Friday, July 06, 2007

I have to brag on this one.. I made egg free, dairy free, gluten free, (vegan), sugar free Gingerbread cookies. This was really a great boon. I have a friend that is hypoglycemic and allergic to chocolate. I wanted to make a dessert for us, as I’m cooking a Thai night up at their place. I did good on this one I think. They are tasty as anything too. :D

I found out you can make a killer sugar free “brown sugar” with Splenda and sugar free maple syrup. It’s really tasty!! Take a cup of splenda and a 1/4 cup of the sugar free maple syrup and blend.

I’ll let you know how it goes.

Posted by Diosa in • Dessert • Gluten free • Low Carb
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Wednesday, March 22, 2006

I know this isn’t with the theme of the week, but I had to post this.  It looks so deliciously evil and decandent I can’t resist.

VELVET CHOCOLATE CAKE WITH DORIS
Makes 1 eight-inch cake; serves 10 to 12

Created by New York City baker Doris Schecter, Owner, My Most Favorite Dessert Company, 120 West 45th Street ,New York, this flourless chocolate has a deep, rich flavor and a texture resembling that of cheesecake. For a taller cake, Doris suggests making 1 1/2 times this recipe.

10 tablespoons (1 1/4 sticks) unsalted margarine, cut into chunks, plus more for pan
1 pound semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon instant espresso or instant coffee
5 extra-large eggs, separated
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
Confectioners’ sugar, for dusting

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Lightly coat an 8-by-3-inch round cake pan with margarine, and line bottom with a round of parchment paper; set aside.

2. In a heat-proof bowl or the top of a double boiler set over a pan of simmering water, melt the chocolate with the margarine and instant espresso, stirring until smooth and glossy. Remove bowl from pan of water, and let mixture cool slightly. Whisk in egg yolks one at a time, beating well after each addition.

3. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat egg whites on high speed to soft peaks. With machine running, slowly add granulated sugar, beating until stiff glossy peaks form. Stir about one-quarter of the whites into chocolate base to lighten it. Gently but thoroughly fold in remaining whites until thoroughly combined.

4. Pour batter into prepared cake pan. Place in a roasting pan, and pour hot water into roasting pan to come halfway up sides of cake pan. Carefully transfer to oven, and bake until top of the cake is just set in the center, about 35 minutes. Transfer to a wire rack to cool completely, then transfer to refrigerator for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.

5. Run a paring knife around edges of cake to release from pan, and unmold (if the cake doesn’t come out of pan, briefly dip bottom of cake pan in warm water; do not leave in water too long, or cake will melt). Invert cake onto serving platter, and dust top with confectioners’ sugar. Serve in very thin slices.

Posted by Diosa in • Dessert • Gluten free
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Saturday, February 11, 2006

I can’t say that I’m a huge fan of this holiday, but it is the perfect excuse to indulge in chocolate.  It also doesn’t hurt that it’s a dear friend’s birthday today. So I’ve decided that he needs a cake.  Of course, I can’t do regular cakes, but I found this wonderful chocolate flourless cake recipe.  I’ve made it before, and it was *gorgeous*.  The fresh raspberry sauce was a must and really set the cake off wonderfully.  Though the first time I made it, I didn’t actually let it set up in the fridge, but instead served it warm.  While it was good, it really does need the time to chill and set up.  Because of the dairy issue, I use corn oil margarine in this, but if you can use butter, by all means, do!!  I also don’t use the cream of tartar, but just plain old baking powder.  Good chocolate is a must in this.

After the cake, I think I’ll make some chocolate dipped strawberries for the weekend.  MMMMMMMMM!

Flourless chocolate cake with fresh raspberry sauce

For the cake:

12 tablespoons unsalted butter
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate (semi-sweet will work, but make sure it’s good quality chocolate)
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
8 large eggs (separated)
2/3 cup brown sugar (packed)
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar (or 1 tsp or so of baking powder)
1 tablespoon cooking oil or cooking spray, for greasing pan
2 tablespoons gluten free flour, for dusting pan

For the raspberry sauce:

1/2 pt. raspberries
1/2 c. water
1/4 c. sugar

Preheat oven to 325 F.  Oil and flour a 9” springform cake round.  Cut a piece of wax paper or parchment to fit inside the bottom of the pan, place the paper in the bottom of the pan.

In a double-boiler on gentle heat, melt the butter and chocolate together until smooth. Set aside to cool slightly.

In a clean mixing bowl (make sure there is no oil residue on the bowl or mixer attachments) beat the egg whites until they become cloudy and frothy; about 30 seconds.  Continue beating while adding the brown sugar and cream of tartar.  Beat until stiff peaks form- be careful not to overbeat- this is most important!
If the eggs curdle, throw them away and start over with new egg whites, seriously.

Whisk the egg yolks and vanilla into the melted chocolate mixture in a large mixing bowl.  Gently fold the egg whites into the chocolate (start by folding in about 1/3rd of the whites, then gently fold in the remaining whites), the mixture should end up fluffy and light.  Pour into the prepared pan.

