Baking – Safe Eats

Vegan Chocolate Chip Cookies (Gluten Free, Egg Free, and Dairy Free)

By: Nancy Haggerty

Hello everyone! I am so thrilled to be a guest blogger for Safe Eats. What a great organization to be a part of and I am honored to be able to share some of my recipes with you all.

This cookie recipe is one of my all time favorites and it’s gone through an evolution as I’ve perfected my craft over the years. Yet it still reminds me of my very first venture into the art of baking gluten free.

Chocolate Chip Cookies:

1/2 Tablespoon flax meal

2 Tablespoons water

6 Tablespoons (84g) vegetable shortening (I use Earth Balance brand)

1 cup (150g) light brown sugar

1/2 cup tapioca flour

2/3 cup (81g) brown rice flour (I use Authentic Foods brand)*

1/3 cup + 1 1/2 Tablespoons (60g) white rice flour (I use Authentic Foods brand)*

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum

1 Tablespoon coconut milk (I use Native Forest brand)*

1/2 cup chocolate chips (I use Enjoy Life brand)

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Line one standard size cookie sheet with parchment paper.

2. Combine the flax meal with the water in a small bowl and set aside.

3. In a mixing bowl cream together the vegetable shortening with the light brown sugar by mixing on low for a few minutes.

4. In a separate bowl combine the tapioca flour, brown rice flour, white rice flour, salt, baking soda, and xanthan gum. Whisk these dry ingredients together. Set aside.

5. Add the flax meal and water mixture to the creamed vegetable shortening and brown sugar mixture along with the coconut milk. Mix on low until fully combined.

6. Then gradually add the dry ingredients to the wet. Mix on low until all the ingredients are fully incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula as needed. It should look and feel just like cookie dough.

7. Finally, add the chocolate chips and mix on low for about 15 seconds. Use a spoon or scoop to make round balls about 1-1 1/2 inches in size. Space cookie balls about 2 inches apart on the cookie sheet. Flatten each ball so they are the shape of cookies (they will not flatten much on their own during baking). Bake on the middle rack for 10 minutes or until cookies are easy to remove with a spatula. If they are still soft bake for another 1-2 minutes. Remove from cookie sheet and cool on a cooling rack.

Makes about 24 cookies.

*A word on substitutions: Many gluten free flours can be substituted for others, such as quinoa, sorghum and millet. However, each flour has its own weight, texture, and viscosity. Therefore, it may alter the end result. Always use a combination of flours for best results. If substituting coconut milk in this recipe with another dairy alternative use ½ Tablespoon as other dairy alternatives are thinner than coconut milk.

Nancy Haggerty is a food blogger at www.aglutenfreedairyfreelife.com and has been perfecting the art of gluten and dairy free since 2007. She lives in Westchester, NY with her son, Kenyon and husband, Ben. We are so grateful for Nancy’s contribution. Please check out her blog and try out more of her delicious recipes!

Honey Graham Crackers (Free of Gluten, Dairy, Eggs, Nuts, Soy, and Rice)

Crunchy, tasty, and perfect for dunking into your favorite beverage.

Honey Graham Crackers

2 cups sorghum flour

1/2 cup potato starch

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/4 cup, non-hydrogenated palm shortening such as Spectrum brand

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Mix dry ingredients together. With a pastry cutter or two knives, cut the shortening in until it resembles sand. Add the honey. Then add water a little bit a time until the mixture just sticks together and doesn’t fall apart. If still falling apart, add another Tablespoon or so of water.

Tear out a piece of parchment paper that will fit on your cookie sheet, and then put the parchment paper on a table or counter. Take half of the dough and press it onto the parchment paper to form a rectangle of dough in the middle of it. Top with a sheet of wax paper and roll the dough until it is about 1/8 inch thick.

Remove the wax paper and transfer the parchment paper with the rolled dough to the cookie sheet. Using a knife or bread dough scraper, cut where you want the graham crackers to break. Using a fork, poke three sets of holes for each cracker.

Bake for 10-15 minutes or until graham crackers are lightly browned around the edges.

Remove and let cool for 10-15 minutes. Using a very flat sharp cookie spatula or knife, re-cut into the cracker separations and gently lift them from the parchment.

Repeat with remaining dough.

These will store for 1-2 weeks in an airtight container.

Dreamy Allergen-Free Double Chocolate Cookies

With a thin sugar-crisped exterior, a moist interior, and deep milk-chocolate flavor, these cookies are a food allergic’s dream come true.

The story of this cookie: I needed to make a really good double chocolate cookie (I realize that “need” is a strong word, but hey a chocolate cookie craving is a need, am I right?). I was a bit disappointed in the gluten-free double chocolate cookie I had been making. It kinda satisfied the chocolate craving but the taste was still too dark and had a bitter tone. Also, as with most disappointing gluten-free treats, the texture was pretty grainy and dried out within a day. I needed a moist cookie that had a silkier texture, a more milk chocolate flavor, and with a good texture that would last for more than 15 minutes.

After much research and experimentation, I finally hit a winner. The secret to better texture and moisture retention is in a higher ratio of starch than is normally called for in gluten-free baking. A 50% flour and 50% starch mix. Yes! Good results!

I shared some finished cookies with family and friends and took some to networking events. I got a lot of rave reviews on this cookie. Due to such great response, I was tempted to keep this recipe a secret. I’ve been told that I shouldn’t publish this and that it should be the beginning of fantastic cookie sales, and a way to fame and fortune – perhaps a new line of dream cookies for all those who can’t wheat, dairy, eggs, corn, oats, peanuts, treenuts, or rice! (It’s very hard to find gluten-free treats without rice!) I’ve made these with both brown rice flour and sorghum flour, the results were good for both.

