The Sensitive Pantry

Red Velvet Smoothie

2010-03-08T19:27:23Z

What’s not to like about smoothies?

Taste good. Check. Nutritious. Check. Easy. Check.

Kids love them. Adults love them. I love them.

I have a few favorites but, this Red Velvet Smoothie is my current “go to” breakfast drink. It’s especially good when I’m on the run. It can be blended up very quickly and really holds back my appetite until lunch time.

The photo doesn’t do justice to the rich dark red chocolate color that the cherries impart. So, if you want to see how very pretty it is you’ll have to dust off your blender and whip one up for yourself.

Any of you have a favorite smoothie recipe to share? I’d love to hear about some of your creative combos.

Red Velvet Smoothie

1 cup hemp milk

1 teaspoon cocoa powder

1 teaspoon brown sugar

1/2 banana

10-12 frozen bing cherries

2 tablespoons rolled GF oats (optional)

2 teaspoons ground flax

2 tablespoons hemp protein powder

Place all the ingredients in a blender. Whir until smooth. Pour in a glass and enjoy.

Notes:

I like hemp milk for smoothies because of it’s thick and creamy texture. Feel free to substitute any dairy or non-dairy milk.

Use fresh bing cherries when they’re in season. You may want to add a few ice cubes if you do. Smoothies are best when they’re cold.

Use any sweetener you like—regular or brown sugar or agave. You could try honey or maple syrup but their flavors are a bit stronger.

And, any protein powder will work. I happen to use hemp but you can use whey, soy or rice protein powder if you prefer.

Feel free to experiment!

PRINT RECIPE

Cherry Butternut Drop Scones

2010-03-06T12:30:12Z

I have a pantry overflow shelf just inside the door to the garage. “What in the hell is a pantry overflow shelf?” you might ask. (In my mind you say it this way…with a slight twang—“Whaat. In the hail. Is a pantry overflow shealf?”)

Well….it’s the place where I put the extra cans and bottles and various and sundry pantry items that don’t currently fit in my adequately sized kitchen pantry. I’m Italian American. I buy extra amounts of items that my kitchen should never be without. I buy ingredients that look like they’d be good for a recipe I haven’t even dreamed of yet. I have a pantry overflow shelf…please don’t judge me.

There’s a can or two of Organic Pureed Butternut Squash on that shelf. “Why?” (Again…with a slight twang—“Whay?”) I don’t know. It’s pretty easy to just buy a butternut squash, cook it, and use it in recipes. I’d just never seen it canned. And, organic! Boom. In the cart. On the shelf. (It’s that easy. Try it. But, this time with a Northern Jersey accent. “Boom. In da cart. On da shelf.” See? You too can have a pantry overflow shelf.)

I’ve been eyeing that can for awhile. Thinking about what to do with it. And, the other day, snowed in, wanting scones, I grabbed it and started baking. I really had something more exotic than scones in mind for that can of squash. But, I was hungry and breakfast wasn’t going to make itself. And, scones are pretty quick and easy. Voila! Cherry Butternut Drop Scones.

They came out light and sweet and delicately, deliciously flavored. Butternut squash is not an overwhelming flavor but it provides a mellow undertone. I bet you could use pumpkin or sweet potato very easily in it’s place—they’re a little stronger in flavor but would be a good variation. After all, how many people have Organic Pureed Butternut Squash sitting on their overflow pantry shelf?

Cherry Butternut Drop Scones

¾ cup sorghum flour

¾ cup rice flour blend*

¼ cup tapioca flour

1/3 cup sugar

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

Dash nutmeg

5 teaspoons Earth Balance

1/3 cup + 2 tablespoons rice milk*

1 teaspoon lemon juice

1 teaspoon vanilla

2/3 cup butternut squash puree*

Handful or two of dried cherries

Turbinado sugar for sprinkling

The Earth Balance, rice milk, and butternut squash puree are best if used cold but, if not, don’t let that deter you from making these on the spur of the moment.

Heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Mix the rice milk, lemon juice, vanilla and squash puree together in a large measuring cup until smooth. Place it back in the refrigerator.

Place the flours, sugar, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg in a large mixing bowl. Whisk together until combined.

Cut the cold Earth Balance into small chunks and place on top of the flour mix. Cut the Earth Balance in with a pastry blender, two forks, or your hands until it’s well incorporated and has the consistency of coarse sand.

