Gluten-Free Baked Donuts

Gluten-free cake donuts with powdered sugar and cinnamon.

Apparently it is National Donut Day. But don't be grumpy, my celiac lovelies. I've got a gluten-free donut recipe for you, from the friendly archives of Gluten-Free Goddess.

For those of us born and raised on the East Coast- specifically, near Boston, Massachusetts- a certain coffee BF with a hole in the center is spelled donut. Not doughnut. Why so not-snobby casual, you might wonder? Why switch the ough to o when Boston's rep is more of a Paul Revere and cobblestones conservative town than say, oh I don't know-- maybe, rainbow flag flying West Hollywood? Dunkin Donuts is the culprit, I suspect- that ubiquitous New England coffee and doughnut chain from Quincy, MA, infamous for the tag line, Time to make the donuts! muttered by Fred the Baker in television ads for a good fifteen years.


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Triple Chocolate Muffins

 

Muffins = legally sanctioned cake for breakfast.  

{Please don't tell the First Lady.}

These Triple Chocolate Muffins may not be the most gorgeous, but, oh baby....warm from the oven with two kinds of melty chocolate chips?   They are pure decadence.

The day I made them, I ate one for breakfast, one for a mid-morning snack, 1.5 for lunch and one mid-afternoon.  {Muumuus will be all the rage this summer, right?}

Triple Chocolate Muffins

1/2 c. (1 stick) salted butter
1 and 3/4 c. unbleached, all-purpose flour
2/3 c. dutch-process cocoa (such as Hershey's Special Dark)
1 and 1/4 c. sugar
1 tsp. instant espresso powder
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. Kosher salt
1/2 c. bittersweet chocolate chips
1/2 c. semisweet chocolate chips
2 eggs
1 c. milk
2 tsp. pure vanilla extract
2 tsp. white vinegar

Line a muffin tin with 12 paper cups. Spray lightly with cooking spray. Preheat oven to 425.

Melt the butter; set aside to cool.

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, cocoa, sugar, espresso powder, baking powder, baking soda, salt and chocolate chips.

In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, vanilla and vinegar until blended. Stir in the cooled, melted butter.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients.  Stir with a rubber spatula, just until blended.

Spoon into the prepared muffin liners...the cups will be very full. {Be sure to lick the spoon...this batter is SO yummy!}

Bake for 15-20 minutes until the muffins bounce back when pressed with a finger.  Cool on a wire cooling rack for 5 minutes.


Remove from the pan and let them cool just a bit longer.  Serve warm.

Confession: I have one small white plate. Once we started, kiddo would.not.stop.eating to let me take a picture of the melty insides of his on the pretty white plate.  Note to self: buy more white plates.

Homemade Strawberry Pop Tarts

 
One reason I like running errands with kiddo is that, well, I just like having him with me. The other is that when I talk to myself in a store, it looks like I'm talking to him.

This is a big problem in a store like Williams-Sonoma.  I find myself "oooing" and "ahhing" and "isn't that cute-ing" all over the place.

When I saw this....

I ooo'd and ahhh'd and isn't that cute'd...and IMMEDIATELY picked up two (one for you, one for me). I think I might have startled the salesclerk working in the area.

These homemade pop tarts are really easy to make...and there is a recipe right on the back of the box.  My only tip for you is...make them the day before you want to serve them. There's a lot of chilling time and waiting time...so plan ahead. You do NOT want to start these when you are trying to get your kids off to school.

Homemade Toaster Pastries (Pop Tarts)
{adapted from Williams-Sonoma Kitchens}

2 & 1/2 c. flour
3/4 tsp. coarse salt
2 TBSP sugar
2 sticks salted butter, cut into chunks
6-8 TBSP ice water
strawberry preserves or jam
1 egg beaten w/ 1 tsp. water
1 & 1/2 c. powdered sugar
2 TBSP milk
pink food coloring
sprinkles

(If you don't have a food processor, combine these with a pastry blender.)  In a food processor, pulse the flour, salt and sugar a few times, until combined.

Add the butter, and pulse until the mixture looks like coarse meal.  Add 6 TBSP of ice water and pulse until the mixture holds together when squeezed.  Add more water, a teaspoon at a time, if needed.

Divide the dough in half, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least 2 hours, or overnight.

On a floured surface, roll the dough to 1/8th thick. Cut pieces with the large cutter (you will have 10-16 overall depending on how thin you roll the dough).  Place half of the cut pieces on cookie sheets that have been lined with parchment.
 
