fruit tart!

tis' the season for fresh berries, and to enjoy them on top of a flaky crust and custard is a real treat!

fruit tart

for the crust i used my tart crust recipe, and baked at 375 F for 20-25 minutes, until lightly golden

then i set aside to cool

      custard

• 2 tablespoons brown rice flour
• 4 tablespoons cornstarch
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1 2/3 cup milk of choice (i used sweetened vanilla almond)
• 1/2 of a lemon's juice

in a medium sized bowl, whisk together flour, cornstarch, sugar, and 1/3 cup of the milk

in a medium sized saucepan, bring the rest of the milk to a simmer

pour 1/3 cup of the warmed milk into the other mixture and stir to thoroughly combine

  pour the other mixture back into the saucepan with the rest of the milk

return to the stove and heat over medium-low heat, whisking constantly(important!!)

this only takes about two minutes to thicken, stop whisking when thick as pudding.

take off heat and whisk in lemon juice

(if it seems too thick to you, you can add a little milk and mix for a minute with a hand mixer)

if your crust is ready and cooled, add to crust. if not refrigerate until use

for the fruit topping, i chose strawberries, blueberries and kiwi

you can use so many different creative combination's though!!

for the glaze, i took about 3 tablespoons apricot preserves and heated in a small saucepan

i whisked constantly, until it turned to a liquid

i took it off the heat and sifted out the apricot chunks

i used the sifted liquid and brushed it on the top of the fruit

you can enjoy immediately, or let set and chill for a few hours.

yum!

mmmm pie!!

just because i haven't been posting a lot lately, doesn't mean i haven't been cooking everyday and constantly making treats. it's just that some days are better documented than others.

i did have a camera around when making pie the other day.

can i just say this pie was SO GOOD! like perfect even. wonderful flaky crust, it didn't even have the slightest "gluten free" consistency. can't wait to have a reason to make another one..... then again whoever needed a reason?

pear ginger pie

      
      pie filling

• 2-3 large ripe but firm pears
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 2-3 tablespoons ginger, chopped
• 2 tablespoons cornstarch 

toss all pie filling ingredients gently in medium mixing bowl, set aside

     pie crust

• 2 cups brown rice flour
• 3/4 cup potato starch (not potato flour!)
• 1/4 cup tapioca starch (also known as tapioca flour)
• 6 tablespoons corn starch (to make corn-free, use sweet rice flour)
• 3 tablespoons confectioner's sugar
• 1 1/2 teaspoons xanthan gum
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups margarine of choice ( i use soy-free earth balance)
• 4 1/2 teaspoons egg replacer mixed with 6 tablespoons milk of choice (i used almond milk)
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 tablespoon milk of choice (almond) to brush the top of the crust
• 1 tablespoon sugar (optional) for top of crust

PREHEAT the oven to 425

slightly grease a 9 inch pie dish 

in a large mixing bowl, whisk the flours, starches, sugar, xanthan gum, and salt

add the margarine in tablespoon-size pieces, and mix on medium speed about 1 minute

add the egg replacer, lemon juice, and mix until combined, about 1 minute

divide the dough in half and mold into two balls

place one on a sheet of parchment paper, flatten to a disc with your palm

place another sheet of parchment paper over the dough, and roll out about 2 inches wider than your pie dish

remove the top sheet of parchment paper, and flip the crust into the pie dish, pressing down with your palm

remove other sheet of paper and patch any cracks with your fingers (the dough is very forgiving)

prick the bottom 8 times with a fork and refrigerate while rolling second dough

roll the second crust the same as the first.

take the filling, add it to the pie, and then top with second crust

crimp and pinch edges to make sure the pie is sealed all the way around

cut slits in your top crust

brush crust, including outer edge, with the milk

sprinkle evenly with sugar

bake for 25 minutes, or until crust is golden (reduce to 400 if crust is browning too quickly)

decrease temperature to 375, and bake for about 45 minutes longer

remove from oven and let cool before cutting (about two hours)

want a tart instead?

    for this pear blackberry tart, i simply halved the crust recipe, and changed the baking temperature to 375,

prebaked the crust for 15 minutes, and let cool to room temperature

for the filling i removed the ginger, and added 1/2 a pint blackberries right before baking

i sprinkled the top with some sugar

then baked for about an hour

BOTH WERE AMAZING!! yum yum yum.

muffins!

these came out great, and tasted like a dessert muffin that i could snack on anytime.