I don’t want to have you thinking these are some sort of extremely magical cookie, though. What gets us excited, however, is that this is like having a cookie made from wheat. They’re simply good. For those of us who haven’t had good cookies like that in a long while, it’s pretty magical.

What’s even better – these are pretty economical. Other than the palm oil shortening, the rest of the ingredients are sold for prices that won’t leave you breaking your wallet at $70 in the 7-items or less checkout line.

So, I suppose I could have kept this recipe to myself, but what of all those commercial kitchen start-up costs that I don’t have? And what of all the needs of the dedicated bakers all over the world that need to start their gluten-free baking with a really good cookie?

I’d rather inspire all of you to make these and share them with your friends and family. I’d like to see if your foodie friends who can eat anything even notice that these aren’t anything but fantastic. I’d like to see you delight your co-workers or family members or friends who are usually left out of the food part of celebrations and watch them smile and praise you for your thoughtfulness! It would be great to see these offered in your bake sales, your community events, school functions and fundraisers! The food allergy community will profusely thank you for thinking of them and for making their cookie dreams come true!

Without further adieu:

Dreamy Allergen-Free Double Chocolate Cookies

Set your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit, or 175 degrees Celsius.

In a separate bowl, add these dry ingredients together and mix until thoroughly combined:

1 cup (152 grams) of either brown rice flour or sorghum flour (use sorghum for those that cannot tolerate rice)

1/2 cup (56 grams) cocoa powder

1 cup (152 grams) of cornstarch or arrowroot starch (If allergic to corn, use arrowroot starch. I have tried both. The cornstarch results in a slightly silkier texture on the inside of the cookie, but the arrowroot starch is still very nice).

1 teaspoon of baking soda

1 teaspoon of baking powder

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon of cream of tartar

3/4 teaspoon of xanthan or guar gum

Set aside the bowl of dry ingredients.

In your stand mixer, or with hand-held mixer, cream together only these ingredients:

1 cup (180 grams) non-hydrogenated palm oil shortening (Note: do not use butter or coconut oil or any other shortening if making this for general public or school functions. Butter is dairy allergy trigger and coconut oil can trigger treenut allergic reactions, other shortening may contain soybean oil.) Spectrum organic palm-oil shortening can be found here: http://www.spectrumorganics.com/spectrum-naturals/organic-shortening/

1.5 cup (300 grams) light brown sugar (sticky sugar)

4 oz. (105 grams) applesauce (conveniently, this is the equivalent of a snack-sized cup that you can purchase and put in kids’ lunches)

Then add:

1 Tablespoon vanilla extract

Once the shortening, sugar, applesauce, and vanilla extract ingredients are combined, gradually mix in the dry ingredients. The mixture will get very thick. You want this to resemble cookie dough. If appears too dry, add about 1-2 Tablespoons of water.

Once your cookie dough is made, using a large metal spoon, fold in:

1/2 cup (90 grams) Enjoy Life Allergen-Free mini chocolate chips and

1/2 cup (90 grams) Enjoy Life Allergen-Free chocolate chunks. More information on Enjoy Life products can be found here: http://enjoylifefoods.com/

Scoop dough onto cookie sheet lined with parchment paper (or lightly coated with the palm oil shortening), and flatten to 1 inch disks.

Bake for 7-10 minutes or until cookies look puffy and cracked a little.

Remove cooks from oven and let cool for 5-10 minutes on the baking pan before transferring to a plate or wire rack to cool completely. If you try to transfer them too soon, they will fall apart. Alternatively, you can pull the entire parchment sheet of cookies off of the pan and onto the counter to cool so you can quickly reuse the pan. Cookies will rest down and look more cracked as they cool.

Repeat the baking process for remaining dough.

Makes approximately 18-20 cookies.

Enjoy!

A Gingerbread House for Everyone! Free of Multiple Allergens and Fun for Every Child!

Bake up gingerbread pieces and construct some fun for all of the kids with this gingerbread house recipe that is free of these allergens: wheat, dairy, soy, eggs*, peanuts, and treenuts. The gingerbread house dough is also free or rice, oats, and corn.

*Disclaimer: The Peeps shown in the picture are not recommended for class projects as they have egg whites. If you are doing this at home, as we did, and you know it is safe for your child, then use candy your child can have and enjoy. Always double check ingredients to be sure they are safe.

We recommend doing this project over the course of two days, baking the house parts the day or evening before so that they are fully cooled and ready for a morning or afternoon of fun decorating! (Note for success: make your icing and test putting some small baked cookies from leftover dough together to make sure your mixture dries well.)

This recipe is enough to bake two houses using the standard Wilton gingerbread cutters that are currently sold in craft stores in the cake decorating section (as shown below). Don’t limit yourself if you see gingerbread patterns you’d like to follow, instead.

GINGERBREAD HOUSE RECIPE

4 cups (500 grams) sorghum flour (plus 1/2 cup to be used with rolling)

1 cup (125 grams) potato starch (NOT potato flour)

2 teaspoons xanthan gum

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda (also called sodium bicarbonate)

1/2 cup (62 grams) granulated sugar (coarse white sugar used for tea)

1 teaspoon each of ground cinnamon, ground ginger, ground nutmeg and ground cloves

1/2 cup (62 grams) non-hydrogenated palm oil shortening or pure lard without soy or other additives

1 cup (125 grams) molasses

4 Tablespoons water or milk substitute

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit / 194 degrees Celsius

Mix together the dry ingredients in a medium bowl and set aside.