Spread 1 TBSP of preserves onto each piece, leaving a 1/2" border.  Brush the egg mixture along the edges.  Top each piece with one of the remaining pieces of dough.  Using the toaster pastry mold, press down with the small mold to seal.

Refrigerate for 30 minutes.  Preheat oven to 350.  Bake for 25 minutes or so, rotating the sheets in the oven halfway through.  Let sit on the sheets 10 minutes, then remove to wore cooling racks to cool completely.

Meanwhile, mix the powdered sugar and milk.  Adjust the thickness with more milk or sugar.  Add the pink food coloring.  Spoon onto cooled pastries and spread with and offset spatula.  Add sprinkles.  Let the icing set before serving.

It's like having frosted pie for breakfast.  Just look at those flaky layers.

Do you want one?  I know you do!  How about a $50 Williams-Sonoma gift card to go with it?  

OK....here' s whatcha have to do to enter:
Giveaway closed....congrats to a_manda!!! Look for an email in your inbox!

We're having a BLOGGY SCAVENGER HUNT!

To enter, leave a comment answering the following questions about some fabulous bloggers. (NO PEEKING at the comment above you! The winner will be chosen from the CORRECT entries on Monday, May 23rd at 8pm CST. Be sure to leave a way for me to contact you!!!)
(Giveaway closed....congrats to a_manda!!!)

1. Teresa from Blooming on Bainbridge has a darling doggy.  What is his name?
2. Amy from She Wears Many Hats, well, wears many hats.  How many hats is she wearing in her header?
3. Amanda from i am baker recently made _____________-decorated cookies for the Share Our Strength Bake Sale. (fill in the blank)

Ready....GO!

{This giveaway is not associated with Williams-Sonoma...they only know me as the crazy lady who talks to herself in the store.}

Gluten-Free Whole Grain Strawberry Muffins - Summer Goodness

Gluten-free whole grain strawberry muffins. Tender and fabulous.

Just in time for the weekend- a lovely new muffin. And not just any ordinary, ho-hum, run-of-the-mill, starchy, gluten-free muffin. Nope. A tender, whole grain, vanilla scented muffin that bursts with fresh strawberry flavor. Warm from the oven, these pleasantly grainy breakfast treats were pull-apart soft, with hot bites of juicy strawberry. Sweet- but not too sweet. I used pure maple syrup for the primary sweetener, and a mere quarter cup of organic cane sugar. And now for the best part.

No xanthan gum!

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Gluten-Free Pineapple Coconut Muffins

Warm and tender pineapple muffins with toasted coconut.

April first has arrived. But you won't find any tricks up my sleeve. Unlike the greater, broader world beyond my kitchen that apparently harbors a few individuals contemptuous of living gluten-free. This was a tough week to be a celiac. Assaults ranged from the merely mean-spirited to the stunningly ill informed. There was the alleged Chef in Colorado (I say alleged, because it turns out this nudnik may have only been a waiter) ridiculing gluten-free diners (the term he favored was "idiots") and crowing on Facebook that he passes off regular pasta as gluten-free (join the lively discussion here). There was the Dr. Oz show calling gluten-free a "fad diet", asking is it "just a myth?" (in full disclosure, I believe he meant as a weight loss tool, as a certain gluten-free celebrity has been claiming in her g-free book- ironically, featured on Dr. Oz last year). And finally, there was a food blogger turned author whose envied blog-to-movie deal has apparently not cultivated much compassion for those of us stricken with gluten sensitivity. She barked on Facebook, "If I have to read one more thing about going gluten free I'm going to stomp on someone's face." And more than one person agreed with her. One of her fans (a food blogger) added, it's "too precious".

Strap on your helmets, Campers. There's not a lot of love out there.

I know this. You know this. Some of you have even shared stories about not only eye-rolling waiters and could-care-less food preparers, but family members sneaking gluten into what they feed you, just to "see what happens". Just to test you. Let me repeat that.

Family. Feeding you gluten. On purpose.

No wonder strangers feel they can openly spout contempt. If we are not respected within the bosom of our own clan, our flesh and blood, how can we expect random strangers to care?

The truth is, they don't.

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Gluten-Free Dinner Rolls

Fresh baked gluten-free dinner rolls- warm and tender.

