Chocolate cupcakes

Some days you need a cupcake. Sometimes a vanilla cupcake hits the spot, but today, it was chocolate all the way.

Chocolate cupcakes

1/4 c. softened dairy free butter

1/4 c. sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 t. salt

1/2 c. gf flour

1/4 c. cocoa

1 t. baking powder

1/4 c. almond milk

Preheat the oven to 350. 

With a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until it's creamy. Mix in the egg, milk, and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients and mix for 1-2 minutes. The batter will be fluffy.

Spoon into muffin tins, lined with a paper cupcake liner and spritzed with cooking spray. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the tops are set and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean. Makes 4-6 cupcakes, depending on how full you fill the wells.

To make the chocolate buttercream, mix the following with a hand mixer:

1/4 c. butter, softened

3/4 c. powdered sugar

1/4 c. cocoa

2 T. almond milk

1/4 t. vanilla

pinch of salt

frothy milk without fancy equipment

Good morning! This post comes with a story. Normally I hate that, so scroll to the bottom to skip it.

There's a reason why I care so much about foaming milk without fancy equipment.

It starts with my preference for strong black coffee. My stomach became irritated with it, so I tried adding unsweetened almond milk to buffer the jet fuel. It helps. A LOT.

My stomach has felt better, but I don't exactly like the way it tastes. I still prefer that bitter, un-adultered cup of coffee. Do you know what it's like to wake up in the morning and NOT look forward to your coffee? It sucks.

I recently visited a friend who likes lattes in the morning. She uses a milk steamer and it got me thinking... I like lattes, and I could get on board with being fancy every day. I almost bought myself a milk steamer, but we already have 2 coffeemakers and I don't want another gadget cluttering the kitchen counter.

Luckily, all I needed was a glass jar.
(I happen to have a glass jar problem and have plenty laying around. I think this one is an old pizza sauce jar- I like it because it has markings on the side for easy measuring.)

Here are the steps to get frothy almond milk:

1. Add almond milk to the jar. Sometimes I add turmeric or cinnamon.

2. Microwave it for 1 minute (with the lid OFF)

3. Feed the cat while it's heating

4. Place the lid on the jar

5. Shake for a few seconds

6. Pour into a cup of dark, strong coffee

Now, I look forward to my cup of coffee again.

vanilla cupcakes

Today I needed a cupcake. Specifically, a vanilla cupcake with vanilla frosting and sprinkles.

So, I made some. I intentionally made a small batch because if I make them, I will eat them. This makes between 4-6 cupcakes, depending on how full you fill the wells.

Vanilla cupcakes

1/4 c. softened dairy free butter

1/4 c. sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 t. salt

3/4 c. gf flour

1 t. baking powder

1/4 c. almond milk

Preheat the oven to 350. 

With a hand mixer, beat the butter and sugar until it's creamy. Mix in the egg, milk, and vanilla. Add the dry ingredients and mix for 1-2 minutes. The batter will be fluffy.

Spoon into muffin tins, lined with a paper cupcake liner and spritzed with cooking spray. Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until the tops are set and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Frost with your favorite frosting. I used the recipe that was printed on the powdered sugar bag. 

I am not even a little bit ashamed to say that I had finished them all by dinnertime. 

So good. 

Pumpkin pie, dairy free

For years I have happily made my pumpkin pie using the directions on the can, which calls for evaporated milk. This year, at the start of pumpkin season, I am still avoiding dairy (with great results). Which means this recipe had to be re-thought. 

Good thing it was easy. I used a little bit of almond milk in place of the evaporated milk, and added a little extra sugar and spice to the crust.

The crust:

1/2 c. gf flour mix

1/2 c. almond flour

1/8 t. salt

1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice

1 tsp turbinado sugar
3 Tbsp olive oil

Mix everything up and press it into the bottom of a 9-inch pie pan, or an 8-inch cake pan.

The filling:
1/2 c. loosely packed brown sugar
1 t. cinnamon
1/2 t. ginger

1/4 t. nutmeg
1/8 t. cloves
2 eggs
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
1/2 c. plain unsweetened almond milk

Beat the eggs in a mixing bowl. Mix in everything else really well and pour the filling into the prepared crust. Bake it at 425 for 15 minutes. Lower the temperature to 350 and bake it for 30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted near center is clean. Cool to room temperature and then stick it in the fridge. 

No noticeable difference in taste or texture from the dairy version. 

