gluten free baking

Living the Gluten Free Way…Worth the Effort!

Let me update you on my gluten free life style. I have been gluten free almost two and a half years. I initially bought every freaking flour under the sun.  Some I still use, some I have abandoned for specific reasons: generally they make things taste odd; like someone from another universe baked it!  I no longer use many bean flours, just occasionally; too weird tasting.  Ditto for quinoa flour.  I like quinoa as a starch/side and use it occasionally but that flour…rarely. Same goes for teff flour…odd tasting. I make a few flour blends and two mixes; for cobblers and for buttermilk biscuits.  The mixes are really handy for quick baking.

My diet centers around eating healthy; lots of veggies, fruits, proteins and a few oils like olive oil, coconut oil, sesame oil and canola oil.  I try to eat seasonally when it comes to produce – get the best tasting stuff when it is local and fresh.

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I make a fair amount of muffins for snacks and a lot of my desserts are fruit based.  I found a pie crust or two that work great, same goes for muffins and brownies.  I love my cobbler recipe; it gets a lot of usage. Pasta does have a place but not as much or as often as when it was wheat based pasta.  I am a fan of Barilla gf pastas and long for them to bring out a linguine.

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The cookbook I (still after 2 years) cannot live without is Annalise Roberts, Gluten Free Baking Classics; Second Edition: where the basic recipes for my muffins, brownies, pie crust, angel food cake and cupcakes come from.  Her flour blend is the same as King Arthur all purpose gf flour.  There are lots of great baked goods recipes to be tried out.  She has a new cookbook with the focus on heritage baked goods. I can’t wait to make some of those recipes!  I have a bunch of cookbooks but that Baking Classics is full of stuff I crave and enjoy. I find that I can modify her muffins to fit what I have available and create more variety in my baking.

My focus in this blog is on encouraging healthy cooking that is gluten free, easy to do and tasty.  I avoid as much processed food as possible and that includes snacks, cakes and other already baked goods.  I do eat some crackers and confess to a shameful love of gf cheese curls! I like to increase the amounts of veggies in dishes I make and I add beans whenever it works.    I don’t eat fast food except rarely.  And eating out is now a treat; too chancy and my geographic area doesn’t have that many safe gf restaurant choices.  So I reserve dinner out for once in a while meals. Cheaper too!

I still get glutened occasionally, recently by a bite of bbq at a friend’s house. She didn’t realize her bbq sauce was not actually safe for me.  I also ate a big chunk of chocolate bar with almonds that was cross contaminated.  Not a fun day; yes; both on the same day.

Once in a while, I long for wheat baked goods.  It is hard to be around them knowing that even one bite will make me terribly ill.  I have had dreams about bread…kinda nightmares actually.  For me, a lot of days at school are like being constantly exposed to poison that I am craving desperately. You have to have a good amount of will power to be eating lunch next to a big tray of wheat bagels and a plate of cookies And a pie! No other empty seats in the lunchroom.  Suck it up and try not to think about the treats right there under my nose.  Such is the life of a celiac.  You gotta be strong every single day.  And I am.  I have the will power and so do you!

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homemade sandwich bread

I find that I can make great tasting treats far cheaper than the stuff at the store in the gf aisle.  Yummier than that stuff too.  Healthier since it has less chemicals and preservatives in it.  You can do that too.  There are lots of easy to make gf stuff on my blog; muffins, cookies, brownies and pies/tarts.  Main dishes too that are easy and nutritious. Sure there is some sugar in those muffins but far less than most of the store gf snack bars!  Bake up a batch and you will be thrilled with having more than a dozen snacks – freeze some so they keep for a few weeks.  I find that my wheat eating family enjoys my gf desserts, very much so. citrus chicken, blueberry muffins 009

Being healthy and feeling good are worth the effort to eat safely.  Life is much better gluten free and I know I am making the right choice to be very careful about what I eat and what I use on my skin, hair, and the rest of me!  It is doable and being gf gets better as you practice it and as you live the gf lifestyle week after week, month after month and year after year.  I promise you will be very glad as your tummy heals and all the rest of you feels better.  That’s part of why I write this blog; to help others be successful at living a gluten free lifestyle. The other reason is I just love to write.  Happy gluten free cooking and eating!

Strawberry Rhubarb Crumb Pie – a Delightful Dessert

It is the start of local strawberry season and rhubarb is plentiful right now so this was a perfect pairing for adaptation to a gluten free pie recipe.  This is an easy pie to construct and you can store any leftover crumb mixture in a sealed container in the fridge; it keeps a few weeks.  The GF crust will work for any pie and the GF crumb topping is perfect for any crumb pie.  If you prefer a solid crust just double the crust part and top your pie with it.  Be sure to cut some slits for steam escape!

