absolutely positively DELICIOUS maple cinnamon buns

These are amazing. AMAZING. I really wish I had a great camera to take pictures, or even better, a way to send one of these yummy cinnamon rolls over the internet and onto the desk in front of you. Everyone needs to be able to enjoy these :)

This recipe is adapted from the Pioneer Woman's Cinnamon Rolls - they work so well as GF!

**I had the recipe for these typed up ages ago but unfortunately my hard drive is failing. So it's taken me a bit longer to finally post this.

courtesy of the Pioneer Woman Cooks!

Maple Cinnamon Buns

Ingredients

2 cups Milk (I always use Almond Milk, original)
1/2 cup Vegetable oil
1/2 cup Sugar (You can use whatever kind of sugar, I love brown sugar!)
1 package Active Dry Yeast (7g)
5 cups GF flour blend (I used the usual Mama's Almond Blend but I really like using a corn meal blend...more experimenting and then a blog post to follow!)
1/2 teaspoon (heaping) Baking Powder
1/2 teaspoon (scant) Baking Soda
1/2 Tablespoon (heaping) Salt
2 Tablespoons Flax seed Meal
Boiling Water
Plenty Of Melted Butter (I use whatever dairy free one I can find - Currently I like Shedd's Willow Run)
More Sugar
Lots Of Cinnamon

MAPLE GLAZE:
1/2 bag Powdered Sugar
2 teaspoons Maple Syrup
1/4 cup Milk
1/8 cup Melted Butter
1/8 cup Brewed Coffee
Pinch of Salt

For the rolls: Mix the milk, vegetable oil and sugar in a pan. Heat until just before the boiling point then turn off the heat and let it cool for 45 minutes to an hour. When it is lukewarm to the touch sprinkle in the Active Dry Yeast and let it sit for a few minutes.

While the yeast mixture sits boil a cup or two of water and then add a few tablespoons to the flax seed. This is your binding agent (I made this recipe without the flax seed, oops,and they still came out quite delicious! Just very crumbly). I usually use about 2 to 3 tablespoons, sometimes more. After sitting for a few minutes the consistency should be almost like Elmer's glue. Hehe.

Add 4 cups of flour to the yeast mixture along with the flax seed slurry and stir everything together. Cover it and let it rise for about an hour. After an hour add 1 more cup of flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. If you don't need the dough right away you can store it in the fridge overnight.

To make the rolls: sprinkle surface with flour (I usually use corn meal). Roll the dough out on the floured surface into a rectangle making the dough as thin as you would like (sometimes I enjoy mine a bit thicker!) Drizzle the melted butter (about a quarter to half a stick) over the dough and spread it out. Sprinkle a generous amount of sugar followed by cinnamon over the dough.

In a jelly roll fashion, roll the dough up (hot dog style) and pinch the seam to seal it. Cut the rolls about an inch thick and lay them into a cake or pie pan (spray the pan with nonstick cooking spray or use a bit of melted butter to coat the pan). I use a spring loaded pie pan that fits all the rolls. If you cut them smaller you may need two pans or a brownie pan.

Let the rolls rise for about 30 minutes then bake at 375 - 400 degrees for 15-18 minutes. They should be golden brown on top.

For the glaze: Mix together all the ingredients until smooth. I make mine a bit runnier than I normally would with a glaze so sometimes a splash more of milk is needed. I also add more coffee or maple syrup depending on how I feel that day. Pour over the rolls while they are still quite warm.

It may seem like a lot of glaze but trust me, those babies will soak it up and that is exactly what makes these buns so delicious.

chicken and pancakes :)

Last night I had a craving for pancakes and Matt had the brilliant idea to make chicken and waffles. Well I unfortunately don't have a waffle maker so we settled for pancakes. After searching the internet for a good GF-DF pancake recipe (the previous one I used wasn't that great) I got started. I didn't have a few of the ingredients and I messed up some of the measurements so after some playing around I came up with a good looking batter. OMG. The first pancake was PERFECT. Just like gluten pancakes. About halfway through the batter I had to sprinkle some more baking soda into the batter as they weren't bubbling up as much but I think my baking soda is a bit old. Other than that they were delicious!! I read that the creator of the original recipe has used a couple of different blends of GF flours and they always come out the same. I think this recipe is pretty foolproof and would work well with adding some nutmeg, cinnamon, nuts, fruit, etc.