Between the 2 of us it was gone in 24 hours.

Black bean enchiladas

I am in the process of cleaning out some of the older stuff in the pantry. A can of enchilada sauce caught my eye and it's been a while since I've had enchiladas, so I put them on the menu.

I really thought I would miss the cheese in these dairy-free enchiladas, but I didn't! They have lots of flavor and texture and I will be making these again.

Black bean enchiladas

1 can of black beans

1/2 c. frozen corn

1/2 of a shredded zucchini

1 can of enchilada sauce (I used Hatch)

Put the beans, corn, zuccini, and 1/4 c. of the enchilada sauce into a pan. Heat until the mixture has thickened. Smoosh some of the beans with the back of a spoon if you like.

Spoon some of the mixture into a corn tortilla (I use these) and roll them up. Place them seam-side down into an oven-safe dish sprayed with cooking spray. I used a 7-inch square glass pan. Pour the rest of the enchilada sauce over the tortillas and bake at 350 for 20-25 minutes, until everything is heated and bubbly. 

Top with some shredded kale for crunch and color.

Makes 5 enchiladas that are sooo good. 

layered bean dip

I love beans. I love chips and dip. This is the best of both worlds.

No gluten, no dairy, no meat, but a really satisfying meal. Yes, I called chips and dip a meal. The dip is basically veggies and beans. I could do worse.

Layer in the following order in a glass container:

1. Black beans: Place a saucepan on medium heat. Add in 1/8 of a chopped onion and 1 minced garlic clove with a splash of olive oil. When they are browned, add in 1 tsp of GF taco seasoning, and 1 can of black beans, undrained. Turn off the heat and mush the beans. Don't let too much liquid evaporate, you want the beans to be somewhat spreadable.
2. Frozen corn, prepared according to package directions
3. Drained canned jalapenos (or fresh chopped jalapenos)
4. Fresh diced tomato
5. Fresh diced avocado
6. Finely shredded lettuce

If you're feeling 7 layers, you could also add salsa or some mexican rice.

Serve with your favorite gluten free chip.

Ginger cookies

It's Christmas Eve and I'm out of cookies!

That's okay. I made some more. Ginger cookies this time. No molasses, here. Just a bright, spicy ginger flavor.

I had made the dough and was rolling it up into balls when I noticed the egg still sitting on the counter. I had forgotten to add it in! They were a smidge dry, but
they are still delicious. I would probably make them without an egg again, maybe decreasing the flour to 3/4 c.

Ginger cookies

2 T. shortening
2 T. Vegan I can't believe it's not butter
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
fresh grated ginger, I didn't measure
1 egg
1 c. GF flour mix
1/8 t. salt
1/8 t. baking soda
1/8 t. baking powder
1 1/2 t. ground ginger
dash of cinnamon and nutmeg

For the outside of the cookies, mix in a small bowl:
1/4 c. sugar
1/2 t. ground ginger
dash of cinnamon and nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Using a hand mixer, mix the shortening, "butter," fresh grated ginger, and sugar. Beat in the egg.

In a separate bowl, combine the dry ingredients. Dump the dry ingredients into the sugar/butter/ginger mixture, and mix well.

Form balls of dough and flatten them down a little bit. Dip each side into the sugar/ginger/cinnamon mixture, and place them on a greased baking sheet. These cookies do not spread at all. They will pretty much come out exactly how they were placed on the sheet.

Bake them for 12-15 minutes, until the edges begin to brown and the tops are set.

Makes 8 cookies.

Purely Decadent Key Lime Pie (& oats!!)

I had an interesting trip to Whole Foods today.

First, I found gluten free oats! Yay, they're back! It has been a very long time since I've had any, because our local distributor stopped shipping them or something. I am very glad they're back. I am eager to try this new brand, because all I've tried are Bob's Red Mill, and they sometimes had random hard pieces throughout the soft oatmeal. I guess they were part of the oat plant or something, but it was very disturbing getting something hard in your oatmeal. In my head I was paranoid they were bugs or something, and it kinda ruined it for me.

Second, they were out of potato starch. What a strange thing to run out of.

Third, I got some of that Key Lime Purely Decadent dairy free ice cream. For some reason they've been out every time I've gone looking. But today, the dairy free ice cream gods were on my side. They were on sale. Plus, I had a coupon.

So how was this long-awaited ice cream? Disappointing.

