Peanut Blossoms - GF

I'm not big on peanut butter...especially with chocolate, but I wanted to make a traditional holiday cookie this year...one that I could eat! I opted for these, as the recipe I found (on the General Mills' website) looked fairly straightforward. The cookies turned out really well, with only one adjustment to the recipe - baking time. Not sure if this is just a standard issue with GF baking (inconsistent baking times) or if it has more to do with the fact that my cookie sheets are stoneware....anyone have thoughts on that?

So, as I said, these cookies turned out really well. However, I made one big rookie mistake. I topped them with Hershey Kisses....without first checking allergen info about Hershey Kisses......I had a reaction and learned through several different GF blogs and message boards that Hershey's chocolate isn't gluten free. A lot of GF people react to Hershey's chocolate and Hershey's doesn't provide consistent info about allergens (according to these posts I read - I haven't contacted them myself). So, after becoming violently ill, I've sworn off Hershey's.  Next time I make these cookies, I'll be sure to use chocolate that I can ensure is GF.

 Peanut Blossoms
General Mills

Ingredients:
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup peanut butter
1/4 cup shortening
1/4 cup butter, softened
1 egg
1 1/2 cups Bisquick GF mix
chocolate candies for topping

Directions:
In a large bowl, mix 1/2 cup of granulated sugar, the brown sugar, peanut butter, shortening, butter and egg. Stir in Bisquick mix. Cover; refrigerate 1 hour, or until firm.

Heat oven to 375 degrees. In small bowl, place remaining 1/4 cup granulated sugar. Shape dough into 1-inch balls, roll in granulated sugar. On ungreased cookie sheets, place balls 2 inches apart.

Bake 8 to 10 minutes (I had to bake much longer) or until light golden brown. Immediately top each cookie with 1 chocolate candy, pressing down firmly so cookie cracks around edge. Remove from cookie sheets to cooling racks.

Gluten-Free musings

I know it's been a long, long time since I've had a post. I've been doing very well with the gluten-free cooking - I love it, in fact. Gluten-free baking has been a disaster, however. I have had so many baking failures, I am almost to the point of giving up. I have always been a fairly adept baker, I had never had anything come out inedible until gluten-free baking. I have a long list of things I've attempted and given up on. I've had a grand total of two items turn out well. Both recipes were for cookies, one made from The Cake Doctor Bakes Gluten-Free, the other from a recipe I found online. I guess I need to keep practicing, but I am very frustrated in general.

I am also frustrated with some store-bought bakery items I've tried recently. Today, I was so excited (like, jump up out of bed excited) because last night I purchased some Glutino bagels. I haven't had a bagel since my diagnosis....and I used to eat 3 to 4 a week.....I have missed bagels more than anything else. It was disgusting. I had two bites. Two. Now I've spent $5.00 for 5 bagels and I can't even choke down one of them. Ish. The consistency was all wrong, as was the flavor. It tastes like dense, mealy, dry crap. Blerg.

The other major disappointment (salute the major) was the Udi brand cinammon rolls. I was also very excited about these, I carefully warmed the rolls, and iced it lovingly with the provided cinammon icing. I sat down with my roll and hot coffee....ugh. It was so tough I could barely cut through it with a knife. Even warm, it was dry and too tough. The flavor was okay, the cinammon icing had a red-hot flavor that was delightful, but I couldn't get past the texture of the roll.

Things that are good.

There are also some store-bought treats that are delicious. Udi's Double Chocolate Muffins are pretty good. A little dry - but overall....a good treat. Also, the Whole Foods Bakehouse GF Cupcakes, are pretty tasty.

I love, love, love EnviroKids cereals. Leapin' Lemurs and Panda Puffs are my current favorites. I've always been a big cereal eater - and though I miss Lucky Charms and Cheerios - I'm finding things I like.

Another great find, is the Blue Diamond line of Nut Thins. The plain ones are fantastic. They taste pretty good by themselves, and they aren't overpowering when you pair them with dip, hummus, cheese, etc. I love them with Punch Pizza's Artichoke Dip! Yummmm!

 My favorite gluten-free product is Ancient Harvest Quinoa pasta. I would eat this stuff even if I could eat wheat pasta. It is DELICIOUS! I love it. The texture is right, the flavor is better than wheat pasta and it is far superior to brown rice pasta. So good!

I know I'll continue to find good products - and bad ones....as with any food...not just gluten-free. I just feel more frustrated, because my options are limited to begin with - and each item is so expensive, it sucks to have it fail. Stay tuned for more of my own recipes - as I vow to be better about making new posts in 2011.

