Tag Archives: Gluten-free

Desserts

Lemon Snickerdoodles

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Springtime has finally arrived in my neck of the woods.  The blossoms are popping on one of my favorite trees, the Spring Snow Crabapple.Spring Snow Crabapple

When spring finally rolls around, one of the first flavors I go after is lemon.  One of my family’s favorite recipes is Snickerdoodles.  I remember a family friend once making a lemon version using lemon extract, so I figured to improve on that by using lemon zest not only in the dough, but also in the rolling sugar.  These gluten-free lemon snickerdoodles are sure to become a favorite of yours.

Lemon Snickerdoodles
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Ingredients
  1. 1 cup sorghum flour
  2. 1/2 cup brown rice flour
  3. 1/2 cup potato starch
  4. 2/3 cup tapioca starch
  5. 1-1/2 teaspoon xanthum gum
  6. 1 teaspoon baking soda
  7. 1-1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
  8. 1/2 teaspoon salt
  9. 1/2 cup non-hydrogenated vegan margarine (Earth Balance), softened
  10. 1/2 cup non-hydrogenated shortening
  11. 1 cup sugar
  12. zest of one large lemon
  13. 1 tablespoon ground flax seed mixed with 2 tablespoons hot water
  14. 3 tablespoons applesauce
  15. 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest
  16. 2/3 cup sugar
Instructions
  1. In a medium bowl, whisk together flours, starches, xanthum gum, baking soda, cream of tartar, and salt.
  2. In a large bowl, beat together margarine, shortening, and sugar until creamy. Mix in lemon zest, flax seed mixture, and applesauce until combined.
  3. In a small bowl combine 1/2 teaspoon lemon zest and 2/3 cup sugar. Use fingertips to really mix them together.
  4. Using a cookie scooper, form the dough into balls and roll in the lemon sugar. Place on parchment lined cookie sheet and bake for 8-10 minutes, until edges are set. Let cool on pan for 3 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.
One Fine Tomato http://onefinetomato.com/
Desserts

Date-Filled Cookies, GF

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One of the best Christmas presents I ever got was a cookbook that my Grandma L made for each of her grandchildren containing all of her recipes.  It is such a treasure.  I especially like how she would write comments in them, or telling the story about the recipe. 

I was looking through all of the recipes the other day and came across this recipe for Date-Filled Cookies.  The part that grabbed my attention was what she wrote after.

“This is one recipe that Papa always took with him when they went on their annual Elk/Deer hunting trip. They stay very moist. If you like dates (the kind you eat), you will like this cookie.”

This gets me not only because of the comment about specifying the type of date she was referring to, but I also like the mention of Papa.  Because he passed away when I was barely 4, I never really knew him, nor do I have any real memories of him.  So with this recipe, I saw an opportunity, in a very small way, to connect to him. 

Date-Filled Cookies, Gluten-free
Yields 36
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Filling
  1. 10 ounces pitted dates, chopped fine
  2. 3/4 cup water
  3. 1/4 cup sugar
  4. 1/2 teaspoon orange zest
  5. 1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
Cookies
  1. 1-1/4 cup sorghum flour
  2. 3/4 cup brown rice flour
  3. 3/4 cup tapioca starch
  4. 1 cup potato starch
  5. 1-1/2 teaspoons xanthum gum
  6. 1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
  7. 1/2 teaspoon salt
  8. 1 cup shortening (non-hydrogenated if possible)
  9. 1-1/2 cups packed brown sugar
  10. 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  11. 6 tablespoons warm water mixed with 2 tablespoons ground flax seed
  12. 1/2 teaspoon orange zest
Filling
  1. Place dates, water, and sugar in a small pot. Bring to boil, then reduce to simmer and cook for 5-8 minutes. Remove from heat and stir in orange zest and cinnamon. Set aside to cool (I wanted a smoother texture, so I used a stick blender to smooth it out).
Cookies
  1. In a small bowl, whisk together flours, starches, xanthum gum, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
  2. In a large bowl, cream shortening and sugar. Mix in vanilla extract, flax seed mixture, and orange zest. Slowly mix in dry ingredients. Refrigerate for at least one hour.
  3. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Roll out dough between two sheets of parchment paper until 1/4" thick. Cut into 2 inch rounds. Place a heaping 1/2 teaspoon of filling in center of one round. spread filling to within 1/2 inch of edges. Top with another round and use a fork to crimp the edges. Cook in preheated oven for 8-10 minutes, until edges are set. Cool on pan for a few minutes before transferring to cooling rack to cool completely.
One Fine Tomato http://onefinetomato.com/
I did change the recipe a little bit (other than the obvious to make it gluten-free).  I used less sugar (if you can believe it), and did away with the eggs.  I also changed the recipe by adding some orange zest and cinnamon.  I wonder what my Papa would’ve thought of these.

Desserts

Pumpkin Blondies, GF/DF/EF

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Since the beginning of the year, my mom has been off of sugar.  She has much more self control than I do.  Maybe if I didn’t have to be off of gluten, eggs, and dairy I could do it, but 3 major food avoidances is all I can handle.

The only treats she has had are clementines, a piece of toast with jam, or some date balls I had made.  I wanted to see about making her a real treat.  I had seen a plethora of posts about brownies or blondes made with beans, so thought I would give it a go.

I tried a garbanzo bean blondie recipe once before, and I don’t know if it was all in my head, but all that I could taste were the beans.  Consequently, I was hesitant to have another go at it, but  I decided to try it again, this time using more spices to conceal the pungency of the garbanzos.  

So I knew I was going to use spices, and what better ingredient to go with spices than pumpkin?   I looked at a half-dozen recipes for bean blondies.  Many called for sugar, which I had to avoid for my mom’s sake.  Many also called for oil and/or peanut butter, which I also wanted to see if I could avoid.  To solve those problems, I substituted maple syrup for the sugar, and a little extra pumpkin for the fat. 

Like what I do with my pumpkin cupcakes, I cook the canned pumpkin and spices for a few minutes so they don’t taste like a can or jar.  I also used currants instead of the typical raisins because they can be more evenly distributed in the batter.  If sugar isn’t a concern then using Enjoy Life Mini Chocolate Chips would be a delicious choice.

This recipe doubles well (as long as your food processor has the capacity, of course).  I just use a full can of pumpkin when I double it. The blondies also freeze well.  I cut them into square and put each square in a little snack bag.  Great for a little guilt-free treat.

Pumpkin Blondies
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Prep Time
7 min
Cook Time
30 min
Prep Time
7 min
Cook Time
30 min
Ingredients
  1. 3/4 cup canned pumpkin
  2. 1/2 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
  3. 1 can garbanzo beans, drained and rinsed
  4. 1 cup gluten-free oats
  5. 1 teaspoon baking powder
  6. 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
  7. 1/2 cup maple syrup
  8. scant 1/2 teaspoon salt
  9. 2 teaspoon vanilla
  10. 1/2 cup currants
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 350.
  2. In a small pot over medium heat, place canned pumpkin and pumpkin pie spice. Cook for 5-7 minutes until very fragrant, stirring occasionally.
  3. Place pumpkin mixture, and remaining ingredients (except currants) in a food processor and blend for about a minute. Stir in currants. Place in a greased 8x8 baking dish and bake in preheated oven for 30-35 minutes. They should pull away from the sides of the pan. Place pan on cooling rack to cool.
One Fine Tomato http://onefinetomato.com/
These were a hit not only with my mom, but also with my dad.  I didn’t tell either of them at first that there were beans in it, and when I revealed the ingredients, they were shocked, but they still went in for seconds (and in my dad’s case, thirds and fourths).