After my first bite, I noticed that it had that same, too-sweet taste to it that the cookie dough flavor had. There are brown sugar/ cinnamonish swirls that are good, but are a bit overkill in some bites, and non-existent in other bites. There are also random huge balls of 'graham cracker.' Can't decide if those were good or bad.

That all would have been forgiveable if the key lime flavor was pronounced at all. I was hoping for a great, tart lime flavor, but I could barely taste the lime part! It seemed like the sweetness completely overpowered the individual flavors and all you could taste was sweet.

I could have gone with a sherbert or sorbet, sprinkled some graham cracker crumbs in it, and gotten a way better key lime pie flavor.

This is not to say that overall, the ice cream doesn't have a pleasant taste and texture. I am just very disappointed with the execution and was expecting something very different. I will probably finish the rest of it here and there, but won't buy it again.

Man, I hate to end on a bad note here.

I think I'm going to have chips & salsa for dinner. :o)

Smoothie babay

I declare today "drink a smoothie" day. I've seen on tons of blogs something called a Green Monster. Don't really know what that's all about, but it seems like it's the new thing. Super healthy.

Even though I don't think I'm ready for full-fledged green smoothies, seeing them has made me want a smoothie. I even went out and bought a blender. Besides, it's hot outside and there's nothing like a cool drink to make it better. And, it's only going to get hotter.

The thing about smoothies is that you can put anything into them. The possibilities are pretty much endless.

What went into mine?

1/2 c. almond milk
1/2 c. cranberry & pomegranate juice
1 T. flax seed meal
a few leaves of fresh spinach (baby steps!)
1 c. frozen mixed fruit (strawberries, blueberries, raspberries and blackberries)
1 T. honey

I put all the stuff in there, pushed liquefy, and watched it spin around. I always love how the contents "burp" when it turns off.

The thing I don't like about using raspberries and blackberries in smoothies is the seeds. They're annoying. I think a smoothie with peaches would be so delicious...

So this is your mission: drink a smoothie. At the very least I hope I've passed on this smoothie craving.

And I finally found gluten free corn chex in the store today! Oh, happy day.

little vegan peanut butter cookies

I can't get enough of peanut butter cookies. That's why this makes a small batch- about a dozen small cookies or 6 regular-sized cookies. I wanted a way to make a small batch of cookies so I didn't have to worry about my lack of self-control. :o) The problem was, there was no way to really use half of an egg.

Enter the flaxseed meal solution! It also conveniently makes them vegan. I love that these don't spread out a lot and they can be made both soft and crunchy depending on how long you bake them. Fabulous.

Little Vegan Peanut Butter Cookies

1/2 c. flour mix
1/8 t. xanthan gum
1/4 t. baking soda
1/4 t. baking powder
1/4 c. peanut butter
2 T. shortening
1/2 T. flaxseed meal
1 T. boiling water
1/4 c. packed brown sugar
1/4 c. sugar
1/8 t. salt

Mix the flaxseed meal and water and let it sit for 5 minutes. Cream the shortening, peanut butter and sugars until it's smooth and fluffy. Add the flax/water. Mix the dry ingredients together, than mix that into everything else. Form balls with the dough and do the fork thing.

Bake at 375 for 5-7 minutes, let them cool on the sheet for a few minutes, and pop these cute little cookies into your mouth. Mmm.

Almost sticky buns

Don't these look delicious? Appearances can be deceiving...

I bought my friend a muffin tin as a housewarming gift, and I thought it'd be a neat idea to bring some goodies along with it. I got this recipe from the April/May issue of Taste of Home.

It would have worked out fine... if I had remembered to use all the flour. I totally spaced and accidentally used half the flour. They turned out yummy except you could really taste the yeast and it gave the buns a funky flavor. Gahh. And, since half the flour only made half a batch, I used all the filling.



Thank goodness for nonstick pans.

I altered it to be dairy free as well as gluten free, and the substitutions seemed to work fine. There is potential in this "almost success!"

3-3 1/2 c. flour mix (includes xanthan gum)
1/4 c. sugar
1 pkg yeast
1 t. salt
1 1/4 c. almond milk
1/4 c. shortening (or butter)
1 egg

Topping:

1 c. brown sugar
1/2 c. shortening (or 3/4 c. butter)
3/4 c. chopped toasted pecans
2 T. honey
1 t. ground cinnamon
1/2 t. maple syrup/ flavoring

Combine 2 c. flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Heat the milk and shortening in a small saucepan to 120-130 degrees. (I used a candy thermometer, $2 at Walmart) Add to the dry ingredients and beat until just moistened. Add the egg, beating until smooth. THIS IS WHERE I MESSED UP: Add in enough of the remaining flour until a firm dough forms. Cover it and let it rise while you mix up the topping in a saucepan over low heat.

