Mini buns with Babycakes mini doughnut maker

Technically, these are mini buns, but they look like mini bagels. The batter is based on a yeasted waffle. (I reduced the water a bit). They have the taste and texture good bread should and make excellent sliders, breakfast sandwiches and mini sandwiches. I don't usually go for dedicated devices, but we're going through so many of these I bought a second mini doughnut maker to speed up the process. It was on sale at Bed, Bath and Beyond for $14.

GF Yeasted Mini Buns

2 1/2 c GF flour mix with pectin
1 tsp sugar
1 pk (2 tsp) yeast
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 c water or milk of choice
2 eggs
1 tbsp oil

1. Mix dry stuff. Warm water and add wet stuff. Stir and let rise in fridge overnight or in a warm spot for 1 hour. Spoon into mini doughnut maker and bake.

Tasty add ins include sesame seeds, caramelized onion bits, poppy seed, etc.

Couple of things: I'd rather see more browning, so I may try adding a bit of baking soda, maybe 1/4 tsp and 1 tsp lemon juice or vinegar. Also, I was short on time and used a spoon to sprinkle on the sesame, but it looks prettier and more even with a shaker jar.

Chocolate Chunks for baking

You can buy dairy free, soy free chocolate chips, but they cost an arm and a leg. Sometimes, making your own is easier. These chocolate bars are quick, easy, and cut into chunks, make excellent chocolate bits in chocolate chunk cookies. Once baked, I couldn't tell the difference from the commercial chocolate bits.

Chocolate Bars for Chopping

Tiny batch (because I like to date before I commit)

3 Tbsp cocoa powder
5.5 Tbsp powdered sugar
2 Tbsp coconut oil/shortening
2 drops vanilla
1/16 tsp salt

1. Mix all, microwave, stirring every thirty seconds until melted. Pour onto waxed paper, cool and chop. Store in fridge.


4 cup batch

1 1/2 c cocoa
2 1/4 c powdered sugar
1 c coconut oil
1/2 tsp vanilla
salt to taste

1. Mix all, microwave, stirring every thirty seconds until melted, up to 2 min. total. Pour onto waxed paper, cool and chop. Store in fridge.

Monster in the pantry

Not looking forward to upcoming family visit in Alaska. I'm still getting a hold of my allergies, figuring out what will set them off. I had minor reactions three times to stuff yesterday, including chocolate stuff I'd made a couple of weeks ago that was apparently cross-contaminated. It also happened when I used the microwave right after a kid cooked a breaded chicken patty with flour and I microwaved my cup of water for tea.

Apparently, even gluten tainted air is dangerous. I'd feel like a total looser, but I read about a lady who can't walk by a Starbucks without reacting because of the all the milk in the air. I have the same trouble when someone opens a packet of instant oatmeal near me.

Today I'm tired. When I think about traveling by plane, then attempting to avoid gluten in my extended family's kitchen, I want to go back to bed.

Instead, I'm putting on a pot of bean soup and taking a shower. Quitting is not an option, but resting is. Also, I have hope these reactions will calm down over time. Six months from now, things could be very different.

If I could go back and rethink the allergy "reduction" shots that made me this sensitive? I was sick before I ever started them. Now I know that milk and gluten were causing my asthma, I am better. It's avoiding monster lurking in the pantry that's the trick.

GFCF Peanutbutter Pie

My family loves peanut butter pie, but it took me a while to figure out how to make it dairy free. Since soy is out, there was no substituting tofu for the cream cheese, which probably was for the best. The roux replaces the cream cheese as binder, while the lemon juice provides tang and the salt, savor.

Yes, you could substitute vinegar for the lemon. Yes, you could use a mild flour other than rice. I'm not the recipe Nazi; feel free to experiment. If you find a way to do this better, let me know! I'm not here to get rich, but to promote the science of GFCF cooking. I want people to get better at this, so that someday there are a ring of safe bakeries/eateries within 2 miles of my house.

