Pumpkin Pie with Almond Crust

2 cups almond flour/meal
1 1/2 tablespoons melted GFCF margarine
1 tablespoon pure cane sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix almond flour, butter, and sugar. Pat evenly into bottom and sides of a pie or tart dish. Bake 10 minutes. Cool completely.

2 large eggs
1 15 oz. can pumpkin puree
1 15 oz. can cream of coconut*
2/3 cup pure cane sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt

Beat eggs with a fork. Add sugar, spices and salt. Blend well. Stir in cream of coconut and then stir in pumpkin puree. Whisk until well blended. Pour into cooled pie crust and bake for 55 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack. Serve at room temperature or refrigerate until ready to serve.

~ I'm sorry I am posting this on Thanksgiving instead of a few days before, but I wanted to try this recipe first. I tweaked some of the measurements and omitted and substituted some of the ingredients, and it turned out to be delicious! ~

* You can find cream of coconut in the international aisle of your grocery store, the baking aisle, or (as in our store) the wine aisle - in the drink mixers section.

Gluten Free Flours for Cakes

I was looking at referrals for this blog the other day and noticed that someone was searching for information about using GF flour mixes in cake recipes. I have used Carol Fenster's gluten-free flour mix for cakes and it works very well. Her cake recipes also call for leavening ingredients such as baking soda and baking powder as well as xantham gum and guar gum at times.

This morning I saw a link to Gluten Free Baking's Conversion Chart and thought I would share it here. I hope you find it helpful. Happy GF Baking!

Scrumptious 4 Minute Squash

2 medium or 1 very large squash (yellow or zucchini)
1 small onion, finely chopped (optional)
2 eggs, beaten
8 tablespoons GFCF flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 tablespoon GFCF margarine
1/2 tablespoon vegetable oil

Grate squash into a bowl using the large grating side of a box grater. Stir in the (optional) onion and eggs. Stir in flour, baking powder, salt, and pepper.

Melt margarine and oil together in a large non-stick saute pan over medium to medium high heat. Drop heaping tablespoons of batter into the pan, reducing heat to medium if/when margarine/oil begins to smoke. Cook about 2 minutes on each side, until browned. Drain on paper towels. Serves 6-8.

To keep them warm, remove paper towels and place them in a 300 degree oven for up to 30 minutes, on an oven-safe dish.

~ I don't think I will ever cook squash again, without grating it first. It cooks so much faster grated, which makes total sense, but I never thought about it until I tried this recipe...~

Chicken Cornbread Dressing

*This is a much improved version of the CCBD recipe posted previously.*


Cornbread Base

3/4 package Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Cornbread Mix
1 small-med. onion, chopped
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1 1/4 cup GFCF milk (add 1/4 cup more if batter is thick, like cookie dough)
1/4 cup oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Thoroughly combine ingredients and pour batter into a greased 8 x 8 baking dish. Bake for 25-30 minutes at 375 degrees, or until golden brown on top and bottom. Cool completely.

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4-5 slices Udi's Gluten-Free Whole Grain bread (end slices work best), torn into small pieces
2 cups cooked, diced chicken breast
5-6 cups chilled chicken broth (increasing as needed until ingredients first appear soupy
1 egg, beaten
Salt
Pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. In a very large bowl, crumble thoroughly cooled cornbread. Add bread pieces, chicken, broth, 1 beaten egg, and an additional 1 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Mix just enough to combine ingredients. Pour into lightly greased 9 x 13 baking dish. Bake uncovered for 50 minutes at 400 degrees. Serves 10-15.

Fried Okra

1 bag frozen cut okra (not whole pods)
1/2 cup (or more, if needed) Bob's Red Mill GF Cornbread Mix
salt
pepper
oil for deep frying

Place frozen okra in a large shallow bowl and allow to partially thaw (just until the pieces are moist) at room temperature. Toss with BRM GF cornbread mix, salt and pepper to coat. Carefully place coated pieces into hot oil and cook until golden brown. Drain. Salt to taste.

~ I would venture to guess that you could moisten fresh cut okra with water before tossing with the CB mix, or even coat fresh cut okra with an egg mixture before coating with the CB mix. ~

Flour Mix Update

I am now using Carol Fenster's Sorghum Flour Blend mix exclusively for all recipes that call for flour: Carol's Gluten-Free Flour Blends

I use Sorghum Flour Blend (#3) and I omit the 4th ingredient.

This blend, minus the 4th ingredient, is featured in the Carol Fenster's 1,000 Gluten-Free Recipes cookbook that I purchased in September 2009.

