Jesicakes

Honey, Lavender, and Lemon Cupcakes

2012-02-12T12:48:00.007-05:00

Winter is often a time when meals are heavier and heartier, and the flavors tend to be heavy as well. This weekend, I wanted to make something light, floral, and a little more complex than traditional cupcake flavor combinations. I worked at a chocolate shop in Philadelphia for two years, and the entire time I worked there, my favourite truffle was the Honey Lavender one. A few months ago I was in a spice market in Murray Hill, and I saw a packet of lavender and knew I needed to created a dessert with it. So this weekend, during a light snow, but very grey morning we had Saturday I decided to brighten up the day with Honey, Lavender, & Lemon Cupcakes with a Cream Cheese Icing (which is also sweetened with honey and flavored with lavender and lemon). The bases of these cupcakes are light and fluffy due to the use of just egg whites. This texture along with the brightness from the lemon, the light sweetness from honey, and the floral notes of the lavender makes the cake delicate yet flavorful. The icing adds a little bit of extra punch of those flavors while still remaining overall a light and bright cupcakes. These cupcakes will brighten up your cold winter day, and come spring and summer I'm sure they'd be the perfect cupcake for a light dessert on a hot summer day.

Honey, Lavender, and Lemon Cupcakes

Recipe adapted from a combination of Hooray For Weekends and Blissfully Delicious
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes
Makes about 1 1/2 dozen cupcakes

Ingredients

- 3/4 cup sorghum flour
- 3/4 cup brown rice flour
- 1/4 cup white rice flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca flour
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
- 1 Tbsp gluten free baking powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 1/4 cups buttermilk
- 4 large egg whites
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter at room temperature (one stick)
- 1 1/4 cups sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp dried lavender flowers
- 3 Tbsp clove honey
- Zest from 1 1/2 lemons (about 2 Tbsp)*

*Zest both lemon completely and set aside zest from half of one for the frosting

Preheat oven to 350˚F and line cupcake pan with liners.

*Side note: This little zester is my new favourite kitchen gadget ever. It makes beautiful strands of lemon zest (unlike my old one which just pretty much pulverized it if it could even pierce the flesh of the lemon). Not to mention it gathers all the zest in the base behind the grater so it's a very neat and easy way to zest as well.

Sift together the sorghum flour, brown rice flour, white rice flour, tapioca flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, and salt and set aside.

Create Lavender Sugar by grinding the sugar and the lavender flowers together. (The aroma will be intoxicating. This step alone will make your kitchen fill with the smell of lavender).

Whisk together the buttermilk and egg whites and set aside.

Cream together the butter and lavender sugar. Once they are pretty well mixed, add the honey. Beat until mixture is light and fluffy.

Add the lemon zest and continue to beat. Make sure to scrape down the sides every now and then and make sure you zest is being incorporated and not just getting stuck on the paddle.

Add 1/3 of the flour mixture, followed by 1/2 the buttermilk/egg white mixture. Make sure before each addition the previous one gets well incorporated. Repeat this step, and end with the final addition of the flour mixture. Scrape down the sides if need be, and then beat on medium/high for 3-5 minutes to aerate the mixture and to make sure everything is completely integrated.

Scoop batter into cupcake liners. I use approximately two scoops per liner.

You want them filled about 2/3 of the way up. I actually wish I had filled these a little more. These were closer to halfway full. Also, looking back, I think I may have used less baking powder than I was supposed to so yours will probably rise more than mine did!

Bake for around 20 minutes. I let them bake for 15, then turned them and they still needed an extra 5 minutes. You know they're done when you insert a toothpick and they come out clean and if you touch the tops they have a little bit of a bounce and resistance to the touch.

Remove from oven and allow to cool for 5-10 minutes. When they're cool enough to remove from the pans, transfer them to a cooling rack to cool completely before you ice them. While they're cooling, you can make the icing:

Honey, Lavender, and Lemon Cream Cheese Icing

Recipe adapted from Marth Stewart's traditional Cream Cheese Icing
Makes about 2 cups of icing

Ingredients

- 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup of butter, room temperature
- 1 cup of powdered sugar, sifted
- 2 Tbsp honey
- 1 tsp dried lavender flowers, crushed
- 1 tsp lemon zest
- A few drops of purple food dye (optional)

I used a mortar and pestle to grind up my lavender but I'm sure you could just crush it with the back of a spoon against the side of a bowl as well. If the flowers aren't too crushed it's okay too as long as you like little bursts of the lavender flavor (which I love...but can probably be too floral for some people).

In a mixer, beat the cream cheese on medium-high until softened. Gradually add the butter a tablespoon or so at a time. Mix well. Begin to gradually add the powdered sugar with the mixer on low allowing each addition to mix in before adding the next. Add the honey, zest, and lavender. Scrape down the sides and the blade to make sure everything is incorporating. Mix in the food dye if desired. Continue to beat for around 5 minutes to give it some body.

Pipe icing using a pastry bag or ice using a spatula. I tend to chill my cream cheese icing a little bit beforehand with this recipe. Since it's not overloaded with sugar and more concerned with flavor, it's not as stiff as most icings, so to get a nice pretty piped look chilled icing is best.

I topped mine with a little fresh lemon zest and lavender for visual appeal and for extra floral lavender bites and bright bites from lemon.

Store cupcakes in a sealed container in the fridge if you're going to keep them for a few days. You can also freeze the bases and even the icing if you want them for a little while in the future.

Get ready for Valentine's with Red Velvet Cupcakes!

2012-01-31T22:28:00.002-05:00

With Valentine's Day two weeks away we've already started preparing for it at the bakery. Our cupcake of the month is a Red Velvet Cupcake with Cream Cheese Icing. We found a recipe that seemed more moist than others we had tried in the past with a few extra ingredients to make them more flavorful. Red Velvet can sometimes be bland, but the addition of buttermilk and yoghurt give the cake just a little bit of tang that pairs wonderfully with the hints of cocoa and the cream cheese icing. The weekend after we made them at work I gave it my go at making this recipe gluten free and had success! The same great flavor, same moisture but gluten free! So whether it's for Valentine's or just because you love red velvet try these cupcakes out for a little extra treat!

Red Velvet Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Icing

Recipe adapted from Epicurean Mom
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes

Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

- 3/4 cup sorghum flour
- 3/4 cup brown rice flour
- 1/4 cup white rice flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca flour
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
- 3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp baking gluten free powder
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 3/4 cups buttermilk
- 1 1/2 tsp red gel food coloring*
- 1 tsp distilled white vinegar
- 1 tsp gluten free vanilla
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
- 2 large eggs
- 3 Tbsp Greek yoghurt (I used Chobani 0% plain)

*food coloring is an estimate, I did it until I achieved the color I liked. Use food gel colors if possible, red food dye can have a distinct taste, and to make the cupcakes red you'd have to use A LOT of unpleasant tasting liquid color. Food gel adds more color with less gel.

Preheat your oven to 350˚F and line two cupcake sheets with cupcake liners.

Combine the sorghum flour, brown rice flour, white rice flour, tapioca flour, xanthan gum, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder together. Sift the mixture into another bowl (Side note: make sure you use a fine salt...all we had in my house was sea salt which didn't make it through the sifter so I needed to add new salt at the end of the recipe).

Combine the buttermilk, vinegar, and food dye in a bowl with a whisk.

Beat together the butter, yoghurt, and sugar with an electric mixture well combined and fluffy. Add the eggs and the vanilla. Add the eggs one at a time allowing the first to incorporate before adding the second.

Alternatively add the sifter flour mixture and the buttermilk mixture. Allow each addition to fully mix before adding the next and scrape down the bowl if need be. Start with the dry and end with the wet.

Add more food dye if need be...remember, if you add too much red dye it will make your cupcakes taste like food dye instead of delicious cupcake. One day I want to try coloring them with red wine or beets, but until then food dye will do...just don't over do it!

When your batter is ready, pour it into the cupcake liners. I use a cookie scoop and fill them 3/4 of the way up. Bake for around 20-23 minutes, flipping halfway. Cupcakes are done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean or with only a few dry crumbs.

Allow cupcakes to cool for 5 minutes before removing them from the cupcake sheet. Transfer them to a cooling rack and allow them to cool completely before icing them (unless you want melting icing).

While your cupcakes are cooling that's the perfect time to make your...

Cream Cheese Icing

Recipe adapted from Martha Stewart

Makes about 2 cups of icing

Ingredients

- 8 oz cream cheese, room temperature
- 1/2 cup of unsalted butter (1 stick), room temperature
- 1 cup of sifted confectioners sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla

Cream the buter and cream cheese until light and fluffy. Add in the vanilla. Gradually add the powdered sugar. Keep beating for several minutes to give the icing a nice constitution. If you want the icing to be sweeter or need it to be thicker, you can gradually add more sifted powdered sugar. I like my icing not a sweet so it tends to be a little looser.

Ice your cupcakes once they're completely cooled. I actually used buttercream too (the ones on the bottom) so my brother could have some cupcakes even though he hates cream cheese icing.

My friend Jessica and my boyfriend Justin kept me company while baking and helped me take the photos for this post. My mom, brother, and Justin's coworkers had them and so far I've only had rave reviews. Plus the simple elegance of the red cake topped with white cream cheese frosting is tough to beat for presentation value. Between their appearance, their moist cake, and their tangy cream cheese icing, these cupcakes are guaranteed to please!

