Month: September 2024

Blueberry Apple Cobbler September Delight!

I make a lot of blueberry cobbler when we are camping. Since the blueberry season is pretty much over, I decided to add some fresh apple cubes and they made it taste so bright and lively, cobbler delightful!

This recipe is modified from one in Bette Hagman’s book, More from the Gluten-Free Gourmet and is based on a flour mix that will give you 4 cups of the dry ingredients.  One cup is the base for an 8×8 pan of cobbler topping.  I bet two cups dry mix will make a big 9×13 cobbler. Store the dry mix in an airtight container in the freezer to keep it fresh.

I have tried a number of cobbler recipes but nothing has been better than this one, so I generally stick to what works for me.  But I have modified it a bit lately; cut out one egg, less milk, coconut palm sugar in the filling and I grate cold butter on large hole side for great dumpling texture.

I always get the fruit cooking before putting the topping together so the fruit is hot and ready for the topping and can go right into the oven. I always let it stand 10-20 minutes as it is way too hot to eat fresh off the campfire or the oven.

Dry Cobbler Mix

2 ¼ cups white rice flour

½ cup potato starch

½ cup tapioca flour

1 tsp. baking soda

4 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp. xanthan gum

1/3 cup sugar

Cobbler Topping

1 cup dry baking mix

1 egg

2 tbsp grated cold butter

1/4 cup milk/buttermilk

½ tsp. vanilla

Mix the wet ingredients and then add to the dry mix in a big bowl. Grate in butter BEFORE adding the wet ingredients; i stir it gently after grating it in.

Fruit Filling

2 cups blueberries

2 cups cubed peeled and cored apples; 2 medium apples was enough.

1/3 ½cup coconut palm sugar

2-3 tbsp. GF flour like rice flour, tapioca flour (use 3 if juicy)

½ tsp cinnamon

Directions:

Put the fruit in a thick bottomed saucepan. Stir together the sugar, cinnamon and flour and mix into the fruit.  Cook on the stove top for 3-5 minutes until it is thickened and hot.  Pour into a buttered 8 inch square or round oven pan, top with big blops of the cobbler topping. Bake immediately: at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  The top should be light brown and spring back when you poke it with your finger.  If it looks damp or squishy bake it 5 more minutes. This happens if I use more than 4 cups of fruit; slows it down, sometimes even ten extra minutes if you put 5 or so cups of fruit in it.

Let cool 10-20 minutes before serving as it will burn your mouth right out of the oven!  Some people love it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  Cobbler is perfect just on its own.

Note: if you use oil and almond milk then this cobbler will be dairy free.  Spray the cobbler pan with cooking oil instead of rubbing with butter. I think you can use any sort of milk you can find or even fruit juice.

No new pictures; we were camping and I didn’t take any pictures.

Blueberry Pancakes, GF – Yet Fat and Sassy!

Who know it would be so difficult to find a really tasty gf pancake recipe?  Tried a few and found some too dry and some too bland.  It took me years to find ones I really liked.  Fat, tender and flavorful.  I don’t miss my old wheat-based pancakes anymore.  Plus, these are super easy to make; dump and stir.  Sorry, no ready-made box mix used here but I do make 2 half batches for camping trips; just need to add the wet ingredients to create scratch pancakes even camping!  Soon, when I can find the time to figure out the way to do it best, then I will have a bulk dry mix and be ready to make almost instant pancakes from scratch! These beauties are from Elizabeth Hasselbeck’s GF cookbook.  I am generally not a fan of celebrity cookbooks, but this recipe is worth sharing.

shrimp bisque 001shrimp bisque 002

So, try these and you will find them to be fat and utterly yummy.  I put blueberries in mine, but they are good plain and would taste fantastic with chocolate chips added on top!  We sprinkled a little cinnamon in our batter too.

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I think someone already took a bite out of one of these beauties!