Using the whisk attachment of your stand mixer (or pastry cutter if mixing by hand), mix together the shortening and 1/2 of the dry mixture until it resembles coarse crumbles or sand.

Change the attachment to the paddle on your stand mixer (or switch to wooden spoon if mixing by hand).

Add the molasses and remaining flour, mix well.

Add the water or milk and mix until you have a firm dough that holds together well. Add more liquid, 1 Tbsp at a time, if needed to reach the right consistency.

ROLLING & BAKING STEPS

Put 1/2 cup of sorghum flour on a paper plate and set aside for dusting the rolling pin and dough.

Set a piece of parchment paper on the table or counter that will fit onto your cookie sheet.

Roll the dough directly on the parchment paper, pulling up the scraps and putting them back in the bowl.

Transfer the parchment paper with cut pieces directly to your cookie sheet. Poke a few holes with a fork (in places where you’ll be piping windows and doors) so that your baked pieces do not have too many bubbles. Bake the pieces for 7-10 minutes, or until lightly brown around the edges. DO NOT PULL OFF OF PARCHMENT UNTIL COOL.

Transfer the parchment with baked pieces to counter or cooling rack to fully cool. Let cool at least 15 minutes before removing pieces from parchment. (Pieces will harden as they cool).

Meanwhile, as your house pieces cool, prepare a white decorator icing using confectioner’s sugar and water (this will be both your glue and your decorative icing).

ICING RECIPE

4 cups (2 lbs.) confectioner’s sugar (also called icing sugar)

*Note* If corn allergy, use the confectioner’s sugar that has tapioca starch instead of cornstarch

2 Tablespoons of honey or light corn syrup

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract (optional)

4-6 Tablespoons water (VERY CAREFULLY ADDED)

Add all of the ingredients, except the water, to a mixing bowl for stand mixer or for handheld mixer.

Mix on lowest speed until sugar starts to get moist and clump together. It will be very hard to mix at this stage.

CAREFULLY add water, a Tablespoon at a time, until you get a very thick and firm frosting mixture. It should look silky but peak and hold on the mixing paddle when it is lifted out of the bowl.

If the mixture is too thin, it will take too long to dry and/or not hold your house pieces together.

When finished mixing, put all of the icing in a container and top with a wet paper towel and airtight lid. If you do not, the icing will dry and you will not be able to work with it.

ASSEMBLING & DECORATING

When you are ready to decorate, spoon half of the icing into a cake decorating piping bag with a standard round tip (if you have it). Unfortunately, we forgot to pick up these items and instead used a gallon plastic storage bag and cut a small hole in the bottom corner of the bag. It won’t be as pretty when piping, but as you can see, gets the job done.

Begin assembling your pieces on large round cake boards or use cardboard wrapped in foil or use cookie sheets. Utilize cans from your pantry to hold things in place while waiting for walls to dry. Once walls are dry, secure roof (using cans, etc. to hold in place as best you can).

While waiting to dry, get your candy ready for decorating by putting into little small bowls. Children will be anxious at this point to get started.

Some candies that are generally free of top-8 food allergens (but do tend to include corn, so be careful if you have a corn allergy) are Brach’s Spice Drops, Brach’s Cinnamon Candies, Brach’s Crushed Peppermints, Skittles, Swedish Fish, Sour Patch Kids, Smarties, Dum-Dums, Necco Wafers, and Old-Fashioned Teaberry Gum (usually found at Cracker Barrel stores). CVS also has a lot of candy options for those who must avoid wheat but are okay with corn.

Lemon Pound Cake

This is a treat that many with food allergies don’t get to enjoy very often. It is commonly offered in American coffee shops and bakeries; and often appears in the office break room after a kind soul has generously brought some in to share. What’s not to love about slice of a filling but tender lemon cake? It’s so wonderful with tea or coffee.

Pound cake is the name of the original recipe (said to have originated in Northern Europe in the early 1700s) that calls for a pound each of flour, eggs, butter and sugar. As with any traditional recipe, variations have been made over time and the word “pound” in the name has come to more aptly define the expected taste and texture of the cake more so than the use of ingredients.

This recipe utilizes mayonnaise to replace the fats from dairy sources such as butter, cream cheese and sour cream, which are often called for in pound cake recipes. This recipe is gluten-free, dairy-free, soy-free, peanut-free and tree-nut free. It does have eggs. If you replace the eggs, add an additional measure of baking powder and a slight increase in mayonnaise to support the structure and rise of the cake (measurements given below).

Note: We make general recommendations for avoiding the top 8 food allergens, however, please be careful to check the ingredients lists of all products you are using to ensure you are avoiding your allergens. Note that the mayonnaise or Vegenaise has not been evaluated by Safe Eats to be corn-free or free of pea-protein (pea and legume protein is a known cross reactive allergen to those who suffer from peanut allergies). So, please double-check.

In the meantime, enjoy this gorgeous lemon cake as you celebrate the arrival of Spring!