Pancake Sunday!

2012-01-22T11:06:00.001-05:00

Pancakes Sundays are a pretty motivating reason to actually get out of bed on a Sunday. We don't do it every Sunday, but when we do it's always a cheery (and delicious) way to start the day. Having nice warm, fluffy pancakes is especially delightful on a day like today when here in New York it's chilly and everything is covered in snow. Now I know, pancakes are not technically a dessert or baking, but you know what, they have the word "cake" in them so I decided to post this here anyway! This recipe is too good to not share...pancakes that are gluten free yet possibly the best I've ever had? How could I not share. I've done this two ways:

1/2 cup brown rice flour and 1/2 cup white rice flour: makes a very light, fluffy, moist pancake with a little extra hint of sweetness and brightness from the white rice flour
1/2 cup brown rice flour, 1/4 cup white rice flour, and 1/4 cup oat flour: A rich, moist, and denser texture yet has a more complex flavor from the oat flour.

Both ways are delicious, so it's really if you want light and fluffy or rich and dense...now onto the recipe.

Gluten Free Pancakes

Recipe adapted from Galanter's Kitchen

Makes 5 four inch pancakes

Ingredients

- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 1/2 cup white rice flour OR 1/4 cup white rice flour and 1/4 cup oat flour
- 2 Tbsp sugar
- 2 tsp baking powder (gluten free)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 1 egg
- 1 cup of almond milk*

*can substitute rice or dairy milk

The process is super simple...
In a large bowl, mix together all the dry ingredients. Beat in the milk until all of the dry are moistened (a few clumps are okay, don't over mix pancake batter!). Beat the egg, then add it to the mixture, again, mixing until fully incorporated while trying not to over mix it.

Heat a large skillet on medium. Grease with butter or canola oil. Pour the batter into the pan in desired size (and/or shapes! I made animal pancakes a few times back because I'm like a little kid and highly amused by them). I've found these don't bubble like regular pancake mix, so after they start to bubble just peak at the bottoms to make sure they're slightly golden. These don't brown up too much so slightly golden means it's time to flip. Continue cooking until they other side is also golden and serve immediately.

Top with your favourite add ons...mine are blueberries or strawberries with some real maple syrup...although the flavor of these is so good if I have lots of berries sometimes no syrup is even needed. And of course, you can add fruits or even chocolate chips to the mixture before cooking. I just personally don't prefer them in my pancakes because I don't like the fruit to cook so I just put them on top.

Hope you enjoy your own Pancake Sunday!

Classic Snickerdoodles

2012-01-12T21:41:00.001-05:00

My boyfriend Justin's favorite cookies are Snickerdoodles. Last weekend he was feeling under the weather and I told him I'd make him them to cheer him up. I've made them once before going gluten free and I wasn't too thrilled with how they came out. I don't know if it's just that I'm using a new recipe or if it's the fact I made them gluten free but this time they were delectable. Justin ate seven in one day...that I know of! They're sweet and crispy from the rolled sugar with a warm spice from the cinnamon. They're slightly crispy on the edges with a soft chewy center (the way every good cookie should be). There is something about that warmth and sweetness that brings me back to being a kid.

Classic Snickerdoodles

Recipe adapted from Itsy Bitsy Foodies
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes

Makes 3 1/2 dozen cookies

Ingredients

- 1 cup butter, room temperature

- 1 1/2 cups sugar

- 2 eggs

- 1 cup sorghum flour

- 3/4 cup brown rice flour

- 1/2 cup white rice flour

- 1/2 cup tapioca flour

- 1 tsp xanthan gum

- 1 tsp baking soda

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 2 tsp cream of tartar

Ingredients for Cinnamon Sugar

- 4 Tbsp sugar

- 1 Tbsp cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350˚F.

In a large bowl, mix the sorghum flour, brown rice flour, white rice flour, tapioca flour, xanthan gum, baking soda, salt, and cream of tartar with a whisk.

Cream the butter and sugar in a mixer or with a hand mixer until light and fluffy.

Add the eggs one at a time and mix until they're fully incorporated.

Slowly add the flour mixture until complete incorporated. Mix until dough comes together slightly.

Using a cookie scoop or tablespoon, form ball about 1-1 1/2 inches in diameter.

In a wide bowl, mix together the sugar and the cinnamon. Roll the dough so it's completely coated in cinnamon and sugar.

I do this process for the entire batch of dough before I start baking. It gets the messy part of the Snickerdoodles out of the way so you don't need to be constantly washing your hands from the dough. Also, I keep the plate of all the dough in the fridge while I bake up the other batches just to make sure it doesn't get too warm from the heat of the oven in the kitchen.

Bake for 11 minutes, turning half way, or until the edges are slightly golden browned.

Allow to cool for a minute on the tray and transfer to a rack to complete cooling.

Snickerdoodles, like most sugar cookies, taste good when they're fresh out of the oven, but even better once they've cooled off. They stay well great. If possible, I actually think they taste the best the second or third day. They were all devoured after only 3 days in my house, but kept in an airtight container they stayed great. I'd say they had at least another 2-3 days in them if not more. If you don't want the whole recipe at once, with these I'd bake them all up then freeze them right after they cool and they should stay fresh a few months.

Peppermint Vs. Andes - Andes Fudge Cookies

2011-12-12T21:25:00.003-05:00

For a while now I've been wanting to make super rich, chocolatey, brownie-like cookies. And come winter my cravings for mint chocolate cookies start to grow. But then the question became do I go the route of Peppermint or Andes mints? So I decided to do a mint cookie bake off...one recipe, two refreshing, cool, minty variations. In both cookies, the chocolate mixture I use is rich and deep but not too dark. They have a slight crisp to the outside but a soft, gooey brownie like texture on the inside. Theses cookies are intense, guaranteed to please any chocolate lover! I built this recipe after studying about ten or so variations, putting together what I thought would make the perfect cookie and if I haven't made I'm pretty darn close! You can try both and decide for yourself which on is superior!

This is the Andes Fudge Cookie post. I added chopped Andes mints to the mix for a cool, refreshing minty taste that hits you right away. They have that cooling effect of the Andes, with little bits of sweetness from white chocolate chips that add a nice textural difference to the smoothness of the chocolate cookie itself.

The process to this is pretty much identical to the Peppermint Bark Cookies, but I figured it'd be easier to follow as two separate posts.

Andes Fudge Cookies

Recipe a Jesicakes original
Makes 18-20 cookies

Ingredients

- 1/3 cup split between brown rice and white rice flour*
- 1/8 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 4 oz 60% cocoa chocolate, chopped (I use Ghiradelli, 4oz is one baking bar)
- 2 oz semi sweet chocolate chips (about 1/3 cup)
- 2 oz unsweetened bakers chocolate
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 2 oz white chocolate chips (about 1/3 cup)

- 4 oz chopped Andes mints (about 18 mints)**

*I used both because I feel like brown rice flour is more substantial than white rice, but also wanted a bit of silkiness from the white rice. I'm sure if you used one or the other it'd be fine.
**They sell prechopped Andes mints, so if you have those, use about 2/3 a cup.

Preheat oven for 350˚F. Prepare baking sheets with silpat mat or parchment paper (two if you have them).

Whisk together the rice flours, xanthan gum, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.

Melt the butter, 60% chocolate, semisweet chocolate chips, and unsweetened chocolate in a microwave safe bowl. Or if you have a double boiler use that. Microwaving chocolate can be tricky, the key is short intervals. I do it in 15-20 second intervals (the closer to completely melted, the shorter the time). It took about 6 times or so. Stir in between every go in the microwave. The chocolate should be smooth without any noticeable chunks. Allow to cool slightly, but still fluid.

While you're melting the chocolate, beat together the eggs, sugar, and vanilla. Beat on high until light and frothy, about 5 minutes. This step is what will make the cookies have that shiny, crackly exterior.

Turn the mixer to low, and add the melted chocolate/butter mixture to the eggs.

Add the flour mixture. Scrape down sides of the bowl to make sure everything is evenly incorporated.

Mixture should be silky and shiny. Slightly thick but with fluidity.

Mix in the white chocolate chips and the chopped Andes mints.

Drop the cookies onto a baking sheet about 2 inches apart.

If you only have one baking sheet, prescoop the rest of the dough as well. Due to the chocolate content, this dough will harden up pretty quickly. It's perfectly fine to bake once they've hardened, but they're more difficult to scoop.

Bake for 10 minutes, turning half way. Bake until the top looks glossy and cracked.

Cool on the baking sheet at least 5 minutes. Transfer parchment or mat onto a cooling rack and cool until you can easily peal the cookies off the mat. Cool on cooling rack for another 20-30 minutes until completely cooled. You want to allow the cookies to set.

These cookies are great when cooled, you can also warm them. They stay great for a few days in an airtight container.

This recipe is so versatile. I can't wait to try it again as just plain chewy, chocolate, brownie cookies...or even better, with a bit of espresso powder. But for now, with the mint they're already heavenly. It's so difficult for me to pick which I like better! I love the lingering of the peppermint, but also the sudden burst of cool from the Andes. In the end, I think the crunch of the peppermint may just slightly edge out the Andes.

So which did you prefer?? Andes or Peppermint?

