Make Something Monday – Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

Today I want to share my go-to chocolate chip cookie recipe from Bob’s Red Mill. It’s simple and consistent and doesn’t even taste gluten free. These cookies actually get better after a few days. They’re soft and chewy and could rival even a Toll House cookie (which is my favorite non-GF cookie recipe).

These are easy to make but the most important thing to remember is to refrigerate the dough before baking. This helps them hold their shape and creates a perfectly round cookie.

Classic Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookies

from Bob’s Red Mill 

• 1/2 tsp Baking Soda
• 1 tsp Xanthan Gum
• 1/4 tsp Sea Salt
• 1/4 cup Butter
• 3/4 cup packed Brown Sugar
• 1/3 cup Sugar
• 2 tsp Vanilla
• 1 large Egg
• 1 cup Chocolate Chips
• 1-2/3 cups GF All Purpose Baking Flour

1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a large cookie sheet or line with parchment paper; set aside.
2. Stir together the GF baking flour, baking soda, xanthan gum and salt; set aside.
3. In a large mixer bowl, beat butter (room temperature, not melted) with granulated sugar, brown sugar, vanilla and egg; scrape sides of bowl frequently. Beat in flour mixture on low speed, mixing thoroughly. Stir in chocolate chips.
4. Shape dough into flat disk, wrap tightly with plastic wrap and chill for 2 hours. Drop by tablespoonfuls 2” apart on baking sheet, or roll into balls if dough is hard to work with.  Bake 10-12 minutes on center rack of oven or until lightly browned. Cool 2-3 minutes before removing from cookie sheet. Makes 24 cookies.

If you have a pint of vanilla ice cream it’s not a terrible idea to make some ice cream sandwiches. Just sayin’.

Make Something Monday – Go Bananas!

I freaking love bananas. They’re my favorite fruit and one of my favorite flavors to bake with. So when I started to plan my work snack for the week I went for a classic: banana bread. Of course, as always, this recipe is gluten free. You can substitute regular “gluten full” flour if you want since this recipe is pretty simple. And just to satisfy my sweet tooth I threw some chocolate chips into this bad boy, but you can always leave those out if you prefer.

Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

adapted from The Life of Curls

• 1 3/4 cups gluten free flour (I use Bob’s Red Mill AP GF flour)
• 1 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 large eggs
• 3/4 sugar
• 1/2 canola oil
• 3 ripe bananas, mashed
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/2 cup chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350°. Grease a bread pan. Combine your dry ingredients in a bowl: GF flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Set aside.
2.  In a seperate bowl, using an electric mixer or a potato masher, mash your bananas. Add eggs one at a time and mix. Add sugar, canola oil, and vanilla extract to the banana and egg mixture.
3.  Add your dry ingredients to wet ingredients in thirds, mixing between until fully combined. Fold in chocolate chips. Pour batter into your prepared bread pan. Bake 40-45 minutes or until a toothpick comes out completely clean.
4.  Cool on a rack of 10 minutes then remove from the pan and cool completely. (If you can. Trust me, you’ll be tempted to dig into this yummy treat right away.)

Variation: In the past I’ve also taken about 1/4-1/3 of the batter and added unsweetened cocoa powder and then marbled it throughout the batter. (Chocolate marbled banana bread might be one of my best ideas yet.)

What delicious things have you been cooking up lately?

Make Something Monday – Gluten Free Blueberry Muffins

Last weekend we were in California for my dear friend Nicci’s wedding. Nate & I decided to stay at an Airbnb apartment in Long Beach and our hosts were so fantastic! After Nate told them I was gluten free they stocked the kitchen and refrigerator full of gluten free goodies, including Udi’s Blueberry Muffins. Oh my goodness, I think I actually forgot how good blueberry muffins are.

Muffins have always been one of my favorite things to make because their so simple and the possibility of flavors is almost endless. My nickname in high school was actually “muffin” because I baked them so often.