Last night I asked where the pie went and was greeted by a chorus of, "Um..." I knew right then I wasn't seeing anymore of this gooey, thick, rich pie. You would never suspect there was no cream cheese in it, because it's every bit as tasty as the milk version and perfectly sliceable, yet lighter in calories.

No, I'm not going to find out the calorie count for you. This is not a weight loss blog, though I've managed to lose 10 lbs already without the gluten. I have so much more energy, I'm moving a great deal more, and it shows. That, and my body can process my food properly, turning it into fuel instead of fighting to digest my meals.


GFCF Peanut Butter Pie

crust: 1 c crushed GF Chex cereal
          2 tbsp peanut butter

filling: 1 c peanut butter
            1 c sugar
            1/2 c coconut creme, chilled
            1 1/2 tsp vanilla
             * roux

roux: 1/4 c rice flour
         1/8 tsp gelatin
         1/2 c milk of choice
         1 tsp lemon/lime juice
         dash salt

1. Cook roux in small pan until thick. Cool pan in bowl of cold water until well chilled.
2. Whirl crumbs in food processor with coconut oil. Pat into pie crust. Should be a bit loose and crumbly, because that's how I like it.
3. Wipe out food processor. Combine filling ingredients with roux and whirl until blended, stopping to scrap down the side a couple of times. The chilled roux and cream make the pie fluffier, so make sure they are cold. Working from the outside of the crust in, pour the filling over the crust. (This keeps the crumbs from shifting to the outside and giving you a thicker outside crust.)
4. Chill until set. Enjoy!

How to get started on gluten elimitation

After my allergies kicked in, I stripped my diet to basics to avoid an allergic reaction. Rice, beans, fresh fruits and veggies were all safe. Mind you, that gets boring quick, so I hurried to research gluten free grains and recipes on the web and look at cookbooks in my library. I slowly added eggs and dried fruits and chips, after carefully reading labels (an allergic reaction to dried cranberries and shelled nuts due to cross contamination is a brutal teacher).

If you do find you react to gluten/corn/soy/milk/whatever, prepare to do a lot of home cooking. Cooking for Isaiah is a great cookbook. The waffle bread alone was a game changer for me.

My advice? Take a week or two to strip back your diet to see if you react to certain foods. It's the only way to find out if the GF diet is worth it to you.

I'm going to put my rage to good use.

Yesterday was rough. I made 3 gallon size bags of GF flour mix and found out too late that the starch was "manufactured on shared equipment". Of course I had a reaction. I was stunned and horrified. Life sucked.

We went to the fabric store and picked up some material for my daughter's stuffed dog projects while the allergy meds kicked in and the reaction wore off. I got over it.

Today is better. I'm not in the mood to write, but I'm setting a timer and making myself put in a short session before I leap onto more GF cooking experiments. I'm going to put my rage to good use producing pizza crust that's not dust dry, mini buns that make tasty sandwiches and waffles to freeze. I might even convert my peanut butter pie to GFCF, because the family got to enjoy it yesterday without me, and that sucks.

Writing about it helps me to deal with my stormy emotions so my head doesn't explode, and maybe someone else will be helped with my cooking adventures. For instance, there would be a place for tips, such as: Never, under any circumstances, make cashew "cheese" sauce. My husband thought it was gravy, and he liked it. I thought it was vile, and hated it on sight. Oddly, there wasn't even a hint of the expensive cashew butter, either.

Shiver.

Another Day at the Zoo.

I ate a Glutino bar two days ago and had an allergic reaction. Never mind that it wasn't printed on the label, there must have been milk contamination in there, because I barely made it out of Walmart. I got home and had the kids bring in the groceries, then ended up on the floor because the allergy pill wasn't working (or working fast enough).

Granted, it took me a bit to figure out what the trouble was since the reaction began with asthma-like symptoms. By the time my lips started to tingle I wasn't firing on all four cylinders. I had the epi-pen in hand, but was stalling, dreading the side effects. And weirdly, I didn't want to make a hole in my jeans.

As my kids hovered around nervously, urging me to use it, offering to do it for me, I stalled, "Maybe we should pray about it."

Like I said, I wasn't all there.