Pour the wet mixture into the flour and mix gently by hand with a curved spatula or spoon. Add the cherries and incorporate gently into the dough.

Scoop big spoonfuls of the dough onto a parchment lined cookie sheet. Sprinkle with turbinado sugar, place in the middle of the oven and bake for 16-18 minutes. The recipe should make about 12 scones.

*Notes:

I used Authentic Foods Multi-Blend Flour, which has xanthan gum as an ingredient. If you use another flour blend be sure it has xanthan gum in it or add xanthan gum to the recipe in proportion to the amount of flour you’re substituting (about 1/4 to 1/3 teaspoon xanthan per cup of flour).

You can substitute the rice milk with another non-dairy milk—coconut, hemp, or soymilk, for example. Also, if the milk is vanilla flavored or sweetened you’ll want to adjust the vanilla and sugar in the recipe slightly.

The Butternut Squash puree was similar to canned pumpkin puree. You can use pumpkin or sweet potato, if desired. Since not all purees will be the same you may need add a little more flour or milk to get the dough to right consistency. The dough should stand up easily when spooned onto the parchment lined cookie tray.

PRINT RECIPE

Orange Olive Oil MiniCakes

2010-02-24T02:15:48Z

Recipes are like actors.

Some are BIG stars. They’re beautiful, have big personalities, are tasty, and have that je ne c’est quoi…that combination of things that’s so “now” you just can’t help but want them. You want them all the time. Dream of them. They make you drool in anticipation. They’re everywhere—tempting you at each click or turn.

And, some are character actors. Not stunning or pretty—just plain old regular looking. Lowkey. Turning out a pithy performance. Memorable but not something you’ll find yourself desiring on any particular day. You won’t think of them often or wait with bated breath for the next appearance. But, at that one moment you’ll appreciate their unassuming talent, their great performance. And, you’ll smile.

This recipe is that character actor. Not very pretty. Not seen on every blog or recipe site. But, giving a unique, memorable performance. And, it will make you smile.

Two very important tips: 1) Use the sweetest, ripest, most flavorful oranges you can find. It will make a difference in the taste of the cake. 2) Do not overmix at any stage of the recipe.

PS - My taste testers (aka co-workers) gave these babies two thumbs up!

Correction: Sorghum flour amount changed from 1/2 cup to 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons.

Orange Olive Oil MiniCakes

2 flax eggs

2 small juice oranges

¾ cups sugar

¼ cup olive oil

½ teaspoon vanilla

1 teaspoon rosemary, crushed

½ cup + 2 tablespoons sorghum flour

½ cup almond flour

½ cup tapioca flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon xanthan gum

1/8 teaspoon salt

Big pinch of ground cloves

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

Place the oranges in a pot and cover with water. Set the water on the stove and bring it to a boil. Boil the oranges for an hour to an hour and half until they’re soft and can be pierced with a fork. (You’ll want to check on the oranges while they’re cooking and add more water if needed.)

Alternatively, you can skip this step and use uncooked oranges. I’ve done it both ways but find the minicakes with the cooked oranges did not have the after bite—which I suspect is the citrus oil—that those made with the uncooked oranges had. Also, the raw orange cake was a bit more light and fluffy whereas the cooked orange cake was still light but more moist. Just a matter of personal taste (and time). I liked them both.

Prepare the flax eggs: 2 tablespoons ground flax mixed with 6 tablespoons warm water.

Once the oranges are cool cut them into wedges and then each in half again. Remove any pits and the soft white pith in the center of the orange. Place all the pieces into a food processor and process until finely chopped. Add the sugar and process again for about a minute or so. By this time the orange mixture should be smooth but you’ll see some small bits, too. Add the olive oil, vanilla, finely crushed rosemary, and the flax eggs. Process until everything is mixed.

Place the remaining ingredients—flours, baking powder & soda, xanthan gum, salt and cloves—in a large bowl. Mix with a wire whisk.

Add the wet orange mixture to the dry ingredients and gently mix together with a spoon or curved spatula. Take care not to overmix and definitely don’t do this in the food processer.

Fill large muffin cups or small cake pans with an ice cream scoop full of batter. You’ll want to fill each about 2/3 full. Or, you can grease and flour a nine inch round cake pan and fill with the batter.

Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until a toothpick in the center comes out clean. If you use a cake pan the baking time increases about 5 minutes.

Remove from the oven and cool in the pans for about 5 minutes then remove to a cooling rack.

Sprinkle with confectioners sugar, serve, and smile.