Peppermint Vs. Andes - Peppermint Bark Cookies

2011-12-12T21:25:00.002-05:00

This is the Peppermint Bark Cookie post. I added crushed Peppermints to the mix for a lingering, warm, almost spice from the peppermint. The peppermint adds a great crunch within the cookie. And the white chocolate chips add a creamy, smooth, sweet balance to the peppermint and completes the peppermint bark effect of the cookies.

The process to this is pretty much identical to the Andes Fudge Cookies, but I figured it'd be easier to follow as two separate posts.

Peppermint Bark Cookies

Recipe a Jesicakes original
Makes 18-20 cookies

Ingredients

- 1/3 cup split between brown rice and white rice flour*

- 1/8 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 4 oz 60% cocoa chocolate, chopped (I use Ghiradelli, 4oz is one baking bar)
- 2 oz semi sweet chocolate chips (about 1/3 cup)
- 2 oz unsweetened bakers chocolate
- 2 Tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 eggs
- 1/2 cup granulated sugar
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/4 tsp peppermint extract
- 6 oz white chocolate chips (about 1 cup)
- 1/2 cup crushed candy canes plus extra, set aside extra.**

*I used both because I feel like brown rice flour is more substantial than white rice, but also wanted a bit of silkiness from the white rice. I'm sure if you used one or the other it'd be fine.
**I used 6 candy canes which was the perfect amount.

Preheat oven until 350˚F. Prepare baking sheets with silpat mat or parchment paper (two if you have them).

Crush the candy canes. I used a food processor and pulsed until it was all crushed.

Whisk together the rice flours, xanthan gum, baking powder, and salt.

Turn the mixer to low, and add the melted chocolate/butter mixture to the eggs.

Add the flour mixture. Scrape down sides of the bowl to make sure everything is evenly incorporated.

Mixture should be silky and shiny. Slightly thick but with fluidity.

Add the 1/2 cup of crushed peppermint, peppermint extract, and the white chocolate chips.

Drop the cookies onto a baking sheet about 2 inches apart. Dust with the extra crushed peppermint, reserving some for after baking.

If you only have one baking sheet, prescoop the rest of the dough as well and set aside. Due to the chocolate content, this dough will harden up pretty quickly. It's perfectly fine to bake once they've hardened, but they're more difficult to scoop.

Bake for 10 minutes, turning half way. Bake until the top looks glossy and cracked.

The peppermint will have melted in the oven, it will harden back up, but for presentation, sprinkle some fresh peppermint on top if you'd like. Cool on the baking sheet at least 5 minutes. Transfer parchment or mat onto a cooling rack and cool until you can easily peal the cookies off the mat. Cool on cooling rack for another 20-30 minutes until completely cooled. You want to allow the cookies to set.

These cookies are great when cooled, you can also warm them. They stay great for a few days in an airtight container.

So which did you prefer?? Andes or Peppermint?

Rolled Sugar Cookies Update

2011-12-08T22:19:00.000-05:00

Something so simple can really add to a dessert, especially in terms of presentation. Something about adding a Hershey's kiss to the top of the sugar cookies I made in my last post made them so much more festive...and made my boyfriend very happy since he's been known to polish Hershey's kisses off like no one's business. I actually would love to try it with different kinds of kisses...peppermint, hugs, etc. To make them, follow my last post exactly. you add the Hershey's kiss with 2 minutes left on the baking time, just long enough to set them into the dough but not long enough to melt them. It adds a nice touch of chocolate, and let's be honest, it just makes them look pretty darn cute.

Lemony Rolled Sugar Cookies

2011-12-04T12:27:00.002-05:00

My friend Jessica came by a few weeks ago asking me to help her make a gluten free sugar cookie for the holiday. Simple sugar cookies are one of my favourites...sweet, soft and chewy with a bit of crispness from being rolled in sugar before baking. I found a recipe for Lemon Sugar Cookies from Two Peas And Their Pod that included lemon which I thought would really brighten up your regular sugar cookie. Personally, when I made sugar cookies in the past I always included cream cheese in them. It keeps them nice and soft and adds a little bit of sweetness and tartness that wound up pairing nicely with the lemon flavor. Besides chocolate chip, sugar cookies are a treat that will please almost everyone. These sweet, light, lemony sugar cookies will be a nice change from heavy winter flavors and meals.

Lemony Rolled Sugar Cookies

Recipe adapted from Two Peas And Their Pod
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes
Makes 3 dozen cookies

Ingredients

- 3/4 cup brown rice flour
- 3/4 cup white rice flour
- 3/4 cup sorghum flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca flour
- 1 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon (gluten free) baking powder
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
- 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks/6oz) unsalted butter, at room temperature
- 2 oz cream cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1/2 teaspoon (gluten free) vanilla extract
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar for rolling cookies

Preheat oven to 350˚F. Line your baking sheets with parchment or a silpat mat and set aside.

In a large bowl, mix together all the flours, xanthan gum, baking soda, baking powder, and salt and set aside.

Using a mixer, beat the butter and cream cheese until well combined and smooth.

Add the sugar and combine until smooth yet fluffy.

Add the egg, vanilla, and lemon. Mix until combined.

Add the dry ingredients gradually. Allow them to incorporate after every addition before adding more.

I use a cookie scoop to get evenly sized cookies. Place the extra sugar on a plate or in a bowl. You want them to be a rounded tablespoon. Roll the dough into a ball the sugar til coated on all around.

Place on a baking sheet 2 inches apart.

Bake 9-12 minutes. My bake time was 7 minutes, turn, and 4 minutes. You want them to be SLIGHTLY browned on the edges.

Allow to cool on the baking sheet for a few minutes.

Transfer to a cooling rack. While most cookies are best right out of the oven, sugar cookies, in my opinion, are an exception. I think they're much better once completely cooled. Even better the next day actually. Something about how they rest I guess. Plus the flavors all seem to come together better once they have cooled. Store them in an airtight container to keep them soft and chewy.

You can see better in this photo that slight bit of brown you're looking for on the edges. You want these to be soft and chewy on the inside with the crunch of the rolled sugar on the outside. So you don't want to let them completely brown to overly crisp.

Later in the week I'll be posting a variation to these cookies that makes them look even more festive and ready for the holidays. And includes the addition of chocolate! So make sure to check back! And thanks again to Jessica for the inspiration and helping me bake them...and doing most of the work while I photographed her!!

Say Goodbye to Fall with Pumpkin Flan

2011-11-28T22:03:00.001-05:00

This Thanksgiving I wanted to go a little nontraditional while still having the dessert feel like it fit the theme. I recently celebrated my five year anniversary with my boyfriend Justin in Puerto Rico, and the entire time I was searching for good flan. Still not sick of it, I decided to take a stab at making my own flan, having only ever made it once before over ten years ago for class when I was in 6th grade (so I probably had lots of help from a parent...and it leaked all over my mother's car...but that's a story for another time). Originally I planned on making Queso Flan, since it was my favourite we had on our trip, but in honor of Thanksgiving I wanted to find a recipe with Pumpkin too. This time my flan came out perfectly! It was silky and creamy, full of spices from the ginger, cloves and cinnamon. It had the perfect touch of sweetness from the caramel and the pumpkin, and tartness from the cream cheese. This recipe is sure to impress anyone, and it was just as delicious, yet more complex, than the flan we had in Puerto Rico. Justin brought it to his office and said it was a huge hit amongst his colleagues. So if you have some cans of pumpkin still lingering in your cabinet, make sure you try this recipe!

Pumpkin Flan

Recipe adapted from Sticky Gooey Creamy Chewy
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes
Makes 1 10'' pyrex dish, or 4 2-4 cup pyrex dishes

Ingredients for the Caramel

- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup of water

Ingredients for the Custard

- 12 oz can of evaporated milk (I used 2%)
- 14 oz can of sweetened condensed milk
- 8 oz cream cheese
- 1 cup pumpkin puree
- 5 eggs
- 1/4 cup sugar
- 2 Tbsp white rice flour*
- 1/2 tsp cinnamon
- 1/4 tsp cloves
- 1/4 tsp ginger
- 2 tsp gluten free vanilla
- Boiling Water**

*I used white rice flour because it's mild and ground finely. Brown rice would probably be okay but possibly affect the texture a bit. You can also use 1 Tbsp of cornstarch (I just didn't have any)
**You will need a larger container to place your pyrex dishes in. The flan bakes in a water bath. I just used a large, disposable aluminum tin.

Preheat the over to 300˚F. Get together all your ingredients first. You should make the custard and have it ready to go before you start making the caramel.

Combine the evaporated milk, sweetened condensed milk, cream cheese, pumpkin, sugar, eggs, spices, white rice flour, and vanilla in a blender (basically all the ingredients listed under the custard ingredients minus the boiling water).

Now, I did not have a blender large enough to do this. So what I did was mix it all as best as possible in my KitchenAid Mixer first. I then used a ladle and scooped it into the blender in two batches.

Blend it until it's smooth.

Strain custard through a sieve into a large bowl and set aside. You will probably lose a lot of the physical grains of the spices, don't worry though. I was concerned it wouldn't still have flavor but it definitely still did.

Time to cook the caramel. Combine 1 cup of sugar and 1/4 cup water in a medium, deep, heavy saucepan.

Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until the sugar is dissolved. Around 3-5 minutes.

Increase to medium-high and boil without stirring until the caramel turns copper brown. Around 10-15 minutes. You can let it go for the first half of the time, but be careful once it begins to brown because it can go from caramel colored to burnt pretty quickly.

Pour the caramel into the bottom of your pyrex dish or dishes. BE CAREFUL! Sugar burns are very painful and often severe.

