Lucky for me, my mom was scheduled to come and visit and she just happened to have a degree in food science and nutrition. She knew exactly what gluten was and started reading everything she could get her hands on. I don’t know how we did it back then, before blogs and google and everything we take for granted. She showed up at the airport with two huge suitcases (remember when you could take those on airplanes?) full of gluten-free cookbooks and bags and bags of gluten-free flours.

For the next 2 weeks we spent every day in the kitchen. Trying every recipe in “The Gluten-free Gourmet” and making up our own. It took a lot of patience and a good sense of humor because more of our creations ended up in the garbage than in our tummies – but I learned a lot.

Flash forward four kids later, my youngest was done nursing and I was ready to start eating “normal”again, only to find out the hard way that the gluten issues weren’t entirely my kids problem. I immediately began having problems and my Dr’s realized for the first time in my life that gluten was my problem as well.

So here we are, 12 years later and with a house full of gluten-free eaters I have some tips to share:

Tip #1 – xanthan gum or guar gum -
Gluten-free cooking just doesn’t happen with-out them. They are the glue that gluten-free flours are missing. Without it – the only thing your gf baked goods will be good for is bread crumbs. A good rule of thumb is 1 tsp of xanthan or guar gum per cup of GF flour in your recipe. If you are using eggs, you may not need as much, and if you are replacing eggs, you may need a bit more.

Tip #2 – Know your alternatives.
One of the cool things about gluten-free cooking is all the alternatives we have to regular old flour.
With a little effort and creativity, gluten-free living really opens the doors to a healthier lifestyle than you probably had before.
**A word of warning – when trying any of these flours for the first time use it in a pancake or something simple and watch for reactions. I try to rotate the flours I use and there are a few that just don’t work for us – but work great for many of my friends. Buy the small bag the first time and if you like it, go back and buy it in bulk!**
Gluten-free flours need cool dark storage, most store best in the freezer. I store many of the whole grains in sealed buckets and put the freshly ground flour in my freezer if I am not going through it fast enough.

Quinoa (pronounced Keen wa) – this is an ancient grain, really high in protein and high in amino acids. It ads structure to gluten-free breads. I use this often, mixed with other flours – it tends to be heavy and can be stronger in flavor. At our house it goes well with Buckwheat, Millet and a little bit of starch (see below).
Amaranth – the seeds of this plant are also unusually high in protein and amino acids adding flavor and structure to the dough, it has a nice flavor but is not a grain to use by itself, it needs other lighter flours to round it out.
Sorghum a really popular grain, kind of sweet without much of an aftertaste, some people have a hard time tolerating large amounts of this grain, it can get heavy if used exclusively but is lighter than the bean flours. Sorghum syrups are used as a sweetener – so this is popular in cookies and cakes.
Teff – high in dietary fiber, protein, calcium & iron this is a nutritional powerhouse. It has a slightly sweet nutty flavor that adds a lot to gluten-free baking. It can be hard to come by and has a shorter shelf-life so keep it in the freezer.
Buckwheat – not a grain, its a fruit and has nothing in common with wheat other than the name. This is my favorite grain, its hearty, has a familiar taste and adds lot of nutrition to your breads. I wouldn’t recommend using this exclusively in most recipes, but it tends to really work well with Quinoa, GF Oat flour and the rice flours.
Millet- a fabulous source of the B vitamins, it does have a stronger flavor but combines well with other flours in baking. I use this quite often. It goes well with Quinoa. You can also soak the grains and cook them just like steel-cut oats, it makes a yummy breakfast with a little milk (if you can) and cinnamon.
Brown Rice- I use this flour often too – especially in cupcakes and other treats that I serve to unsuspecting wheat-eaters. It has a familiar taste and the whole grains offer fiber and vitamins. Using this flour entirely on its own results in a gummy-grainy texture, so always mix with another flour or starch to prevent this. You can also use white rice flour, it acts more like a starch and has little nutritional value, but certainly can be incorporated into gf bread making if you choose.

Corn – corn flour is much finer than corn meal, but it still tends to be a bit heavy to bake with so I always combine it with other flours. Makes fabulous corn breads with a little potato starch or quinoa flour!
GF Oats-Hands down our favorite. When making cookies or crisps or other recipes with oats in them that call for a little flour I just throw a cup or two in my blender and in a minute or so I have oat flour that works great. Honestly, if I dared, I would use oat flour in everything – but variety is the spice of life (and the secret to allowing sensitive tummies to heal.)