chocolate chip oatmeal muffins

• 1 cup milk of choice, mixed with 1/2 of a lemons juice
• 1 cup brown rice flour
• 1/2 potato starch (not potato flour!)
• 1/4 tapioca starch (also known as tapioca flour)
• 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1 cup gluten free oats
• 1/4 cup ground flax seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 cup agave
• 1/3 cup oil
• 1/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1 heaped teaspoon egg replacer mixed with 2 tablespoons milk of choice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips 

PREHEAT the oven to 350 degrees

lightly grease a muffin tray

in a small bowl, first combine the milk and the lemon juice. set aside for at least 5 minutes.

in a large mixing bowl, whisk in the flour, starches, xanthan gum, oats, flax seeds, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon, mix well

in small mixing bowl combine agave, oil, applesauce, egg replacer, vanilla, and finally the milk you set aside.

add the wet ingredients to the dry, mix well with wooden spoon

fold in the chocolate chips, making sure they are spread evenly throughout the batter
fill muffin cups 3/4 full

bake for 12-15 minutes, until tops look cooked and are stiff enough to resist your fingerprint, and edges aren't sticking to muffin tray

biscuits!!

the day i made this simple biscuit recipe, my roommates had just bought brand new cookie cutters that i could use before they glutified them. yay! not only were they tasty, but they were also cute!

these make a great quick snack with preserves, margarine, or with dinner

biscuits

• 1 1/4 cup brown rice flour
• 1/2 cup potato starch (NOT potato flour)
• 1/4 cup tapioca starch (also known as tapioca flour)
• 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 4 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• pinch of nutmeg
• 3/4 plus 2 tablespoon milk of choice
• 1/2 cup soy-free margarine

PREHEAT oven to 425 degrees

line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper

in medium mixing bowl, whisk together flour, starch, xanthan gum, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg

add the 3/4 cup milk, and mix well with wooden spoon

mix in the margarine with your hands, until fully combined

add remaining milk, mix with spoon

roll the dough on a clean floured surface, and cut out any shape you like, until all the dough is used.

bake for 12-15 minutes, until slightly golden

let cool on baking sheets 5 minutes before removing to cool or eat

banana bread loaf!!

mmm as i type this the smell of the bread is filling my room.....
this bread came out awesome. soft, moist, fluffy, not too sweet, filling, and refined sugar-free even!

banana bread loaf

• 1 1/2 cup brown rice flour
• 1/4 cup potato starch (not potato flour!)
• 1/4 cup tapioca starch (also known as tapioca flour)
• 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4cup canola oil
• 1/3 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
• 1/3 cup agave nectar
• 2/3 cup milk of choice
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 ripe bananas, mashed

PREHEAT oven to 350 F
in medium mixing bowl, add dry ingredients, whisk well
in smaller bowl, combine oil, applesauce, agave, milk, and vanilla
add wet to the dry ingredients, mix well
fold in mashed bananas until mixed with batter
put in a greased loaf pan
bake 35-45 minutes (when a toothpick comes out of the center clean, it's done)
let cool in the loaf tin 20 minutes
remove from tin and serve warm, or finish cooling
(i think it tastes the best the day after)

try not to eat it all at once!

new cookbook!

i have been baking up a storm with my newest cookbook, the allergen-free baker's handbook!

every recipe i have tried so far has come out absolutely amazing. i wish i could share the recipes with you, but you're going to have to get the book if you wanna cook!

plus it has all these amazing and helpful facts, substitution ideas, and even a list of the supplies and tools you might need along the way.

perfect addition to any allergy friendly kitchen.

can't wait to try the breads, but for now, look at these sweets!!

 

 chocolate cupcakes with chocolate butter cream frosting

 

strawberry shortcake with vegan whipped topping

golden agave cupcakes with personal chocolate cashew frosting

strawberries were on sale this week :)

lemon-lime loaf!

light, zesty, sweet, sour, and with a slight crunch, this is sure to please anyone who enjoys a citrus snack!

gluten free lemon-lime loaf

• 3/4 cup milk of choice
• 2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
• 2 tablespoon lime zest
• 3/4 cup brown rice flour
• 1/2 cup potato starch (not potato flour)
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour (also known as tapioca flour)
• 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 cup sugar of choice
• 5 tablespoon canola oil (perhaps some could be replaced with applesauce)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 1 large lemon, juiced
• about 1 cup confectioner's sugar