Immediately pour the strained custard mixture into the bowls. It doesn't rise really, but keep it 1/2'' below the top of the container probably to be safe. I used three 2 cup containers and one 4 cup container.

Place these dishes in a tin. Place in the oven, and fill the tin with the boiling water halfway up the sides of the flan dishes.

Bake 50-60 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center of the flan comes our clean. The centers can still jiggle a bit as long as the knife is clean.

Cool for 30 minutes.

Chill in the fridge for several hours or overnight. I did mine overnight.

To invert, run a knife along the sides of the dish and gently shake to loosen it. Invert onto a serving dish and....

Violá! You have the best Pumpkin Flan, if not simply best flan, you've ever had!

Try to resist the urge to eat the whole thing yourself! This makes a good deal of flan, so unless you're having a party you'll probably have leftovers. Store seal/covered in the fridge. I made mine Wednesday night, and it's still as perfect as it was on Thanksgiving, so I'd say it stays well for around a week in the fridge.

Gluten Free Cornbread for Thanksgiving

2011-11-19T18:49:00.001-05:00

As I mentioned my last post, for Thanksgiving every year since I was in Kindergarten I've been making pumpkin bread and cornbread. Last week I made my pumpkin loaf recipe gluten free, and today I tried making my cornbread recipe gluten free. It turns out this recipe is the one on the back of the corn meal bag, but over the years my mom and I had altered this one too. The result is a rustic, moist yet fluffy cornbread that has just the right amount of sweetness. And it tastes just like the version with all purpose flour. It's perfect with cranberry sauce (which I plan to make fresh for the first time for Thanksgiving) or even just toasted with a little bit of butter. It's simple, easy to make, and a perfect side for your Thanksgiving table!

Gluten Free Cornbread for Thanksgiving

Recipe adapted from Indian Head Corn Meal
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes
Makes 1 Loaf in a 8'' X 4'' load pan

Ingredients

- 1 cup corn meal
- 1/4 cup sorghum flour
- 1/4 cup brown rice flour
- 1/4 cup white rice flour
- 1/4 cup tapioca flour
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
- 3 tsp gluten free baking powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 cup + 1/8 cup granulated sugar
- 1/4 cup shortening
- 1 cup of whole milk
- 1 egg, beaten

Preheat the oven to 425˚F and grease a 8" X 4" pan (I use shortening).

Mix the cornmeal, all of the flours, and the xanthan gum together. No mixer is needed for this recipe.

Add the salt and baking powder. Mix til evenly distributed.

Mix in the sugar. I said 1/4 cup + 1/8 cup because over the years we found it needed a little extra sweetness. It is nowhere near as sweet as say a corn muffin though. It just brightens the loaf a bit.

Cut in the shortening. I use a large salad fork and cut in about 1/2 Tbsp at a time. You basically just want to mash in the shortening using the back of the fork/spoon against the side of the bowl. It should be well distributed and there shouldn't be any real chunks of it. The mixture will get an even coarser, sandy like texture.

Mix the beaten egg into the milk.

Gradually add the dry mixture to the wet mixture. It will have a coarse texture. Make sure all of the dry ingredients are moistened.

Pour into a greased 8" X 4" pan. Bake in the middle of the oven for 25-30 minutes. I did 20 minutes, then it needed another 5 at least. It still needed 2-3 minutes after that too. You just want to make sure a toothpick comes out clean. If the top starts to brown too much you can also cover it in foil.

Allow it to cool before you pop it out. Serve warm. It's wonderful served with cranberry sauce so it's perfect for a Thanksgiving table. It stores well in an airtight container for a few days. Any longer than 4 days I'd recommend refrigerating it.

Thanksgiving Pumpkin Loaf Two Ways

2011-11-14T22:35:00.002-05:00

When I was in Kindergarten we were all given two Thanksgiving recipes: one for Corn Bread and one for Pumpkin Bread. Every year since then, it's been a tradition to make both for Thanksgiving. Even when we do "nontraditional" dinners (in a family of half vegetarians there is never a turkey), these two dishes are always on the table. Over the years my mom and I had tweaked with the recipe here and there, and the last few times I've changed a few minor components, but this last time I made it completely gluten free without really altering the flavor. Also, this recipe doesn't require a mixer or anything. And after all it was given to me in Kindergarten, so it's so easy a five year old could follow along. This loaf is irresistible...it never lasts more than a few days. While eating a little piece of it earlier tonight, I decided next time I want to make cupcakes, I'm going to try using this recipe. It's moist, but still a bit cakey and not too dense. It's filled with warm cinnamon and sweet bites of either cranberries or raisins. And of course the star of the loaf is the pumpkin.

I'd recommend making it one of two ways (or well, three if you count my desire to make them cupcakes!). The first is as slices as a side dish for your Thanksgiving meal. It's also great this way year round as a snack or breakfast. In this version, either cranberries or raisins are good but I think I prefer it with the raisins. The second is as squares, topped with a cinnamon cream cheese frosting as a dessert. In this preparation I prefer it with cranberries, and I sprinkle the top with some cranberries as well. Or if you're like me, you pick one of the two dried fruits, and make half the loaf sliced and uniced, and ice the other half the of loaf for dessert squares! Either way I promise it you and your guests will be taking seconds!

Pumpkin Loaf: Two Ways

Recipe a Jesicakes original
Makes 1 Loaf in a 8'' X 4'' load pan

Ingredients

- 1 cup sugar
- 1 cup vegetable oil
- 3 eggs slightly beaten
- 2 cups 100% pure pumpkin puree (NOT pumpkin pie mix)
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 cup sorghum flour
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 1/2 cup sweet rice flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca flour
- 1 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 2 tsp baking soda
- 1 Tbsp cinnamon

- 1 cup of raisins or dried cranberries
*Since this recipe was originally made with flour, if you and/or your guests are not gluten free, just substitute 2 cups of all purpose flour for all the other flours and the xanthan gum.

Preheat your oven to 350˚F. Like I said, this recipe is really easy. You pretty much just mix the ingredients in order. I just hand whisk everything together and then fold in the dried fruit with a wooden spoon.

Whisk together the sugar and the vegetable oil.

Whisk in the beaten eggs.

Whisk in the pumpkin. Once incorporated, whisk in the salt and the vanilla

Gradually whisk in the flour. Whisk in the baking powder and baking soda.

Stir in the cinnamon.

Fold in either the cranberries or the raisins (I used cranberries this time).

Pour into a 8'' X 4'' pan. Personally, for this loaf I don't grease the pan. If you have a good nonstick pan it will slide right out. But of course feel free to. Bake in the center of the oven, turning half way for about 50-60 minutes.

Remove from oven when toothpick comes out clean or with a few dry crumbs. Cool til you're able to hold the pan to flip the loaf out. Can cut while warm for slices. If you're icing it as a dessert allow the loaf to cool completely.

If you're going to be icing it, while the loaf is in the oven you can go ahead and make the cream cheese icing. Personally, I think Martha's recipe is hands down the best I've had. Unlike a lot of other recipes I've seen, there's twice as much cream cheese as butter and there's half the amount of sugar. I don't like my cream cheese frosting super sweet, and the whole point of cream cheese icing is for is for the tang of the cream cheese so why drown it out in butter? But obviously, feel free to use your favourite recipe for it. I add a tsp or so of cinnamon to this recipe, mostly just to taste.

I got to break in the sifter that my Grandma Millie gave to me. So if you happen to be reading this thank you Grandma!

I didn't need a lot of this recipe to ice half the loaf, I'd say maybe 1/4 of the recipe for the full. It freezes well though so you can keep it for the next time you bake this loaf, or for cupcakes, a cake, etc. I top the whole thing with a few more dried cranberries.

Next weekend I'll be de-glutening my Corn Bread recipe and I'll be posting the results of that as well! Til then, good luck in planning your holiday meal!

P.S. Sorry I left this out! Uniced, it stores well in a airtight container 3-4 days unrefrigerated...anything longer I'd keep it in the fridge. Iced keep in in the fridge because cream cheese icing doesn't do too well sitting out longer than a day. And I know this will sound weird, but as delicious as this bread is nice and warm, I also find it delicious cold (especially with the icing).

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies

2011-10-31T21:04:00.002-04:00

One of my favorite things about fall is how everything becomes pumpkin flavored. I've been making pumpkin bread every year since I was in kindergarten, but up until a few years ago I had never made pumpkin cookies. Justin and I were throwing a spiked cider fall party and I needed a dessert to go with it. I looked up a few oatmeal cookie recipes and wound up concocting what is now my famous Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies with Cranberries and White Chocolate Chips (okay well, famous at least among my friends and family). So this year, going gluten free, I decided to work at the recipe some more and make it fit for my new diet. They taste exactly like the ones with all purpose flour. The tart little bites of cranberry, smooth sweetness of the white chocolate chips, warmth from the cinnamon, and burst of pumpkin flavor make these my absolute favorite cookie. It is nearly impossible to eat just one.

Pumpkin Oatmeal Cookies with Cranberries and White Chocolate Chips

Recipe a Jesicakes original
Makes 36-40 cookies

Ingredients

- 1 cup unsalted butter
- 1 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup pure pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie mix)
- 1 tsp gluten free vanilla
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 1/2 cup oat flour
- 1/2 cup sweet rice flour
- 1/2 cup tapioca flour
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1 1/2 cups gluten free old fashioned rolled oats
- 1 tsp baking soda
- 1 Tbsp cinnamon
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1 cup dried cranberries
- 1 cup white chocolate chips

Aren't these the prettiest ingredients?