Some notes: Don’t over mix the wet mixture or when you mix the dry and wet mixtures together. Less is more in this case. Also, I doubled the recipe recently and it wasn’t as good s the recipe as it stands here so, I don’t recommend it. Finally, use the sweetest, ripest thin skinned oranges you can find. The oranges make the cake so if they don’t taste good the cake won’t either.

PRINT RECIPE

Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

2010-02-09T01:17:22Z

It’s that time of year when the girls in the green uniforms wave that colorful cookie form in front of my face and taunt me with, well…cookies. Not just any cookies…those thin chocolate minty cookies. Yum.

Last year we bought cookies from the daughter of a friend. I know I can’t eat them. But, my son or husband could eat them…or take them to the office…or school…or something. Nothing like that happened.

No more cookies for us. Unless…the girls in green offer them gluten-free and vegan. *Sigh* Maybe someday.

Until then we’ll eat these Chocolate Peppermint Cookies and pretend we bought them.

These turned out very (let me emphasize that…very) chocolatey and just the right amount of minty.

And, they’re hearts! For Valentine’s Day!

Chocolate Peppermint Cookies

10 tablespoons Earth Balance, room temperature

2/3 cup sugar

1 teaspoon Ener-G egg replacer

2 tablespoons warm water

1 1/2 tablespoons rice milk or prepared coffee

1 teaspoon vanilla

1/2 cup sorghum flour

1/2 cup rice flour blend*

1/4 cup tapioca flour

1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup unsweetened dutch processed cocoa powder

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Whisk together the egg replacer and 2 tablespoons warm water.

Beat shortening, sugar, mixed egg replacer, milk/coffee, and vanilla in a stand mixer until creamy.

Mix flours, xanthan gum, salt and cocoa in a separate medium sized bowl. Stir together with a wire whisk until they are thoroughly mixed and there are no lumps.

Put the mixer on low and slowly add the dry ingredients to the wet mixture. Scrape the sides from time to time. Beat for a few minutes until all the ingredients are combined.

The dough will be very stiff.

Refrigerate the dough for about an hour. Split the dough in half and make each half into a round disk. Place one between two sheets of parchment and roll out to a thin (about 1/8” or so) sheet. Cut the cookies using a small heart-shaped cookie cutter…if you have one. Any shape will work!

Place onto a parchment-lined cookie sheet about an inch apart.

Repeat with the other piece of dough.

Bake for 12-15 minutes–keeping an eye on them so they don’t over bake. Remove from the oven and let sit for a minute or two. Remove to a wire rack and cool. Makes about 2 dozen small cookies.

Chocolate Peppermint Coating

1 ½ cups chocolate chips

¾ teaspoon peppermint

1 ½ teaspoon canola oil

This works best in batches so start with 1/3 the chocolate chips (1/2 cup). Place in a microwave bowl and microwave in 30 second intervals, stirring between each, until the chocolate is smooth and melted. Add 1/4 teaspoon peppermint extract and ½ teaspoon canola oil and stir together.

Quickly dip the top of each cookie in the chocolate mixture. Use a small fork to lift up one end, grab the cookie, and swirl as you lift. Place chocolate side up on a parchment lined dish. Fill the dish and pop it in the freezer for a few minutes to set.

Repeat with the remaining chocolate coating and cookies. These store well in the freezer.

*I used Authentic Foods Multi-Blend Flour which has xanthan gum as an ingredient. If you use another flour blend be sure it has xanthan gum in it or increase the xanthan gum in the recipe in proportion to the amount of flour you’re substituting (about 1/4 to 1/3 teaspoon xanthan per cup of flour).

PRINT RECIPE

A Hand for Haiti: Celiac Teen's E-Book for Haiti Relief

2010-02-08T00:43:27Z

The world has responded passionately & generously to the people of Haiti in response to the crisis they’re experiencing as a result of last month’s earthquake. Each person, community, country or group has given what they can—prayers, time, skills, money and more. Amidst so much despair we’re all trying to infuse a glimmer of hope for Haitains in need.

The response has been immediate. But, their need will go on for a very long time. It’s never too late to contribute whatever you can to this cause.

One special young lady—Lauren of Celiac Teen—has enlisted the help of people across the worldwide web to contribute recipes she then compiled into an e-book—A Hand for Haiti. The e-book is now being sold and all the proceeds will be donated to this cause.