Elizabeth’s GF Pancakes

1 cup sweet sorghum flour

½ cup sweet rice flour

¼ cup tapioca flour

2 tbsp. sugar

2 ½ tsp. baking powder

1 tsp. guar gum

¼ tsp. salt

———

1 2/3 cup 2% milk

2 eggs

½ tsp. vanilla

4 tbsp. butter; melted plus more for griddle frying

Topping: ¼ cup fresh blueberries, sprinkle of cinnamon

Directions: Whisk the dry ingredients in a large bowl.  Mix the next three ingredients in a small bowl, whisk well, mix in the melted butter, whisk.  Pour into the dry ingredients, mix with whisk just until no dry shows.  If the batter looks too thick add 1-2 more tablespoons milk and stir up. I heat the griddle while I do the mixing so it is all ready when the batter is mixed; it doesn’t keep well; to get the fattest puffiest pancakes the secret is mix briefly and you have to bake them right away.

Heat griddle until hot, add some butter, I like to use a big kitchen spoon to measure and I do 3 or 4 pancakes on my cast iron griddle at a time. Sprinkle 3-5 berries on top of each pancake and add a sprinkle of cinnamon.  Let them cook until the edges look set; about 2-3 minutes.  Turn with flat spatula turner.  Let cook 1-2 more minutes.  Do not flip again.  Serve with maple or blueberry syrup.

Peach Cobbler Perfection – 2.0 Version

This is a modified version of my delectable peach cobbler. I swapped out the white sugar in the filling for coconut palm sugar which has a lover number on the hypoglycemic index. I am pre-diabetic, so any sugar or sugar substitute is problematic. But I do try to use the coconut palm sugar whenever possible.  It does darken the look of whatever you put it in unless you sub it in for brown sugar and there it performs perfectly in the color department.  Secondly, I grated cold butter rather than using soft butter or oil for the fat ingredient. It actually worked fantastically; the crust was a tad crunchier in a wonderful way and the texture of the cobbler topping was perfect. Definitely a great technique to use whenever possible, use the coldest stick of butter you have!

Well, this post will be a modified peach cobbler and it is peachy keen!  I often make cobbler with blueberries and even sliced rhubarb.  Most any fruit works; blackberries, raspberries, cherries, plums, nectarines and apricots come to mind.

This recipe is modified from one in Bette Hagman’s book, More from the Gluten-Free Gourmet and is based on a flour mix that will give you 4 cups of the dry ingredients.  One cup is the base for an 8×8 pan of cobbler topping.  I freeze this cobbler mix and it is super handy for a quick cobbler treat.

Notes: I always get the fruit cooking for just a couple minutes before putting the topping together so the fruit is hot and ready for the topping and can go right into the oven. I recently cut the eggs down from 2 to 1 and I like the texture of the cobbler topping better. The grated butter improves the crust texture and the sugar change is healthier for us pre-diabetics.

apple muffins 007

Dry Cobbler Mix

2 ¼ cups white rice flour

½ cup potato starch

½ cup tapioca flour

1 tsp. baking soda

4 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp. xanthan gum

1/3 cup sugar

Cobbler Topping

1 cup dry baking mix

1 egg

2 tbsp cold butter – I peeled back the waxed paper and grated it into the dry flour mix using the biggest hole

1/4 C buttermilk

½ tsp. vanilla

Mix the wet ingredients and then add to the dry mix in a big bowl.

Fruit Filling

4 cups sliced ripe peeled peaches or nectarines

½ tsp. almond extract

½-2/3 cup coconut palm sugar – amount depending on how sweet you want it

2-3 tbsp. GF flour like rice flour or my preference, tapioca flour (use 3 if juicy)

½ tsp cinnamon

Directions:

Mix the fruit and almond extract in a thick bottomed saucepan. Stir together the sugar, cinnamon and flour and mix into the fruit.  Cook on the stove top for 2-3 minutes until it is thickened and hot.  Pour into a buttered 8 inch square pan, top with big blops of the cobbler topping. I have used 1/4 cup milk or buttermilk. Bake immediately: at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  The top should be light brown and spring back when you poke it with your finger.  If it looks damp or squishy bake it 5 more minutes. This happens if I use more than 4 cups of fruit; slows it down, sometimes even ten extra minutes if you put 5 or so cups of fruit in it.

Let cool 7-10 minutes before serving as it will burn your mouth right out of the oven!  Some people love it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  I feel fruit cobbler is perfect just on its own.

Original recipe posted on my blog in August 2014. I made some changes to the recipe to lower the sugar impact and improve the texture of the cobbler crust.