So after coming back home I decided that I needed to make some muffins. I scouted the trusty internet for a GF blueberry muffin recipe and found this one from Driscolls. It was simple enough, and I had all the ingredients on hand, so I decided to whip up a batch for the week.

These muffins came out pretty damn good. I’ve been enjoying them for the past few days, and while they’re a bit dense, they aren’t dry. Next time I make them I might try using a different GF AP flour (I have so many bags of Bob’s Red Mill’s GF AP flour that I’m trying to work through) just to see if they can be a little less dense. I also plan on making these again soon with chocolate chips instead of blueberries. Maybe I’ll even add a streusel topping.

See, the possibilities are endless!

 

Make Some Monday – Chocolate Peanut Butter GF Granola Bars

Being gluten free is expensive. Baking mixes, special flours, cookies, pasta, the list could go on forever. I love granola/breakfast bars because they’re a good pick me up in the middle of the day, but paying $5 for 5 bars at the grocery store is crazy. So this past weekend I started searching the internetz for a GF granola bar recipe that I could bake at home and lucky me found the jackpot.

I came across this recipe on treehugger.com for 5-ingredient Breakfast Granola Bars. These bars are not only gluten free, but you can make them diary free or vegan as well. I picked up some Bob’s Red Mill GF Rolled Oats and then used chocolate chips, peanut butter, & agave that I had on hand to complete the recipe. The great thing about these bars is that you can customize them however you like and they’re also a lot more natural than granola bars you’d pick up from the store which is great for people with allergies.

If you’re not GF you can also make these with regular rolled oats which will make them even cheaper than store bought bars. So why not whip up a batch for your lunch this week?

What flavor combinations would you include in your granola bars?

xx

Candice

Make Something Monday – GF Chicken Fried Steak & Gravy

I love southern cooking, mostly because the food is fried… there’s nothing better than a crisp golden crust on a big piece of meat. (Is your mouth watering yet?) But also because it’s called soul food for a reason. It feels like it’s giving your tummy a big warm hug and makes you feel like your home even if that’s hundreds of miles away.

When I started searching for a GF Chicken Fried Steak & Gravy recipe I knew I wanted to make something that would make my grandma proud. I got a great deal on some Bob’s Red Mill GF Flour on Amazon a few months ago so I have tons of it at my apartment, but you can use any GF flour blend you have on hand. You could even use the GF Bisquick, but I’m not a huge fan of how it comes out as a breading.

Gluten & Dairy Free Chicken Fried Steak & Gravy

• 1 pound cube steak
• 1 cup GF flour blend
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp pepper
• 1/4 tsp cayenne pepper (optional if you like the heat)
• oil for frying (I use vegetable, canola, or grapeseed)
• 2 Tbls Smart Balance Light (or any non-diary butter substitute)
• 1-1 1/2 cup almond milk
• 2 Tbls reserved GF flour
• 8-10 in skillet

1. Take 2 shallow pie plates and fill one with the GF flour blend, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Mix together. Fill the 2nd plate with the 2 beaten eggs.
2. Heat up the oil in your 8-10 in skillet.
3. Dredge the steaks first in the eggs, then in the GF flour blend. If you want a thicker coating you can re-dip the steaks in the eggs and dredge again in the flour blend.
4. Once your oil is hot enough fry your steaks for 4-5 minutes per side. You can set your oven to warm and place a oven proof dish inside. Take your cooked steaks and place in the oven to stay warm while you prepare your gravy.
5. Add the butter & flour to your pan filled with pan drippings. Whisk together to create a rue and cook for 1 minute.
6. Pour your almond milk into the pan, starting with 1 cup. Whisk all the ingredients together and cook until the gravy thickens. Add salt & pepper to taste. More milk can be added if gravy becomes to thick.
7. Pour gravy over your chicken fried steaks, eat & enjoy!

I like to serve mine with fried eggs and bacon wrapped asparagus, but hash browns or a small salad would also be a nice compliment. Mimosas are also a great companion to any brunch!

What’s your favorite thing to eat for brunch?

xx

Candice