We love pancakes in our house. This is something I did not want to give up with our new lifestyle. I also did not want to be stuck using GF Pancake mixes. They are expensive and just don't have the flavor I was looking for. By making them myself, I could adapt the flours to create the flavor I desired. It took only a couple tries and I found a recipe that we love. My 4 1/2 yr old sits quietly and eats slowly, not dropping a single crumb. Those of you who know him know that this is a rare occurrence for him during meal time.
I adapted my recipe from Gluten Free Girls GF Pancakes for the Ratio Rally.
The original recipe calls for 7 oz (or roughly 200 g) of Whole-Grain Flour mix. A good whole-grain flour mix is 70% whole grains and 30 % starch. The recipe listed below is exactly how I make them for my family.
40 g Tapioca Flour
20 g White Rice Flour
70 g Sorghum Flour
35 g Brown Rice Flour
35 g Almond Flour
2 Tbs Milled Chia Seeds (or ground flaxseed if you don't have Chia on hand)
1 1/2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Sea Salt
1/2 tsp Cardamom
1/2 tsp Cinnamon
1 Tbs Agave Nectar
8 oz Buttermilk (*see note)
1/4 tsp Almond Extract
2 large Eggs
4 Tbs Melted Butter
Whisk together the flours and chia seeds to combine them. Add baking powder, salt, Cardamom, and Cinnamon. Whisk all together. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.
Whisk together agave nectar, buttermilk, almond extract, and eggs. Pour into the dry ingredients. Stir with a rubber spatula until batter is combined. Add the melted butter and stir until it is well incorporated.
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Grease it liberally with butter (I add a small pat of butter everytime I add new batter). Pour the pancake batter into the buttered skillet, about 1/4 cup at a time. When bubbles have started to form and pop on the top of pancake, flip it. Cook for about 1 minute more. Serve with your favorite toppings.
If you plan to serve them all at once, put the pancakes on an oven-safe plate in a 250 degree oven to keep them warm. If you are like me, the kids will gobble them up as soon as they are off the skillet so I omit this step.
*Note about buttermilk*
I never have buttermilk on hand. So I take out my liquid measuring cup, add a squirt of lemon juice, then fill to the 8 oz line with regular milk. I let it set for a few minutes while I prepare the rest of the ingredients so it can 'sour up' a little and become buttermilk substitute.
Tuesday, February 5, 2013
Sunday, January 13, 2013
Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffin Tops
Our family recently decided to start following a gluten-free lifestyle. Since I do so much baking and cooking, it has been rather easy to convert. However, recreating our favorite recipes is a bit of a challenge at times. We LOVE Blueberry (or Blackberry) muffin tops. So naturally it was on the top of my list of recipes to convert. My first attempt was a success in texture and decent in taste (well, I wasn't a fan but Hubby and Son ate them). I knew I could come up with a better version. Attempt #2 was a great texture, although a little more spongy than typical muffins, and yielded an amazing flavor! So, I thought I would share.
One thing I have found from several blogs, is that when working with GF flours, it is much more accurate to measure by weight. You can pick up a food scale pretty cheap and it will make your GF recipes much more successful. To begin, you need to make a GF flour mixture. There are several ways to do this since there are so many GF flours available. You will get different flavor and texture results from all of them. The key is to have 60% Starch and 40% Whole Grain. So here is the specific mixture I used for my muffin tops:
Flour mixture (this will make just slightly more than you need for this recipe)
180 g Tapioca Flour (starch)
45 g Brown Rice Flour (whole grain)
45 g Sorghum Flour (whole grain)
Mix all 3 together well. (After my second attempt turned out so great, I also made a batch of Blackberry ones. However, I didn't have quite enough Tapioca Flour so I added the weight I was short by in White Rice Flour - another starch. The flavor was still what I was looking for)
Batter
* 3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter
* 1/3 cup whole milk
* 1 whole large egg
* 1 large yolk
* 3/4 teaspoon Almond Extract
* 210 g Flour mixture
* 1 1/4 tsp. Xanthan Gum
* 3/4 cup sugar
* 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 9 oz fresh blueberries (can use 12 oz of Frozen Blueberries - thawed and drained)
Topping
* 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
* 35 g flour mixture
* 1/4 cup brown sugar
Preheat oven to 375 (350 for dark or non-stick pans). Grease Muffin Top pans (or regular muffin tins) Melt butter over low heat. Meanwhile, mix together dry ingredients and set aside. Once butter is melted, remove from heat and whisk in Milk. Next, add whole egg, egg yolk, and almond extract. Whisk together well. Add to dry ingredients and mix just until blended. Carefully fold in blueberries. Pour into prepared muffin tins. Bake for 18-20 mins (May need to bake longer for regular muffins). Cool on baking racks for 10 mins. Remove from pans to cooling racks to finish cooling off. Enjoy warm or room temperature.
