Gluten-Free Blondies
Serves: 20 at 200 calories each
Preheat oven to 350 F
2/3 cup rice flour
2/3 cup tapioca flour
2/3 cup almond flour or almond meal
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon zantham gum
2 cups brown sugar
2 eggs
2/3 cup soft butter (room temperature)
2 teaspoons vanilla
Directions:
1
Grease a 13”x9″ pan with vegetable-oil spray.
2
Mix together all dry ingredients except sugar.
3
Beat eggs until foamy.
4
Mix sugar and butter until blended, add eggs and vanilla and whip. Gradually add dry ingredients to wet.
5
Spread batter into pan, and bake for 25-30 minutes. The blondies will be done when they are lightly golden and only barely dry in center.
For slight variations you can add any of the following ingredients.
½ cup chocolate chips (add 20 calories per portion
½ cup pecans (add 17 calories per portion
½ cup coconut (add 9 calories per portion
Oh, God, do I miss the days of just grabbing a muffin and a cup of coffee for a quick breakfast on the go. Or just for an easy snack. Truth be told, I loved muffins so much that I could have been called the muffin lady. (NO, not because I have a muffin top.) 
So, you might be pleased to learn that I’ve just perfected a recipe for delicious lemon and poppy seed muffins. Yay!!!
Lemon and Poppy Seed Muffins
Makes 12 muffins,
Ingredients:
3 cups of my all-purpose gluten-free baking flour (see the substitutions page)
2 cups sugar
5 tsp. poppy seeds
1 ½ gluten-free baking powder
1 ½ tsp. salt
1 ½ tsp. zanthan gum
3 eggs
1 ½ cups milk
1 cup canola oil (Or any other good quality vegetable oil)
3 tsp. lemon juice
Directions:
In a bowl, mix dry ingredients and set aside. In a larger bowl, mix together all wet ingredients. Add dry ingredients to liquid and mix well. Unlike regular muffins, these, having no gluten, cannot be over-mixed.
Pour into oiled muffin tins (I like to use muffin liners) and bake for 50 minutes to an hour, or until a toothpick comes out clean. As with most gluten-free baking, these should be allowed to cool until cool, to avoid gumminess.
Gluten-free General Tao Chicken (and calorie reduced to boot)
Since going gluten free I’ve had to give up some of my favorite foods—general Tao chicken, tempura anything, for that matter, just about anything deep friend. And, just between you and me, I’m way too lazy a cook to ever deep-fry at home. Too much trouble.
So, imagine my delight when a friend of mine shared this wonderful, no-fry, General Tao Chicken. So easy to make, even I can make it.
General Tao Chicken
Serves 4, 375 calories per portion
Ingredients
1 lb. chicken breasts cut into 1 inch pieces
1 cup of my gluten-free all-purpose flour (see recipe on substitutions page)
1 tsp. zanthan gum
1 tsp. paprika
1 tsp. salt
½ tsp. pepper
1 large baggie
1 egg
Vegetable oil spray
For the sauce
1 cup chicken broth
2 tsp. corn starch
2 tbsp. honey
2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
1tbsp. tamari sauce
2 tbsp. duck sauce OR plum sauce if you prefer
1 tbsp. Asian hot sauce
Chopped fresh chili pepper to taste (This is very hot so start with a tiny amount and add gradually, tasting in between.)
1 tbsp. sesame seeds
For the second step of the recipe you will need:
3 or 4 scallions cut into 1 inch pieces, keeping a few of the stems to chop into smaller pieces for garnish
2 cloves of garlic
2 tbsp. grated fresh ginger
1 tsp peanut oil
Directions:
Mix all dry ingredients and stir well. Pour into a large baggie.
In a large bowl, stir the egg and then drop in the pieces of chicken and stir until all the chicken is well covered with egg.
Drop the pieces of chicken in the baggie with the mixed dry ingredients and shake. (Just like with shake and bake.) Once all the pieces are well coated, place them on an oiled cookie sheet and spray with vegetable oil. Bake in oven at 350 for 15 to 20 minutes.
While this is baking, start the sauce.
In a frying pan, add the oil, ginger, garlic and scallions (Except the chopped pieces you reserve for garnish, and cook at a medium heat for a minute or two and set aside.
In a sauce pan, bring chicken broth to a simmer, add cornstarch (I like to mix cornstarch with a bit of cold water in a jar and shake like mad before adding to a hot liquid. This prevents lumps.) Add remaining ingredients. (Except sesame seeds)
Pour the chicken-broth mixture into the frying pan with the oil, ginger and garlic and simmer. This sauce will quickly turn dark, and when it does, add baked chicken pieces to the pan and gently toss them until they are coated with sauce. Serve decorated with sesame seeds.
I like to serve this with plain white rice and with stir friend red bell peppers and broccoli.
Enjoy
Soft and Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies
Makes 2 dozen cookies 250 calories each
Ingredients
1 cup unsalted butter
2 1/3 cups of my special gluten-free baking flour mix (see ingredients substitutions page for recipe)
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon gluten-free baking soda
¼ cup white sugar
1 1/4 cups brown sugar
1 large egg
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons whole milk
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 ½ cups semisweet chocolate chips
Directions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.