Lemon Pound Cake

1 and 1/3 cup (7 oz. or 198 grams) Basic Gluten-free Flour Mix

1 teaspoon of baking powder (add another teaspoon of baking powder if omitting eggs)

1/2 teaspoon of salt

1/4 teaspoon of xanthan gum

1 and 1/3 cup (7 oz. or 198 grams) of granulated sugar

The zest of two lemons (approximately 1.5 Tablespoons)

The juice of one lemon for the batter (approximately 3 Tablespoons)

Set aside the juice of the second lemon for the glaze (approximately 3 Tablespoons)

4 large eggs (omit if egg allergies)

1/2 cup (4 oz. or 118 ml) mayonnaise (if omitting eggs, use 3/4 cup [or 6oz or 177 ml] of mayonnaise substitute such as soy-free Vegenaise)

1.5 teaspoons of vanilla extract

1/2 cup (4 oz. or 110 grams) of non-hydrogenated palm oil shortening such as Spectrum

For the Glaze:

The juice of one lemon

1 cup (8 oz. or 22 grams) of fresh confectioner’s sugar (look for one made with tapioca starch if you have a corn allergy)

*Note that confectioner’s sugar, particularly if it is made with cornstarch will go stale very quickly after it is opened. I recommend that you taste the sugar before using it or pick up a fresh small pkg of it and store the remaining in the freezer and use within two weeks.

Directions:

Adjust oven rack to middle position and preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit (162 degrees Celsius).

In a medium bowl, mix together the dry ingredients.

Using a handheld electric mixer or electric stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat together the shortening, eggs (if using), and mayonnaise. Add the lemon zest, the juice of one lemon, and the vanilla extract. Once blended, mix the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients on low speed for 5 minutes.

Let the mixture rest in the bowl for another 5-10 minutes. While the batter is resting (rice flours need extra time to absorb moisture than wheat flour requires), coat the inside of a loaf or cake pan with a little bit of palm oil shortening and dust with a little bit of gluten-free flour.

Pour batter into prepared pan and bake for approximately 50-60 minutes, or until wooden skewer or toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.

Turn cake onto wire rack to cool for at least 30 minutes.

Prepare the glaze by pouring the lemon juice into a bowl and slowly adding the confectioner’s sugar to get a very thick consistency. Slowly pour 1/2 of the glaze onto the cake. Let drip and wait approximately 2-3 minutes to set. Slowly pour remaining glaze onto cake.

After serving, store leftover cake in refrigerator.

Bring leftover cake to room temperature for 30 minutes to an hour before serving, or warm in the oven at 200 degrees F (93 degrees C) for 7-10 minutes just before serving.

Cake is best eaten within 3-5 days of baking.

Sanity Saver Series: “Potato Night” (Plus Ideas for Meals)

When you are diagnosed with a food related condition your life changes and you are faced with a lot more cooking than you have ever done before. No longer can you have pizza or stir fry delivered to your door. No longer can you swing through your favorite fast food place on the way home. No longer can you just buy the frozen potato products in the freezer section because of all of the added ingredients, or even frozen dinners for that matter. No longer can you just go out to eat. It’s a bummer but…

You have to have a good attitude about this or you will go nuts.

Think of yourself as a chef and your kitchen as the world’s best restaurant.

Before long, the things you make at home will be far tastier and better than what you can get out to eat.

I know that cooking from scratch all the time really seems overwhelming, but I promise that it gets to be like old hat after a while. This is what chefs have to do to prepare for a busy night of serving clientele, so it’s not a new trick. You’ll get to a point where this becomes standard routine.

This is where a little prep can save your sanity and thus I begin an article series called “Sanity Savers.”

First, I’ll start with potatoes. These are NOT a quick weeknight sort of ingredient. Potatoes are one of the most time-consuming, prep-intensive ingredients ever. But they are one of the most delicious, satisfying and tolerable foods. French fries and mashed potatoes are wildly popular for a reason.

So, here’s the strategy. Pick one night to do your potato prep work. It is what I like to call:

“Potato Night”

When you do your grocery shopping, buy one, two or three 10-lb. bags of potatoes. Russet, baking, red… whatever kind of potatoes are your favorite.

Have gluten-free sandwiches or scrambled eggs for dinner on this prep night to reduce your stress.

Or, do this prep work in the middle of cooking dinner, or after cooking dinner, or just before…however you can fit in this prep work.

Then, cut up a whole bunch of potatoes, any size you want:

Cut some in french fry shape, dice some really small for hash, slice some for scalloped potatoes or casseroles. You can even grate some by hand or in a food processor to be used for hash browns or potato latkes or potato pancakes. However you want to do it and however you think you’ll like cooking the potatoes. Just remember that the smaller the size you cut them, the faster they will cook.

Put them in freezer bags and freeze.

That’s it.

Now you’re ready for having potatoes on your regular weeknight cooking.

Ideas for Meals using Prepped Potatoes

Crock Pot Roast or Stew: Add meat, potatoes, 1 diced onion and baby carrots to your crock pot. Fill with water to almost the top of ingredients. Add salt, pepper and a generous amount of garlic powder and onion powder (about 2 tablespoons each). Cook on low all day.

Casserole: Add potatoes to a casserole dish with beans or chicken, veggies, spices, and a little water. Cover with foil and bake at 375 degrees F for an hour.

Roasted Potatoes: While you’re grilling or sauteing your protein, roast the potatoes in the oven: toss 1-2 bags of frozen potatoes with olive oil, rosemary, sea salt and pepper (and/or add a little dijon mustard) and roast at 475 degrees F for 15 minutes, stir, 15 minutes more. (make sure you have enough oil or they will stick to the pan)

Mashed Potatoes. Boil water, add frozen potatoes and cook until fork tender. Drain most of the water. Mash with a little of the potato water and add salt and onion powder. For a cheesier flavor, add nutritional yeast flakes and a little olive oil or nondairy milk. Perfect topping for a quick shepherd’s pie, too.