There are all sorts of bean flours, I am only going to mention the most common:
Garbanzo bean flour – high in protein its easy to use. Be warned it has a stronger taste so it works best mixed with other flours and can go rancid if not kept cool.

Fava bean flour – I don’t usually see this alone (although you can order it), often its marketed as Garfava flour, a mixture of garbonzo and fava beans. It has a lot of protein and adds great structure to bread, but like Garbanzo bean flour, it has a stronger taste and turns rancid in less than ideal conditions.
Soy flour- I almost forgot to mention it, we don’t use it at our house as soy is a major allergen for us, but it is also high in protein and has a strong flavor like the bean flours so go easy.

Starches- not really known for their nutritional value, starches come in handy when you need some help binding ingredients and making your bread light enough to rise. There are some great commercially available breads out there that rely almost exclusively on starches – I struggle to use a lot of these because the last thing my kids need is empty calories, we need nutritional powerhouses in every bite. But on vacation and in a crunch they sure make life easier. They all are fabulous thickeners as well – use like corn starch in soups, sauces and gravy.

Potato Starch (NOT potato flour) – light and has a really “normal” taste. It does tend to get gummy if you use too much, but replacing 1/2 -1/4 of the flour in your recipe with pot cup in a recipe can help give you the results you were used to when you used white flour.
Corn Starch – acts a lot like potato starch, its a great binder and smells great when cooked. Too much makes your bread gummy in the middle, but a bit here and there make a big difference, I use it to balance out my corn bread recipes.
Tapioca Starch (this is often called tapioca flour) – You’ll find this in a lot of prepared GF foods. I find the best prices at local asian markets that sell it in tiny packages. While you could never make an entire loaf from tapioca starch, I find I can’t bake without a cup or so in my recipe. It really helps hold things together, gives a nice flavor and lightens up a recipe while adding a nice flakiness to the crust.
Sweet rice flour – can be used in place of sugar in some recipes. Be careful, a little goes a long way – as it is a really heavy flour. It doesn’t take much to end up with a gummy, heavy product.

Arrowroot flour- I love this stuff but have a hard time finding it in our current home town. It is great to bake with and makes a fabulous thickener that doesn’t change the flavor. If you are fortunate to get a good deal on it, don’t pass it up!

Bonus tip- Flax seed (ground) – okay, I know it’s not a flour, but adding a few tablespoons or more to a batch of bread or muffins adds a fabulous nutty flavor and a punch of omega 3’s. Its also a great egg-replacer – but that is for another time. You may need to add a bit more moisture when you use flax in a recipe as it tends to hold onto the liquids.

Tip #3 – Gluten-free dough is actually more like a batter.
This was hard to get used to after years of making wheat products – but as a rule, gluten-free breads generally turn out better if the dough is more like a cake batter. It just needs more moisture to allow the products to rise and to keep them from getting hard. I also find that mixing my flours separately then adding the liquids all at once gives better results than adding everything all at once. The starches tend to clump if they get moist before they distribute throughout a recipe.

Tip #4 – Start small
This was probably the best thing I learned from my mom. When we would make a batch of muffins or cookies the first time we would only cook a few of them. That way, if it just didn’t turn out, we could add more water, flour, xanthan gum or whatever and have a chance of saving the batch. The other thing she taught me is to not be afraid to throw it out and start over if it really isn’t working. Really, on a tight budget, you will spend more time and money making a bigger mess out of your dough than you will by just getting rid of it and starting with a different recipe.

Tip#5 – Most of your old recipes will adapt well
I spent years trying all these elaborate recipes I found in special cook books and on the internet. But the ones we like the best are the old stand-by’s from our pre-gluten-free days. Once you find a mix of flours that work for you, add some xanthan or guar gum and a little extra moisture, you’ll be surprised how easy it is to cook gluten-free.