One thing I have found from several blogs, is that when working with GF flours, it is much more accurate to measure by weight. You can pick up a food scale pretty cheap and it will make your GF recipes much more successful. To begin, you need to make a GF flour mixture. There are several ways to do this since there are so many GF flours available. You will get different flavor and texture results from all of them. The key is to have 60% Starch and 40% Whole Grain. So here is the specific mixture I used for my muffin tops:
Flour mixture (this will make just slightly more than you need for this recipe)
180 g Tapioca Flour (starch)
45 g Brown Rice Flour (whole grain)
45 g Sorghum Flour (whole grain)
Mix all 3 together well. (After my second attempt turned out so great, I also made a batch of Blackberry ones. However, I didn't have quite enough Tapioca Flour so I added the weight I was short by in White Rice Flour - another starch. The flavor was still what I was looking for)
Batter
* 3/4 stick (6 tablespoons) unsalted butter
* 1/3 cup whole milk
* 1 whole large egg
* 1 large yolk
* 3/4 teaspoon Almond Extract
* 210 g Flour mixture
* 1 1/4 tsp. Xanthan Gum
* 3/4 cup sugar
* 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
* 3/4 teaspoon salt
* 9 oz fresh blueberries (can use 12 oz of Frozen Blueberries - thawed and drained)
Topping
* 2 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into bits
* 35 g flour mixture
* 1/4 cup brown sugar
Preheat oven to 375 (350 for dark or non-stick pans). Grease Muffin Top pans (or regular muffin tins) Melt butter over low heat. Meanwhile, mix together dry ingredients and set aside. Once butter is melted, remove from heat and whisk in Milk. Next, add whole egg, egg yolk, and almond extract. Whisk together well. Add to dry ingredients and mix just until blended. Carefully fold in blueberries. Pour into prepared muffin tins. Bake for 18-20 mins (May need to bake longer for regular muffins). Cool on baking racks for 10 mins. Remove from pans to cooling racks to finish cooling off. Enjoy warm or room temperature.
Thursday, April 26, 2012
Hawaiian Heartthrob Smoothie
It is like Summer in a Glass. Or at least that is how I described it after trying this drink at Red Robin a few days ago. I just HAD to figure out how to make it. Thankfully, it is pretty easy! I wanted to share right away since it is so tasty. I hope you all enjoy! This recipe serves 1.
First, gather all your ingredients:
*1/2 c. Frozen Strawberries
*1/4 c. Pineapple chunks
*1/4 c. Banana slices
*2-3 Tbs. Cream of Coconut (depending on how much coconut flavor you like)
*1 Tbs. Grenadine
*1/2 c. Ice (not shown)
Pour all into a blender. I don't use my actual blender too often anymore. These days my Magic Bullet lives on my countertop and is so convenient...especially in drinks like this that make 1 serving.
Blend until smooth.
Pour into a cup and enjoy! You can also garnish with a fresh Strawberry or Pineapple wedge.
First, gather all your ingredients:
*1/4 c. Pineapple chunks
*1/4 c. Banana slices
*2-3 Tbs. Cream of Coconut (depending on how much coconut flavor you like)
*1 Tbs. Grenadine
*1/2 c. Ice (not shown)
Friday, March 2, 2012
Sour Cream Chicken
Here is our family's newest favorite chicken recipe. Very simple. Very tasty.
1 lb chicken breasts (I prefer to cut them into strips)
1 pkg Ranch Dressing mix
1 c. Sour Cream
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
1 c. Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 small can French Fried Onions
Place the chicken breasts in a greased glass baking dish. Sprinkle the chicken with Ranch Dressing Mix. Stir together Sour Cream and Cream of Chicken Soup. Spread over the chicken. Sprinkle on Shredded Cheese. Top with French Fried Onions. Cover with foil. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour.
You can take the foil off the last 10 minutes to help brown the onions if you would like, but some of the moisture will escape when doing this.
Serve over rice.
Enjoy!
1 lb chicken breasts (I prefer to cut them into strips)
1 pkg Ranch Dressing mix
1 c. Sour Cream
1 can Cream of Chicken soup
1 c. Shredded Cheddar Cheese
1 small can French Fried Onions
Place the chicken breasts in a greased glass baking dish. Sprinkle the chicken with Ranch Dressing Mix. Stir together Sour Cream and Cream of Chicken Soup. Spread over the chicken. Sprinkle on Shredded Cheese. Top with French Fried Onions. Cover with foil. Bake at 325 degrees for 1 hour.
You can take the foil off the last 10 minutes to help brown the onions if you would like, but some of the moisture will escape when doing this.
Serve over rice.
Enjoy!
Chicken Nuggets
I apologize that I have not been around lately. But the end of my pregnancy left me very tired and not doing much cooking or baking. And then with a new baby in the house I don't get much time to sit at the computer. But I did recently try some new recipes that I wanted to share.
