Gluten Free Chocolate Donut Muffins

Gluten Free Chocolate Donut Muffins

Today, I tried a new recipe that I found online for gluten free chocolate donuts or muffins.  Before you look at the ingredients, let me tell you that this is not a "healthy" recipe.  It is a decadent recipe.  One for special people and special occasions.  It does not have gluten, but, it does have heavy cream.  I used Kinnikinick All Purpose Gluten Free Flour Mix for the gluten free flour.  Also, I halved the recipe, added 1/4 cup of mini chocolate chips, and it made 10 small muffins.  The bake time was much longer than the original recipe.  They took 14 minutes, not the 8 minutes it states in the original recipe.  Maybe in a donut pan it takes only 8 minutes.  Hope you like it!

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Chocolate Doughnut Muffins – Gluten Free

Yield:  10 small muffins

slightly adapted from GlutenFreeOnAShoestring 

Ingredients

3/4 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour

1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

3 Tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

3/4 teaspoon baking powder

1/8 teaspoon baking soda

1/8 teaspoon cream of tartar

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1/4 cup mini chocolate chips

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled

2 Tablespoons canola oil

1 large egg

3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

7 Tablespoons heavy cream

1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar

1/2 Tablespoon unsweetened cocoa powder

1 1/2 - 2 teaspoons milk

drop of vanilla extract

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350° F. Prepare muffin tin with 10 paper liners or spray with PAM.
2. In a large bowl, whisk together flour,  xanthan gum, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt and nutmeg,  Whisk in chocolate chips.
3. In a small bowl, combine brown sugar, butter, oil, egg, vanilla, and cream.
4. Add wet to dry ingredients and stir just to combine.
5. Scoop batter into prepared muffin tin, fill about 1/2 - 3/4 full.
6. Bake for about 14-16 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean.
7. Transfer to a wire rack to cool.
8. To make the glaze, in a small bowl, whisk together confectioner's sugar, cocoa, 1 teaspoon of milk and the vanilla.  Add a little more milk (1/2 teaspoon at a time) until desired consistency.
9. Gently pull back paper liners and drizzle glaze over the muffins.
10. Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Cookies with Coconut - no gluten, dairy or eggs

chocolate chip cookies with coconut - gluten, dairy and egg free

I've been working on this recipe for over a week and I am finally ready to share.  Today, I made these cookies as bar cookies and sliced them into the triangles you see above.  Of course, you can scoop them into traditional round cookies, too.  This recipe uses rice flour, but, you could use regular all purpose flour if you do not need to be gluten free.  If you don't like coconut, don't try this recipe.  The warm cookies are reminiscent of a Mounds chocolate candy in cookie form.  The golden edges are crispy and the center is a little soft and chewy.  Bake them longer for extra crispy, less for extra chewy.  I know some of you might resist the corn syrup.  But, just like in pecan pie, corn syrup provides that extra special textural component that no other sweetener can do.  And, if you don't want to use the coffee, simply substitute a Tablespoon of whatever liquid you prefer, almond, soy or coconut milk would be great.

Thanks for visiting the Americus Garden Inn blog.  Hope to see you soon.
Love,
Susan

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies with Coconut (no egg, no dairy and no gluten)

Yield:  12 cookies

3/4 cup rice flour

1/4 teaspoon baking powder

pinch salt

1/4 cup shredded sweetened coconut

1/4 cup chocolate chips

1/4 cup coconut oil

1/3 cup packed light brown sugar

1 Tablespoon corn syrup

1 Tablespoon hot coffee

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
3. In a small bowl, whisk together rice flour, baking powder and salt.  Add coconut and chips.  Mix and set aside.
4. In a medium bowl, mix the coconut oil, brown sugar, corn syrup, coffee, and vanilla with a rubber spatula, stir until completely combined.
5. Stir dry into wet ingredients, using rubber spatula stir until combined.
6. Scoop the dough into 12 equal portions and press into shape on prepared cookie sheet.  (Or, press dough into an 8 x 8 square pan, lined with parchment)
7. Bake for 10 – 14 minutes or until golden around the edges.  Cookies will still be soft.
8. Cool on cookie sheet for five minutes, then remove to a cooling rack to cool completely. They will crisp up as they cool.  (If baking in 8 x 8 pan, using parchment paper, carefully remove from pan on parchment paper after the 5 minutes cooling time and cut into desired shapes while still warm and soft)