PREHEAT oven to 350 F

in a small bowl, mix milk, lemon juice, and lime zest. set aside

in a medium bowl, mix flour, potato starch, tapioca, xanthan gum, baking soda, and sugar. whisk and mix well

add the oil and the vanilla to the milk mix

slowly whisk wet mix into dry mix

the baking soda should react with the lemon juice, so don't freak if it gets foamy when mixing.

i added the batter to a loaf pan, and it honestly took longer than i expected to cook all the way through. i would say about 40 minutes. it was done when the entire cake turned a brighter shade of yellow.

check with a toothpick in the center if you aren't sure.

 once the loaf has completely cooled, whisk together the lemon juice and confectioner's sugar in a small bowl, slowly adding the sugar (it's a good flavor when it starts to look more white than clear),

and add to top of loaf.

 it takes about an hour for the icing to set, but by all means you don't have to wait that long to enjoy it!

(these also make excellent cupcakes!)

french toast!

ever bought a loaf of gluten free bread that just wasn't very good?

too dry?

too dense?

or just didn't taste good?

if that's the case for you, or you simply want to make your day-old bread better, turn that bread into french toast!!

simple recipe, and with this one batch of batter i made a whole loaf of french toast

vegan gluten free french toast

• 1 cup milk of choice (i used regular so delicious coconut milk)
• 2 tablespoons brown rice flour 
• 1 tablespoon nutritional yeast
• 1 tablespoon agave nectar
• 1 teaspoon ground flax seed
• 1 teaspoon vanilla (don't need this if you use vanilla flavored milk)
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon 
• 1 loaf bread of choice (i used a brown rice loaf)

combine all ingredients besides bread in a medium mixing bowl, whisk

allow to settle for a few minutes

heat a non stick pan, and once warm, lightly grease (i used soy free earth balance)

whisk mix again before dunking the bread in

dip the bread in the mix for 3-5 seconds and place in pan

cook each side, until brown and crispy

serve with whatever makes you happy!

(maple syrup, fruit, powdered sugar, cinnamon sugar, preserves, sunflower butter.......)

pizza!!

  i was craving pizza at 3am, so i didn't really want to mess around with a dough for too long.

whipped this whole pizza up in around 30 minutes (majorly multitasking though!)

no worries of yeast for this crust recipe, just simple and fast.

for the toppings i used what i had in the veggie drawer, plus some daiya cheese (what a treat!)

next one i'll prepare ahead and have some pinapple.... mmmmm...

vegan gluten free no yeast pizza dough

• 1 cup flour (i used 1/2 brown rice, 1/2 white rice)
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour (also known as tapioca starch)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1 tablespoon ground flax seed, mixed with 3 tablespoons water
• 1 tablespoon agave nectar
• 1/2 cup milk of choice (unsweetened)
• 1/8 cup oil

PREHEAT oven to 325 F

in small cup, combine flax seed and water. set aside.

in large mixing bowl, combine flour, tapioca, baking powder, salt, and xanthan gum (whisk well)

in medium mixing bowl, combine agave, milk, oil, and flax mix (after allowing to sit at least 5 minutes)

add the wet to the dry ingredients, mixing well with a spoon

put dough ball onto greased pizza pan (or baking sheet)

roll or press to desired shape/size

set aside until toppings are ready

for the toppings of this pizza, i used garlic, onion, orange pepper, zucchini, kale, and portobello mushrooms.

i started by heating some oil, garlic, and onion in a medium frying pan

i added the pepper, and zucchini, bout three minutes in between the two, also adding some italian seasoning (pinch or two of rosemary, oregano, sage, basil, thyme, salt)

i cooked that until zucchini tender.

in a separate pan, i sauteed the kale with some garlic and lemon juice until soft

 i sauteed the mushroom with chili powder, garlic powder, oregano

for the tomato sauce, i cut 3 tomatoes, cooked in olive oil, added italian spices, then put in food processor until creamy.