My 3 1/2 yr old LOVES chicken nuggets. But it is very hard to find pre-made nuggets that are somewhat healthy. So I finally found a recipe that our entire family loved. By using the Panko Crumbs they stay nice and crispy. I varied a bit from the actual recipe to make them a little healthier and this is what we came up with.
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 cups water
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup panko bread crumbs, crushed
1/4 cup Italian seasoned Bread crumbs
2 teaspoons onion powder
3/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 large egg whites
Instructions
1. Cut each chicken breast diagonally into thirds, then cut each third diagonally into ½-inch-thick pieces. Whisk water, tablespoon salt, and Worcestershire in large bowl until salt dissolves. Add chicken pieces and refrigerate, covered, for 30 minutes. Do not brine for more than 30 mins of the chicken will be too salty
2. Remove chicken from brine, discard brine, and pat chicken dry with paper towels. Combine flour, bread crumbs, onion powder, remaining salt, pepper, garlic powder, and baking soda in shallow dish. Whisk egg whites in second shallow dish until foamy. Coat half of chicken with egg whites and dredge in flour-crumb mixture, pressing gently to adhere. Transfer to plate and repeat with remaining chicken (don’t discard flour-crumb mixture). Let sit 10 minutes.
3. Dredge a second time in flour-crumb mixture. Spray a cookie sheet with Olive Oil and lay coated pieces of chicken on the sheet. Spray the tops of the nuggets with Olive Oil.
4. Bake at 425 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Flip nuggets over and bake an additional 4-5 mins.
Serve with your favorite dipping sauces.
Enjoy!
4.
My 3 1/2 yr old LOVES chicken nuggets. But it is very hard to find pre-made nuggets that are somewhat healthy. So I finally found a recipe that our entire family loved. By using the Panko Crumbs they stay nice and crispy. I varied a bit from the actual recipe to make them a little healthier and this is what we came up with.
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 1 1/2 pounds)
2 cups water
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup panko bread crumbs, crushed
1/4 cup Italian seasoned Bread crumbs
2 teaspoons onion powder
3/4 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
3 large egg whites
Instructions
1. Cut each chicken breast diagonally into thirds, then cut each third diagonally into ½-inch-thick pieces. Whisk water, tablespoon salt, and Worcestershire in large bowl until salt dissolves. Add chicken pieces and refrigerate, covered, for 30 minutes. Do not brine for more than 30 mins of the chicken will be too salty
2. Remove chicken from brine, discard brine, and pat chicken dry with paper towels. Combine flour, bread crumbs, onion powder, remaining salt, pepper, garlic powder, and baking soda in shallow dish. Whisk egg whites in second shallow dish until foamy. Coat half of chicken with egg whites and dredge in flour-crumb mixture, pressing gently to adhere. Transfer to plate and repeat with remaining chicken (don’t discard flour-crumb mixture). Let sit 10 minutes.
3. Dredge a second time in flour-crumb mixture. Spray a cookie sheet with Olive Oil and lay coated pieces of chicken on the sheet. Spray the tops of the nuggets with Olive Oil.
4. Bake at 425 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Flip nuggets over and bake an additional 4-5 mins.
Serve with your favorite dipping sauces.
Enjoy!
4.
Thursday, October 27, 2011
Chocolate Caramel Apple Cookies
Warning: Upon completion of reading this recipe, you may feel a strong urge to run to your car and go immediately to the grocery store to buy the ingredients for this recipe...Follow your instincts.
Warning 2: Once these are made, you may want to have a plan to share some with others or you will find yourself eating one after the other until before you know it, you have consumed 3 1/2 dozen cookies
Ok, now that that is out of the way....
A friend of mine found this recipe and posted it on facebook yesterday evening. I read the title and thought it sounded like an odd combination. Then I read the recipe. Next thing you know, I am texting my husband, bribing him to pick up the candy bars on his lunch break and bring them home to me. Thankfully, it worked!
I'm pregnant right now and am pretty relaxed when it comes to food choices and don't really cut anything out of my diet, just use good judgement and moderation. However, in my last pregnancy and this one, my one rule has been NO RAW EGGS. This is VERY hard for me because I have a downfall for cookie dough, cake batter, brownie batter... Well, I caved last night and couldn't resist trying this dough. It was just too tempting and was SO good. When the cookies came out of the oven, I burned my mouth on the caramel but I would say it was well worth it.
If you are the type of person who prefers to see pictures of each step of a recipe, then check out the original post where this recipe is located: http://www.hostessblog.com/2011/10/recipe-chocolate-caramel-apple-cookies/
I have not checked out the rest of that site, but after trying these cookies, I definitely will.
So, onto the recipe.