- Preheat the oven to 325˚ and line a baking sheet with parchment or a silpat mat.
- Cream the butter, brown sugar, and white sugar together in a mixer until light and fluffy.

- Add the egg, vanilla, and pumpkin puree, mix well.

- In a large bowl, mix together the brown rice flour, oat flour, sweet rice flour, tapioca flour and xanthan gum. Mix in the salt, cinnamon, and baking soda. Add the oats.

- Pour the dry mixture gradually into the pumpkin mixture. Mix well, making sure to scrape the sides and fully incorporate the dry mix into the pumpkin mix.

- Fold in the white chocolate chips and cranberries.

- Scoop onto a baking sheet using a cookie scoop or around a tablespoon each. Now this is the part that gets a little high maintenance with the gluten free. I haven't completely mastered this yet, but working in a bakery has given me a lot of practice in baking trouble shooting. The first batch I did spread too much despite the xanthan gum. Here's what happened. So you need to chill the dough. To do this, I place the balls of dough on a small plate or tray and place in the freezer for about five minutes. Once chilled, they're also a lot easier to work with. They spread the perfect amount into little pillowy cookies.

- My timing for baking was 11 minutes, turn, and add another 11 minutes. They should be lightly golden brown.

- Let cool for a few minutes. Enjoy with a nice warm mug of apple cider or simply by themselves. This recipe makes A LOT of cookies. I freeze half the dough and keep it in my freezer for when the craving for something sweet hits.

Brownie Update! Epresso Brownies!

2011-10-18T21:46:00.002-04:00

Justin (my boyfriend) ran in a half marathon in Baltimore this weekend. So I wanted to surprise him when he got home with his favorite treat...brownies. I've made these brownies plain, and as cookie brownies (recipe one day soon...promise!), but I wanted to try a new way. I love adding coffee to chocolate. Even a hint of coffee actually enhances the chocolate flavor. So remember the Blissful Brownies post I made? I added 3 Tablespoons of Instant Espresso to that recipe. If I thought those brownies were addictive before, I was wrong...well, I wasn't wrong, but the espresso in this new recipe makes them extra addictive. The espresso makes them even richer, more chocolately, not to mention the espresso flavor gives it a bit more complexity. Coffee and chocolate are meant to be together. The addition of the espresso makes these brownies irresistible. I may have had three...I think Justin may have had 5! So while you should refer back to that post for the procedure, here are the ingredients again as a refresher.

Irresistible Gluten Free Espresso Brownies

Recipe adapted from The Weather In Cascadia, whose recipe was adapted from Gluten Free Goddess

Fills a 8'' X 8'' pan

Ingredients

- 4 oz 60% cocoa Ghiradeli bittersweet chocolate bar, roughly chopped
- 3 Tbsp cocoa powder (Hershey's, or any non-Dutch processed)
- 1 Tbsp canola oil (or vegetable)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 2 tsp gluten free vanilla
- 1/2 cup of almond flour (I used a coffee bean grinder to grind fresh almonds)
- 1/4 cup brown rice flour
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- 3 Tbsp Instant Espresso (not ground espresso, I used Ferrara Instant Espresso)

I mixed the espresso in with the chocolate mixture right before adding the chocolate to my mixer. For the full procedure go to the original post for my Gluten Free Brownies. Enjoy!

Delicious Apple Crumble Cake

2011-10-11T22:39:00.004-04:00

When I think of fall desserts I think of two things: Pumpkin and Apple. Apple is also one of the traditional foods for Rosh Hashanah. So I decided I was going to make a delicious apple cake using local apples (one of the many benefits of living in NY) for the holiday...only my family's party was canceled. But I found a recipe on Oh! Nuts' blog for a Rosh Hashanah Apple Crumb Cake that looked too good to not try. So this past Sunday I made it anyway! I replaced the flour in the crumbs and the cake with a mix of gluten free flours I thought might work out well. My guessing was right on because this cake is delicious. The cake is moist, but the apples are still firm and the crumble and walnuts add a nice crisp texture. This cake is perfect for all those apples you'll be bringing home from apple picking, and if you're really ambitious this recipe calls for applesauce...which if you still need something to make you can use homemade applesauce (I was not that ambitious. Well, actually I have not gone apple picking yet so maybe I will be once I come home with a few pounds of apples). This cake screams fall between the apples and the cinnamon. Plus it's best served warm...and if you're like my boyfriend, with homemade cinnamon maple whipped cream. It's the perfect cake to eat outside on a cool fall day.

Apple Crumble Cake

Recipe from Oh! Nuts
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes
Makes a 9'' round cake

Ingredients for the Crumble

- 1 1/2 cups walnuts
- 2/3 cup packed light brown sguar
- 3 Tbsp granulated sugar
- 2 rounded tsp cinnamon (I use more than Oh! Nuts...I'm a huge cinnamon lover)
- 1/4 cup brown rice flour
- 1/4 cup sorghum flour
- 1 Tbsp tapioca flour
- 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
- 4 Tbsp unsalted butter, melted
- 1/2 tsp gluten free vanilla

Ingredients for the Cake

- 1 large Honey Crisp of Fuji Apple, and an extra just incase*
- 2 tsp lemon juice
- 2 large eggs, room temperature
- 3 Tbsp sour cream, room temperature
- 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce, room temperature
- 2 tsp gluten free vanilla
- 1/2 cup brown rice flour
- 1/2 cup sorghum flour
- 1/2 cup sweet rice flour
- 1/4 cup tapioca flour
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1 cup white sugar
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1/2 tsp gluten free baking powder
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 2 tsp cinnamon
- 12 tbsp butter, room temperature

*My secret to baking with apples is using Honey Crisps (if in season like they are now) or Fuji's. They're firm so they hold up well being baked, and I find them to simply taste better than Granny Smith or Yellow Delicious.

This post is a little photo heavy because of the steps and the layering of the cake. So click "Read more" for the procedure.

- Preheat your oven to 350˚F and grease a 9'' springform pan (I use shortening...Pam is okay as long as there's no flour).

- First you need to make the crumble. In a food processor, add the walnuts, the brown sugar, the white sugar, and the cinnamon. Pulse until the walnuts are chopped up fine and the texture is coarse like sand. If you don't have a food processor you can do this in a mixer with a paddle attachment. Just chop up your walnuts first.

- Remove 3/4 cup of the mixture, and set it aside for now. This crumble is going to go in the middle of the cake as one of the layers.

- Add the flour, the melted butter, and the vanilla extract to the remaining crumbs are pulse until all the ingredients are blended. Make sure you scrape the sides so the butter gets evenly distributed and all the crumbs get moistened, which will form the fuller bodied crumbs for the top of the cake. Again, you can do this is a mixer. Transfer this to a bowl and refrigerate til use.

- Peel, core, and slice the apple. Try to cut it about 1/4'' thick or slightly less. Place them in a dish and toss them with lemon juice so they don't brown.

- In the bowl of a mixer, mix together all the flours, the xanthan gum, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon. Mix them on low so each ingredient will be evenly distributed in the batter

- Add the butter in about 2 Tbsp chunks and the applesauce to the bowl of the stand mixer. Beat it on low until the butter and applesauce moisten the whole batter.

- Turn the speed to medium and beat for another few minutes. Scrape down the bowl to make sure you're mixing the batter evenly. At first, the batter may come together, almost form a ball. Keep beating it til it aerates more. It'll eventually come off the paddle and stick more to the bowl.

- Whisk together the eggs, sour cream, and vanilla until blended. Turn the mixer to low and add this mix to the bowl of the mixer. Add it slowly making sure it fulling incorporates. Mix until the batter is smooth, remembering to scrape down the sides a final time before finishing mixing.

- Now it's time to form the cake. Take your springform pan. The first layer is the batter. Pour about 2/3 of the mix into the bottom. You need to reserve the rest for another layer. Spread it evenly.

- Next you use the crumb from the first step that wasn't refrigerated. Spread it evenly over the layer of batter.

- Take your apple slices and layer them in concentric circles with the edges of each apple slightly overlapping. I used a medium apple up needing half of another small to fill the pan (which is why I said to have an extra just in case).

- Now pour the rest of the batter over the apples. It may not completely cover the apples but that's okay. The batter will expand during baking. Smooth it carefully, the apples may stick and peal out...if they do just stick them back in.

- Next it's time to partial bake the cake. You do before adding the top crumbs. Bake it for 35 minutes, turning halfway if you oven bakes unevenly.

- After the 35 minutes, take it out of the oven and add the crumb mixture from the fridge. Sprinkle it over the top of the cake. I like to leave some larger crumbs for varying texture, but you can break them up if you like.

- Return the cake to the oven for another 20-30 minutes until a toothpick comes out mostly clean with maybe just a few crumbs clinging to it but not batter. I did 15 minutes, turned, and another 5 minutes.

- Remove from oven and let the cake cool completely. Run a knife along the edge of the pan to help against any sticking. Release the springform and lift the sides off the pan. Now you're ready to serve it.