Peach Cobbler Perfection!

Peaches in late summer: ripe peach chunks on my cereal, peach ice cream, peach pie, peach tartlets and peach cobbler.  Well, this post will be on peach cobbler and it is peachy keen!  I often make cobbler with blueberries and even sliced rhubarb.  I am guessing most any fruit might work; blackberries, raspberries, cherries, plums, nectarines and apricots come to mind.

This recipe is modified from one in Bette Hagman’s book, More from the Gluten-Free Gourmet and is based on a flour mix that will give you 4 cups of the dry ingredients.  One cup is the base for an 8×8 pan of cobbler topping.  I bet two cups dry mix will make a big 9×13 cobbler. Store the dry mix in an airtight container in the freezer to keep it fresh.

I have tried a number of cobbler recipes but nothing has been better than this one so I stick to what works for me.  If you use nectarines there is no peeling involved which makes it easy to throw together.

I always get the fruit cooking before putting the topping together so the fruit is hot and ready for the topping and can go right into the oven. I cut the eggs down from 2 to 1 and I like the texture of the cobbler topping better.

apple muffins 007

Dry Cobbler Mix

2 ¼ cups white rice flour

½ cup potato starch

½ cup tapioca flour

1 tsp. baking soda

4 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp. xanthan gum

1/3 cup sugar

Cobbler Topping

1 cup dry baking mix

1 egg

2 tbsp melted butter or canola oil

1/4 to 1/3 cup milk/buttermilk

½ tsp. vanilla

Mix the wet ingredients and then add to the dry mix in a big bowl.

Fruit Filling

4 cups sliced ripe peeled peaches or nectarines

½ tsp. almond extract

½-2/3 cup sugar depending on how sweet you want it

2-3 tbsp. GF flour like rice flour, tapioca flour (use 3 if juicy)

½ tsp cinnamon

Directions:

Mix the fruit and almond extract in a thick bottomed sauce pan. Stir together the sugar, cinnamon and flour and mix into the fruit.  Cook on the stove top for 4-5 minutes until it is thickened and hot.  Pour into a buttered 8 inch square pan, top with big blops of the cobbler topping. I have used 1/4 cup milk and that is less runny than using 1/3 cup.  Frankly it works either way. Bake immediately: at 350 degrees for 25 minutes.  The top should be light brown and spring back when you poke it with your finger.  If it looks damp or squishy bake it 5 more minutes. This happens if I use more than 4 cups of fruit; slows it down, sometimes even ten extra minutes if you put 5 or so cups of fruit in it.

Let cool 7-10 minutes before serving as it will burn your mouth right out of the oven!  Some people love it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  Cobbler is perfect just on its own.

Note: if you use oil and almond milk then this cobbler will be dairy free.  Spray the cobbler pan with cooking oil instead of rubbing with butter. I think you can use any sort of milk you can find or even fruit juice.

Originally posted on my blog in August 2014. I made some small changes to the recipe.

Peach Tartlets = Peach Perfect!

 

It is just past the peak of peach season so get some peaches and whip up delicious gluten free peach tarts. I wanted individual tarts so everyone would feel special; that I baked them their own mini pie; easy to do!  If you don’t have these deep dish pans you can use the flat-bottomed tartlet pans; they won’t hold quite as much filling. mass upload 8-22-16 563

Please make every effort to use local fruit; can get peaches at orchards like Bechdolt’s near Springtown, at most farm stands and at farmer’s markets; one on Saturdays in Easton or Sundays in Hellertown.  This pie really showcases great tasting peaches. If you use lousy peaches your result will lack great flavor. But here’s the thing: store peaches can be poor in flavor and texture due to improper chilling, so I strongly suggest you get locally grown, sweet, ripe peaches to make your pie.  I love when they have a pink blush; it makes the pie so pretty and perhaps even tastier.

To peel; do it old school: heat 3 inches of plain water in a wide pot, drop the peaches gently in 4-5 at a time and blanch them 2-3 minutes, two if very ripe, 3 if less ripe.  Allow to cool somewhat before peeling.  I like to do that over a bowl to catch the juices as I slice each peach. Or just use a potato peeler and slide off the skins. Slice thin and you are ready to use the peaches! If they are quite ripe this works well. Less work, less heat in the kitchen.

