Smiles

Ramblings of a true to form Gemini

Saturday, February 26, 2011

I know it is not Easter but.....

It is the year of the Rabbit!


Bunny Cakes
Light, fluffy, spongy, heaven. Not like any gluten free treat I have made before.
To make these you will need a little knowledge about origami.
Makes 24, 1.5 inch square mini treats.
First you will need to make 24 of these origami bunnies out of 6 inch square parchment paper (NOT waxed paper)
Then you will need:
4 oz soft Cream Cheese
2 T Dark Rum
2 T Milk
2 T Veggie Oil
3 large Eggs
1 t Vanilla
1 t Baking Powder
1 t Xanthan Gum
1 cup Sugar
1 cup Sorghum blend*

Method:
Pre-heat the over to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. In a large bowl, add warm water, in a bowl that is just smaller than the first add the cream cheese and the rum. Blend with a hand mixed until fluffy. Then add the milk, oil and vanilla. You can now remove the bowl from the warm water. In a separate bowl, mix the eggs and sugar until well blended. To this add the flour, baking powder and xanthan gum. Add the flour/egg mixture to the cream cheese/milk mixture.

In a clean, new squeeze bottle pour the batter. I guess you could use a piping bag but I had the best control with the squeeze bottle.

Now you are going to fill the bunny ballons to about halfway. There is a crease in the middle of the bunny so it is a good mark to fill to. Be careful not to make a mess. If batter gets on the outside of the bunny, it could burn in the oven and leave a dark spot. This is where the squeeze bottle tip comes in handy.
Place the bunnies on a cookie sheet and bake for 20 minutes or until a toothpick comes out clean.
To enjoy these tasty treats just unfold the wrapper.



Yumm!!

*Sorghum Blend- 1 1/2 cup Sorghum Flour, 1 1/2 Potato Starch, 1 cup Tapioca Starch mixed together

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Potato Pancakes: Gluten Free

Tasty leftovers!
When my honey cooks he cooks for an army, even though it is just the two of us. Well, he made dinner the other night which included mashed potatoes. He makes them with a little milk, butter, salt, pepper and a few cloves of garlic. Needless to say we had leftovers. I hate wasteing food, so I set out to make something from them. Potato pancake is what I came up with.

Ingredients:
1 cup Mashed Potatoes
1 Egg
1 t Onion Powder
1 T GF Flour (I used Bob's Red Mill, but plan rice flour or corn starch could be used)
Olive Oil
Method: Mix together the egg, potatoes and onion powder. Add the flour a little at a time until the batter is a little thicker than regular pancake batter. Heat a small saute pan on medium to high heat, add enough oil to slick the pan, then add a scoop of batter. Cover the pan for 3 minutes or until the bottom is golden. Flip the cake and cover for 3 more minutes. If you spray the spatula with a little spray oil it will get under the cake easier. Serve with sour cream and chive, but I like them plan.
This is a pretty plan recipe, perfect to personalize. You could add chopped bell pepper, cubed ham, cheese, etc.


Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Gluten Free Butternut Squash Bread

Tasty goodness. Our CSA delivery brought us a medium size butternut squash and some walnuts, what better to make than spice bread!
Before you start the bread you are going to want to prepare the squash.

Take your medium size squash, cut it in half and clean out the seeds. I cut off the neck first and then cut the pieces in half. Place the pieces in a 9"x13" Pyrex cut side down and fill with 1/4" water. Place in a 450 degree Fahrenheit oven for 20 minutes or until the squash is just a little tender. Then peel and shred the squash. I used a veggie peeler and then I used the vegetable shredder attachment on my Kitchenaid Stand Mixer. You will have extra squash, my plan is to make 2 batches of bread to use it all.

Ingredients
1 cup Flour Blend*
1/2 cup and 1 Tablespoon Tapioca Starch
1 1/2 teaspoon Xanthan Gum
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Baking Powder
2 teaspoons Pie Spice (or 1 tsp cinnamon, 1/2 tsp nutmeg 1/4 tsp ginger and 1/4 tsp clove)
1 Egg
1/2 cup Sugar
1/3 cup Vegetable Oil
1 teaspoon Vanilla
1 1/2 cup Butternut Squash, shredded
1 cup Walnuts, chopped (optional)
Method: Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Use either one standard loaf pan on 6 mini loaf pans and spray with cooking spray. Mix together the squash, egg, oil, sugar and vanilla, I used a stand mixer with the paddle attachment.

In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, 1/2 cup starch, xanthan gum, salt, baking soda, baking powder and spices.
Slowly add the flour mix to the squash mix and blend well.
If you are using walnuts mix them with the 1 tablespoon of tapioca starch, this keeps the nuts from sinking to the bottom of the bread while cooking. Add the nuts to the batter mix.

Now pour the batter into the prepared pans and with a wet finger or spatula smooth the tops of the loafs. Bake in preheated oven for 50-70 minutes, until a toothpick comes out clean.

*Flour Blend- 1 1/2 cup Sorghum Flour, 1 1/2 Potato Starch, 1 cup Tapioca Starch mixed together

Monday, October 25, 2010

Gluten Free Biscuits

Gluten Free Buttermilk Biscuits

Great for mini sandwiches, breakfast, with chili and so much more. These turned out fluffy and not crumbly. Perfect!!

Ingreadents:
3/4 cup Flour Blend*
3/4 cup Potato Starch
4 teaspoons Sugar
1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
2 teaspoons Xanthan Gum
1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
1/2 teaspoon Salt
1/3 cup Butter (shortening, Crisco or real butter)
2/3 cup Buttermilk (quick buttermilk**)
Rice flour for dusting
Milk for brushing
Method: Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Blend together the flour, potato starch, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt. I used a stand mixer with the paddle attachment but you can use a food processor or by hand. Blend in the butter until it resembles course cornmeal. Slowly add the buttermilk until the mix is just moist. The mix will be sticky. Dust your surface with rice flour. Drop the dough onto the surface and with a floured hand pat the dough into a 1 inch thick round. Line a cookie sheet with foil. Spray the foil with cooking spray and dust with rice flour. With circle cutter, cut out your biscuits and place on the prepared cookie sheet. Brush the tops of the biscuits with a little milk. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until light golden crust, turn the pan halfway through baking. Makes 12.

*Flour Blend- 1 1/2 cup Sorhgum Flour, 1 1/2 Potato Starch, 1 cup Tapioca Starch mixed together.
**Quick Buttermilk- 1 Tablespoon Apple Cider Vinegar and enough milk to equal 2/3 cup of liquid, set aside for 10 minutes so it will thicken a little.

About

Soledad, Ca, United States
I love to smile! I rarely do anything that won't make me, or someone else, smile.

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