Yes, one of the things when I became allergic to wheat that I missed the most at Thanksgiving was stuffing. It seems mundane, but it's actually the starchy side that holds everything together. So, I was so delighted when I thought to replace it with a wonderful southern classic that is naturally gluten-free - Spoonbread! Some people have alternative recipes that are sometimes referred to as corn pudding or other names, but this version is pretty foolproof:
http://www.saveur.com/article/Recipes/Boone-Taverns-Spoonbread
If you want to get fancy (which I did,) I'd recommend two extra steps - whip the egg whites separately and fold them into the mixture to get extra height, like a souffle, and add a touch of maple syrup to give it the old-pioneer-days sweetness that really makes it taste like "Thanksgiving." I also add a touch less butter as I'm casein-sensitive and the recipe didn't suffer. Serve with some sugared cranberries and extra maple syrup on the side.
Enjoy! And Happy Thanksgiving!
Thursday, November 28, 2013
Sunday, September 15, 2013
Vegan, Dairy-Free Caramels? Yes please! Glenn's Coconut Caramels
Coconut Salted Caramels (Vegan)This take on the classic salted caramel replaces the milk fat of butter and cream with coconut. You will need a candy thermometer.
Ingredients:
⦁ 1 can full-fat coconut milk (refrigerated)
⦁ 1/4 cup coconut oil (we use virgin for more coconut flavor).
⦁ 1 tsp. sea salt.
⦁ 1 1/2 cup sugar.
⦁ 1/4 cup light corn syrup
⦁ 1/4 cup water
Instructions:
1. Spray an 8-inch pan with cooking spray or oil, line with parchment baking paper, and then spray the surface of the paper. Fit the liner to the pan by tracing the bottom of the pan on the paper, and then notching out the corners outside of the square. This lets the paper fold up the sides without overlapping or rising out of the pan.
2. Open the refrigerated can of coconut milk and spoon all of the solidified "cream" portion from the top of the can into a microwave safe bowl, add the coconut oil and salt, then microwave for ~30 sec to 1 minute until melted. Stir the mixture until uniform and set aside for later.
3. In a large, heavy saucepan, heat the water, sugar and corn syrup over high heat until the desired caramel color is achieved.
Once the sugar has dissolved, don't stir the liquid, just swirl the pan; vigorous stirring can cause the sugar to crystalize. For regular caramels, we usually go slightly past the point where the sugar mixture starts to turn a reddish-golden color and gives off a bit of smoke. A coconut caramel can't handle this much caramel flavor, so we usually take the caramelization process to where the sugar just darkens into the red range but hasn't yet started to smoke.
4. As soon as the desired color is reached, carefully add the cream mixture to the hot sugar, stirring continuously with a long spoon.
***Folks, we aren't kidding about the long spoon. Adding the cream mixture (which contains water) to the hot sugar rapidly generates a lot of steam, which will burn your fingers good if you are too close while pouring and stirring.
5. Continue to stir the mixture as you reheat it to 248°F (120°C), which is just above "soft ball" temperature on your candy thermometer, then immediately remove this very hot molten caramel from the heat and pour into the parchment-lined pan.
6. Allow to fully cool to room temperature, which takes several hours, then cut into squares.
Squares work very well, because they can be individually wrapped in squares of waxed paper and used for snacking at parties, as gift bag stuffers, or you can unwrap and melt them to make a caramel sauce or a caramel macchiato. We use a sturdy pizza cutter to cut the caramel sheet, as a knife often doesn't "cut it."
Ingredients:
⦁ 1 can full-fat coconut milk (refrigerated)
⦁ 1/4 cup coconut oil (we use virgin for more coconut flavor).
⦁ 1 tsp. sea salt.
⦁ 1 1/2 cup sugar.
⦁ 1/4 cup light corn syrup
⦁ 1/4 cup water
Instructions:
1. Spray an 8-inch pan with cooking spray or oil, line with parchment baking paper, and then spray the surface of the paper. Fit the liner to the pan by tracing the bottom of the pan on the paper, and then notching out the corners outside of the square. This lets the paper fold up the sides without overlapping or rising out of the pan.
2. Open the refrigerated can of coconut milk and spoon all of the solidified "cream" portion from the top of the can into a microwave safe bowl, add the coconut oil and salt, then microwave for ~30 sec to 1 minute until melted. Stir the mixture until uniform and set aside for later.
3. In a large, heavy saucepan, heat the water, sugar and corn syrup over high heat until the desired caramel color is achieved.
Once the sugar has dissolved, don't stir the liquid, just swirl the pan; vigorous stirring can cause the sugar to crystalize. For regular caramels, we usually go slightly past the point where the sugar mixture starts to turn a reddish-golden color and gives off a bit of smoke. A coconut caramel can't handle this much caramel flavor, so we usually take the caramelization process to where the sugar just darkens into the red range but hasn't yet started to smoke.
4. As soon as the desired color is reached, carefully add the cream mixture to the hot sugar, stirring continuously with a long spoon.
***Folks, we aren't kidding about the long spoon. Adding the cream mixture (which contains water) to the hot sugar rapidly generates a lot of steam, which will burn your fingers good if you are too close while pouring and stirring.
5. Continue to stir the mixture as you reheat it to 248°F (120°C), which is just above "soft ball" temperature on your candy thermometer, then immediately remove this very hot molten caramel from the heat and pour into the parchment-lined pan.