Fluffy Pancakes

Ingredients
1 ¼ c. any dairy free milk
1 egg
1 T. honey or a little agave syrup
1 T. water
1/8 t. salt
3 t. baking powder
½ t. baking soda
2 c. GF flour blend
OPTIONAL - 1 t. cinnamon and/or nutmeg. any fruits or nuts are also yummy. (banana chocolate chip is by far the BEST!)

Directions
Preheat a pan or griddle to medium-high heat. You'll want it nice and hot before you drop the batter onto it. Put the ingredients into a bowl in the order listed and mix well with a whisk. Spray your pan with cooking spray and pour about a 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake. This makes a nice medium sized pancake. Cook on one side until the sides start to set and bubbles form all over. Flip and cook another 2 minutes or so on the other side. I like for both sides to be golden brown.
If you are not planning on eating them right off the griddle you can heat the oven to 350, turn it off, and place the pancakes in the warm oven on a baking sheet. Any leftover pancakes can also be frozen and then toasted whenever you want one!

What about the GF fried chicken recipe? Sorry but that's Matt's secret recipe :)

The BEST gluten free toast!

So in trying to find an amazing sandwich bread I came up with a recipe that turns out an AWESOME loaf of bread for toast! I play around with this recipe almost every time I make it and it always comes out yummy so don't be afraid to experiment! Sometimes I use applesauce and hot water instead of beer, just depends on what is in my fridge/pantry!

Honey White Toast

Ingredients:
3 ¼ cups of Gluten Free All Purpose Flour
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp Flax seed Meal
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 packet (7g) of bread machine yeast
¼ cup Honey (about 76g)
2 eggs
½ cup of gluten free beer or club soda (the beer keeps the bread moist for longer)
Hot but not Boiling Water

Directions:
Sift together the dry ingredients. Using a mixer on a slow speed add honey and eggs. Stream in the beer and beat on high speed for 3-5 minutes. The dough should be like thick cake batter (very similar to quick breads). If the dough/batter is dry add some of the hot water. Pour into a bread pan and let rise for 90-120 minutes. Do not let the bread rise longer than 2 hours!! The bread should rise just over the top of the pan. Bake for 45 min or until golden brown on top at 350 degrees F. Transfer bread onto a baking sheet or pizza stone and bake for additional 15mins. Bread should sound hollow when thumped on the bottom.

Next time I'll have to post my great-grandmothers banana bread recipe. It is the BEST banana bread you will ever taste, and guess what?? It tastes even better gluten and dairy free!

just a quick one...

I've been doing a lot of baking lately but have yet to post the recipes. I'm really waiting for a camera so I can get some pictures posted as well but it doesn't look like I'm going to have anything but some pictures off a phone. Anywho, here is my latest chocolate addiction :)

No Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

(I really need to come up with some original names!)

1/2 stick of butter or 1/4 cup of oil (i used olive oil but i would love to try sunflower oil!)
1/2 cup of cocoa
1/4 cup of brown sugar
drizzle of agave nectar
1/2 cup of peanut butter
1/4 - 1/2 cups of milk

3 cups of oatmeal

Directions

Melt the butter with the brown sugar in a saucepan on medium heat. Add the cocoa, agave nectar, and milk. Finally add the peanut butter and stir until smooth.

Remove from heat and line a baking sheet or two with wax paper. In a mixing bowl with a spoon combine the chocolate mixture with the oatmeal. If it seems too wet, add more oatmeal. Using an ice cream scoop drop onto the wax paper and put them in the fridge to set. I store mine in large plastic bags in the fridge as well.