Tip #5 – You Are Not Alone
That is the coolest thing about living in our generation. With the internet, we are all practically next-door neighbors. Maybe we can’t run and borrow a cup of buckwheat flour, but we can certainly share recipes and tips and struggles. Since our diagnosis 12 years ago we have lived in 3 states and 9 different towns and I have never been the only one. In fact, I am usually the first call for many as they find their children diagnosed with allergies. Today I can walk into most eating establishments and ask for a gluten-free menu and the isles of most markets have at least a handful of items marked gluten-free.
Some of my favorite sites include www.glutenfreegoddess.wordpress.com
www.wholefoodsmarket.com (recipe section and check out the comments on many recipes, people post their adaptations for many allergies)
google-groups and support groups are like life-lines when you are getting started, don’t be afraid to reach out and ask for help. You’ll be surprised how many others have stood in your shoes -
and you can always call on me – I’m happy and thrilled to help, I still remember how hard it was, worrying every day what I would feed my growing children, working to educate teachers and family members and friends on a continual basis. But I am here to say that it works out, it is worth it and my first-born, failure to thrive baby is now almost my height, a state-ranked competitive swimmer and anything but malnourished.
Shelley www.enjoythelittlethings.wordpress.com

I was invited to be a guest blogger for foodallergyfeast this week. I did a post on gluten-free baking.

Something I should have put on here awhile ago it covers a variety of GF flours and my top five GF baking tips- I hope you find it useful.

http://foodallergyfeast.blogspot.com/

She has other great allergy tips as well, check it out.

I have a great new GF bread recipe – kids are almost out of school and the house is going up for sale, no

promises, but I will do my best to get it up here soon!

Hope you all had a great Memorial Day weekend.

shelley

L-O-V-E it . . .

So for Valentine’s day I set out on a quest to find a safe brownie recipe -

After some serious searching – I found a vegan gluten recipe that worked well with some simple changes to make it GF as well.

(If you check out the recipe – scroll down to the comments by Duckbill – most helpful)

Preheat oven to 350

spray or grease a 9X 13 pan

Mix:

2 C GF flour mix (I used 1 C buckwheat flour, 1/2 C oat flour & 1/2 C rice flour)

1 1/2 C brown sugar

3/4 C cocoa

2 tsp xanthan gum

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 C water

4 T vegetable oil

1 C natural unsweetened applesauce

1 tsp gf vanilla extract

mix together well

pour into prepared pan and bake until top is no longer shiny.

25 – 30 minutes – the shorter time will make them gooey, the longer time will make them a bit more cake-like.

Let cool and enjoy!

These cut and store well – they would be darling cut out with  a heart shape cookie cutter and sprinkled with powdered sugar.

Please forgive the photos – try the recipe anyway =)

It’s one of those recipes my mom and I came up with over the phone one night when I

was at my wits end trying to figure out what I could feed a child who couldn’t have anything but

cucumbers and tomatoes and hotdogs.

Finding gluten-free corn flakes was the biggest challenge – now that Chex has some great

gluten-free options life is much easier and these are much cheaper to make!

Let me warn you  – it’s not a traditional recipe,

Preheat oven to 425 degrees

For about 2lbs of chicken chopped into bite size pieces

I use about 2 1/2 cups corn chex

2 tsp of seasoning salt

1- 2 tsp dried thyme, oregano or basil

toss it in the blender and blend for a few seconds,

the bigger the crumbs, the crunchier the nuggets.

Put the crumb mixture in a bowl and toss the chicken pieces to coat – I usually only

do about 10 pieces at a time so I can make sure every piece is completely coated.

Since the chicken is raw I haven’t had to dip it in anything else to keep the crumb mixture on it.

I place it on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper

when the oven is at full temperature, bake for 6-8 minutes.

(If the pieces are really small, check them at about 5 minutes.)

Serve hot or cool completely and freeze. I often freeze them on the cookie sheet first

so they can freeze separately before I throw them in a container or bag all together.

They reheat quickly in a microwave or toaster oven for a speedy lunch!

If you have any crumb mixture left over you can throw that in the freezer too – provided you only

use it for coating things that are going to be cooked! (remember it had raw chicken in it!)

nuggets for the wee ones

I know it’s been awhile since I posted, life got a little crazy over the holidays.

But I have a wonderful new recipe to share!

I have been searching for a better bread recipe and I am very picky.