I’d like to tell you all about how many people contributed, the number of recipes, matching contributions…and so much more. But, it’s better if Lauren tells you herself.

So, please, visit Lauren’s site—Celiac Teen—and get acquainted with her. Consider buying the e-book. It will be a few minutes and a few dollars well spent.

Triple Orange Muffins

2010-02-06T01:25:19Z

It’s the little things in life that thrill me. OK, I’m easy that way.

Kitchen short-cuts learned over the past year or so fall into the “little things” category. I wasn’t much of a baker before going gluten-free so, I didn’t use the little baker’s tricks that ease the path to baking success. I’m learning as I go.

This is basic stuff for you seasoned bakers but I’m excited to share. Like I said…the little things thrill me.

1) Store starches & gums in jars. Tapioca starch is explosive. Not combustible. More volatile, turbulent, rocketing. (Yes, I used the Thesaurus!) I’m pretty sure some type of starch—not flour—was used in I Love Lucy when Lucille Ball ends up wearing flour during a cooking episode gone awry. That’s how I look when I’m baking—tapioca starch everywhere! I used to keep starches in the bags in which they’re sold—rubber banded to keep from spilling—and then contained in a second zippered plastic bag for added protection. Well, starches have just graduated to quart-sized wide mouth mason jars. No more battling with the explosive white stuff.

2) Crush nuts instead of chopping them. Chopping nuts was my job when my sister and I baked together as pre-teens. She was older, bossed me around, and got to do all the fun stuff. I got to chop nuts. Needless to say, I’m not a big fan of chopping nuts. Put the nuts in a zippered plastic bag, push the air out and seal it. Gently tap, tap, tap with a heavy spoon or similar object until the nuts are the right size. If there are still large pieces in the mix break them with your fingers. This works well with walnuts and pecans. Other types of nuts that are less fragile may take a heavier hand or you may have to revert to chopping.

3) Coat nuts, dried fruits, and chocolate chips with a little flour so they don’t sink to the bottom of the muffin (or cake or brownie…you get it). Put the add-ins in a zippered plastic bag (gotta love those plastic bags) with a teaspoon or so of flour and shake until everything’s coated. Then add to the batter.

4) Stir your batter with a curved silicone spatula instead of a spoon. It’s so much easier. This might not work with a really heavy batter so you may have to revert back to a heavy spoon for those.

5) Use an ice cream scoop to fill muffin cups. Almost everyone knows about this technique but, I just started doing it and it makes a huge difference. Get an old-fashioned ice cream scoop, the one with the mechanism that releases the ice cream when you push the thumb handle, and use that to scoop muffins and cupcakes into the tins. The muffins come out uniform and have a very pretty domed top.

Little things, folks, little things.

On to the muffins…

We got a tray of Honeybell Oranges from a friend. They beg to be eaten. Sweet. Juicy. A little bit of sunshine in a bright orange wrapper.

One or two could easily be sacrificed for a delightful breakfast food. No, not three…just one or two. The triple in Triple Orange Muffins is all about the flavor and color of orange. So, we’ve got orange juice, orange zest, and carrots making up our little orange triplet.

I’ve made these a few times and each time they’ve been tasty. Also, each time they’ve stuck to the muffin liners. So, if you have some tips on how to fix that please let me know.

Triple Orange Muffins

1/2 cup (one small container) coconut yogurt

1 cup orange juice, divided

1 teaspoon vanilla

¼ cup grapeseed or canola oil

2 flax eggs

2 carrots, coarsely grated

zest of one orange

1/3 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar, packed

3/4 cups sorghum flour

1/4 cup tapioca flour

1 cup rice flour blend*

1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 cup golden raisins

1/2 cup chopped pecans or walnuts

1 tablespoon turbinado sugar, for decoration

Heat oven to 400℉. Lightly grease and flour muffin cups or line with paper or foil liners.

Make the flax eggs by mixing 2 tablespoons flax with 6 tablespoons warm water.

In bowl combine (whisking them together) yogurt, ¾ cup of the orange juice, vanilla, and flax egg. Add the grated carrots and orange zest. Stir together.

In separate bowl whisk together sugars, flours, xanthan gum, baking powder, salt and baking soda until combined.

Add the wet ingredients to the dry a little at a time mixing gently by hand until the batter comes together. (Add remaining orange juice a tablespoon at a time if the batter seems too stiff.) Gently fold in walnuts and raisins. Spoon into muffin cups.