The awesome thing about this recipe is that you can play with the amount of each ingredient. I have made this three times now (I usually half the recipe) and each time I change it up. They always come out yummy so don't be afraid to experiment!

gums VS seeds

I have been reading alot of gluten and dairy free blogs online and I am just amazed at what I find. Many gluten free recipes call for xanathan or guar gum. Most people will tell you that you cannot make a gluten free recipe, especially bread, without them. Thankfully, one of the first blogs I came across, The Gluten Free Girl and The Chef, uses flax or chia seeds instead. I opted to use flaxseed, as it has great health benefits, and started googling why it worked just as well.

(**disclaimer** I use Wikipedia quite often for my researching as a starting point. Despite the negative image it sometimes has I for one find it very helpful.)

THE GUMS:

• Xanathan gum as described by Wikipedia, "It is produced by fermentation of glucose, sucrose, or lactose by the Xanthomonas campestris bacterium. After a fermentation period, the polysaccharide is precipitated from a growth medium with isopropyl alcohol, dried, and ground into a fine powder. Later, it is added to a liquid medium to form the gum." There are a few things wrong with this. First off - it can be derived from lactose. Not good if you are dairy-free. Secondly, there are a few words in there I can not pronounce nor do I have any idea what they are. I would prefer not to put this in my body, thank you. (**I have noticed a HUGE difference lately in my body when I eat very clean and healthy foods. The first few weeks were definitely an adjustment period but now I crave foods that are much better for me.**)


Another website, http://www.xanthangum.org/, notes that xanathan gum comes from the same bacteria that makes leafy vegetables rot. Let me repeat this: the bacteria forms that nasty slimy gunk on rotting leafy vegetables. Ew. Sure it may be 'natural', but are we not told to throw lettuce away when it looks like that???


• Guar Gum comes from guar beans. Thats definitely better than a sugar-y bacteria. Wikipedia explains that guar gum has a much higher water thickening potency than cornstarch so only a small amount is needed. Now that's pretty cool, right? Wrong. The medicinal effects? "Guar gum is a water-soluble fiber that acts as a bulk forming laxative, and as such, it is claimed to be effective in promoting regular bowel movements and relieve constipation and chronic related functional bowel ailments". That's right, it's used as a laxative.
  

THE SEEDS:
Okay so guar gum honestly doesn't look to be all that bad, minus the laxative effect if too much is used. But where are the health benefits?? If you are looking to stay 'regular' in the bathroom flaxseeds are a much better option.

• Flaxseeds contain high fiber, Omega-3's, lignan, and are low in carbs. They help regulate your digestive system, battle inflammation, and stabilize your blood sugar. There are so many healthy components to this tiny seed its almost unbelievable! Web MD has a great article on flaxseeds with all the health benefits. But how do these amazing little seeds act as a 'gluten'? Flaxseed is a lesser used hydrocolloid - which acts like a gelatin in water. Both xanathan and guar gums are also hydrocolloids. So why not use the one that has more health benefits?
  A recent article I came across on Food Navigator USA talks about mixing flaxseed with maize starch to form a gum. The part that I found interesting is that the mixture, especially with a higher content of flaxseed, acted better under cooler temperatures. That would be why the dough always becomes more pliable after sitting in the fridge for a bit.
  



• Chia seeds (yes they are the same seeds as the infamous 'chia pets') are my most recent study and I would love to start using them in my baking. Chia seeds have similar benefits as flax and naturally curb hunger. They have high levels of Omega-3's, contain 20 percent protein, 34 percent oil, 25 percent dietary fiber, and lots of antioxidents. Just a tablespoon or two of chia will give you a huge boost of energy that lasts for almost 90 minutes! Many marathon runners eat chia seeds as they are great fuel for endurance. Google search chia seeds and you will find many health benefits.
  

The conclusion? Seeds have much better health benefits for you. Why use anything else?

first loaf ever!

For my very first loaf I decided to make one of my favorite bread machine breads - Cinnamon Raisin. When my mother actually used our bread machine this was the bread I remember devouring as soon as it was cool enough to slice. So yummy.