French Fries: Add oil to skillet, bring to medium high heat. Add a bag of fry-cut potatoes and cook for 15 minutes or until golden brown. Drain on paper towels and add salt and pepper.

German Potato Salad: Boil water, add 2 bags frozen potatoes and cook until *just* fork tender. Drain and set aside. In a separate skillet, cook 1 diced onion until tender, set aside. Cook 6 slices of bacon. Set aside. In a bowl, mix together 1 cup vegetable or olive oil with 1/4 cup dijon mustard and 1/4 cup of vinegar (you can use cider vinegar, red wine vinegar or white vinegar but DO NOT USE MALT VINEGAR because malt contains gluten). Mix all ingredients together and serve with sandwiches or scrambled eggs or as a side dish to your meal.

Soups: This is probably the easiest way to use these potatoes. Add to your pot of lentils or chicken broth. Or add the potatoes to water with the addition of non-dairy milk, leeks, salt, pepper, onions and garlic for a delicious and simple potato leek soup. Or use mushrooms instead of leeks. Or, if you have neither on hand, just have plain potato soup. Sometimes the most simple dishes are the best dishes.

If you have any more ideas for how to use these prepped potatoes, feel free to add them to the comments. I really hope this time-saver tip works for you!

Vegan Gluten-Free Grapefruit Bars

The small addition of honey in this recipe softens the tones of raw grapefruit while leaving its extra-bright and unique flavor to shine. If you cannot tolerate honey, simply omit it and add an extra 1/4 cup of sugar or light syrup of your choosing. In this version of the classic citrus bar cookie, we have omitted eggs, gluten, dairy, and soy. We made an egg version, too, but found that this recipe turned out better. You can also try this in tangerine, lemon or lime.

For the Crust

1/2 c. non-hydrogenated shortening or non-dairy margarine

4 oz. applesauce (I used one of those single serve snack cups. I like to keep them on hand for my child and to have fresh applesauce on hand for vegan baking)

2 cups gluten free flour mix

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

For the Filling

2.5 Tablespoons EnerG egg replacer mixed with 1/2 cup water

Zest of two grapefruits (about 2-3 Tablespoons)

Juice of two grapefruits (about 1 to 1 1/4 cup liquid) – juice into a separate liquid measure cup, not the bowl

1/4 c. honey

2/3 cup tapioca starch

pinch salt

1 tiny drop of allergen-free red liquid food coloring (optional)

Directions – CRUST

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Coat a 9X9 inch baking dish with a little bit of the shortening or with cooking spray.

In a large bowl using a beater or in a stand mixer, beat the shortening and sugar together until well-combined. Add the remaining ingredients and beat for another minute or two until the mixture begins sticking together. If it is too crumbly, add a bit of liquid.

Press the mixture into the dish and bake for 15 minutes. Bring it out of the oven and let cool for a bit while you finish the filling.

Directions – FILLING

Stir together your egg replacer and set aside. (Note: if you do not have egg replacer and you are not allergic to eggs, use 4 eggs for this recipe. Alternatively, you can try flax or chia seed gel. If you do, let me know how it turns out as I have not tried a seed gel for this recipe yet.)

In a large bowl, add the tapioca starch and slowly whisk in the grapefruit juice until the starch is well combined. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk together until well combined. Pour the mixture gently on top of the cookie crust and return the pan to the oven.

Bake for approximately 25 minutes.* The edges will look set but the center will still be quite liquid. That is okay. Tapioca-based desserts tend not to be fully set until cooled completely.

*If using eggs in this recipe, bake about 30-35 minutes and make sure that the center is set before taking it out of the oven.

Let cool at room temperature for 15 minutes and then transfer to the refrigerator to further cool and set. It should be ready to cut and serve in about 2-3 hours.

Allergen-Free Vegan Pumpkin Pies – Choose Your Structure

It would feel so wrong to omit pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving but this item remains a challenge for the home baker that wishes to avoid the 8 common allergens. What do you do when you have no idea how to create this illustrious pie without animal products or allergens? You do a lot of research and get extremely creative and go through a very expensive trial and error process. We hope we have saved you at least some time and money by providing some information (and a bit of trial and error to avoid) for you. You see, pumpkin pie needs something to set it up in order for it to be pumpkin pie and not warm pumpkin sauce, but it is extremely challenging to find a solid structure option that does not hit on one of the 8 common allergens.

That said, we offer a list of things that you can use for the custard structure with the appropriate amount to be added to the recipe below. Choose your structure based on your allergy, or one of your guests’ dietary restrictions.

It is extremely important that you tell your guests what ingredients you used in your baking.

If you are having anyone over and you do not know if they have a shellfish, nut, soy, or other allergy, and you decided to use silken tofu or cashews or agar flakes, you could send someone into anaphylaxis reaction. Most people know that dairy and eggs are in the pie but a person that is allergic to iodine may not suspect that you used agar flakes for a pumpkin pie. So…

DISCLOSE! DISCLOSE! DISCLOSE!

Follow the recipe below for the pumpkin pie and use the standard 4 eggs that is typically used (2 eggs per pie). If you cannot source your eggs from a humane farm, or you are allergic to eggs, choose one of these 7 structure options to replace the eggs:

1. 8 Tbsp Agar Agar flakes (Vegan but very high in iodine, may not be good for those with shellfish or fish allergy. Sold near the sushi nori at Whole Foods). Dissolve according to package directions before adding to the pie filling.