This cake holds well as leftovers. I've had it in the fridge in a sealed container for two days and it's still delicious. Best to warm it up for 40-60 seconds (depending on the size of the slice and how warm you like it). It was great with a dollop of whipped cream. I made maple cinnamon whipped cream by sweetening heavy cream with maple syrup to taste and adding a few dashes of cinnamon. If caramel is your thing (it's not mine...I know...people tell me there's something wrong with me), I'm sure this would be delicious drizzled with some caramel. Anyway you eat it, I'm sure you'll savor every bite.

My eRecipe Page

2011-09-30T22:20:00.002-04:00

Like my dessert recipes? Well on top of baking, I love to cook in general. So while I want to keep this blog strictly desserts/sweets (with maybe the occasional indulgent breakfast item like my gluten free pancakes), for all other meals of the day you can visit my eRecipe page. As long as things are still going as planned, I'll also be Chef of the Week there the last week of October (I'll post more when it gets closer and I know more). So far I have my desserts you've seen here, but also a recipe Gluten Free Spinach, Escarole, and Goat Cheese Lasagna, and a recipe for Sauteed Swiss Chard and Pomegranate. I'll be posting a lot more on there in the next few weeks. While desserts are what I love most and how I make my living, cooking everything from breakfast to dinner is also my passion.

Say Goodbye to Summer with S'mores Cookies!

2011-09-21T21:26:00.002-04:00

Early this spring I was eating a chocolate chip cookie trying to think of a spin I could put on it and suddenly a brilliant idea hit me...a S'mores Chocolate Chip Cookie! And then this summer came and all of a sudden on every food site I saw people were making their own renditions of a S'mores Cookie. So maybe my idea wasn't as brilliant as I thought, but it still sounded delicious! The one problem I was encountering was how to make them gluten free without graham flour, which is essential if I really wanted to make them taste like S'mores. So finally this Sunday I made Gluten Free Graham Crackers from scratch and viola! Now I could make S'mores cookies. I based them off my Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe, so if you've read that the process is pretty much identical (I'll post it anyway). The main changes are that I used graham flour (crushed graham crackers) instead of oat flour and I only used semi sweet chips in the cookie because I put dark chunks on top. And of course topped them with marshmallows. They were delicious, not to mention adorable! You could really taste the cinnamon and honey from the graham flour (even without toppings these flavors really elevate these simple chocolate chip cookies into something a little more complex). So bake a batch of these up for one last taste of summer before diving into fall flavors.

Gluten Free S'mores Cookies

Recipe a Jesicakes original with graham flour made from a recipe by Gluten Free Girl
Makes 18-20 cookies

Ingredients

- 1/2 cup softened butter
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 cup graham flour*
- 1/3 cup brown rice flour
- 1/3 cup tapioca flour
- 1/3 cup sweet rice flour
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp hot water
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup semi sweet chocolate chips
- 50-60 mini marshmallows (I used Dandies' vegan marshmallows because I don't eat gelatin)
- 1 60% cocoa Ghiradelli chocolate bar, chopped (if you want to be traditional use Hershey's squares)
- 1/4 cup extra crushed graham crackers*

* Graham Flour made from crushed graham crackers from my last recipe post here. I used 3 graham crackers and a fourth for the extra for the topping.

- Mix together all the flours, the xanthan gum, and the salt with a whisk. Add them gradually to the mixer allowing them to incorporate after each addition.
- Add a tsp of hot water to dissolve the baking soda and add it to the mixer. Use a spatula to make sure you get it all out.
- Add the chocolate chips mix until well combined.
- I use an ice cream scoop to measure my cookies so they're uniform. With the scoop I use I get about 18 cookies from this recipe.

- Place the cookies on a baking sheet. While they're on their first run, toast the marshmallows slightly.

- Bake for 8 minutes, then rotate, and bake for 2 more minutes. Take them out briefly, add three mini marshmallows and three chunks of chocolate to the tops of the cookies. Sprinkle some extra crushed grahams on too. Return to the oven and bake another 2 minutes.

- When done, allow to sit for a few minutes then move to a cooling rack to finish cooling. Best served when still a little gooey and warm to get the full S'mores effect...but still almost as good when they're completely cooled.

- They stay well in an airtight container for a few days...and I froze the extra dough in scooped balls. They're the perfect goodbye to summer and if you're ever wishing for summer on a cold winter night, I'm sure they'd be perfect for some summer nostalgia.

Gluten Free Cinnamon Sugar Graham Crackers

2011-09-18T17:27:00.003-04:00

One of my favourite snacks when I was a kid was cinnamon sugar graham crackers. I especially loved them on a chilly night with a nice hot cup of black tea to dip them in. The reason I wanted to make grahams today was to crumble them up to make graham flour for S'mores Cookies I'm also making later today. I was surprised to find that I only needed three of these graham crackers. This turned out to be a wonderful surprise because these grahams are delicious! Not too sweet but rather that subtle sweetness from the honey with a little kiss of extra sweetness from the cinnamon sugar on top. I could tell straight from the dough that as long as they baked right they'd be killer because the dough alone (egg free too!) was so delicious I was struggling to not just eat it raw. I've never made any kind of graham cracker before so I got the recipe form Gluten Free Girl and stuck pretty closely to it. And obviously, if you don't like cinnamon or want the added sugar, just leave off the step of sprinkling them with cinnamon sugar before baking. So bake up the perfect Gluten Fee Cinnamon Sugar Graham Crackers, make some tea to dip them into, and relax and enjoy the day.

Gluten Free Cinnamon Sugar Graham Crackers

Recipe from Gluten Free Girl with minor changes
Makes 16 graham crackers

Ingredients

- 1/2 cup + 2 tbsp sorghum flour*
- 1/2 cup + 1 tbsp brown rice flour*
- 1/3 cup - 1 tbsp tapioca flour*
- 1/3 cup + 2 tbsp sweet rice flour*
- 1 tsp cinnamon
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 3/4 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 7 tbsp unsalted butter just out of the fridge
- 1/4 cup mild flavored honey (I used pretty generic clove honey)
- 3-6 tbsp cold water
- Cinnamon sugar

*She does her baking by weight (something I'd really like to start doing just need to do more research and also save and buy a scale). All of these flours come out to 2.5 ounces each.

- Combine all the dry ingredients and mix well.

- Cut butter into small pieces (about 1/2 tbsp pieces). Place the flour in a food processor. Add the butter one piece at a time and pulse to combine. Keep pulsing until all of the butter is incorporated. The mix should have a sandy texture.

- Mix 3 tbsp of the cold water with the honey. With the food processor running, add the honey mixture. Keep it running until the dough forms a ball. You can add the remaining tbsp of water one at a time if it is not coming together.

- Refrigerate the dough in plastic wrap for 15 minutes.

- Preheat the oven to 325˚F.

- After the 15 minutes, remove the dough from the fridge. Cut the ball in half.

- Place the 1/2 in between two pieces of parchment and roll into a rectangle 1/4'' thick (it will be about the size of 1/2 a cookie sheet). Do the same with the other half of the dough.

- Cut in 8 pieces each, dust with cinnamon sugar mixture, and refrigerate for 15 minutes.

- Using a fork, pierce wholes in each graham in a pattern. Cut the parchment so it fits on a cookie sheet. Place both batches on one cookie sheet.

- Bake until golden brown and starting to harden. About 15-20 minutes. Turn halfway. For me, I did 8, turned, another 8, turned, then another 2. I think they could've used another two-four minutes though. So my total bake time would be 20-22 minutes.

- Allow to cool 30 minutes until more hardened. Then enjoy! Or crumble them up to make a pie or cake with a graham crust or like the recipe I'll post later this week, use them as graham flour in a recipe for S'mores Cookies!

Best Ever Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies!

2011-09-10T15:18:00.005-04:00

The first gluten free recipe I tried really developing myself was Chocolate Chip Cookies. By this I mean studying a bunch of different recipes, seeing what I thought worked best, and making my own recipe out of them. I've tried so many packaged gluten free chocolate chip cookie mixes and there's always some aspect that dissatisfying about them...whether they're dry or have a distinct taste or smell that just screams gluten free (and not as good as the original!). My goal was to make a recipe for them that tasted just as good if not better than my favourite all purpose flour chocolate chip cookie recipe...and I think that I finally got it! These cookies are crispy on the edges but have a soft chewy center. The different flours I use give them a great classic flavor that you would never guess are gluten free. They're easy and quick to make, and the perfect fix for any of your cookie cravings!

Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Recipe a Jesicakes Original.
Makes about 1 1/2 dozen cookies (I would consider this a 1/2 recipe)

Ingredients

- 1/2 cup room temperature unsalted butter
- 1/2 cup white sugar
- 1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
- 1 egg
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1/2 cup oat flour
- 1/3 cup brown rice flour
- 1/3 cup tapioca flour
- 1/3 cup sweet rice flour
- 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
- 1/2 tsp baking soda
- 1 tsp hot water
- 1/4 tsp salt
- 1 cup chocolate chips (I do 2/3 cup semi sweet chocolate chips and 1/3 cup chopped 60% Ghiradelli dark chocolate)

- Preheat the oven to 350˚F and prepare a cookie sheet with parchment or a silpat liner.
- Cream the butter with the white and brown sugar until light and fluffy.
- Add the egg and the vanilla and mix until evenly distributed.
- Mix together all the flours, the xanthan gum, and the salt with a whisk. Add them gradually to the mixer allowing them to incorporate after each addition.
- Add a tsp of hot water to dissolve the baking soda and add it to the mixer. Use a spatula to make sure you get it all out.