I have a second oven; I call it the pizza oven which I use mostly to bake pies in; it has only bottom heat. This gives my crust the chance to get properly browned without overcooking the rest of the pie. If you use a regular oven you might want to prebake your empty gf crust for 10 minutes to give it a head start so it doesn’t get underbaked.  If you are making this pie with regular flour; just sub in for the gf blend and bake it as I describe below.  I made this pie before I went gf and if you are a gluten gluten you can still enjoy the berry goodness of this late spring themed pie.

Please make every effort to use local strawberries; you can get them at most farm stands, farmer’s markets and at Lehigh Valley Produce on Main Street in Hellertown.  I got mine at Lehigh Valley Produce; very flavorful and in prime condition. This pie really showcases the strawberries more than the rhubarb which is a silent partner so that is why I suggest you get the best; locally grown sweet ripe strawberries to make your pie’s flavor just perfect.

Bake and enjoy early summer in a pie from just a few minutes of work.  Don’t eat it hot; it should be cooled to room temperature or even chilled. I am guessing you could top this with vanilla ice cream.  Maybe next time!

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Angie’s GF Strawberry Rhubarb Crumb Pie

Crust:

1 c plus 2 tbsp brown rice flour mix (at bottom of recipe)

2 tbsp sweet rice flour

1 Tbps. granulated sugar

½ tsp xanthan gum

¼ tsp salt

6 Tbps. cold butter cut into 6 chunks

1 lg egg

2 tsp fresh orange or lemon juice

Directions:

Spray 9 inch metal pie pan with cooking spray, dust with white rice flour.

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 chop the rhubarb into ½ inch chunks and hull/slice the strawberries.

Filling:

2 cups fresh strawberries, hulled and cut in thick slices

2 cups cut up fresh rhubarb – place in medium bowl

Mix with

½ to 2/3  cup sugar ( I used ½ cup but I guess some like things really sweet so I gave a range of sugar amounts.)

1/3 c gluten free flour mix (see below recipe or use any you like: I actually used a mock Better Batter flour for this pie filling.)

1 egg (can be left out if you wish)

Roll out pie crust in a pie bag or between the two sheets of wax paper, try to get the thickness even, 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.  Fill with dry strawberry – rhubarb mixture.  Beat egg in a small bowl and pour over. Top with crumbs.

Crumb topping

¾ c brown rice flour mix

½ c sugar

½ tsp xanthan gum

1/3 c cold butter cut into six chunks

Put all four ingredients in the same mixing bowl you made the bottom crust in and mix well with mixer paddle until crumbs form.

Sprinkle the top of the pie with crumb mix; use as much as you like.  I like about ½ to 2/3 of the mixture.  Up to your personal taste… It sinks partially into the fruit mixture and adds lots of sweetness and eye appeal.

Bake in a preheated 425 degree oven for 40-45 minutes until bubbly and the crust is light brown.  Cool at least 2 to 4 hours before serving at room temperature.

Brown Rice Flour Mix

2 c brown rice flour

2/3 c potato starch

1/3 c tapioca flour

Blueberry Crumb Muffin – Bluedelishous!

Oh….the muffin saga unfolds further…what flavor shall I make for snack time?  Turning to my trusty muffin recipe I went for a classic: blueberry crumb. So easy: think I can almost do it in my sleep! That’s why the basic muffin recipe is my go to baked snack. They are always tasty and far cheaper than GF muffins you can buy.

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This batch of muffins was delightful: delicate texture yet slightly crunchy outside with the sweet blueberry flavor and just enough sugar for me.  I used a bag of fruit straight out of the freezer -don’t defrost them before adding.

The streusel topping insures that they look gorgeous and adds an extra layer of flavor.  There are walnuts in them to so you get some really great nutrients from the fruit and nuts.  Not much guilt in eating one of these treats! You swapped the white sugar for coconut palm sugar which is very low as far as raising blood sugar.   I did add an extra 2 tbsp. of milk because of the coconut palm sugar. They come out slightly darker if you use that special sugar.

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This batch was made with the coconut palm sugar. Don’t they look yummy?

I took a few snaps as I made the batter.  I warmed my cold eggs in a bowl of warm tap water; took only a couple minutes to bring them close from icy cold to room temp.  Great if you forget to get out the eggs early for warming up on the counter.  In a second photograph I show how I pour the milk in a glass measuring cup and add the canola oil right on top. And the third shot is of the frozen blueberries before mixing in, don’t defrost them! Finally; do make the streusel topping before you mix up the batter as that batter goes together in a few moments so have your topping ready to press into the batter in the muffin tins.