If YOU have a favorite GF product - be sure to tell me about it! I've been sampling things like crazy - but that doesn't mean I've tried it all.

Apple pie with granola topping

Ymmmmm. Apple pie.

I'll be honest, this wasn't my best pie. Well, this wasn't my favorite pie. It was very good, I'm just not a big fan of granola, so....maybe that's why I didn't favor this pie. This was my own creation....I guess I should have known better. If you like granola - you will love this pie!  How's that?!

Ingredients:
Store bought pie crust (mine was from BitterSweet Bakery again).
5-8 apples of your choice (depending on size), peeled (if preferred) and cut in small cubes or slices
2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. cloves
1/2 tsp. allspice
1-2 cups of granola (I used Udi's Natural Granola)
4 Tbsp. butter
2 Tbsp. brown sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Toss diced apples with cinnamon, cloves and allspice, pour into pie plate. Top with 4 Tbsp. butter, cut into small pieces. Mix granola with brown sugar and cover apples with mixture. Bake at 300 for about 45 minutes - until granola is golden brown and apples are soft.

Apple-cranberry Crisp

Fall is the best time of year for baking. Fall means I haven't over-done it yet with the holiday baking...and it's finally cool enough to have the oven on. And there are apples! And cranberries! And lots of delicious sweets.

The recipe is easy enough, and doesn't require any precise measuring.

I slice up a few apples(4 or 5), toss them in a splash or two of lemon juice and sprinkle with cinnamon, nutmeg and sugar. Throw in a few fresh (or frozen) cranberries (1/2 cup). In a separate bowl, combine equal parts flour and brown sugar (1/4 cup each). Cut in a few pats of butter (3 Tbsp.) until crumbly. Sprinkle over the apples in a baking dish. Bake at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes (or until topping is golden brown).

Restaurant Review: Bar La Grassa

Luke and I received a very generous gift from our friend Courtney - a gc for Bar La Grassa in Minneapolis. We loved it. The food was incredible. I highly recommend giving this place a try.

Here is a link to their web page:
http://www.barlagrassa.com/
and they have their menu on the site. The food is sooooo good.

Pardon the quality of the photos....I forgot my camera and so we snapped these with Luke's iPhone:)

Luke and I each had a glass of wine, I had Pinot Grigio and Luke had a Chianti. We started with the caprese salad, the cheese was to die for.

 For our entree, we shared the Pork Tenderloin and the grilled asparagus.

 We finished our meal with the caramel crispelles. Words cannot describe this. Too yummy.

Lime surprise cupcakes

I made Lemon Surprise cupcakes a few months ago, and thought I would try the same recipe for lime. I love citrus flavors, especially in the summer. There is something so fresh and crisp about citrus cake. These turned out equally delicious to the lemon ones. Yummm!

Ingredients:
One box lime jello
3/4 cup water
4 eggs
1 box gluten-free yellow cake mix
3/4 cup vegetable oil
2+ cups powdered sugar
juice of two limes
lime zest

Directions:
Dissolve one package of lime jello in 3/4 cup water. Add 4 eggs, beat 2 minutes. Add one package yellow cake mix, beat 2 minutes. Add 3/4 cup oil, beat 2 minutes. Pour into cake pan or muffin tin, bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes for a 9x13 cake pan or about 18 minutes for cupcakes.

For the frosting, mix 2 cups powdered sugar with juice of 2 limes, add more lime juice or powdered sugar until frosting is desired consistency.  When cake is still warm, poke holes in it and pour/spread the lime glaze into the holes. After cake has cooled, add some additional powdered sugar to thicken glaze and frost cake with it. Top with zest.

Raspberry macaroon bars

I think I found this recipe in the Food Network magazine....but I couldn't find it online to confirm. These bars were chewy, gooey and delightful. The flavor combination is unique and yummy. Luke loves coconut and I knew he'd be pleased, I made these for my girl's night party last weekend....along with several other desserts!

Ingredients for crust:
15 full graham crackers, slightly broken apart
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 stick cold butter, cut into chunks
2 large eggs
zest of one large lemon
1 1/3 cups raspberry jam
Ingredients for topping:
1 stick butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 large eggs
one 14-ounce package of sweetened coconut

Directions:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 17x12-inch baking sheet with parchment paper.

For the crust, finely grind the graham crackers in a food processor. Add the flour, sugar and salt and pulse until thoroughly blended.