- Add the chocolate chips and the chopped chocolate and mix until well combined.
- I use an ice cream scoop to measure my cookies so they're uniform. With the scoop I use I get about 18 cookies from this recipe. I find this to be the perfect amount for a quick craving.

- Bake for 10 minutes, then rotate, and bake for 4 more minutes. Gluten Free tends not to brown up that much. The first few times I overbaked them. Once they've gotten that perfect regular golden brown, for gluten free that probably means they'll be a little crisp. So er on the side of 2 minutes less than the degree of brown you'd like to see for that perfect soft, chewy center. And remember all ovens vary, so you'll find the perfect time for your oven with practice.
- When done, allow to sit for a few minutes then move to a cooling rack to finish cooling or devour still piping hot if you're me and can't wait for them to cool...just be careful not to burn yourself in the process like I always do!

* Just a quick final note...while this recipe takes no time at all to whip out, I also normally freeze half of it and keep it in the freezer for when I want just a single cookie at anytime. Bake up whatever you want immediately, then scoop the rest of the batch of dough onto a small sheet or plate. Put it in the freezer, and once they're frozen you can place them in a ziplock and keep in the freezer for whenever you're in the mood for a freshly baked cookie. I even just bake up one or two in the toaster oven!

Miss Me?

2011-09-04T20:41:00.002-04:00

I really would love to update this every weekend. This weekend I didn't because I normally don't work Saturday's or Sunday's but worked both. Today we were in a street fair so it was a busy week preparing for it too! As of right now I'm lying down after a 50+ hour work week ready to sleep through Monday all the way to Tuesday morning where I'll wake up and start a new week of work! I LOVE my job but baking and decorating can be tough work, especially when the week is ended with a 10 hour street fair! But I'll be back to my normal no weekend working week, so make sure to check back! I decided to start off with my Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies. Then Gluten Free Graham Crackers. The combination of which will be the base to what I'll be making after which is Gluten Free S'mores cookies! So enjoy you week and make sure to check back because I have lots of people who can tell you that you do not want to miss my recipe for Chocolate Chip Cookies...so unbelievably better then any box mix you'll buy!

Anything Imaginable Oatmeal Loaf

2011-08-27T20:46:00.008-04:00

When I first went gluten free the biggest thing I had a problem eliminating was snacks and meal replacement bars. I think my lunch every single day of my last two years of college was an apple with cheese, greek yoghurt, and then two hours later to hold me over until dinner a Luna Bar or a Special K Bar. Those were my dinner half the time if I was working or just had a deadline on a painting so couldn't eat at home. And while I like Larabars now they're not that same satisfaction of a granola bar. So the very first gluten free thing I made was a take on an Oatmeal Loaf I found over at Flour Child. The wonderful thing about this recipe is that there is a up to 1 1/2 cups of add ins part of the recipe that can be anything you want. I was making a new loaf pretty much every week coming up with new combinations (some not as successful as others). You can make it as healthy or decadent as you'd like...wherever the mood takes you! I love making a healthy version with fruit and veggies and nuts that a perfect quick energy boost before a yoga class. But I also love a good chocolate chip version when I have a sweet tooth. Also, this is so easy in terms of preparation. Absolutely no mixer required and I can whip this baby out in under 15 minutes (+ baking time). Here's the kinds I've made:

Carrot, Sweet Potato, Walnut
Carrot, Zucchini, Walnut
Apple, Carrot, Raisin, Walnut
Apple, Cranberry, Carrot, Walnut (probably my favorite on the not as sweet/healthier side)
Cocoa, Walnut, Banana (not as good as it sounds...)

and finally...the best (slightly sinful) versions:

Banana, Chocolate Chip, Coconut and Walnut Oatmeal Loaf

Recipe adapted from Flour Child
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes

Makes 1 8'' x 4'' loaf pan

Ingredients

- 1 1/4 cups brown rice flour*

- 1 1/4 cups rolled oats

- 1 tsp gluten free baking powder

- 1/2 tsp baking soda

- 1 tsp cinnamon (+ with this recipe I add an extra 1 tsp as well)

- 1/4 tsp salt

- 1/2 cup light brown sugar (or white)

- 1 cup unsweetened applesauce

- 1/2 cup almond milk (original recipe uses buttermilk)

- 1 egg

- 2 tbsp canola oil (I've found this optional...for this loaf especially I don't think it's needed. For the apple, cranberry, carrot, walnut though it could use a little moisture)

- 1 1/2 cups of add ins: 2 very ripened bananas, 1/4 cup chopped walnuts, 1/4 cup shredded coconut, 1/2 cup semisweet chocolate chips. Be careful about adding TOO much wet ingredients. If you do, compensate with a few extra tbsp of brown rice flour.

*With this batch, I tried doing a mix of different flours, but I definitely prefer it with just the brown rice. I like the coarser texture with the oats...I feel like the finer texture of the tapioca and sweet rice flour are fighting the oat texture too much. If you'd like to try though, I did 1/3 cup sweet rice flour, 1/3 cup tapioca flour, 1/3 cut brown rice flour, and 1/4 cup oat flour.

- Preheat your oven to 350˚F and grease a 8'' X 4'' pan

- In a large mixing bowl, combine the flour, oats, baking powder, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and any other dry add ins such as the walnuts, coconut, and chocolate chips.

- In another bowl, combine the applesauce, almond milk, sugar, oil (if using), and egg. Stir in any wet add ins such as the banana.

- Make a well in the dry ingredients and pour in the wet, mixing well to combine. I warn you, this is not the most attractive batter between the applesauce and the oats...but I promise it will taste a lot better than it looks at this point!

- Pour into your greased loaf pan and bake 45-55 minutes. Depending on how much wet ingredients you add you may need more time. This one in particular pushes 55 minutes. When a toothpick comes out clean you know it's done.

- Cool on a rack and enjoy!

So I know I've been getting a little cabin fever waiting for this hurricane to come already. So while you're stuck inside get imaginative! Make something crazy with this recipe and have fun with it!

Hunker Down for the Hurricane

2011-08-26T22:03:00.001-04:00

So, while I'm not freaking out like crazy buying the grocery store out of a year's supply of bottled water and batteries, it's common sense to not plan on going out at all during a hurricane. Later tomorrow or Sunday I'll be posting a recipe for Anything Imaginable Oatmeal Loaf. It's a gluten free loaf base recipe that has room for add ins of whatever you desire. I've done everything from Banana, Coconut, Chocolate Chips, and Walnuts to Apples, Carrots, Cranberries, and Walnuts. What you do need is a stocked pantry. Being a baker, my pantry is always stocked with gluten free baking necessities...especially for those last minute chocolate chip cookies urges. So here's a quick break down on some gluten free alternatives always in my kitchen:

-Brown Rice Flour - Dense and a bit grainy, but Bob's Red Mill version is actually pretty fine compared to others. When recipes don't call for a lot of flour (like my brownies) and it's silly to do a blend, I almost always will use just brown rice flour.

-Sweet Rice Flour - A thickener but also adds the sweet flavor of rice versus the more nutty almost flavor of brown rice flour.

-Oat Flour - (Obviously) adds a great oat flavor, and when mixed with other flours layers in really nicely. My favorite recipe I notice it in is my chocolate chip cookies. There's just a subtle undertone of oat flavor.

-Tapioca Flour - Helps in holding together the batter. Adds that spring to baked good that tells you they're down. It also helps add a nice crispness and golden brown color...which if you've tried a gluten free recipe without it you may have noticed that gluten free flours don't tend to brown.

-Sorghum Flour (I haven't used it yet but I'm excited to try it. It's pretty high in protein without the very earthy taste and smell of something like Garbanzo flour)

-Xanthan Gum - Necessary to add viscosity to gluten free batters. Otherwise, anything baked free of a mold (like cookies) will not hold their shape and spread out too much while they bake

-Gluten Free Baking Powder - Baking Powder has some kind of starch in it. It can be cornstarch, potato starch or wheat starch...the latter of which will make it contain gluten. So make sure you check the ingredients in it or make sure it says "Gluten Free." I use Davis.

-Gluten Free Vanilla - Vanilla contains alcohol...some use a grain alcohol. So again, make sure your vanilla says "gluten free." I use Kirkland's Vanilla (the Costco brand...it's gluten free, tastes good, and you get a pretty gigantic bottle for very cheap compared to the gluten free vanilla in the supermarket)

Of course, my kitchen always has chocolate of some kind, sugar, salt, baking soda, unsalted butter, milk of some kind (usually almond because I actually love the flavor it adds, but just make sure no one has any allergies!), cinnamon, eggs, and so on....all the usuals for any pantry and fridge used in all kinds of baking recipes. I also plan on making some homemade gluten free Graham Crackers this weekend...half of which I'm pulverizing to make Gluten Free S'mores Cookies. So between that and possibly making some hurricane cocktails, I think I have a good plan to survive Irene.