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I love how healthy these muffins are and the envious looks people give me when I chow down on one as they eat some snack full of preservatives, sugar and who knows what. People are envying ME and my GF treat…Love how being gluten free can be so yummy and easy when you plan ahead and bake your own snack treats. I freeze those I won’t eat in two days time; a zip lock freezer bag works great. citrus chicken, blueberry muffins 010

Blueberry Streusel Muffins

2 cups brown rice flour mix (see below)

2/3 cup granulated coconut palm sugar or granulated sugar

1 tbsp. baking powder

1 tsp. baking soda

¾ tsp. xanthan gum

¼ tsp. salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 1/3 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

1/3 cup chopped walnuts

2 large eggs

½ cup milk, 1 or 2 percent plus 2 tbsp more if you use the palm sugar

½ cup canola oil

Topping: Mix the following in a bowl, make sure the butter is in tiny pebbles; use your fingertips to blend.

½ cup rolled oats

¼ cup brown sugar

2 tbsp. almond meal

1½ tbsp. butter

¼ tsp. cinnamon

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Directions: Heat your oven to 375 degrees, placing the rack in middle of oven.  Spray muffin pans with cooking spray.  One batch makes 14-16 muffins.  I got 16 when I made them.

Mix all dry ingredients in bowl of stand mixer or big bowl Add fruits and walnuts; stir to coat them with dry mix.  Combine milk and oil.  Beat in eggs, add vanilla.  Add liquids to big bowl; stir just until blended.  It is a very thick batter.

Fill muffin pans 2/3 full.  I use a big metal serving spoon and fill it about half way to dump in each muffin space. Sprinkle the top with the topping. Press it in a bit so it won’t all flake off after baking. Bake 21-23 min until golden brown. Do not over bake or they will taste dry.  Remove immediately from the pans and cool on a rack.  They freeze well for a few weeks, if they last that long.  Keeps in fridge (well wrapped) or an airtight cookie jar for 2-3 days.

Brown Rice Flour Mix base mix 

(This mix is the same as King Arthur’s blend)
2 c brown rice flour

2/3 c potato starch

1/3 c tapioca flour

Rhubarb Cobbler…Tender Sweet Spring Treat

Rhubarb….yes another yummy recipe using rhubarb. My spring mission: to convince you rhubarb haters to try one of these recipes.  This one is delicate in flavor with a fluffy yet satisfying cobbler topping and no sour ickiness as some say rhubarb can seem to have.  It takes a bit less fruit than a pie and goes together in just a few minutes.  And it is gluten free for all of you who must avoid gluten which means no wheat, rye or barley flours. I have never made rhubarb cobbler but thought it might be tasty so I gave it a whirl and was really pleased with the results. <!–more–>

This recipe is a variant on the same basic one I posted about for peach cobbler last summer, it is modified from a muffin dry mix in Bette Hagman’s book, More from the Gluten-Free Gourmet and uses a flour mix that will give you 4 cups of the dry ingredients.  One cup will make an 8×8 pan of cobbler topping.  I used a rectangular pan but it is just slightly smaller than 8×8 and worked perfectly.

I store the rest of my dry mix in the freezer so a pan of cobbler can be thrown together in less than 10 minutes plus baking time.

I always get the fruit part cooking before putting the topping together so the fruit is hot and ready for the topping and can go right into the oven. Ripe sweet fresh fruit is vital for a successful cobbler. No canned or underripe fruit will do.

Recently I made this for my guy who used to be quite skeptical about rhubarb until he recently enjoyed my rhubarb crumb pie and then tried some of this cobbler last weekend.  He loved it and asked for a serving of it to take for lunch the next day. Convert… You can be the next to change your mind on rhubarb for dessert!

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Angie’s Rhubarb Cobbler

Dry Cobbler Mix – use one cup for this recipe and freeze the rest

2 ¼ cups white rice flour

½ cup potato starch (not potato flour!)

½ cup tapioca flour

1 tsp. baking soda

4 tsp. baking powder

1 tsp salt

1 tsp. xanthan gum

1/3 cup sugar

Blend well and store leftover dry mix in a freezer bag or a jar in the freezer.

Fruit Filling

4 cups sliced rhubarb

½ tsp. almond extract

2/3 cup sugar –add more or less depending on how sweet you want it

2 tbsp. GF flour

1/4 tsp cinnamon

Directions:

Mix the fruit and almond extract in a sauce pan. Stir together the sugar, cinnamon and flour and mix into the fruit.  Cook on the stove top for 5-10 minutes until it is thickened and hot.  Pour into a buttered 8 inch square pan, top with big blops of the cobbler topping.

Cobbler Topping

1 cup dry baking mix

2 eggs

2 tbsp melted butter or canola oil ( I like butter for this)

1/3 cup milk/buttermilk

½ tsp. vanilla

 Directions:

Mix the wet ingredients and then add to the dry mix in a big bowl.   Mix briefly: do not over-mix for best texture.  Use a big spoon to plop it right away on the hot fruit.  Bake immediately as baking soda and powder can’t stand around waiting or they lose their umph!