Don’t eat these tartlets hot; should be cooled to just warm if you like it so or room temperature or even a bit chilled. They were perfect, just like a big pie only tiny and making one individual dessert.  You could certainly serve them with vanilla ice cream.  And this recipe, like all peach desserts, works perfectly with fresh nectarines, bonus: no peeling required!

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Angie’s GF Peach Crumb Tartlets: makes 7

Crust:

1 c plus 2 tbsp King Arthur Basic GF Blend, aka brown rice flour mix (at bottom of recipe)

2 Tbsp. sweet rice flour

1 Tbsp. granulated sugar

½ tsp xanthan gum

¼ tsp salt

6 Tbsp. cold butter cut into 6 chunks

1 large egg

2 tsp fresh orange or lemon juice

———————

You will need 7 deep dish 4-inch tartlet pans if you make them all at once. I actually froze my dough and made the second batch of 3 a day later. Adjust the filling to the number of tartlets you are baking.

Mix dry ingredients in bowl of stand electric mixer.  Add butter and mix until crumbly and resembling coarse meal.  Add egg and juice.  Mix until it comes together into big chunks.  Shape into a ball with your hands. Put it on a crust sized piece of wax paper (14 x 14 inches more or less), flatten the crust ball some; put on top of it another piece of wax paper and chill it all in your fridge 15-20 minutes while you prepare the filling.

Filling:

6-7 cups sliced fresh peaches, peeled and cut in thick slices, place in medium bowl

Mix with:

½ cup sugar

1/4 cup quick tapioca

Notes: I made it in two parts; used 7-8 smaller peaches for each batch. Adjust the sugar and tapioca accordingly.  Let the filling stand while you prepare the crust. This resting time is important so the tapioca can soften and absorb some juices before baking.

Construction: Break dough into 7 small equal balls.  Roll out each tiny crust in a pie bag or between the two sheets of wax paper, try to get the thickness even and somewhat thin, no thick middle! Peel off one side of paper and place in pie pan, centered.  Remove other slice of wax paper.  Crimp edges all around.  Or not; I left mine kinda rough but it worked! Place the crust lined pans on a baking sheet with a rim to catch any spills. Fill each tartlet with fruit mixture after you have the crumb topping ready to go. Fill to a tad less than the top edge of the crust.  Do not overfill; they will bubble and spill if you take the filling right to the top edge.mass upload 8-22-16 560

Crumb topping

Put all four ingredients in the same mixing bowl you made the bottom crust in and mix well with mixer paddle until crumbs form. If you let them go extra-long you get big fat crumbs for when you want that look, they work great!

¾ c brown rice flour mix

½ c sugar

½ tsp xanthan gum

1/3 c cold butter cut into six chunks

Sprinkle the top of each tartlet with crumb mix; use as much as you like.  I didn’t measure; just sprinkled until the fruit was barely visible through the crumbs. Up to your personal taste… It sinks partially into the fruit mixture and adds lots of sweetness and eye appeal.

Bake in a preheated 400-degree oven for 35 minutes until bubbly and the crumb crust is light brown.  Cool at least 1 hour before serving at room temperature.  I think it is best served the same day you make it, or no more then 12 hours after baking for optimal flavor.  The crumbs will get soggy if too much time passes. Mine was still very good the next day; just not as great as when really fresh.

Note: if you find your bottom crust is not browning enough bake it empty at 375 degrees for ten minutes before filling it with the fruit.  I have a bottom heat gas oven which gives me perfect pie crust if I put the pie down on the lowest possible level, so I don’t ever have pale pie crust. I used to have a two-oven range with a full-sized lower oven. and an upper pizza oven that I called the Pie Oven!    I miss it a little, but I am managing just fine to have perfectly browned pie crusts.

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Brown Rice Flour Mix (Same as King Arthur GF All-purpose blend)
2 c brown rice flour (finely ground)

2/3 c potato starch – Not potato flour

1/3 c tapioca flour

Note: the crust and crumb recipe are out of Annalise Roberts cookbook, Gluten Free Baking Classics, Second Edition. Adaptation and filling recipe are mine.

First published in Summer 2016. No changes to recipe in this posting.