We've been slurping lots of soup this Spring while the temperatures hover well below my chilly bones preference of 72 degrees. I hate to complain about 52 degrees, but, honestly. I'm shivering like a kitten in a Steve Martin movie. This is L.A. not New Hampshire. Where is my sunshine and technicolor blue sky?

Hiding its good humor behind wrinkled duvets of fuzzy gray clouds, that's where.

So we make gluten-free soup.

But the soup needs a companion. Our potage is lonely. And so I play matchmaker. I've been inviting gluten-free roll recipes to come and play. I've been flirting with their quirks and grainy idiosyncrasies, trying to be a good host. Coaxing their prickly little batters into behaving. As in, taste GOOD. And I've had some almost there success. But nothing to brag about. Nothing blog worthy.

Until today. These rolls are a balance of whole grain flavor and softness. Just crusty enough. These were tender and lovely warm from the oven. Not gummy. Not heavy. Not too grainy.

Just right.



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Nutella-filled "Frenched" Tortillas

 
This post starts with a happy accident. 

I love to make french toast in the mornings for kiddo.  It's easy, no measuring....eggs, a little milk, sprinkle of sugar, dash of vanilla....whisk it all up...bread, pan, BAM!...french toast.

Well, a few weeks ago, I whisked up the eggs, milk, etc. and realized....I was OUT.OF. BREAD.

What's a girl to do?  In Texas, you might run out of bread, but you always have tortillas.  So, "frenched" tortillas were born and they are now a staple in our house.

Let me tell you how to make them.  Prepare....you are about to achieve domestic goddess status in 5 minutes.

OK....I like the start with these "ready-to-cook" tortillas.  But, these may be just a Texas thing. (They're in the refrigerated section at HEB, y'all.)  So, start with flour tortillas. (If they are the ready-to-cook kind, cook them.)

Whisk up 2 eggs, about 1/2 cup milk, a TBSP or so of sugar (or cinnamon-sugar), and a dash of vanilla.  (Eyeball it.)

Heat up a pan and add a pat of butter.....I like salted, but whatever you have.

Dip both sides of the tortilla in the egg mixture; let the excess drip off.  Cook briefly in the pan; flip and cook the other side (but you knew that).

Once cooked, add a spoonful (1-2 TBSP) of Nutella down the middle of each tortilla.  Roll.
 

{Don't you want to dive right in?}

Dust with powdered sugar.  If you're feeling fancy (and you probably are), heat up a bit of Nutella in the microwave.  Drizzle over the tortillas.

SOMEDAY, when kiddo goes off to college, he will come home for *THESE*.

Gluten-Free Carrot Bread with Chai Spices

Gluten-free carrot bread with raisins and chai spices.

This week I've got a lovely tender tea bread recipe for you- a gluten-free carrot bread fragrant with chai spices and studded with juicy sweet raisins. Ever since I baked those happy, sunny carrot muffins I've been pondering carrot bread. I wanted to create a new gluten-free bread recipe that featured several whole grains, including (gasp!) brown rice flour. Shocking, I know. Long time readers will confirm I'm not the biggest fan of rice flours. I almost never bake with them. And yet. There I was. Standing in the Whole Foods check out line. Buying a bag of Bob's Red Mill organic brown rice flour. On impulse. Because it just sounded good to me. Wholesome. Nutty.

And friendly to carrots.

Which is important in a gluten-free recipe. The friendliness. You want all your ingredients to get along. You want your flavors co-mingling in savory-sweet bliss. Supporting one another's strengths. Forgiving each other's weaknesses. No single gluten-free flour is perfect on its own, as you well know. Going solo doesn't work. It needs a supporting cast. It needs to find balance and achieve harmony via relationships. Give and take. That's what it's all about in the crazy game of gluten-free baking.

Kinda like love.

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Gluten-Free Cinnamon Raisin Scones

A warm gluten-free scone. Hot tea. Breakfast bliss.

Are you sick of the snow yet? My heart goes out to you. So many of you have been hammered this winter. Spring will arrive this year not a moment too soon. My advice? Bake some scones. Scones are easy to throw together. The oven warms up the kitchen and chases off the chill. And in less than half an hour you have a tender gluten-free morsel to share and savor. Gently spiced with cinnamon and nutmeg, and studded with sweet bursts of raisins, I predict these cinnamon raisin scones will make you smile.