My 16 year old then thunders in a deep cartoon voice: This is the voice of God! Let go of your silly fears and take the allergy shot." (the exact words are lost in a muddle, but close enough)

He then helped me with the epipen, holding it the necessary ten seconds while I hollered, because, OUCH! It's like jabbing a nail in your thigh.

Sigh. Just another fun filled day at the zoo.

Thanks to the shot of pure adrenaline, I had low blood pressure and slept a lot yesterday, and I'm tired today. It's annoying having my plans derailed, but I've got to cook at some point today, because hello! Ordering out is not happening. I really need to catch up and freeze some stuff for emergencies.

What I want to do is writing, but I may have to confine myself to pen and paper until my system settles down. At least it's forward motion, and bound to make me feel better.

And my Mom wonders why I don't get out more. Sheesh.

Killed the Kitchenaid, got gluttened

I'm mourning the demise of the second Kitchenaid in 10 years. Never mind that there's a mill attachment, doesn't like grinding grain. I bought a Mr. Coffee mill for grinding small batches of pea flour for $40 dollars...and then I went to Cash n Carry and bought a 50 lb bag of rice flour for $29.08.

People, unless you live in the sticks with outrageous shipping, there's no reason to mill your own flour. 50 lbs of beautifully milled, silky-fine Pacific rice flour is an excellent deal when you consider the time spent milling your own, and lets face it; my Kitchenaid wasn't delivering flour that fine even when I double-ground it. The verdict: use it as a stand mixer and pony up the cash for a dedicated flour mill if I ever need to mill flour again.

Speaking of flour, I decided to see what would happen if I skipped the eggs in my waffle mix and used a bit of flax instead. Ugh! Very crispy, dense waffles that stuck to the iron. Okay for sandwiches, but not what I wanted. I did learn that reducing fat improves crispiness, if I ever need to know.

Also, don't use popcorn flour in place of cornstarch in the flour mix; you'll wonder why your batter is so thin and you have to stir it so often. I learned that in my second batch of waffles. (I made a bunch to freeze for sandwiches over the next couple of days.)

Don't use the gluten tainted sugar in this mix (we used the measuring cup in the wheat flour before it was banned to measure sugar) "just for the kids". You might, I don't know, wake up one morning and absently think, "Oh, waffles," and eat a bite. Don't be cheap; let them use it up in cookies you won't be eating. You know, with the milk chocolate chips you can't have, but still have lots of because you buy in bulk.

My sweet 12 year old went to a buddy's sleepover and returned as his evil twin. The Jekyll-Hyde thing is almost shocking. He was glutened good, and now we see how many days it takes to set him right. Not looking forward to our Alaskan vacation, because we won't even try to keep him off gluten around our vast family. We'll just have to growl and bear it until we get home and straighten him out.

I will also be looking for a gluten free painkiller (Tylenol, according to their website, is safe). My throat threatened to close and I thought I was having a panic attack over Equate ibuprofen, and if I didn't have cayenne caps and candied ginger in stock, PMS would have taken me down. Three cayenne caps + 1 slice candied ginger (or three ginger caps) do wonders for pain, but I'd rather carry ibuprofen in my purse for emergencies.

I need a t-shirt with a catchy gluten free slogan. "Gluten must die" is cool, but I want something positive and chic, and funny is always cool. Maybe an angel and gluten devil on my shoulder?

Pectin as a binder

Still loving my pectin binder, but take note: it appears to be an acid and will give extra oomph to the baking soda in your batter. Have reduced the baking soda in some of my recipes by a quarter to compensate. Meanwhile, I'm enjoying the lovely skin and soft heels it gives me.

Went to Cash n Carry and stocked up on rice, brown rice, bulk cocoa powder, sugar, etc. I get a real sense of how much we eat when it's all produced from one's own kitchen.

Now, to store 50 lb of rice flour, 25 lb of brown rice flour, a jumbo bag of cocoa and 25 lb each of white and brown sugar... I know, I'll make room in the pantry and freezer that have been hollowed on the gluten raids!