Bread Pudding

6-8 slices Udi's GF Whole Grain Bread, cubed *
2 cups GFCF milk
4 large eggs
1 cup pure cane sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt

*If the bread slices are compact and you prefer bread cubes without crusts, you may want to use more than 6 slices.

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Grease a 2 to 2 1/2 qt. casserole dish. Place bread cubes in baking dish. In a bowl, mix or whisk remaining ingredients until smooth. Pour over bread cubes to cover completely, pressing bread cubes into liquid as necessary. Let stand for 10-15 minutes. Place lid on baking dish (do not use aluminum foil) and bake 35-40 minutes. Remove lid and bake 10-15 minutes, until golden brown. Cool for 15 minutes (while you prepare the glaze). Pour cinnamon glaze evenly over top, or spoon over individual servings. Serves 8.

Cinnamon Glaze

1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons GF cornstarch
2/3 cup water
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon GFCF margarine
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Bring first 5 ingredients to a boil over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened. Remove from heat. Add margarine and lemon juice. Stir until smooth.

~ If you want to toss 1/2 cup of raisins on top of the bread cubes at the beginning of the recipe, go ahead. We don't like them. Please don't hold it against me. ;) ~

Udi's Gluten Free Whole Grain Bread

Oh my goodness! I learned about this bread a few weeks ago from MaconMom on Twitter and recently I found out that our favorite health food store carries it.

What can I say about this bread without sounding silly and ridiculous?

This bread made me cry happy tears. I just had two small ham sandwiches for the first time in months that didn't make me reconsider sandwiches as a meal option. THIS BREAD is so soft and delicious and not spongy.

Once again, our life regains a little more normalcy. First it was Carol Fenster's recipes, and now it is this bread.

I told the clerk at the store that I would see them in a month (I purchase enough food to last a month because they are quite a distance from us) unless the Udi's bread was as good as everyone said. I told him we'd be back for more if it was (I only purchased two loaves). He laughed and said, "OK then, we'll be seeing you soon."

No doubt.

Udi's Gluten Free Products

Udi's Gluten Free Whole Grain Bread

Where to Find Udi's Products in Your Area

I also purchased a package of Udi's Lemon Streusel Muffins. We will try those tomorrow and I will post a review.

This is the best GFCF sandwich bread I have ever had. God Bless Udi and MaconMom and Yvonne's.

Banana Walnut Muffins

1 large egg, beaten well
1/3 cup GFCF milk
1/3 cup pure cane sugar
1/4 cup canola oil
1/2 teaspoon GFCF vanilla
1 small, very ripe banana, mashed well

1 1/8 cup GFCF flour mix
1/2 tablespoon baking powder
3/4 teaspoon xantham gum
1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup chopped walnuts

Mix first 6 ingredients well with a fork. Combine next 4 ingredients, mix well, and add to banana mixture. Mix well with a fork, add walnuts, and combine. Spoon evenly into paper lined muffin tins (1/3 cup batter per muffin) and bake in a preheated 375 degree oven for 25-30 minutes until golden brown. Let cool for 10 minutes. Makes 6 muffins.

~ These are especially delicious when spread with Earth Balance Organic Buttery Spread while warm. ~

GFCF Pie Crust

1/2 cup Carol Fenster's Sorghum blend *
1/3 cup tapioca flour
1/4 cup rice flour
1 tablespoon pure cane sugar
1/2 teaspoon xantham gum
1/4 teaspoon salt
pinch of baking soda
1/4 cup vegetable shortening
1/2 cup GFCF milk
1/2 teaspoon vinegar

Makes one 9-inch pie crust **

* Carol's Gluten-Free Flour Blends: Use Sorghum Flour Blend (#3). Omit the 4th ingredient. This blend, minus the 4th ingredient, is featured in the Carol Fenster's 1,000 Gluten-Free Recipes cookbook that I purchased in September.


Pulse the first 8 ingredients in a food processor until crumbly, or combine with a pastry cutter until crumbly. Add milk and vinegar and blend until pastry forms a ball. Knead until smooth. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for one hour. Very lightly, dust rolling pin and dough on both sides with rice flour and roll into a 10 inch circle. Place dough into a 9-inch non-stick pie pan or into a very lightly greased 9-inch pie pan and press into place. Trim and/or crimp the edges.

** To make an additional pie crust for the top of your pie, repeat this same recipe. After filling the pie with the filling of your choice, place second pie crust on top and press/crimp the edges of the two crusts together. Place in the freezer for 10 minutes. Brush the top with a beaten egg white + 1 tablespoon water. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon pure cane sugar. Prick the crust with a fork several times before baking.