After doing a lot of research I decided to use a recipe I found on Gluten Free Girl and the Chef. She has a lot of good information on baking gluten free (GF) breads and how to make a good all-purpose GF flour. Unfortunately my financial situation does not allow me to buy multiple flours so I went with a pre-made blend from the Gluten Free Mama. Its made of White Rice Flour, Tapioca Flour, Potato Starch, Sweet Rice Flour, and Almond Meal.

The recipe I have is all measured in grams and for this first loaf I was so afraid that it would overflow so I ended up halving the recipe. The first half was awful. Very dense and dry. I decided to add more water to the second half and it actually came out much nicer. However, I forgot the raisins the second time around. So it ended up just being cinnamon bread which actually formed an awesome idea from Matt to make french toast. Using an egg and almond milk we soaked the pieces and cooked them on a skillet. I didn't have any maple syrup so we sprinkled them with a little bit of sugar and some more cinnamon and then a small amount of honey to top it all off. DELICIOUS! So so good.

Cinnamon (Raisin) Bread (adapted from the Gluten Free Girl)
**made in an old school bread machine**

30 grams ground flax seed meal
60 grams boiling-hot water

1 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
115 grams water

570 grams GF all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt

2 large eggs
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

FIRST mix together boiling water and flax seed. Set aside to cool.

SECOND heat 115 grams of water to 100 degrees Fahrenheit. Whisk with yeast and sugar; set aside in a warm place for about 8-15 mins.

THIRD mix together flour and salt.

FOURTH beat the eggs with the Apple Cider Vinegar. Mix in flax seed and yeasty water.

FIFTH pour wet ingredients into your bread machine pan, add 115 grams of more warm water, and dry ingredients on top of that.

SIXTH turn your bread maker on and go enjoy your day until it's finished baking! (my bread machine suggests using the basic bread setting with a lighter crust for all GF breads. I have yet to experiment. My bread machine is also so old that the company that makes it no longer exists. ha) During the kneading cycles, check on the bread and add water if it looks too dry. GF dough is a bit more sticky than regular dough.

Now if you know anything about GF breads or baking most people will tell you that you MUST use xanathan or guar gum. Do you even know what those are??? Stay tuned for my next post about those and why I use flax seed instead.

And why am I up at 3am you ask?? Just waiting on my next loaf of bread to finish! It's just a plain old loaf of bread that will hopefully be good for sandwiches.

lucky i'm in love with my best friend, lucky to have been where i have been, lucky to be coming home again

Most of my free time lately is spent researching gluten and dairy free lifestyles. And it made me come up with a brilliant idea.

I'm going to open a gluten and dairy free bakery.

As most people know, I've wanted a bakery for a long time. And now I know exactly what I want to do with it. I just need to start baking.

When you are living a gluten and dairy free lifestyle it is extremely difficult to find even the most basic of grocery items. I'm also surprised that I find so many gluten free items but they contain dairy. One thing I've learned is that most gluten intolerant individuals or those with Celiac disease are also intolerant to lactose or even allergic to milk (casein). So I'm going to have a bakery that covers the basics (breads, sweets, etc.). Of course I can't resist yummy items, but I want to help people stock their pantry's without worry. Honestly, shopping in a grocery store has become a nightmare. Not only because practically everything has either gluten or dairy in it but also because there are also so many additives and preservatives in food.

Currently I'm buying frozen bread. Gluten free breads usually contain one preservative (as a mold inhibitor) and so they must be frozen to keep it fresh. After being frozen the bread tastes gross when thawed, and is only good toasted. This is why I'm making my own. I'm buying ingredients in bulk and going to be able to make up to 50 loaves of bread in 6 months and saving hundreds of dollars by doing so (thank you Matt for doing the math). My mother is lending me her bread maker, which is a life saver considering I only have a hand mixer. Maybe I'll win that Kitchenaid....

I'm so excited to start baking and moving into the new apartment is all part of that. But whats even more exciting is the future that lies ahead....I've been dreaming of the Colorado Rockies :)