Rich, Decadent, Blissful Brownies

2011-08-21T16:49:00.006-04:00

As a chocolate lover, brownies are at the top of my list of favorite desserts. My idea of the perfect brownie is a crispy outside with a decadently moist center. I also don't like brownies that are overly sweet, but rather have a rich, chocolately taste. I found this recipe from The Weather in Cascadia, and the addition of almond meal made it sound too irresistible to not try to make. When I made it I was an ounce short on chocolate, so I substituted an ounce of unsweetened cocoa powder and while I haven't tried it with all 5 ounces of dark chocolate this version I made was so delicious, why change a good thing? I used 60% cocoa bittersweet chocolate for my recipe, but I'd love to try an even darker version. And I'm sure a lighter or milk chocolate could be just as good if that rich, dark chocolate flavor isn't for you. Also, for this recipe I did a recipe and a half which is why you'll see 3 egg and why I used a 13'' X 9'' pan (it was slightly thinner than I would have liked, I think a double recipe would have been perfect). They're my perfect brownie. Crispy top with a moist, silky center. Rich and decadent with the sweet almond flavor coming through and slightly floral notes from the dark chocolate. My friends and family love them (and have been begging me for the recipe!) and I guarantee yours will too!

Gluten Free Brownie Bliss

Recipe adapted from The Weather In Cascadia, whose recipe was adapted from Gluten Free Goddess

Fills a 8'' X 8'' pan

Ingredients

- 4 oz 60% cocoa Ghiradeli bittersweet chocolate bar, roughly chopped
- 3 tbsp cocoa powder (Hershey's, or any non-Dutch processed)*
- 1 tbsp canola oil (or vegetable)
- 1/2 cup unsalted butter
- 2 eggs
- 3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
- 2 tsp gluten free vanilla
- 1/2 cup of almond flour (I used a coffee bean grinder to grind fresh almonds)
- 1/4 cup brown rice flour
- 1/2 tsp fine sea salt
- 1/4 tsp baking soda

*Dutch Processed Cocoa Powder does not react with baking soda

- Preheat oven to 350˚F and grease a 8'' X 8'' pan.
- Melt the butter in the microwave. Add in the chopped chocolate and stir until it's melted. Add the cocoa powder and oil and mix to combine.

- Beat the eggs in a mixer with a paddle until they are a bit frothy.
- Add the sugar and the vanilla and beat until smooth.
- Add the butter/chocolate mixture and beat until smooth.
- Whisk together the brown rice flour, almond meal, baking soda, and salt in a bowl. Add to the mixer. Scrape down the bowl, then mix until combined.

- Pour into the pan and smooth so it is even distributed throughout the pan.
- Bake for 10 minutes, then turn. Bake another 10-15, until a toothpick comes out mostly clean (err on the side of moist...overcooked, dry brownies are the opposite of what you want. You want soft, moist brownies)

- Cool on a rack until cool to the touch (I know it's difficult to resist the temptation when your whole house will be smelling of chocolate, but if you try to cut them too soon -and I know this from persoanl experience- they will fall apart).
- Cut, serve, and enjoy!

I have taken this recipe and made Chocolate Chip Cookie Brownies, using my own Gluten Free chocolate chip cookie recipe. I also made Sugar Free, Gluten Free Strawberry Cheesecake Swirl Brownies. I can't wait to try making other varieties...some ideas include Espresso Brownies, Mint Brownies, and Peanut Butter Brownies. Even do something as simple as adding chocolate chips like the people I adapted this from. Or add walnuts if you like some crunch in your brownies...the possibilities are endless!!

Gluten Free Apple Pie Cupcakes

2011-08-14T15:30:00.005-04:00

One of the first things I've ever made gluten free were vanilla cupcake bases. We were celebrating Easter at my house and I wanted to do a blind taste test with a cute cupcake idea I came across that seemed like a perfect Easter dessert. I wanted to make "Apple Pie" Cupcakes and not tell anyone they were gluten free to see what the response was (or if anyone could even tell! Especially my brother who my mom has tried to "trick" with organic versions of food and he instantly can tell they're organic and therefore "gross." The ones in the middle of that picture are plain Vanilla with Vanilla Buttercream cupcakes for him because he wouldn't touch one with apples). Now I know, you're not supposed to just switch up ingredients because it can affect the outcome of recipes, but I've often decided to throw that rule out the window. I simply switched the cake flour for brown rice flour. Since then, I've further delved into an exploration of flour combinations. My first time making chocolate chip cookies using only brown rice flour they had a bit of a rustic, coarse texture, but since then with my mix they're nice and crispy on the outside and chewy on the inside. I can't wait for another opportunity to make cupcakes so I can try it with my gluten free flour mixture I've come up with, but til then the just brown rice version were slightly crumbly, but still delicious!

Gluten Free Apple Pie Cupcakes

Recipe adapted from Annie Eats, whose recipe was adapted from Fatty Fat Fats
Made Gluten Free by Jesicakes

Makes 24 cupcakes

Ingredients

- 3 cups brown rice flour*

- 1 tbsp gluten free baking powder

- 1/2 tsp salt

- 1 cup unsalted butter at room temperature
- 2 cups sugar
- 4 eggs
- 1 1/2 tsp gluten free vanilla
- 1 cup almond milk (can use dairy milk, I love the flavor this adds though)

Click "Read more" for the procedure

- Preheat your oven to 350˚F and fill cupcake pan with liners.
- Sift together brown rice flour, baking powder, and salt.
- Cream butter and sugar in an electric mixer til light and fluffy. I normally start on medium low to get it going, then scrape down the bowl and turn the mixer to medium high. It'll take a few minutes if your butter was room temperature. If you butter is colder, it will just take longer.
- Beat in the eggs one at a time, incorporating fully before adding each one.
- Add the vanilla and keep mixing until it is combined.
- Turn the mixer's speed to low, and begin to add the sifted flour mixture. Alternatively add the almond milk, ending on the flour mixture. Make sure to scrape down the bowl, then give it a quick final mix to make sure everything is combined.
- Divide the batter evenly among the cupcake liners, about 2/3 to 3/4 full. Bake them until they're golden and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. If your oven cooks unevenly, make sure to gently rotate them halfway through. It will take around 18-22 minutes total.
- When done remove from oven and allow to cool 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack to cool completely before adding the apples or icing.

From my overall experience with cooking gluten free, the desserts don't get as "golden" as with regular flour, so make sure you're testing the center with a toothpick to see when they're really done. When it comes out clean, even if they're not golden, they're done.

*My mixture, which I want to try would be 1 cup oat flour, 2/3 cups brown rice flour, 2/3 cups tapioca flour, 2/3 cups sweet rice flour and 1 tsp xanthan gum...hopefully I will try this soon and let you know the outcome!

"Apple Pie" Apples

- 2 tbsp butter

- 2 tsp of cinnamon (I do cinnamon to taste usually)

- 2-3 tbsp of brown sugar (to taste)

- 3 large Fuji apples, cored, peeled, and diced (any hard, non mealy apples will do...Granny Smith are typically used but I'm not a fan of them. Fuji apples are my favorite)

- Melt butter in a pot over medium heat. Add cinnamon and sugar and cook for a minute or two until sugar is dissolved. Add the apples and toss to coat in the butter and sugar. Cook, stirring, about 10 minutes or until apples are tender. Add more sugar or cinnamon as needed. Let the mixture cool completely til adding it to the cupcakes.

Vanilla Buttercream

Now, in general, I do buttercream to taste. And I always wind up making more than I need which and freezing the extra in a airtight container. It freezers wonderfully and them you have buttercream for any last minute cupcake emergency! This is generally the recipe I follow:
- 1/2 cup (1 stick) of unsalted butter
- 2 cups of confectioner sugar, sifted
- 1 tsp vanilla
- 1 tbsp almond milk or whole milk/heavy crea
- A pinch of salt

Cream the butter in an electric mixer until it's light and fluffy. Begin gradually adding the confectioners sugar on low. If it begins to get too dry add some of the milk. Make sure to scrape down the bowl. Add the rest of the milk, vanilla, and salt and beat at medium-high speed to combine. Keep beating until the mixture is light and fluffy yet holds a shape, about 5 minutes.

To Construct

- Take the completely cooled cupcakes and cut a cone shaped piece out of the top (like in the picture). Add the cooled apple mixture so it fills the hole, and goes slightly over the height of the cupcake. Using a pastry bag and any star type tip, pipe a dollop of buttercream on top (mine is blue because it was leftover from a cake I decorated, but obviously plain is perfectly fine). There you go! Simple and easy but they look really impressive. Everyone loved them and no one knew they were gluten free! Not even my brother!

Welcome!

2011-08-12T23:25:00.002-04:00

I have had the most wildly different aspirations for my life and my career. From curator of a major metropolitan museum, to painter, to marine biologist I changed my mind almost every week. One thing I always loved was baking. Throughout college I'd bake for parties and my friends would tell me that I should start my own bakery. I'd modestly laugh it off...baking was just a hobby...something I enjoyed. And over the past two years I started thinking to myself why should baking just be a hobby? So after graduating college I landed a job at Cookie Girl Bake Shop where I honed my baking skills and also learned to decorate specialty sugar cookies and cakes. While all of this was happening, I was advised to go gluten free because I have a medical condition called fibromyalgia. So now the question is how could I keep baking if I couldn't eat anything I made? That's when I began researching and discovering all the ways I could make gluten free desserts that taste just as great (if not better) than those with gluten. One of the things that has always driven me towards baking is that desserts are always a positive thing. No matter how bad of a day I'm having, I can have a chocolate chip cookie and all my troubles melt away if only for that one moment. So now I'm out on a mission to develop recipes, further learn to decorate, and turn baking into a career.

On this blog, you can expect to find recipes I try and even some I've developed myself. I'll also be posting photos of my decorating from work and home. I'll post reviews of new products I try on my journey to develop the best gluten free versions of desserts.