Bake 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 before cutting.

Let cool 5 minutes before serving as it will burn your mouth right out of the oven! Oh the torture to have to wait.  Some people love it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.  But I think this tender and sweet rhubarb cobbler is perfect just on its own.

Strawberry Rhubarb Pavlova…A Springtime Delight

Recently my mom asked me to make this dessert.  She saw it in a magazine.  I wanted to please her for Mother’s Day so I made it today for a family supper; the fruit combination is pure spring; sliced strawberries and lightly stewed rhubarb spooned on top of whipped cream spread over a meringue layer. Meringue isn’t that inspiring, at least that is what I thought a few years ago before I bit into my first slice of pavlova. Clearly this dessert is a case of the results being far more than a simple sum of the ingredients.  It is light, sweet, airy, and basically melts in your mouth.  The topping is usually fresh fruit. I have made it a few times with great success.  But this time I used a mixture of cooked and fresh fruit as my topping since raw rhubarb is wicked tart and needs some taming before it is palatable.  As a kid I loved to cut a stick of rhubarb and dip the cut end into granulated sugar and bite into its crazy tartness! This is much better use for fresh rhubarb.

The old school classic pavlova topping is fresh passion fruit.  We mostly serve it with sliced fresh local strawberries, perfection. It is tasty with blueberries too.  I once used a mixture of ripe summer fruits; peach, nectarine, blueberries, mango and kiwi.  That was really memorable.  Go with what is ripe and flavorful when you are shopping for fruit.  No canned fruit though, only fresh will do.  Except for this particular blend of fresh and lightly cooked fruits.

My sister got the classic pavlova recipe from Food network – a 1999 recipe.  It is naturally GF so no one will ask where the wheat is!  Don’t leave out the red wine vinegar; totally necessary. I confess I have forgotten the vanilla this time and noticed nothing wrong.  I used brown sugar this time slightly more rustic look but great flavor.  Use what ever sugar you like.

I didn’t take many pictures.  Was only thinking of getting it baked and compiled, not of sharing the recipe.  Such a hit and so tasty I had to post on it.

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Strawberry Rhubarb Pavlova

Ingredients:

Cake:

1/2 cup egg whites at room temp (about 4 or 5 eggs)

1/8 t of cream of tartar

1/8 t of salt

1 cup granulated sugar

1 1/2 t cornstarch

1 Tablespoon red wine vinegar

1/2 t vanilla extract

1 1/4 to 1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1-2 T light brown sugar packed or white sugar

1/2 to 1 tsp. almond extract (optional)

Fruit Topping:

3 tbsp. amaretto

3 tbsp. honey

1 cup fresh sliced rhubarb

2 cups sliced fresh strawberries

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment whip the egg whites, cream of tartar and salt in a clean, dry bowl until foamy. Add the granulated sugar, cornstarch, vinegar and vanilla and continue whipping until stiff, smooth and glossy, about 8 minutes more.

While it beats, on a sheet of parchment paper cut to fit a sheet pan, use a pencil to draw or trace a 9 inch circle in diameter. Line the sheet pan with the parchment, pencil side down (you should be able to see the circle).

Spoon the stiff egg whites in the circle, using the back of the spoon to smooth the top and sides of the disk. Bake in the center of the oven for 10 minutes, then reduce the heat to 300 degrees and bake until the meringue has puffed up and slightly cracked on the top and the surface is highly browned to the color of cafe au laid, about 45 minutes more. Turn off the oven, prop open the oven door just a bit, and let it cool in the oven at least 30 minutes, to room temperature. This ensures a gradual cooking, which protects the delicate meringue.

Put the honey and amaretto in a sauce pan, heat, add the sliced rhubarb.  Cook stirring, 3 to 5 minutes.  Do not let the fruit slices fully break down; just soften somewhat.  Turn off and cool.  Pour the mixture over the sliced strawberries, stir and let stand 30 minutes before using. Stir occasionally as it stands.

Whip the cream and brown sugar (or white sugar) and almond extract until stiff. Spoon it on top of the center of the fully cooled pavlova and spread out to within 1/2 inch of the edge, spoon on the rhubarb and strawberries, I used a slotted spoon so I could control how much syrup goes on the cake. To serve, slice into wedges with a serrated knife.  Serve extra syrup on the side.

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Yes, this slice is kinda messy looking and it is on a paper plate.  But, it was lick the paper plate yummy.

A cloud of spring fruit flavors.  So pretty and so delicious…and really not that difficult to make. Gluten free naturally and impressive what ever fruit you top it with.  I promise your dessert will be a hit if it is a pavlova!