2. 4 Tbsp of tapioca starch. This is a great vegan option that avoids all of the allergens but it is a somewhat softer and smoother set. Note that this pie will not set until it has had time to cool down and put in the refrigerator overnight. (This is the method we used and depicted in the picture above).

3. Flax seeds: mix 4 Tbsp of ground flax seeds with 3/4 cup of water (equal to 4 eggs). (Vegan and avoids the 8 common allergens)

4. Chia seeds: use the same ratio of 4 Tbsp of ground chia seeds with 3/4 cup of water (equal to 4 eggs). (Vegan and avoids the 8 common allergens)

(Formula is derived via: 1 Tbsp of seeds to 3 Tbsp of water = 1 egg)

5. Two packets of unflavored gelatin (Not vegan. Not for those with a beef, pork or poultry allergy). Dissolve according to package directions.

6. Two 16-ounce packages of silken tofu (not for those with soy allergy). Use a blender to incorporate into the pie filling.

7. 1.5 cups of unsalted cashews blended into the pumpkin pie filling recipe using a food processor or blender (not for those with nut allergy)

Once you have decided on your structure option, and you have made your crust (click here for crust recipe), follow this pie filling recipe (or your favorite pumpkin pie recipe that is enough for two pies):

Pumpkin Pie Filling – Add Your Chosen Structure Option

1 28-ounce can of pureed pumpkin

1.5 cups sugar

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 teaspoon ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1 teaspoon ground nutmeg

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

2 cups of unsweetened hemp milk (hemp milk is creamier than rice milk and is allergen-free. If it is safe to do so, you could use coconut milk, soy milk/creamer, or almond milk. If you use these alternatives, make sure they are safe for all of your guests. Rice milk is allergen-free but it is thin like skim milk and I would only recommend it if you have a very strong structure option such as gelatin or eggs.)

Directions:

Make your pie crusts but do not pre-bake. (Click Here for Easy Allergen-Free Pie Crust Recipe)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray or lightly coat your pie dishes with vegetable oil and press your crusts into the dishes.

Combine the pie filling ingredients and add one of the 7 structure options (see above). Stir until smooth and well-mixed. Pour the filling into the pie crusts and bake on the middle rack for 10 minutes. Lower the temperature to 350 degrees and bake for an additional 45 minutes or until filling is firm.

Cool to room temperature and then transfer pies to refrigerator until ready to serve.

Press (Don’t Roll) This Easy Allergen-free Vegan Pie Crust

This pie crust will hold and carry your favorite pie filling just like the old gluten versions. The taste and texture is firm and what you’d expect for your pumpkin, apple and sweet potato pies. If you like your crust to have a touch of sweetness, such as for a cold banana cream pie, add two Tablespoons of sugar.

Easy Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free Pie Crust

2 1/2 cups of Basic Gluten-Free Flour Mix or your favorite all purpose gluten-free flour mix

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

3/4 cup of Spectrum Organic non-hydrogentated shortening (or use soy-free Earth Balance*)

6-8 Tablespoons of ice water

Directions:

In a large bowl, stir together the dry ingredients.

Using a pastry cutter, cut in the shortening or Earth Balance until it resembles a sandy, course crumb texture.

Add the water until you have a thick dough. If you have added too much, work the dough on the counter until it is a firm, soft consistency and does not stick to your hands.

You can’t really roll this dough because there is no stringy gluten in it, so this will behave more like a shortbread cookie crust.

Spray or coat the pie dish with vegetable oil. This is an important step as gluten-free pie crust will want to adhere to the dish when it cools.

Shape into a large disk and set in the middle of the pie dish. Press firmly until it is coated.

If your recipe calls for pre-baking the pie shell, you will definitely want to cover with foil and add pie weights or beans to keep it from shrinking down.

I pre-baked mine according to my recipe without problem, and then I baked my regular pie in it. You will note that it is a bit firmer and does not brown as easily as traditional pie crust, but, in the world of pie-baking, these traits are actually desirable.

Enjoy!

*P.S. I have heard that the pea protein in Earth Balance is related to peanuts and therefore can cause an allergic reaction. I am not sure about this yet, but to be safe, use the shortening.

It Can No Longer Be Denied: Allergen-Free Baking MUST Be Precise Kitchen Chemistry

After a solid 13 months of attempting various types of allergen-free baking, I can no longer deny that allergen-free baking must be approached as chemistry. I can no longer hold onto the notion that there can be any flexibility in baking that eliminates the three most essential chemical elements: wheat gluten (reaction base), eggs (leavening/binding) and dairy (liquid and/or fat).

After wasting hours of kitchen time (and precious dollars), I have come to the very disappointing realization that this is – in no way – anything like wheat baking. I have officially been forced to accept that my 15+ years of experience in wheat/dairy/egg baking has given me a sense of over-confidence with which I have scoffed at allergen-free baking authors that have warned me to either weigh correctly and/or use the exact ingredients listed. I have had a cavalier attitude about my ability to achieve great success with my recipes while saving both time and money by bypassing measurements and substituting ingredients. The results of these baking endeavors have laughed in the face of my over-confidence. That biscuit above does seem to have an under-bitten smug laugh, doesn’t it? Yeah, I’m not as brilliant in my baking as my wheat experience has led me to believe!

The only thing I can endeavor to do at this point is to no longer deny my un-brilliance in baking and that the science of it must be absolutely understood in order for this to work effectively and consistently. I must accept that the comprehensive information on gluten-free baking just does not exist, especially not in the common areas of the Internets or in the popular cooking and baking consortiums, societies and schools.