6. Allow to fully cool to room temperature, which takes several hours, then cut into squares.
Squares work very well, because they can be individually wrapped in squares of waxed paper and used for snacking at parties, as gift bag stuffers, or you can unwrap and melt them to make a caramel sauce or a caramel macchiato. We use a sturdy pizza cutter to cut the caramel sheet, as a knife often doesn't "cut it."
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Slightly After July 4 recipe: Red, White, and Blue Potato Salad
Hello! Here we are - slightly late - with our July 4 Holiday Weekend Red, White and Blue Potato Salad recipe. You can modify it to be egg or dairy free, depending on your allergies - this year we tried it with sour cream instead of mayonnaise, and we've tried it with Greek yogurt and really liked it too! Different iterations give you slightly different tastes - some people hate sweet pickles, but growing up in the South, they were necessary to potato salad! My husband grew up in Cincinnati, so his version is vinegary, closer to the German origins. This is kind of a happy medium - missing mustard, including fennel instead of onion, and easily adaptable to tastes and allergies.
Red, White, and Blue Potato Salad
July 5, 2013
Note: The secret of this hearty potato salad is that it can be readily modified be either non-dairy or egg-free, depending on your dietary needs. This is done by replacing source cream or yogurt with a diary-free mayonnaise and leaving out the eggs.
Note: Add some zip to this dish by adding acidic ingredients, such as vinegar or pickle juice, as your diet and predilections allow.
Ingredients:
· 1 lb. whole red, white, and blue baby potatoes or small redskin potatoes, which work best.
· 2 Tbsp. table salt.
· 1/4 whole fennel (anise) blub, finely chopped.
· 1/2 cup whole sour cream, Greek yogurt, or mayonnaise--as tolerated.
· Salt and sugar to taste.
· (Optional) 2 hardboiled eggs, diced--if tolerated.
· (Optional) 2 Tbsp. diced red onion--if tolerated.
· (Optional) 2 medium Pickles, sweet or dill, diced--as tolerated.
· (Optional) White vinegar or pickle juice, to taste--as tolerated.
Instructions:
1. Place the potatoes in a medium pot, add two tablespoons of salt and enough cold water to cover potatoes with an inch of water. Bring potatoes to a boil and cook 10-15 minutes.
2. After potatoes are tender enough that a knife can be easily inserted into the center of the potatoes, dump out the hot water and run cold water in the pot to cool down the potatoes.
Idea Use ice cubes to cool down the potatoes even faster.
3. When cool, chop the potatoes into 1/4-1/2 inch cubes, which is 8 pieces per potato for baby potatoes. If you have trouble with insoluble fiber, peel the potatoes before you dice them.
4. In a large bowl, combine the potato cubes and fennel, and optionally eggs, onions, or pickles. With a fork, work the sour cream, yogurt, mayonnaise, into the mixture to coat dry ingredients.
5. Depending on the type of dressing used, you may need to add additional salt and sugar, to taste. Optionally, add a little pickle juice or white vinegar, to taste.
6. Refrigerate for at least an hour in a closed container and serve cold.
Idea: When you take this or any potato salad to a picnic or if it must sit out, set the serving bowl into a bowl of ice. This helps keep the salad safe from spoiling for a little extra time.
Red, White, and Blue Potato Salad
July 5, 2013
Note: The secret of this hearty potato salad is that it can be readily modified be either non-dairy or egg-free, depending on your dietary needs. This is done by replacing source cream or yogurt with a diary-free mayonnaise and leaving out the eggs.
Note: Add some zip to this dish by adding acidic ingredients, such as vinegar or pickle juice, as your diet and predilections allow.
Ingredients:
· 1 lb. whole red, white, and blue baby potatoes or small redskin potatoes, which work best.
· 2 Tbsp. table salt.
· 1/4 whole fennel (anise) blub, finely chopped.
· 1/2 cup whole sour cream, Greek yogurt, or mayonnaise--as tolerated.
· Salt and sugar to taste.
· (Optional) 2 hardboiled eggs, diced--if tolerated.
· (Optional) 2 Tbsp. diced red onion--if tolerated.
· (Optional) 2 medium Pickles, sweet or dill, diced--as tolerated.
· (Optional) White vinegar or pickle juice, to taste--as tolerated.
Instructions:
1. Place the potatoes in a medium pot, add two tablespoons of salt and enough cold water to cover potatoes with an inch of water. Bring potatoes to a boil and cook 10-15 minutes.
2. After potatoes are tender enough that a knife can be easily inserted into the center of the potatoes, dump out the hot water and run cold water in the pot to cool down the potatoes.
Idea Use ice cubes to cool down the potatoes even faster.
3. When cool, chop the potatoes into 1/4-1/2 inch cubes, which is 8 pieces per potato for baby potatoes. If you have trouble with insoluble fiber, peel the potatoes before you dice them.
4. In a large bowl, combine the potato cubes and fennel, and optionally eggs, onions, or pickles. With a fork, work the sour cream, yogurt, mayonnaise, into the mixture to coat dry ingredients.
5. Depending on the type of dressing used, you may need to add additional salt and sugar, to taste. Optionally, add a little pickle juice or white vinegar, to taste.
6. Refrigerate for at least an hour in a closed container and serve cold.
Idea: When you take this or any potato salad to a picnic or if it must sit out, set the serving bowl into a bowl of ice. This helps keep the salad safe from spoiling for a little extra time.
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Trophy Cupcakes Now Has a Gluten-Free Cupcake - Red Velvet!
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