Thin Mints

I just got my hands on The Ultimate Gluten-Free Cookie Book  By Roben Ryberg, and I'll have to say that at first I was more than skeptical about her single flour philosophy in gluten free baking.  All of the cook books I have use for gluten free baking require several flours, mixed to achieve the desired consistency to effectively mimic wheat flour, but not Ms. Ryberg.  She says that instead of trying to create a wheat flour replacement, look to the qualities of the flour you are using and accentuate them.  Intrigued I was.  Although I must confess I didn't think it would work.

Ingredients

1/3 Cup Canola oil
1/4 Cup sugar
1 Cup brown rice flour
1/3 Cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 Egg
1/8 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 tsp xanthan gum
1 tsp vanilla extract

Chocolate coating
12 chocolate (I used enjoy life chips)
2 Tbs. powdered sugar
1/2 tsp mint extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper.
In the bowl of your electric mixer, combine oil and sugar, beat well.  Add the brown rice flour and and beat well.  Scrape down the sides of the mixing bowl at least once during mixing.  Add the remaining batter ingredients and beat well.  Continue beating until the dough comes together, it will be soft and oily to the touch.

Roll out the dough to 1/8 inch thickness.  Use 1 1/2 inch round cookie cutter to cut the cookies and place them on the prepared pan.  Bake the cookies for 8 to 9 minutes, until the tops are dry.  Let cool well before coating: the cookies will be crisp upon cooling.

In the book she uses the microwave for making the coating.  But I prefer the results of a double boiler.  Combine all ingredients for the coating in the double boiler, and set your burner on medium.  While the chocolate melts, prepare your cooled cookie sheets with wax paper.  When all the chocolate has melted, and when mixed is smooth and silky, you are ready for coating!  I used tongs to dip the cookies into the chocolate, then a butter knife to remove the excess before resting the dipped cookie on the wax paper.  After all the coating was done, I put the in the refrigerator to harden.  

Recipe adapted from The Ultimate Gluten-free Cookie Book by Roben Ryberg

So, these cookies where a major hit.  I'm sure it had something to do with the fact that they were dipped in minty chocolate, but I am now a believer in the single flour recipe.  It makes gluten-free  baking more accessible for people who want to try it out.  

Sunday dessert: French Apple Tart gluten & dairy free

Hello friends, another week has rolled by, and its time for something sweet for Sunday dessert.  My family always gets together on Sunday, and dessert is my department.  I love the challenge of experimenting with new recipes and trying to WOW everyone with my skills.

Baked Apple desserts selections have always been a favorite of mine.  They are inherently comforting, and, well, delicious.  

Ah yes, but we must start at the beginning, with {of course} the crust!

Flaky Pastry

1 C basic gluten free baking mix ( I used the Bob's Red Mill one)

2 Tbs. white rice flour

1 1/2 tsp sugar

1/4 tsp salt

6 Tbs. Earth balance (+ a little extra for buttering the pan)

1 Egg

1 Tbs. lemon juice

Put ingredients in the food processor in order listed, and pulse until the mixture holds together.  Remove from food processor, and form into a flat cake.  Cover and refrigerate if it is too soft to roll out.  

Roll out pastry between two sheets of parchment lightly dusted with rice flour.  Fit rolled out crust into buttered tart pan.  

French Apple Tart

1 recipe Flaky Pastry 

6 Granny Smith Apples, peeled, cored, and sliced into 1/4" slices

1 Tbs. Lemon juice

2 Tbs cognac (optional) 

1 Tbs. melted Earth Balance

1 Cup peach preserves, melted and strained

Vanilla So Delicious coconut ice cream

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Put the apple slices into a bowl.  Toss them with the lemon juice and the cognac.  Arrange the apple slices in concentric circles on the pastry, overlapping slightly.  Whisk the melted butter and any juices from the apples left in the bowl into the warm preserves.  At the start of baking, and every 10 minutes during the baking, brush the apples with the preserves mixture.  

Bake on the middle rack for 45 minutes or until the apples are brown and soft when pierced with the tip of a sharp paring knife.  Be careful not to over cook the apples.  Serve with a scoop of the Vanilla coconut ice cream. 

recipe adapted from Gluten-Free Baking by Rebecca Reilly