Again, very happy with the waffle bread, which is used by the bucketful. Told my neighbor who's going gluten free and has five kids about it. Her kids have lots of allergies, digestive issues.

Stopped into a gluten free bakery today and quickly made my way out again. Not only were their many houseplants ailing (I'm a gardener, okay?), their inventory was dismal and their baked goods homely and leaden. I'm a fussy eater and demanding cook, and I can do better at home, so I went home and did. The neighbor actually moaned over my chocolate chip cookies, so I'm feeling a bit smug. Charge people $3 for a crumbly, icky GF cookie, will they? Take that!

We also visited the Asian Market on the way home, where I picked up sweet rice flour, oolong tea and fresh rice noodles. John's out of his depth among strange food, but quickly found the candy.  Meanwhile, I got inspiration for Gale in Wind Burn. Nothing like staring at dehydrated lotus leaves (what does one do with that?) pickled lotus root and dehydrated squid to stir the imagination. I think there'll be a heavy emphasis on foreign food in this book.

GF Waffle Mix and Amazing Pectin!

Didn't get much down time yesterday, but partly that was me burning with energy and catching up on stuff, and partly appointments and a school thing last night. Did get home in time to catch "Master Chef" on FOX, the first thing I'm excited to watch in some time.

John's allergies were fine at home, but he ate a few store bought cookies and shortly after had itchy eyes, needed to blow his nose. As he was complaining about his allergies acting up, I pointed out that he had just had gluten. He froze as his eyes slowly widened. It was very funny.

I gave away the last of my wheat flour yesterday; it felt like giving away a crutch. Even though I wasn't using it, the kids had been. Now that I have a working, tasty GF flour mix there's no reason to keep it around.

Besides, I had to take it outside to scoop it out of my containers and into gallon ziplock bags, and I still reacted with itchy eyes. I didn't want the flour puffing all over the kitchen.

Reacting badly to xanthan and guar gum turned out to be an excellent thing. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have discovered pectin's wonderful properties as a GF flour binder. As a bonus, it's making my skin glow and my sense of smell come alive. I can actually smell the oil, gas and machine smell of our garage, and yes, that's a good thing. My eldest son's skin is practically luminous, and my youngest is so pleasant, I actually hugged him in joy. That NEVER happens in the morning...or ever, really. He has moments of sweetness, but he was my difficult child for the last four years. If only I knew.

He even asked me why I was being so nice to him this morning. I laughed and said that's my normal self in the morning, unless someone is a) fighting with siblings b) refusing to get out of bed for over 20 min c) shouting d) refusing to make lunch, brush teeth, nasty... You get the point. He's been a dream for the last week, and we are astonished and grateful.

Interestingly, as I've read stuff on gluten sensitivity in kids, some of the top things listed were: diarrhea alternating with constipation, grouchy disposition.

I used sesame seeds instead of the sun dried tomato and Italian seasoning mix in the waffle bread with great results. The waffle squares are also the perfect size to cradle a hot dog; I made happy munchy noises the whole time I was eating mine. I tried to stop, but they were so good!

GF Waffle Mix

12 c GF Flour Mix with Pectin
3/4 c sugar
1/4 c + 2 tbsp baking powder
1 tbsp salt

For Italian Waffle Bread, add:

3 tbsp dried tomato, ground
1 tbsp Italian seasoning

To make:

1 c + 1 tbsp mix
1 egg
1 c milk or water
1 tbsp oil

1. Mix all and cook.

I've also added sesame seeds with delicious results. Experiment and see what tastes good.

Gluten Free Blessings

Me to youngest: Hey, do you realize how pleasant you've been since going gluten free? You get right up in the morning, you don't pick fights, you aren't grumpy, you're loving... Also, you don't have to hang out in the bathroom all the time with the constipation/diarrhea cycle.

Him: I hate gluten free!

Me: What about those doughnuts and Italian Waffle Sandwiches you've been scarfing? What about the cookies?

Him: O.O ....I guess it's not so bad.


Oldest: I hate pineapple!

Me: Here, want to try this doughnut I made? What do you think?

Oldest: It's awesome!