Once you get the hang of GF cooking, it is pretty easy to make bread, but

what I was looking for was something I could really feel good about putting

in my kiddos lunches each day.  Not only did I want it to taste good

and hold up well, I wanted whole grain, high protein goodness in every bite.

Before the days of GFCFEF, I used to make whole wheat breads from scratch for lunches and such. I have found many of the GFCF recipes full of starches and sugars, none of which really felt good in my tummy or made me feel great about feeding my kids, so I have been tinkering with recipe after recipe, slowly losing the starch and adding more grains, seeds and good things.

I think I have finally found an answer:

The recipe that inspired this bread is found here.  Please check it out as, she has so many fun recipes.

My version is casein free, egg-free and has a few more whole grains.

This recipe is for 1 large loaf

1/2 C warm water

2 T agave nectar

1 1/2 T yeast

mix above and let proof

add:

1 C raw sunflower seeds, ground in blender to desired consistency, (I like it a bit chunky, but it works well if you prefer a finer grind)

1 C millet flour

3/4 C quinoa flour

2/3 C buckwheat flour

1/3 C ground flax

2 1/2 tsp xanthan gum

1 1/3 C warm water (this is in addition to the water above)

2 T brown sugar or honey

4 T oil

after the yeast has had a few minutes to proof, I add everything in my bosch

and let it mix for 3- 5 minutes. This should be just a tad thicker than cake batter.

I let the mixer work on it for a few minutes after it is all blended, it seems to help

create a stronger bread – less likely to crumble and break.

Quickly scoop it into a large, greased bread pan and let it sit in a warm place

for about 20 minutes to rise.

I like to let mine rise in a warm oven, I turn it to the lowest temp while I am making the bread and as soon as it comes to heat I turn it off and stick the bread in there to rise. When it has risen high enough I turn the oven on and let it come to heat with the bread inside.  It seems to help prevent it from falling.

Bake 350 degrees for about 25 minutes.

The trick is to look for a slightly golden crust and to stick a thermometer in the bread and let it cook until the interior reaches 190 degrees. (The original recipe uses eggs and butter and the bread needs to get to 205, but I have not found that possible with the egg-free version, at 195 it starts to burn).

Pull the loaf from the oven and let it cool in the pan on a cooling rack for 10-15 minutes before loosening the edges with a butter knife and removing  it from the pan to continue to cool. The trick is to let this bread cool completely before cutting it as it continues to cook and firm up while it cools

I often make a quadruple recipe which fills all 4 of my bread pans and a muffin tin.

Once cool, slice and freeze. It reheats beautifully in the toaster and will probably keep for a few weeks in the freezer (the kiddos inhale it too fast for me to know just how long it will last).

Anyway, give it a try.  It has truly been an answer to prayers at our house. My oldest boy doesn’t come home angry and hungry from school anymore. He is so much happier to make and take a giant sandwich full of meats and veggies to school and even happier to be eating something that looks like “normal food.”

It makes great sandwiches, rolls and cinnamon toast according to the kids and I have to agree.

Let me know if you try it!

1 C rolled oats put in blender to make oat flour. (if you already have oat flour, pull 1-2 T out of a cup to adjust)

1/2 C apple or pear sauce or apricot puree

1 T ground flax

4 T rice, soy or other milk

1/2 T baking powder (you could certainly use baking soda if needs be)

optional: drop of stevia extract or a few T brown sugar or agave syrup to taste – my kids put syrup or honey on top so I forgo the extra sweeteners sometimes.

Place the ingredients in a bowl and mix well, it will be thick, if it is too thick or doesn’t moisten completely add more milk 1 T at a time.

Drop by tablespoonful onto a preheated pancake griddle and cook 1 -2 minutes each side.

They are denser than traditional pancakes – goodness, they are practically oatmeal and fruit! This is a bonus at our house – 6 or 7 of these dollar-sized beauties fill up my 10 year old!

These are quick to make and fun to experiment with – for October we have been using apricot puree to turn them orange and I bet strawberries or raspberries would be a fun color as well!

I bet quinoa flakes would work well and buckwheat flour would be a great substitute!

If you don’t have to be egg-fee, take the 4 T of milk and the flax out and substitute an egg – this is a pretty forgiving recipe!

Just beware – I have to quadruple it if I want to have enough to freeze for the next day!