Melt the butter in your microwave at lowest temperature for one minute. When you take it out, just stir whatever is not yet melted, and it will dissolve. Pour into the bowl of a stand mixer.
In a separate bowl, sift together all the dry ingredients except for the sugars, and 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 until combined.
Chill the dough in the refrigerator for 1 hour. Shape the dough
into 2-ounce balls and place on parchment-lined baking sheets, 6 cookies per sheet. (They will spread out as they bake) Bake for 14 minutes, rotating the pans after 7 minutes for even baking. Check at the twelve minute mark because some ovens will bake faster. They should barely start turning golden around the edges. Barely! Remove from the oven and let cool for a few minutes before moving onto a wire rack to continue cooling. Store cooked cookies in an airtight container—that’s if you have any left over to store.
I feel so guilty for neglecting you all for the last few weeks, that now I’m trying to make up for it by baking up a storm. My poor husband. He’s trying to lose weight and I am not helping.
A chocolate cake fit for the Queen of Sheba
Don’t be overwhelmed by the instructions, the recipe is simple enough and so, so worth it. This cake is divine. It will take an hour and half from start to finish. About 1 hour of preparation and almost half an hour of baking. Much as I’d love to, I can’t take credit for it. All I did was adapt this classic Julia Child recipe to a gluten-free diet.
Serves 8 at 330 calories each (Maybe you can jog off those calories later)
- 3 ounces semisweet chocolate, plus
1 ounce unsweetened chocolate
2 tablespoons dark rum or 2 tablespoons strong coffee
1/2 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup granulated sugar
3 egg yolks
3 egg whites
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
1 pinch salt
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/3 cup almond flour or almond meal
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 cup of my all-purpose flour mix
1 teaspoon zanthan gum
Directions:
1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Set the oven rack in lower middle level.
2
In a saucepan over low heat, melt the chocolate in the rum or coffee. Set aside. In a mixing bowl, cut butter into.
3
pieces and cream it. When soft and fluffy, add sugar and beat 1 minute. Beat in egg yolks until well blended.
4
In another bowl, beat egg whites until foamy. Beat in cream of tartar and salt and continue beating until soft peaks are formed. Gradually beat in 2 tablespoons sugar and continue beating until stiff, shiny peaks are formed. Blend melted chocolate and coffee or rum into yolk mixture, then add almonds and almond extract.
5
Stir a quarter of the egg whites into the chocolate using a rubber spatula. Scoop the rest of the whites over chocolate and, alternating with sprinkles of flour with the zanthan gum already mixed in, rapidly and delicately fold in the egg whites. Turn batter into buttered and floured 8-by-1 1/2-inch round cake pan, tilting it in all directions up to the rim all around. Set in preheated oven. Bake 25 minutes.
6
Cake is done when puffed to the top and a toothpick inserted 2 to 3 inches from edge comes out clean. The center should move slightly when the pan is gently shaken. Remove pan to a rack and let cool 15 minutes. Unmold onto rack. Let cool 2 hours before storing or icing.
Good Old Fashioned Scottish Shortbread Cookies
MAKES 48 COOKIES 145 calories each
This post is for the fan whose note I accidentally deleted. I hope you write again. I promise not to delete you this time. All I saw before it disappeared, was a request for cookie recipes for her grandmother. What better than one that reminds me of my own beloved grandmother.
One of my all-time favorite cookies is shortbread. It is simple yet delicious. It is versatile and easy to make. It can be dressed up with chocolate chips, a dash of cinnamon and raisins, or for the holidays with colored sugars. One of my favorite versions is with almonds and the tiniest dash of almond flavoring. And the best news is that t
here is no need to chill the dough before rolling out. And they freeze very well.
Ingredients:
1 pound unsalted butter or vegetable shortening or margarine (Butter does taste better)
1½ cups granulated sugar
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
3¼ cups white rice flour + ½ cup for dusting counter
1½ cups cornstarch
1¼ cups potato starch
2 tsp. salt
1 teaspoon xanthan gum
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Using a mixer with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on medium speed until light and fluffy. Scrape the bowl with a spatula.
3. Add the eggs one at a time. Mix for 1 minute. Add the vanilla. Mix for another minute.
4. In a separate bowl, combine 3¼ cups flour, cornstarch, potato starch, salt and xanthan gum. Add ½ butter and sugar mixture and mix for 1 minute. Add the second half and mix until ingredients are combined.
5. Form the dough into 3 balls. Set two aside.
6. Dust your counter with flour. Press the ball flat with your hands first. Then roll dough out to just over ¼-inch thick. Using your favorite cookie cutter, cut out cookies and place them on prepared cookie sheets about 1 inch apart.
7. Bake in preheated oven about 15 minutes, checking frequently because some ovens will bake faster. Cookies are done when the edges just start to get golden. Remove from oven and let cool completely.
Hello everyone,
sorry I’ve been away for so long, but I have very good reasons.
1) My husband and I are preparing the house for sale. That means every little item we don’t absolutely need must be chucked out. OH MY GOD!!! What a job. It will take months.