Me: It has pineapple.

Oldest: ?! =_=

Incidentally, his acne (back, chest, arms, face) is fading. Coincidence? I think not.

I have my own list of cool stuff that's kept me going when I get frustrated with being GF:

Sinus clear
Sense of smell improved
Allergies 90 % improved, can open windows whenever
Stopped Claritin
Can go outside, garden!!
Colds lighter, heal faster
No more bloating
Muscle tone far better due to more energy, always moving.
Way more energy!
Scary veins shrank
13 year old red scars fading to white
Skin smoothing, losing dry bumps
Period lighter
No PMS
Regular
Lose instead of gain weight when exercise
Warm feet
Gums much healthier
Can feel dog panting (hot air) and popsicles radiating cold (this is new). Was there nerve damage?
Writing better, flows
Feel energized with GF grains
Like cooking again

Italian Waffle Sandwhich

I bought Cooking for Isaiah by Silvia Nardone and it was worth it for the waffle bread alone. Mind you, I feel strongly that bread should be bread, not waffles, but one look at these and I had to try it. Sandwich heaven! She uses oil packed sun dried tomatoes, but I didn't have any, so I tweaked.

Italian Waffle Sandwich

1 c GF flour mix
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 egg
1 c milk of choice
1 tbsp oil
2 tsp sun dried tomato, ground in coffee mill
1/8 tsp pepper
-dash garlic powder, onion, optional

1. Mix dry stuff. Mix wet stuff. Combine. Cook in a waffle iron. Pile with any delicious sandwich filling. Enjoy!

Ideas: Wrap around a hot dog or brat and pile with toppings. Grill cheese! Reuben, burger, pulled pork...

My eldest claimed his for lunch this morning. My daughter changed her mind at the last minute, but they were gone; she was stuck with a thermos of pork n beans and homemade GF pineapple doughnuts. Hardship, I know.

If she'd had her ducks in a row, we could have easily whipped up a batch. How nice; super fast sandwich bread for emergencies. I'd like to try caramelized onion bread, poppy seed, sesame...oh, the possibilities!

When I travel, I'm taking my waffle iron and a bag of GF flour. Life is good.

GF flour: How do I make this stupid stuff stick?

Why can't we be allergic to lima beans and Brussels sprouts?

After 6 wks of no sandwiches, pancakes or waffles, I've finally mastered the GF version. There were a few bumps...

Saturday night, went to bed bummed and dreamed I was missing my wedding because I couldn't find my shoes. I'd made perfect pancakes, but reacted badly to guar gum, which I'd been using because I react badly to xanthan gum. By badly I mean itchy eyes, rampant thirty, hunger and kidney issues.

Sunday, woke determined to find a binder in my pantry that wasn't weird and tasted good. Behold:

The line up. Cornstarch, Guar gum (my control), Sure Jell pectin, flax seed, gelatin and chia seed.

Cornstarch and pectin.

Flax & gelatin.

Chia seed overload.

Gell Test:

Control: Guar Gum 1/4 tsp per 1 c water

Sure Jell: 1/2 tsp per 1 c water

Flax seed, ground: 1 tsp per c water

Knox gelatin: 3/4 tsp per 1 c water

Chia seed, ground: 1 tsp per 1 c water

Cornstarch: 2 tsp per 1 c HOT water, for slurry

Psyllium seed, ground: 1/4 tsp per 1 c water

Knox gelatin retest: 1/4 tsp per 1 c water

Tapioca starch: 1 tsp per 1/3 c boiling water (works as egg substitute, too)

Not tested, but have potential: GF flour mixes for slurry

Results:

Guar & Xanthan gum work great, but people use way too much. I found that 1/4 tsp per 3 1/2 c is plenty to mimic gluten without imparting odd taste or texture.

Cornstarch: tender, puffed well, slightly dry. Browned fine. Good in a pinch, test other flours such as rice to see if final product is moister, as I suspect they will be. Starch = dry? John rejected as too dry.

Gelatin: puffed well, most moist. Browned fine, but needed 1/4 c more water. Worth testing again, with less gelatin in mix. I liked but John rejected as weird texture.