And speaking of predictions, Punxsutawney Phil better man up and predict an early respite come February 2. My fingers are crossed for all of you shoveling out from under. Not that I'm superstitious, or subscribe to the precognitive powers of double furred rodents, but. I remember the long dreary bouts of cold and gray all too well. I spent almost fifty-five years in the grip of Old Man Winter, praying the illustrious marmot would not see his shadow.

Will we have an early spring?

I hope so, Darlings. I hope so.


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Gluten-Free Carrot Muffins

Wake up with a warm and lovely carrot muffin.

This is my first muffin recipe for the New Year. A tender little bundle of gluten-free joy. So cute and sunny. I love the color. The subtly fragrant texture of finely grated organic carrots, coconut flour and breakfast quinoa flakes. A hint of cinnamon and ginger. A bite of raisin. Seriously chai worthy. And more fiber rich than say, a powdered donut. Or your average gluten-free bagel which is nothing but starch. This a treat you can eat without too much guilt.

Just a smidge.


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Pumpkin Muffins, two ways

It's still November, so it's STILL pumpkin season, right?

I've confessed my love for pumpkin already...let me share with you two of my favorite muffins. One savory, one sweet.

These Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins come from the Baked Explorations cookbook.  I am IN.LOVE. with these muffins (I would happily eat all 12 in one sitting).  Even though they are listed in the breakfast section of the cookbook, they are wonderful with a cup of butternut squash soup or a bowl chili.

Pumpkin Cheddar Muffins
{adapted from Baked Explorations}

1 c. canned pumpkin
3 TBSP sour cream
2 eggs
1 stick unsalted butter, cooled and melted
2 c. flour
1 & 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. cayenne
1 & 1/2 tsp. coarse salt
1 & 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
1/2 c. light brown sugar
1 & 1/4  c. grated sharp white cheddar

Preheat oven to 400.  Use a paper towel to lightly coat the insides of 12 muffin cups with vegetable oil.

Whisk together the pumpkin and sour cream.  Whisk in the eggs and cooled, melted butter until combined.  Set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk the flour, baking powder, cayenne, salt, pepper and brown sugar.  Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients.  Add the wet ingredients into the well and gently fold until combined.  Fold in 3/4ths of the cheese.

Divide the batter among the muffin cups.  Sprinkle tops with the remaining cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes, or until golden and the tops spring back when lightly pressed.

Cool in the pan for 10 minutes, then turn out the muffins to a cooling rack.  Serve warm.

{{*sigh*}}

Next up....the sweet.

These muffins can also be called "cake muffins."  They're SO easy and SO delicious.  Yes, they are made from a cake mix...and you know, a cake mix now and then comes in handy.

{And that pumpkin makes 'em healthy. Trust me, I'm a blogger.}

If you are one of the crazy pumpkin-haters (and I know you're out there), never fear, these don't taste like pumpkin, they taste like CAKE!

Vanilla Pumpkin Muffins

2 egg whites
1 box French Vanilla cake mix
1 (15 oz) can pumpkin
sanding or sparkling sugar

Preheat the oven to 350.  Lightly coat 15 or so baking liners with cooking spray or vegetable oil.  Place in a muffin tin.

Lightly beat the egg whites. Stir in the cake mix and the pumpkin.  Stir until combined.

Spoon into the prepared baking cups and top with a bit of sanding sugar for a little sparkle.  Bake for about 20 minutes, or until the tops bounce back when gently pressed.

Cool 10 minutes in the pans, then remove and cool completely on a cooling rack.

How do you like your pumpkin?  Sweet or savory?

Gluten-Free Butternut Pecan Scones

Get sconed, Babycakes, with these fab gluten-free scones.

I'm having an existential week. The kind of week where gushing about a new gluten-free scone recipe just seems kind of silly. The kind of week where irony reigns supreme on her cold and shiny throne. Yeah, I know. I could shrug it off and stuff it out of sight and soldier on. I could kick it to the back of my closet, behind the pile of ratty sneakers. I could swallow the pill of denial like a good girl and use words like tender and buttery and melt in your mouth scone goodness. Who would know the difference?

But this morning I'm just not interested.

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Gluten-Free Pumpkin Pancakes

Pumpkin pancakes with apricot jam and pepitas.

I haven't made gluten-free pancakes in a long time. I am- typically- not a big breakfast person. A solo slice of warm gluten-free toast glistening with melting peanut butter and a hot coconut milk chai usually does it for me. So what possessed me to change my routine? Why did I suddenly have a deep growling desire for pancakes?