• 2-1/4 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 cup unsalted butter, melted
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 egg
• 1 egg yolk
• 10 caramels, unwrapped
• 1 tbsp milk
• 1 large apple OR 2 small apples, peeled & diced
• 6 Fun Size MILKY WAY® Simply Caramel Bars, chilled & chopped
• 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 325°F. Line baking sheets with parchment or wax paper.
Sift the flour, baking soda and salt together and set aside. In a large bowl, beat melted butter, brown sugar, white sugar and vanilla extract, then beat in the egg and egg yolk until the mixture is well blended.
In a small, microwave-safe bowl, heat unwrapped caramels & milk until smooth and creamy, starting with 1-1/2 to 2 minutes, stirring once. If necessary, continue microwaving the caramel in 30 second intervals, stirring each time, until completely smooth. Allow the melted caramel to cool for about 10 minutes, then pour it into the wet ingredients.
Fold in the diced apples, followed by the dry ingredients. Add chopped candy bars and chocolate chips and stir until combined.
Drop cookie dough by rounded tablespoon onto the prepared cookie sheets. Bake for 10 to 13 minutes, or until the edges are a light golden brown. Cool on baking sheets for a few minutes, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Note: My husband could not find the fun-size Milky Way Simply Caramel bars. Luckily, they had the full size bars in the check-out line. I used 2 full size (well, 2 full size packages. Each package contained 2 bars that were just a little smaller than a normal candy bar, but larger than a fun-size). I also did not chill mine first and had no problem cutting them. If you do want to chill them, do NOT put them in the freezer or the caramel will be rock hard (don't ask how I know this...)
Are you still reading? Or are you already searching your cupboards to find out which ingredients you need to go pick up?
Enjoy!
Friday, October 14, 2011
Peppermint Marshmallows
These take a little bit of work, but are well worth it. They make great Christmas presents. I like them in a cup of hot cocoa. My husband likes them in a cup of coffee. Friends like to just eat them plain. I also might sneak some of the mixture while it is still gooey, before it sets. No matter how you eat them, they're excellent!
1/2 c. Powdered sugar
1/3 c. cornstarch
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1 1/3 c. white sugar
2/3 c. light corn syrup
1/2 c. crushed candy canes or mint candies
1/8 tsp. salt
In a small bowl, sift together powdered sugar and cornstarch. Line a 9x13" pan with nonstick foil. Coat with nonstick cooking spray. Sift 2 Tbs. of the sugar/cornstarch mixutre into the pan, tilting to coat sides. Leave any excess in the pan.
Place 2/3 c. water in a large bowl. Sprinkle with gelatin. Let soften for 5 minutes.
In a medium size heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat white sugar, corn syrup, candy cane pieces and salt over medium heat about 7 minutes until sugar and candy are dissolved, stirring occasionally. Pour into bowl with gelatin, removing any larger chunks of candy cane that did not melt.
Beat on high speed with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 10-15 minutes. Spread into prepared pan and smooth top. Dust with 2 Tbs of sugar/cornstarch mixture. Let set at room temperature for 2 hours.
Lift marshmallow from pan using foil. With a wet knife, cut into 6 squares. Spread remaining sugar/cornstarch mixture onto a baking sheet. Invert marshmallow block onto sheet; cut each square into 9 pieces. Toss marshmallows in sugar/cornstarch mixture, and set on a pan to set an additional hour. Store, loosely covered, at room temperature.
Enjoy!!
1/2 c. Powdered sugar
1/3 c. cornstarch
2 envelopes unflavored gelatin
1 1/3 c. white sugar
2/3 c. light corn syrup
1/2 c. crushed candy canes or mint candies
1/8 tsp. salt
In a small bowl, sift together powdered sugar and cornstarch. Line a 9x13" pan with nonstick foil. Coat with nonstick cooking spray. Sift 2 Tbs. of the sugar/cornstarch mixutre into the pan, tilting to coat sides. Leave any excess in the pan.
Place 2/3 c. water in a large bowl. Sprinkle with gelatin. Let soften for 5 minutes.
In a medium size heavy-bottomed saucepan, heat white sugar, corn syrup, candy cane pieces and salt over medium heat about 7 minutes until sugar and candy are dissolved, stirring occasionally. Pour into bowl with gelatin, removing any larger chunks of candy cane that did not melt.
Beat on high speed with an electric mixer until light and fluffy, about 10-15 minutes. Spread into prepared pan and smooth top. Dust with 2 Tbs of sugar/cornstarch mixture. Let set at room temperature for 2 hours.
Lift marshmallow from pan using foil. With a wet knife, cut into 6 squares. Spread remaining sugar/cornstarch mixture onto a baking sheet. Invert marshmallow block onto sheet; cut each square into 9 pieces. Toss marshmallows in sugar/cornstarch mixture, and set on a pan to set an additional hour. Store, loosely covered, at room temperature.
Enjoy!!
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