*retested gelatin with 1/4 tsp per 1 cup water. Worked fine, though still a hair dry. Worth retesting at 1/8 c per 1 c water, but not by me.

Flax: faint flax taste, not unpleasant, browned more. Puffed well, had to add 1/4 c more water, so should test with less flax. John has a fear of flax, so I moved on.

Sure Jell: Test 1: Pancakes puffed more, bit tough (too much pectin). Thickened more after a couple minutes, but by then accidentally added more pectin. Browned darker than other samples. Test 2: Used 1/2 tsp per cup of water and got perfect results. Works in a dry mix, too. Our winner, and my hero.

Chia: Barely browned, had to use 2x as much water, as there was obviously too much chia. The resulting pancakes were flavorless, bread-like and pale, so we gave them to the dogs. Now I can laugh at GF bread recipes calling for tablespoons full of chia or flax. Comments often mention those breads are dry, especially the next day. You think? Do you realize how much water binding fiber those things have?

Psyllium: Fluffed well, imparted a slight, "bread-like" flavor, which John liked. Was his favorite sample, but I found it a bit dry. Bet you could test at 1/8 tsp per cup flour.

Flax & Cornstarch combo: had an odd, soapy taste. I didn't test many combos, but be aware that's a possibility.

My testing was somewhat cowboy, but I have limited energy and time, and I wanted something to EAT! If anyone else takes on this test, I'd love to hear about it.

*As a side note, all of these binders were successes in that that none of my samples was crumbly, and all had lift.

BTW, I had a reaction to MASECA corn flour, which I used in the test, so beware. Do your homework and make sure it's gluten free.

Also, I got a skin test and reacted to oats. I recommend careful testing and possibly an allergy test to see if you're allergic to a given flour. Don't assume it's okay for you because it says gluten free.

My control pancake recipe:

Pancakes

1 c GF flour mix

1 tbsp sugar

2 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

1 egg

1 c milk of choice

1 tbsp oil

1/2 tsp cinnamon

(now with Sure Jell!)

1. Mix dry stuff. Mix wet stuff. Combine. Cook. Enjoy!

Update: Had to keep stirring this to prevent separation, so added a scant pinch ground chia. Stays thick now, tastes fine.

GF Flour Blend w Pectin

1 c rice flour

1 c corn

1 c sorghum

1/2 c cornstarch

2 tbps pea flour

Now with 1 tsp Sure Jell pectin!

No, I don't know if other brands work. Feel free to test and let me know.

P.S. When I left out pea flour one time, pancakes were a bit fragile and insipid. Feel free to substitute bean flour, but I wouldn't leave it out.

GF Flour Blend w Guar Gum

1 c rice flour

1 c corn

1 c sorghum

1/2 c cornstarch

2 tbps pea flour

1/2 tsp guar or xanthan gum

For those who can handle the gums.

I dreamed of zombies last night, but that may have been a reflection of my exhaustion and not my cooking.

Gluten free: It begins.

March 22: After a course of allergy reductions shots, I developed an epi-pen allergy to milk. Lips tingle, throat closes, tongue swells. As a result, I learned that milk cross contaminates nuts, dried fruit and all kinds of baked goods. After eating cross contaminated cranberries and enjoying a swollen tongue for a few hours, I scaled back to rice, meat and veggies until I could figure out what was safe to eat. Along the way I learned that my asthma and "seasonal" allergies were caused by gluten sensitivity. I now get a rash and itch when I ingest the tinest amount, as well as breathing trouble.

Strangely, I don't show a reaction to the skin prick test, but my doc says, "Absolutely no milk! Here's a prescription for epi-pens." I love this guy. The pens, not so much, but they've saved my bacon a few times.

Anyway, now I'm learning to cook gluten, milk and soy free, without guar or xanthan gum, which cause itchy eyes, kidney issues, etc. Pectin is my binder of choice and it's doing fabulous things for my skin. This is where I'll post my GF frustrations, victories and experiments.

Keep an eye out for the next post; things are about to get sticky.