Put teaspoonfuls of the topping in greased muffin cups. Top with the dough, trying to keep the cups about 1/2 full. Bake at 375 for about 10 minutes. Let them cool for 2 minutes, then invert them onto a baking sheet.

Makes 2 dozen.

The topping is absolutely delish, and I really think they'd taste great had they been made correctly. So, if you happen to try it, let me know what you think!

*notes

-When I made them the second time, I only added about 1 cup of flour after the egg, to keep them moist.
-I think they'd be better with a whole cup of pecans
-These got a whole lot of "Mmmmms" from various taste-testers. I have a feeling these will turn into a staple for potlucks and brunches.

Soy Dream Mocha Fudge

picture links to product website

I wanted ice cream last night, so I went to Whole Foods. I really wanted to try the Purely Decadent Key Lime Pie flavor that I saw last time, but it was *gasp* ALL GONE! There was the tag on the shelf, all empty. Someone really likes that stuff.

So, I hung out in front of the non-dairy ice cream section for a while in my cute green dress with pockets, comparing prices, flavors, and ingredients. I ended up coming home with the Soy Dream Mocha Fudge.

After the first bite, I could tell it was soy ice cream. The ice cream is creamy-ish, with a hint of ice-crystal texture. The mocha flavor was subtle, but good. I've had ice creams where the mocha flavor is way too smack-you-in-the-face. The fudge swirls were chocolatey, but I wish they were gooey-er and I wish there were more of them.

I started eating it, and the next thing I knew, it was all gone. I guess it wasn't that bad.

I obviously finished the rest. But would I buy it again? Maybe. I'd probably try different flavors first though.

Teff Muffins

Although I do love Rice Chex, I'm getting pretty sick of eating it every single day for breakfast. I need some variety. Lately I've had grits with flaxseed meal and brown sugar sprinkled on top, scrambled eggs prepared a variety of ways, fresh fruit, frozen waffles, and now teff muffins. These are hearty and healthy. I ran out of agave nectar, but if I had it I'd use it. I love putting strawberry preserves on these.

Teff Muffins

1/3 c. brown rice flour
1/3 c. teff flour
1/3 c. potato starch
1/2 t. xanthan gum
1/4 t. baking soda
1/2 t. baking powder
1/8 t. salt
1 T. sugar + 2 T. honey*
(*or, 1 1/2 to 2 T. agave nectar)
1/4 c. unsweetened applesauce
1 egg, slightly beaten
1/2 c. water

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
Mix the dry ingredients together. In a separate bowl, mix the wet ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, and stir until they're just incorporated. Grease a muffin pan or add cupcake liners, and pour the batter in there. If there are any un-filled wells, pour water in them. Bake for 12-15 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean.

Makes 4 muffins.

Purely Decadent Cookie Dough Ice Cream

picture links to product website

I decided to try this after I saw Gluten Free In Cleveland's review.

I eat ice cream all the time- At least once a week. Most of the time, more. It has been a very long time since I've had cookie dough ice cream, and for some reason I HAD to try this stuff. Even at close to $5 a pop.

Now, I have very picky tastebuds, especially when I know I'm about to try something "not normal," like non-dairy ice cream. And, honestly, I could not tell at first bite that it was any different than regular ice cream. There are good-sized chunks of chocolate chip cookie dough and flakes of chocolate in a vanilla ice cream base.

The cookie dough chunks were awesome, not too hard or chewy or funky. They really nailed it.
The flakes of chocolate were nice, too. They themselves had a good texture to add to the ice cream when there wasn't a chunk of cookie dough in the spoonful. I detected NO strange aftertastes or textures.

As for the ice cream itself, the texture was great. Although I detected a tiny bit of grainy-ness, it was hardly noticeable. And this is coming from a tongue that is very familiar with full-fat, rich and creamy ice cream. I say it's very comparable.

My only suggestion for improvement was that the ice cream base itself was a tad too sweet. With the cookie dough and chocolate flakes, it would have been better if it was less sweet. The plus side to that is, you can eat a small amount and still feel satisfied.

Overall, I like this product and will happily finish the rest.
I'm also interested in trying the key lime pie flavor that was next to it in the case...