Orange Praline Muffins Recipe

Orange Praline Muffins

The flavors of orange and pecan go so well together.  I've had the original recipe for Orange Praline Bread for quite some time.  It was on the Land O Lakes website.  I decided to try the recipe for muffins instead and, of course, I had to add whole wheat.  The orange flavor was predominant as the recipe calls for quite a bit of orange zest.  I also made a little more glaze than the original recipe as I wanted to make sure each muffin had enough of "the good stuff".  Kim, as the official taste-tester, said he would prefer these as muffintops as the best part is the praline topping.  I'll have to try that next time.  Or, if you try it, let me know how it turns out for you.

Orange Praline Muffins

Muffins

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 large egg

1/2 Tablespoon orange zest

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup sugar

1/2 cup chopped pecans

Glaze

1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar

1/4 cup butter

3 Tablespoons finely chopped pecans

• Preheat oven to 350°F.  Spray 10 muffin cups with nonstick spray.
• In a small bowl, whisk flours, baking powder, baking soda and salt.
• In a large bowl, mix sour cream, melted butter, egg, orange zest, vanilla and sugar until combined.
• Add dry ingredients mixing just until moistened.
• Stir in 1/2 cup pecans.
• Spoon batter evenly into 10 muffin cups.
• Bake for 18 - 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean.
• Cool 5 minutes and remove from pans to a cooling rack covered with a piece of waxed paper.
• In a small saucepan, mix brown sugar and 1/4 cup butter, stirring until well combined.
• Cook over medium heat until mixture comes to a boil (3 to 4 minutes).
• Spoon glaze mixture over warm muffins (or dip muffin tops in glaze) and immediately sprinkle with remaining pecans.
• Allow “praline” to set and ENJOY!

Click her for the Original recipe 

Banana Pancakes with Caramel Banana Syrup

Banana Pancakes with Caramel Banana Syrup

I recently rediscovered one of my old favorite recipes - Banana Pancakes with Caramel Banana Syrup. When I subscribed to Bon Appétit magazine, years ago, I would read each issue cover to cover looking for ideas.  This recipe is from November 2005.  I have slightly adapted the recipe by adding whole wheat flour, salt and baking powder as the original recipe used self-rising flour.  The pancakes are delicious without the syrup, but, the syrup it what makes you say "WOW!"

Banana Pancakes with Caramel Banana Syrup

Yield:  4 servings

Syrup:

1/4 cup butter, melted

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 cup water

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 large bananas cut into 1/4” rounds

Pancakes:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 Tablespoon baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

2 cups buttermilk

2 large eggs

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 banana, mashed

1/4 cup butter, melted

For syrup:

1. Combine melted butter, brown sugar, and 1/4 cup water in a large skillet.
2. Boil over medium-high heat until mixture thickens slightly, about 2 minutes.
3. Stir in vanilla extract and sliced bananas. Remove syrup from heat.

For pancakes:

1. Whisk flours, baking powder and salt in large bowl.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk buttermilk, eggs, brown sugar and mashed banana.
3. Stir banana mixture into dry ingredients just until combined.
4. Fold in melted butter.
5. Cook pancakes until golden, about 2 minutes per side.
6. Serve pancakes with heated caramel-banana syrup.

Adapted from:  http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Banana-Pancakes-with-Caramel-Banana-Syrup-233140

Thanks for visiting the Americus Garden Inn Bed and Breakfast blog.  Hope you'll visit again, soon.

Lemon Blueberry Cornmeal Pancakes - Gluten Free

Lemon Blueberry Cornmeal Pancakes

With the abundance of organic local blueberries, I have been trying every variation of blueberry pancakes I can think of.  I have quite a cookbook collection and went through them in search of something special.  I found quite a few variations on a theme combining lemon, blueberries and cornmeal.  After several attempts with varying methods and proportions, this recipe emerged as the clear winner.  You can use regular flour, but, the gluten free version is superior.  Yes, you read correctly, the gluten free version is better than the wheat flour version.  Here's the  exact recipe I used.  Try it and let me know how it turns out for you.