I’ll post pics when I can get enough made to keep ahead of the kids!

chocolate zucchini heaven

A friend emailed me a recipe for a chocolate zucchini cake – it is so easy and the health benefits of eating zucchini are so numerous that you just have to try it, so with a few changes may I present to you

Chocolate Zucchini Muffins

2 C shredded zucchini*

1/2 C water

2 C GF flour

(I used 1/3 C each – sorghum, buckwheat, quinoa, brown rice, potato starch, tapioca starch)

1/4 C ground flax

1 1/4 c. Sugar (I use a brown unrefined sugar)
1 tsp. Salt
1 1/2 tsp. Soda
1/4 c. Cocoa **

1 tsp guar gum
1/2 c. Oil
2 tsp. Vanilla
1/2 c. Nuts (if you want)

sift together  dry ingredients and add wet ingredients, mix until well combined (moist, gummy texture)

scoop into greased muffin tins (or use the paper liners)

bake 19 – 24 minutes, 375 degrees

remove from pan immediately and cool on rack.

oh my kiddos are gonna love these  …. =)

makes about 18

can you believe these are GFCF & EF????

* my friend puts her zucchini in a blender and adds the water instead of shredding it – sounds fun!

**can’t have cocoa? replace the cocoa with a scant 1/4 C of GF flour and add a tablespoon of cinnamon or another extract, I use orange oil and throw in some sunflower seeds and cranberries – oh they are soo good!

use a clean frying pan over med- high heat

pour in enough sunflower seeds to cover the bottom and gently shake the seeds until they are toasted.

raw

Remove immediately from the heat source and the pan to cool.

look closely, they are beginning to toast!

Warning : it only takes a heartbeat to burn these babies! Don’t leave them unattended for even a second – it will be over quickly, I promise, you can hang in there!.

beauties!

After a few days of peering in at them in the refrigerator I started looking for recipes. Nothing really inspired me in my any of my cookbooks so I started to surf, that’s when I came across the awesome Beet Burger recipe on Sustainable Table.

The initial try was awesome and I highly recommend trying the recipe if you can have gluten, eggs and cheese – but of course, the allergy diagnosis began pouring in and now I make them without the eggs and cows milk cheese as follows:

2 C grated beets (I love the orange ones!)

2 C grated carrots

1 C cooked brown rice or quinoa

1/2 C goat or sheeps milk cheese (this can be optional)

1 C toasted sunflower seeds

2 T ground flax and 6 T water

1/2 C grated onion or finely chopped green onions or 1 C chopped chives

1/4 C oil

3 T GF Flour (I use sorghum or potato starch)

3 T chopped parsley, thyme, summer savory or basil

3-4 cloves garlic pressed or minced

2 T soy sauce (we usually have to omit this now, but I am working on a substitute)

ground pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees

mix flax and water and set aside until it becomes a gel (about 3-5 minutes)

mix remaining ingredients

form into patties and place on greased baking sheet (I use parchment paper instead of grease or spray)

look at that color!

bake for 18-25 minutes, until firm and cooked through – we like them a little crisp around the edges.

close up of the cooked burger

Serve just like a hamburger – with all the toppings!

dinner!

I just read recently that a serving of beets has as much iron as a hamburger patty – who knew?

bun-free=)

It is the prima-donna as far as we are concerned, I love that it is full of lots of healthy grains, which makes it easy to substitute other flours I have around.

3/4 C Whole wheat flour

1/2 C all-purpose flour  (if you have freshly ground whole wheat flour, you don’t need the all-purpose, just use 1 1/4 C of the whole wheat)

1/2 C cornmeal

1/2 C rolled oats

2 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

2 C buttermilk

1/3 C butter or margarine, melted

3 T maple syrup or brown sugar

2 eggs beaten

In a large bowl, combine all ingredients and stir until large lumps disappear. (Batter will be thick, for thinner pancakes, thin batter with a small amount of water)

Heat griddle or large skillet over medium high heat until hot. Lightly grease with oil if needed. Pour about 1/4 c batter onto hot griddle. Cook 2-3 minutes until edges look cooked or bubbles begin to break on surface. Turn, cook an additonal 2 minutes and serve.

I hope you enjoy this as much as we do! For the GFCFEF version click here.