After reading about gluten-free baking in every resource I have been able to get my eyes or hands on, I STILL do not understand the reasons that there must be potato starch AND tapioca starch in nearly every basic gluten-free flour mix. Why potato starch if tapioca starch can do everything that potato starch can do? I admit that I have not googled this question. Or, if I have, I did not get a satisfactory answer. I do not understand why sweet white rice flour should be added to a mix or not, other than that I noticed that my banana bread came out a little more tender when I added it, but that sadly, it has also made my pancakes a little gummier (an effect I did not desire). Said sweet white rice flour could also be making the elusive tender biscuit too dense or heavy. I don’t know exactly why my biscuits have sometimes come out too dense/heavy or too light and crumbly. I do not know if it is the switch to a superfine brown rice flour (which could be taking up more airspace than the more grittier Bob’s Red Mill version) is to blame, or if the new aluminum-free baking powder is affecting performance.

As of this writing, I have attempted an allergen-free biscuit at least five times with varying results. All attempts have been adapted from the basic Fannie Farmer baking powder biscuit recipe. The first two attempts were a somewhat stunning success using only sorghum flour with the addition of the appropriate amount of xanthan gum. The only problem is, the biscuits were freakishly filling and did some very strange things to our digestive systems (I’ll leave out the details of those effects). Another attempt was made with the standard gluten free flour mix that I made with Bob’s Red Mill products. Then I made the biscuits and didn’t notice that I had forgotten the xanthan gum until the results were extremely crumbly. I made the biscuits again with the same mix and they were nearly perfect, with the exception of the “gritty” texture.

So, after a year of reading in various allergen-free baking books and blogs, and upon the insistence of many gluten-free recipe authors, I finally ordered some superfine brown rice flour with the goal to eliminate as much as possible, the grit texture. I waited this long because I really didn’t want to have to order a flour. All along, I have wanted all of my recipes to be accessible to everyone but I thought, if it’s really worth it to do it, it would justify the insistence from many other gluten-free recipe authors. And really, most people can order online now and it isn’t that cumbersome. It is just a matter of waiting.

A few days later, my order of Authentic Foods superfine brown rice flour came in from Amazon. When I opened the bag, I had every member of the family come into the kitchen to feel the texture. We were almost breathless with awe. It felt powdery the way a wheat flour does. And although, you’ll get down to the smallest possible grit (that is how you know that it is STILL not exactly like wheat), it was not nearly as much gritty as with the Bob’s Red Mill Brown Rice Flour. With Bob’s Red Mill (BRM), you can feel the grit between your fingers almost immediately and it is a larger grit.

Superfine Flour — Superfine brown rice flour feels just like wheat flour.

I was so impressed and happy with the texture, and the potential for all of my baked items to have that wheat-like tender crumb without the grit, that I really could not wait to start working with it. I wasted no time in preparing my basic gluten-free flour mix and then went right to work on biscuit recipe, which, up to this point, has been ALMOST PERFECT.

I did another thing, too (mostly because a cake I made the other day came out tasting metallic), I also used aluminum-free baking powder instead of the alum kind because, sheesh, who needs to eat alum and taste any tone of tin to their baked products? So, make I did. Then I baked. Then we ate.

The results were abysmal.

:-/ No rise. Not tender. Dense. Kinda hard. — No rise. Not tender. Dense. Kinda hard.

It’s was like taking ten steps backward in all of my biscuit making weekends. How frustrating is it to get SO CLOSE with the sorghum and BRM mix and then this, with the flour that is supposed to make every gluten-free endeavor that much more perfect, come out so hard, so dense, and with so little rise? Ugh!

A similar disaster has been going on behind the scenes with a Boston Cream Pie (which is really cake) and I’ve been so anxious to develop really good recipes for that as well.

I’m SO VERY CLOSE to having recipes that are worth posting but I refuse to post recipes that have not been tested, or do not taste good. I tend to hate untested and untasted published recipes and won’t do that to my readers.

In the end, my fiance is right, I can’t just embark on this like the wild wheat baker I once was. I need to get out some books, do some research and know precisely how each ingredient is going to work and how it will affect the others. The good part about this is that by the end of THIS year, I will have compiled some comprehensive information on the function and purpose of the various flours that is hopefully more comprehensive than what is currently available. And yes, the Culinary Institute of America has not even divulged the science behind the performance of each gluten-free flour. I’ve gone to the library and searched every single gluten-free baking book for this information. The most I’ve been given is that yeast breads require higher protein flours. But why garfava flour in some recipes and garbanzo flour in others? I don’t know! And neither does anyone else except that it “seems to work.” Oh so vague! Exactly how much higher is the protein content in each of these flours? I will have to do a lot more reading and determine this myself. Unless there is a comprehensive resource out there on the science of gluten-free baking that I don’t know about.

I will say that the one place that I found some somewhat more comprehensive information on baking with gluten-free flour is from a blog called Gluten Free on a Shoestring and she has even authored a few books. While I can’t defer to this site much for totally allergen-free baking (we have to avoid dairy around here), she goes into a great explanation on the reasons for weighing flours and the ratios of flours-starches-gums that work best for her. Click Here for What You Need to Know About Gluten-Free Flour and you will find some good information. I have not tried any of the recipes yet. They look gorgeous. And if you are not allergic to diary and eggs, then these gorgeous recipes are worth a shot. (And let me know what you think of them).