Lemon Blueberry Cornmeal Pancakes – gluten free

Serves 2 - 3

Juice from 1 whole lemon (about 2 Tablespoons)

7 ounces milk (approximately)

3/4 cup Namaste gluten free Perfect Flour Blend

1/3 cup yellow cornmeal

2 Tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
Pinch salt

2 Tablespoons butter, melted

1 teaspoon vanilla

Zest from 1 whole lemon (about 1 Tablespoon)
1 egg, separated

Blueberries, fresh or frozen

• Squeeze lemon juice into a measuring cup.  Add milk to make 1 cup.  Set aside for 10 minutes. (Yes, the milk will curdle and get very thick.)
• In a medium bowl, sift together dry ingredients.
• In a medium bowl, combine lemon juice milk mixture, melted butter, vanilla, egg yolk, and lemon zest.
• Add wet to dry ingredients, stir just to bring mixture together.
• In a separate bowl, beat egg white until shiny and firm, but not dry.
• Gently fold egg white into batter.
• Scoop batter onto preheated, greased griddle and immediately sprinkle with desired amount of blueberries.
• When bubbles start to appear and pancakes are golden, flip and cook other side.
• Serve with butter and maple syrup.

Thank you so much for visiting the Americus Garden Inn Bed and Breakfast.  We hope you'll visit again, soon.

Blueberry Johnnycakes

Blueberry Johnnycakes

With the abundance of beautiful blueberries this year, I have been revisiting old favorite recipes.  This recipe was one of the first that I shared with guests almost 11 years ago, blueberry johnnycakes.  What are johnnycakes, you might ask?  It is one of the many names given to cornmeal pancakes.  According to what I've read, the early American settlers learned from the Native American Indians how to make flat bread from cornmeal.  It is suggested that cornmeal pancakes traveled well and were called journeycakes, which came to be known as johnnycakes.

Now that you know the history of the word, let me tell you what makes this recipe special.  The combination of whole wheat with the cornmeal gives a wonderful texture and the use of molasses gives a distinctive taste.  I hope you'll enjoy this recipe as much as our guests do.

Blueberry Johnnycakes

1/3 cup all purpose flour

1/3 cup whole wheat flour

1/3 cup yellow cornmeal

2 Tablespoons sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

Pinch salt

1 cup buttermilk

2 Tablespoons molasses

1 egg

2 Tablespoons melted butter

1 pint fresh or frozen blueberries 

1. Whisk dry ingredients together in a medium bowl.
2. Whisk wet ingredients together in a medium bowl.
3. Mix wet with dry just until combined.
4. Spread about ¼ cup batter per pancake on hot, greased griddle.  Immediately, place 6 – 7 blueberries onto batter.
5. Cook until golden, turn and cook other side until done.
6. Enjoy with a little butter and maple syrup.

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Pina Colada Muffins

Pina Colada Muffin

I was looking for a new muffin recipe and came across a recipe for Pina Colada Muffins on the Welcome Home blog.  Marty has been sharing her mother's recipes along with some beautiful inspirational messages.  I did make just a couple of changes to her recipe.  I substituted coconut oil for the butter, I used drained crushed pineapple in place of the chunked pineapple and I omitted the coconut extract.  Because I used the crushed pineapple, I mixed the pineapple into the wet ingredients before mixing all ingredients together.  The result was a delicious, moist, beautiful muffin.  Hope you like it.  Please visit Marty on facebook and let her know I sent you!  And, thanks, Marty, for a great recipe.

PINA COLADA MUFFINS
Yield:  12 muffins

3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup whole wheat flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 heaping cup sugar
1/2 cup sweetened coconut flakes
2 eggs, room temperature
1 cup buttermilk, room temperature
4 tablespoons butter, melted
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/4 teaspoon coconut extract
1 cup canned pineapple chunks, drained

Preheat oven to 350 degrees and put muffins liners in muffin tin. Take out buttermilk and eggs, so they can come to room temperature. In a large bowl, mix together flours, salt, baking powder, sugar, and coconut flakes. Set aside.

In a medium-sized bowl, whisk together eggs, buttermilk, butter, vanilla, and coconut extract. Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Don’t over mix or your muffins will be dry. Chop pineapple chunks to make mini chunks and then gently fold into muffin batter. Again, folding just enough to distribute pineapple bits. Sprinkle top with a little coconut that will toast during baking time.

Bake for about 25 minutes or until the tops of the muffins feel set when gently pressed. Cool a few minutes in the tin and then transfer to a wire rack to cool completely. 

http://www.welcome-home-blog.net/2013/06/pina-colada-muffins.html

Pina Colada Muffins