In a word: pumpkin. My favorite cucurbit.


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Gluten-Free English Muffins

Lovely, toasty gluten-free English muffins. I kid you not.

Reprising my English muffin recipe today because yours truly is flat out down and out with ragweed allergies (I can barely think straight. And that can only lead to trouble). English muffins with peanut butter was my favorite pre-school breakfast as a kid. What was yours? And do you make it now gluten-free? xox Karina

After four attempts we have a gluten-free English muffin we can toast with pride. An English muffin worthy of jam. Worthy of peanut butter. Or a sit down breakfast. Heck, worthy of breakfast in bed. These warm and golden little babies are too crispy-tender good to munch running to the bus stop or strapped in your car, thinking about the onslaught of your daily tasks. These muffins deserve a proper plate. A mug of tea. Your Sunday morning iTunes playlist.

I'm not sure why a simple English muffin is so tricky to recreate gluten-free (and in my case, also vegan- no milk and eggs to help the stubborn gluten-free flours fluff and rise). I thought it would be a snap. So I perused Alton Brown's recipes for inspiration, found his English muffin recipe, and did a quick gluten-free casein-free conversion. It seemed doable. Although I knew from experience that using a griddle to cook gluten-free muffins would be trouble.

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Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins with Almond Flour

Tender almond flour muffins bursting with fresh blueberries.

Today I am sharing a new gluten-free muffin recipe, and a health update on my Gut Instinct post. I know, I know. Another muffin recipe? Most food bloggers are waxing poetic about grilling burgers and dyeing frosting for their red, white, and blue recipes this upcoming July Fourth weekend, but the truth is, Babycakes, I'm just not into it. I'm in such a different head space that it almost seems comical to me, reading headlines in my Inbox about the "Ultimate Burger", or how July Fourth wouldn't be a real celebration without a hunk of charred American meat or a Philly cheese dog. 

Um. What? 

Wasn't Benjamin Franklin a vegetarian?

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Gluten-Free Blueberry Crumb Cake Recipe

Blueberry crumb cake- gluten-free summer goodness.

Blueberries are in season so I thought I'd reprise a favorite recipe of mine. A tender blueberry crumb cake. Perfect for sharing with a friend.

And a glimpse back. Blogging is like a time machine. You get to thumb through not only recipes but bits of life and places you no longer inhabit. A year ago we were stuck in New Mexico, chained to Ojo Caliente by the unraveling real estate market, watching our nest egg crack and wither and blow in the dust to oblivion.  A year ago I wrote this post about coming to Santa Monica. ~Karina

Sometimes in life- when you least expect it- the stars are kind. Synchronicity smiles. And disparate pieces of your dreams bump up against one another and nestle snug into place. I'm referring, of course, to my dream of California. Summer by the Pacific, walking the beach, shopping the Farmers' Market, reuniting with my sons. Cooking. Writing. Haunting book stores and coffee shops.

I've been trying to get there for two years.

No, the house hasn't sold yet. But Plan B is under way. We found the elusive summer rental. Just when I thought it wasn't going to happen. A sublet in Santa Monica. In the nick of time. A lovely, light filled creative space. With a sweet kitchen. So I am back to making lists, mapping our drive south to Flagstaff, AZ, turning west to aim for the coast. I am lying in the dark alert, at 3 AM, pondering not the mysteries of the collective unconscious, not the properties of desire and effect, quantum attraction and Zen detachment, but favorite flavors of chocolate chip cookies. I am imagining herbed sandwich wraps (recipe soon!). Bags of salted popcorn. iTunes playlists. And this, a new blueberry cake recipe I felt inspired to bake. With a cinnamon crumb topping.

I think it's perfect to pack for a two-day road trip, don't you? Or even a two minute trip, scooting across the back yard barefoot to visit your best friend and neighbor. She'll make the coffee. Or iced chai. While you unrap the cake you get to eat, too.

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Quinoa Breakfast Bars with Blueberries

Quinoa flakes make a delicious gluten-free breakfast bar.

For those who live gluten-free and also oatmeal-free (yes, Darling, there's more than a few of us who don't respond well to either the fiber or the protein in certified gluten-free oats) I have good news. Quinoa cereal flakes are enough like oatmeal that I use them in baking recipes as a tasty, nutritious alternative to gluten-free oats. 

I love the nutty, complex taste quinoa flakes bring to a sweet recipe. 

I hope you do, too.

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