2) My camera download cable is in hiding. I just hope it isn’t in one of the boxes of stuff I’m donating. So, until I find it, I will have to post recipes without the pics. I promise to add them as soon as I find the cable.
Almond Flour Bread (Gluten-Free)
One of the problems with many gluten-free breads is their dry-crumbly texture. The following recipe is the closest to wheat bread that I’ve ever tasted. It is moist, without being gluey, and has a chewy texture much like regular wheat breads.
Dry Ingredients:
1 cup of brown rice flour
1 cup almond flour
¾ cup white rice flour
¼ cup tapioca flour
2 ½ teaspoons guar gum or xanthan gum
1 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons instant yeast
Wet Ingredients:
2 eggs
2 tablespoons honey
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 teaspoon vinegar or lemon juice
1 ¾ to 2 cups warm water
Before mixing your dry ingredients, stir yeast in 1 ¼ cups warm water along with honey. Set aside until the mixture foams.
Mix dry ingredients in bowl and stir at low speed until well mixed. Add the wet ingredients and when the yeast mixture is foamy, add that too. Stir at medium speed for about five minutes. Mixture should have the consistency of soft cookie dough or of slightly firm cake mix. You may have to add more water little by little.
Pour into greased pan and set aside in warm spot until it rises to almost double. Do not preheat the oven. Place in oven, turn heat on to 350F and bake until a toothpick inserted in center comes out clean—approximately 30 minutes.
Variations:
If you like raisin bread, add ½ cup of soaked raisins – (5 min in hot water) and 2 teaspoons of cinnamon. Delicious
For walnut bread, add ½ cup of chopped walnuts.
For pizza, spread the dough onto a cookie sheet using lots of olive oil to press it down. Bake at 400F for 10 minutes. Add toppings and cook another 10 minutes.
If you have Celiac Disease, as I do, you are probably eating considerably more rice than the average person. This could potentially be dangerous. We already know that rice contains high levels of arsenic and that we should wash it thoroughly before cooking. Even better, we should cook rice in double the amount of water suggested and then drain out the extra water. This helps remove some of the arsenic from the grain. Now, there is even more reason to be wary of eating rice. Researchers have discovered dangerous levels of lead in white rice, 30 to 60 times higher than the FDA’s provisional total tolerable intake (PTTI) levels. For us Celiacs, who eat three times more than the average person, this can be disastrous to our health.
Of all tested, the rice from Taiwan and China had the highest levels of lead. However that is not to say that rice from anywhere is safe. It therefore becomes extremely important to find other sources of cereal to replace rice in our diet. Just when we thought we’d found something safe to eat. 
Old Fashioned Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
Serves:
1 pie/ 8 servings
For crust, see my recipe in gluten-free baking which makes two crusts, one top and one bottom
Pie Filling:
2 1/2 cups chopped red rhubarb, fresh
2 1/2 cups de-stemmed, washed and cut strawberries (in larger pieces)
1 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons tapioca flour
1 tablespoon almond flour or almond meal
1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.
Filling Preparation:
Mix all ingredients in a large bowl until the fruit is well coated, and pour out into chilled crust. Roll out the other piece of dough and place over filling. Crimp to seal edges. Bake at 425 degrees F for 15 minutes. Decrease temperature to 375 degrees F and bake for an additional 45 to 50 minutes, or until the filling starts bubbling. Higher altitude will take 450 degrees F and 400 degrees F respectively. Also, you can use a pie bird for extra decor. Let cool before serving.
I DID IT!!! I finally created a gluten-free pie crust that rivals any regular pie crust. Last night we had our kids over for dinner and, since I am gluten free and my step-daughter is vegan, coming up with a meal that will satisfy everyone is always a bit of a challenge. In the past, I’ve made graham-cracker style crusts, but had never come up with a delicious pastry-type pie crust. Well, behold the perfect crust. It is so good, you may want to use it even if you’re not gluten sensitive.
Gluten-free pie crust
this will make enough dough for two large pies or one pie with bottom and top crusts
3 cups of my regular flour mix (See substitutions tab)
2 tsp. sugar
pinch of salt
1 cup cold all vegetable shortening
2 eggs (Or for vegan version, use 2 tbsp. flax meal and three tbsp cold water
1 tbsp cold water
1 tsp guar gum
Combine all ingredients into mixing bowl and mix at low to regular speed until mixture is crumbly. (2 to 3 minutes)
Divide into two balls and put in freezer for one hour. Tear off two pieces of parchment paper and dust lightly with all purpose flour. Take out one ball at a time and place between the sheets of parchment paper for rolling. Then gently take off the top layer of parchment paper. Lift crust, still attached to bottom layer of parchment paper and turn over into pie plate, releasing from parchment paper carefully. If you are making a one crust pie, bake the crust at 425 degrees for about 15 minutes (until lightly golden) before filling. For a two-crust pie, follow baking your recipe instructions. Mine was a strawberry-rhubarb pie and I baked it at 425 for twenty minutes and then lowered the temperature to 350 and baked it for an additional forty minutes.
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