Drop in the chunks of butter and pulse until the butter is cut evenly into the graham cracker mix. Add the eggs and lemon zest and pulse until just blended. The dough will look like wet meal, and not necessarily hold together. Turn it out onto the parchment-lined baking sheet and press firmly into place with your fingers. If it's too sticky, moisten your fingers with water.

Spread the jam over the crust, it is okay if it's uneven, it will spread out evenly in the oven.

For the topping, using an electric mixer, beat the butter briefly at medium speed. Add the sugar and continue beating until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well wit each addition. Turn the mixer to low, add the coconut, and stir until just combined.

Drop the coconut mixture by small spoonfuls over the jam (or use fingers) covering it as best as you can.

Bake for 20 to 30 minutes, until coconut topping is golden brown. Cool the pan. Once bars are cool, cut into squares.

Blueberry pancakes

We make pancakes with bisquick...so this really isn't a recipe post.....I just love blueberries and these pictures look so delicious...I thought I should post them:)

Strawberry rhubarb pie

I love rhubarb - but had never tried making anything with it, and decided it was high time. I picked some up at the St. Paul Farmer's Market on Sunday and I couldn't wait to use it. I found this recipe on Allrecipes.com but I have added in one essential ingredient that was missing, and a tip that I wish I would have used in this recipe. The flavor was exceptional and the pie was delicious - however, it was a little soupy. Hence the addition of corn starch and extra flour in the below ingredients.

Ingredients:
1 egg
1 cup sugar
4 Tbsp. flour, divided (the original recipe calls for 2, I am recommending an additional two for coating the rhubarb)
2 Tbsp. corn starch (my addition)
1 tsp. vanilla
3/4 pound fresh rhubarb, cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 pint fresh strawberries, halved or quartered
1 9-inch unbaked pie shell

topping:
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup quick cooking or rolled oats
1/2 cold butter

Directions:
Wash and cut the strawberries and rhubarb, gently coat the rhubarb in 1 to 2 Tbsp. of flour.

In a large mixing bowl, beat egg. Add the sugar, 2 Tbsp. of flour, 2 Tbsp. of corn starch and vanilla, mix well. Gently fold in the strawberries and rhubarb. Pour into pastry shell.

For topping, combine 3/4 cup flour with brown sugar, oats and butter. Mix until crumbly. Sprinkle over fruit.

 Bake at 400 degrees for 10 minutes and lower heat in oven to 350 degrees and bake for an additional 35 to 40 minutes (or until golden brown and bubbly). Cool on a wire rack.

Peanut Butter-Stuffed Milk Chocolate Sandwich Cookies

I found this recipe in Rachael Ray's magazine and thought they would be perfect for Luke. He loves chocolate and loves peanut butter - and he really loves them together. I love chocolate - but not peanut butter. I figured this would be a good recipe to try, as I need to stop baking things I love to eat. The problem is, I love chocolate....and ending up eating some of these cookies prior to sandwiching them together with the frosting. Ah well, it was worth the effort! Luke and Laura both sampled these, and then I sent the rest to work with Luke.  The recipe is easy, but doesn't make many cookies - so I recommend doubling it - as you might as well get more cookies out of your effort!

Ingredients:
2 1/2 cups (15 ounces) milk chocolate chips
4 Tbsp. butter, at room temperature (divided)
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt (divided)
2 eggs
1/2 cup sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 cup creamy peanut butter
3 Tbsp. powdered sugar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line 2 cookies sheets with parchment paper. In a medium microwavable bowl, melt together 2 cups chocolate chips and 2 Tbsp. butter on medium power until almost melted, about 1 1/2 minutes, stir just until smooth.

In a small bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder and 1/4 tsp. salt. Using an electric mixer, beat together the eggs, sugar and vanilla at high speed until thickened and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

Mix in the melted chocolate at medium speed, whisk in the flour mixture. Stir in the remaining 1/2 cup of chocolate chips. Refrigerate the dough until firm enough to scoop, but still soft (10 to 15 minutes).

Onto each prepared pan, drop rounded tablespoons of dough two inches apart.

Bake until the cookies appear bubbly and soft, about 15 minutes. Let cool completely.

 In a medium bowl, beat together the remaining 2 Tbsp. butter and the peanut butter. Sift in the powdered sugar and the remaining 1/4 tsp. salt, beat until fluffy (I needed to add additional powdered sugar, as mine was not very fluffy). On the flat side of half the cookies, spread the peanut butter mixture and then sandwich together with another cookie.