pan and lightly sprinkle with flour or line with parchment.

In small saucepan, melt the chocolate & butter together over low heat. Add the sugar, stirring constantly. When the mixture is thoroughly blended pour in to a large bowl. Add the eggs & vanilla to the chocolate mixture and blend well. Stir in the flour & milk. Mix in the nuts. Pour evenly into the baking pan.

Bake on center oven rack for 20 - 22 minutes. To keep these brownies chewy be careful not to over bake. Cool 15 minutes in the pan before cutting into 16 squares.

Since it was for a bake sale I tried to double the recipe and make as many brownies as I could. I doubled the recipe and baked it in an 9" x 13" non stick pan lined with parchment and buttered. This meant it took considerably longer to bake than the recipe called for. I baked it for 50 minutes and then cooled it in the fridge overnight before cutting into squares. The center squares were still fairly soft and gooey but were fine if refrigerated.

The few leftover squares that were left made a wonderful brownie sunday when sliced thinly

Welcome to the Hearth

I recently brought a new recipe of gluten free brownies to a charity bake sale that was being held at my workplace and ended up with the inevitable question "Can I have the recipe?". I have been asked this same question every time I bake something to share with others and each time I copy the recipe down and pass it on. This time I thought there has to be an easier way.

The Gluten Free Hearth was born.

For those not in the know, the hearth was the central part of the home as it is a fireplace that is used for cooking. It became the integral part of the home as the day revolved around cooking of the meals and this provided heat to the entire house. The concept of the hearth has been generalized over time to refer to the entire home or household as in "Hearth and Home". My Hearth is entirely gluten free.

I hope you will join me as I experiment with cooking, baking and all things gluten free in my hearth.