 

i put the crust in the oven alone, for about 5 minutes.

i then added the sauce, and all the vegetables, and then added some daiya mozzarella cheese

baked at 325 F for around ten minutes, then at 450 F until edges browned (around 10 minutes)

i let cool at least 10 minutes, then ate the crap out of it! 

you really can come up with anything you like for the toppings, the important part is the crust!!

coffee cake!

i couldn't find a single gluten free vegan recipe for old fashioned coffee cake anywhere online, so i concocted one of my own, and it came out great!

holy moly is this delicious!

for some reason the first few pictures i took of this cake got deleted while sending them, but these "after" photos just prove how good the cake really is, because we ate it!!

vegan gluten free soy free coffee cake

       topping

• 1/3 cup melted margarine (i use soy-free earth balance)
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup flour (white or brown rice)
• 1 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

      

     cake

• 1 flax "egg" (1 tablespoon ground flax seed, mixed with 3 tablespoons warm water)
• 1/2 cup milk of choice
• 1/8 cup applesauce (unsweetened)
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1 cup brown rice flour
• 1/4 cup potato starch (not potato flour)
• 1/4 cup tapioca flour (also known as tapioca starch)
• 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 3/4 cup brown sugar
• 2 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt

PREHEAT oven to 325 F

  first thing to do is make your flax "egg", combining flax and water in small dish and let sit.

next step is to make the topping.

melt margarine over low heat, then allow to cool

combine brown sugar, flour, cinnamon in a medium bowl, mixing well

set aside

to make the cake, in a medium mixing bowl, whisk together dry ingredients.
 in a large mixing bowl combine your flax "egg" (after letting sit at least 5 minutes), milk, applesauce, and vanilla, mixing well

then add the dry ingredients, until evenly combined

pour batter into slightly greased round spring form pan

evenly add crumble topping to the top of the batter

bake 40 minutes, checking with a toothpick in the center of the cake, if it comes out clean, it' done
top with powdered sugar for some extra contrast (optional)

enjoy it, shouldn't last too long!

cinnamon bun semi-fail

i don't seem to see a lot of cooking failures on people's food blogs.

for me, a cooking failure is just as much a part of the learning experience as the getting it right part.

last night i attempted to make cinnamon buns.

although they tasted great, the texture of the dough wasn't what i really wanted it to be.

i think it had to do with a few things: 

1.  it's really really cold here right now, which i believe hindered the yeast from doing it's job all the way.   
2. i don't think i was patient enough in waiting for the dough to fully rise (after waiting almost three hours, i gave in and stuck them in the oven)
3. maybe i shouldn't expect the perfect gluten free equivalent of a wheat filled cinnamon bun, because they will never be one in the same.

that being said, i'm posting the recipe here, i really think they can turn out the best they can be with those circumstances above changed. i will be trying this again once it gets a little warmer.

if you beat me to it, please let me know the results!! they really do taste awesome.

cinnamon buns

      dough 

• 1 yeast packet
• 1/4 cup warm water
• 4 cups flour (i used white rice, but i think a combo of white and brown would work well also)
• 1 1/2 cup almond or coconut milk
• 1/4 cup margarine (i use soy free earth balance)
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/4 teaspoon ginger 
• 1/4 teaspoon all spice

mix the yeast packet and the warm water in a small bowl, set aside for at least 5 minutes (the yeast is ready when it starts to create bubbles)

combine milk and margarine in small pan over the stove, warm enough to melt the margarine, set aside until tepid 

combine the rest of the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl, mix well

add milk and margarine mix when cooled

add yeast mix when ready

mix dough well, then knead it out on a floured surface.

the dough should have a smooth and elastic consistency.

put the dough ball in a slightly oiled bowl, flipping it once to coat the entire ball

cover with a towel for at least one hour (dough should almost double in size)

    filling

• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 2/3 cup brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon all spice
• 1/8 teaspoon clove
• 1/8 teaspoon cardamom 
• 1 1/4 cup chopped pecans 
• 2 tablespoons melted margarine

   combine everything but the margarine in a mixing bowl (melt only when ready to apply to the dough) 

once the dough has sat long enough, take the ball and roll it out on a slightly oiled surface

roll the dough out to an even rectangle, about 1/2" thick

pour the melted margarine over the dough, then coat evenly with the dry filling mix

roll up the dough into a log, correcting any cracks you may make each time you roll it.

cut the log into about 1" thick sections, using a very sharp knife, dipping it in warm water each time you make another cut

place the cinnamon rolls into any deep dish pan they'll fit in (round, square, casserole)

if it isn't a non-stick pan, be sure to oil the bottom before baking

cover with towel and let rise another 45 minutes (again should almost double in size)

PREHEAT oven to 375 F 

bake 20-30 minutes (until top and edges are golden brown)

   icing

• 1 cup confectioners' sugar
• 2 tablespoons margarine
• 1-2 tablespoons almond or coconut milk
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon

combine ingredients in a small pan over low heat, turn off and let cool when mixed well

once the buns are out of the oven, cover with 1/2 the icing while warm, the rest once cooled