As for allergen-free baking, I still defer to Cybele Pascal’s book. The recipes are great. But, unless you know about the secret of weighing flours instead of measuring them by cup, you will still end up with inconsistent results. And there is still the economy issue. I really don’t want to have to purchase egg replacer, agave nectar, and expensive organic palm oil for every recipe. Is there a way that more of those items can be made with more economical ingredients such as oil instead of shortening? I’m hoping. So far, I’ve had luck with both the banana bread, chocolate cake and pancakes using oil and applesauce instead of shortening and egg replacer.

Still more recipes to play with. Many more – with a mission for the recipes to taste good and be of good texture while be as economical and accessible as possible. With that, I want to include information on how and why each flour-starch-leavener-binder works and how to make it work consistently. After all, everyone does not have an unlimited food budget. And everyone deserves a consistently successful Sunday biscuit breakfast, or sandwich for lunch or to have an occasional slice of their favorite Boston Cream Pie.

We will get there, young dairy-free and egg-free Glutanawans. Soon.

Now, it’s time to get that kitchen scale I’ve been meaning to pick up and get seriously scientific about this.

Vegan Peanut-Free Oat-Free No Bake Cookies (Super Quick and Easy!)

By virtue of the powers that be: Earth Balance, Sunbutter, and Gluten Free Rice Krispies, I bring you this classic no-bake cookie recipe. Now you can have your childhood back and enjoy this fun and easy-to-make classic treat. It’s so easy and so quick. Just melt, stir and drop onto waxed paper. It truly tastes like those old fashioned peanut butter, oat and butter laced no bakes you used to have.

The reason I substituted the oats with the gluten-free rice krispie cereal is due to the fact that many people who cannot tolerate gluten, also cannot tolerate oats. As for flavor, I recommend that you go to the trouble of getting the plain gluten-free rice krispie cereal instead of using a sweetened Mom’s Best cocoa krispie cereal (I tried that and it came out too sweet).

If you have a Soy allergy, you will need to use the Soy-Free Earth Balance and find a different seed butter product (like pumpkin seed butter) as Sunbutter is processed in a facility that also processes soy. Remember that avoiding peanuts and nuts saves lives, so if you can make a switch to a seed butter, you’ll be making the world a better place.

~As with any recipe, always double check your ingredients to make sure everything is safe and nothing has changed. ~

Vegan Peanut-Free Oat-Free No Bakes

2 cups of sugar

1/2 cup of cocoa such as Hershey’s Cocoa Powder

1/2 cup of Earth Balance non-dairy margarine

1/2 cup of rice milk

1/2 cup of sunflower seed butter (or soy-free pumpkin seed butter)

1 teaspoon of gluten-free vanilla extract

3 cups of GLUTEN-FREE rice krispie treat cereal

In a large saucepan, combine the sugar, cocoa powder, earth balance margarine and rice milk . On medium high heat, bring to a boil and boil for one full minute.

Remove the pan from heat and stir in the sunflower seed butter and vanilla extract. Make sure the seed butter is fully melted and incorporated into the mixture.

Stir in the rice krispies and coat all of the cereal. As you stir, the mixture will cool down. You may want to wait about 5 minute for additional cooling and thickening.

Then, drop mixture by spoonfuls onto waxed paper. Cookies will set in about 10-15 minutes. Let the cookies fully cool down before transferring to an airtight container. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Makes about 20 small cookies.

Cookbook Review: The Allergen-Free Baker’s Handbook by Cybele Pascal

I have to credit my future sister-in-law for this gift. She gave me this book when we met about a year ago and it has been one of the most useful gifts I have received.

I have made several of the recipes in this book and the discovery of Socca de Nice was a huge hit in our household. We especially love it with fresh rosemary.

The chocolate chip cookies came out great!

This is an excellent resource for totally allergen-free baking and I commend the author for doing all of the testing and writing so that the home cook can quickly have a good go-to recipe for school functions, fundraisers, work functions, and other events.

The recipes work best when they are followed using the exact ingredients called for (at least until you get the hang of allergen-free baking), such as the egg replacer and agave nectar and gelatin. Those little ingredients make a difference, so I highly recommend that you follow the instructions. I did use real eggs in the cornbread and it came out okay. As does the almond milk or water in lieu of rice milk for most recipes.

The author uses relatively inexpensive flours to create a general mix for quick breads, cookies, etc. and then another general mix for yeast breads. I really like the convenience of preparing a flour mix ahead of time. This is a good approach when you are doing your allergen-free baking as it saves time on future baking projects. I recommend doing a double or triple batch and storing in a large container in your pantry or refrigerator.

The taste and texture is pretty good for most of the recipes I tested; very close to what you’d expect from your grocery store bakery. The chocolate chip cookies truly are outstanding. The cakes were also very good. Double the recipe for two layer cakes. The socca de nice was surprisingly novel and good! I still have to try some of the savory yeast breads but all in all, I still grab this book every single time I want to bake something.

This book is one of the very few baking books on the market that avoid the eight most common food allergens. Please don’t be overwhelmed by all the flours and alternatives. Once you have the items in your home, you’ll be anxious to start working with them!

If you’re on a budget, some of the recipes can utilize canola oil instead of the palm-oil shortening. You’ll have to test it out, but we had good luck with using canola oil in the quick breads. However, continue to use the shortening in cookies and cakes as it needs to coat the crumb for good texture. You can also replace the rice milk with water if you haven’t been able to get to the store.

I admire the work of Cybele Pascal and she deserves all of the praise that she has received for this work. I bring this book with me to my seminars and educational events to let others know that this resource is out there. For more about Ms. Pascal’s amazing work, please visit http://cybelepascal.com/

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