Wrap the bottom of the pan with foil and place the pan in a deep cooking sheet with about 1/2 to 1 inch of water in it. Bake the cake for about 60-70 minutes or until it passes the toothpick test. Remove cake from oven and allow to cool for about an hour.

Gently run a knife around the edge of the pan, and then carefully invert the cake onto a flat plate or other surface.  Remove the paper from the bottom (now the top) of the cake.  Invert again onto the final plate for displaying the cake. The cake can be eaten right away but it may fall slightly when it is cut- for best results, it should be refrigerated for at least 6 hours before serving.

Right before serving the cake, make the raspberry sauce by combining all ingredients and bringing them to a boil. Strain and cool the sauce. Garnish the cake with fresh raspberries and serve with the sauce.

Posted by Diosa in • Dessert • Gluten free
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Sunday, January 15, 2006

I posted this on Celiac.com a bit ago, but just got around to posting this here.  It’s actually a recipe from my Better Homes and Gardens cookbook, with a verification with Nestle’s Tollhouse cookies.  They worked out really well.  I might try refrigerating the dough for about an hour just to see if I get even better results.  The first batch I did were just like I remember homemade chocolate chip cookies.  The second batch were very flat and ran.  They were almost crepe like, but I honestly think I forgot to add the rest of the flour in.  But at any rate, here’s the recipe:

2 1/4 cups gluten-free flour (add more if the dough is a bit runny)
1 Tbsp baking soda
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup (2 sticks, 1/2 pound) butter, softened (I used dairy-free Fleischmanns, as it’s all corn oil)
3/4 cup granulated [white] sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 eggs (or egg replacement) (room temperature)
2 cups (12-ounce package) Semi-Sweet Chocolate Morsels, or any dairy free morsels (I used Ghirardelli’s bittersweet and they were fantastic.)
1 cup chopped nuts (OPTIONAL!!)

COMBINE flour, baking soda and salt in small bowl. Beat butter, granulated sugar, brown sugar and vanilla in large mixer bowl. Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition; gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in morsels and nuts if you are using them. Drop by rounded teaspoon onto ungreased baking sheets.

BAKE in preheated 375-degree [Fahrenheit] oven for 9 to 11 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand for 2 minutes; remove to wire racks to cool completely.

Posted by Diosa in • Dessert • Gluten free
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Saturday, December 24, 2005

Here we are on Christmas Eve. In the past, Christmas meant baking.  It just never seemed liked Christmas unless there was at the barest minimum a huge pile of chocolate chip cookies.  I also remember doing my mom’s black-bottom cupcakes, ginger snaps, and such.  Last year was my first stab at a Christmas cake which went over really well.  Paul loved it, as did his parents. 

This year, though, with the diagnosis of celiac’s, I hadn’t really been brave enough to start baking.  I did the initial “grilled meat and carrots” and that was about it, but I’ve been trying to get more adventurous with food.  Baking was just another one of those experiments.  Basically I went into it with the reckless abandon of “Even if it all sucks, at least I tried.” I found a new gluten-free all;-purpose flour blend.  It’s called Bette’s Gourmet Four Flour Blend and it’s corn starch, tapioca flour, garfava flour and sorghum flour.  It’s not as “beany” as the Bob’s Red Mill.  I decided to try gingerbread cookies (rounds, not the people.  I don’t have cookie cutters) and chocolate chip cookies.  I found some Ghiradeli’s dark chocolate chips, so I didn’t have to worry about dairy.  My only concern was using the lactose free corn oil margarine.  I know corn oil tends to make baked goods soft.  But again, I just figured “Give it a stab and see what happens.” Would I be bragging to say that the cookies turned out fabulous??  The GF gingerbread cookies were spicy and soft.  I did end up icing them with some royal icing.  The chocolate chip cookies warm tasted a bit beany, but after they cooled a bit the taste really mellowed and were really lovely.  It was so easy to forget they were gluten free.  It definitely felt like Christmas after some baked good action.

Gluten-Free Gingerbread cookies with Royal Icing.

1 stick lactose-free, corn oil margarine (room temperature)
2 1/2 c GF flour of your choice
1/2 c packed brown sugar
1/2 c unsulphured molasses
1 egg (room temperature)
1 Tbsp Apple cider vinegar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground ginger
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp allspice
Royal Icing (optional)

Preheat oven to 375F

In a mixing bowl (or with an electric mixer) beat the margarine until fluffy, about 30 seconds. Beat in about half the flour and all the other ingredients. Mix until thoroughly combined.  Add the remaining flour.

Drop in rounded teaspoons onto ungreased cookie sheet. (I personally used parchment so they wouldn’t stick).  Bake for about 6-8 minutes or until the edges are lightly browned.  Cool on wire rack.  If you wish to ice, go on to the next step.  If not, enjoy as is.

Royal Icing
1 c powdered sugar
1/4 tsp vanilla extract
milk, orange juice or milk substitute

Mix powdered sugar and the vanilla.  Mix in liquid 1 teaspoon at a time until desired consistency is reached.  Drizzle icing onto cooled cookies.

Posted by Diosa in • Dessert • Gluten free
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