Sprinkle muffins with chopped walnuts and turbinado sugar.

Bake 20-25 minutes.

Makes about 10 large muffins.

PRINT RECIPE

Chocolate Crumb Cake

2010-01-14T17:33:41Z

Happy New Year (twelve days later)!

It was a gentle holiday this year…everyone was calm and happy. Time meandered. Things were simple. I did my best to coax that feeling well into the new year. Occasionally, a distant voice begged me to jump back into the speeding world. I ignored it.

Until now. We all know the real world can only be ignored for so long. Unless you move to some remote place. Alaska maybe. It’s a thought.

OK, get ready for a weird segue to six months ago when I abandoned the idea of Chocolate Crumb Cake. At that time I wondered if anyone had paired chocolate and crumb topping. I don’t know why I thought of it—probably just inspired by my love of all things chocolate. Unfortunately it didn’t go so well the first time. Or, the second. And, I became uninspired. Until Chocolate Crumb Cake came creeping back into consciousness sometime during my holiday hiatus from the real world.

Guess what? Third time=success! It’s rich. Really rich. And, really good. Sometimes you need to take a break from something only to come back and have it become better than you ever thought it could be.

Chocolate Crumb Cake

2 ½ cups GF flour

½ cup dutch processed cocoa

1 ¼ cup sugar

2 tablespoons baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

1/3 cup canola or grapeseed oil

½ ripe banana, mashed

1 faux egg

1 6-ounce container (coconut milk) yogurt

½ cup prepared coffee (or water)

2 tablespoons vanilla

A few handfuls of chocolate chips (optional)

Double recipe Crumb Topping

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Line a small cookie sheet (mine is 9 ¼” by 13 ¼”) or similar sized baking pan with parchment.

Make the double recipe of Crumb Topping.

Make the faux egg by mixing 1 1/2 teaspoons EnerG Egg Replacer with 2 tablespoons warm water. Whisk together and set aside. (If you don’t have EnerG Egg Replacer a flax egg should do the trick.)

In a large mixing bowl whisk together the dry ingredients: flour, cocoa, sugar, baking soda and salt. I used Authentic Foods Gluten-Free Multi Blend Flour. If you don’t have that brand on hand substitute your favorite GF flour blend or try Jeanne’s Gluten Free Flour Mix from my good friend Jeanne over at FourChickens.

In a separate bowl whisk together the wet ingredients (oil, egg replacer, well mashed banana*, yogurt, coffee (or equivalent amount water if you want to omit the coffee), and vanilla) until they are fully mixed together.

Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and mix together with a sturdy spoon. This will take a little elbow grease but only mix until all ingredients are fully incorporated. The consistency will be more like a cookie dough—not a batter—and is quite stiff.

Smooth the dough out onto the lined cookie sheet and spread to the edges.

Sprinkle with a few handfuls of chocolate chips (double chocolate!). Sprinkle the top evenly with the crumb topping and gently press it down with your hands.

Place in the preheated oven for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool thoroughly before cutting into squares. This freezes well.

*If your banana is not ripe enough you can microwave it in 30 second intervals until just soft enough to mash effectively with a big fork.

PRINT RECIPE

A Christmas Tradition

2009-12-23T12:54:05Z

That’s my brother, sister, and me (the one in the red jacket). It seems like all the snow storms back then were at least 6 to 12 inches deep. One of those snowfalls exceeded all the others and started a holiday tradition my family holds near and dear to our hearts.

That year a blizzard was raging on Christmas Eve day so it was certain to be a white Christmas. Just when my mother began to prepare dinner the electricity failed and the entire neighborhood went black. Our family had a gas stove so dinner was still expertly prepared. My parents lit the table and house with candles—a tradition began.

Now, every Christmas Eve we all cook together—that same meal—and it’s enjoyed by candlelight! It’s lovely and fun and cherished.

We’ve added to it over the years. When we were high school we started to attend midnight mass on Christmas Eve with our friends. We’d get home around 1 o’clock Christmas morning and one year convinced my parents we should exchange presents since, after all, it was Christmas Day! Afterwards we feasted on leftovers from the night’s dinner and fell into bed in the wee hours happy, well fed, and ready to start again the next day.

So, what’s the dinner we look forward to each year? It’s the Feast of the Seven Fishes, an Italian American tradition where no meat is consumed on Christmas Eve. It starts with a wonderful pasta dish with anchovies. (Don’t wrinkle your nose! It’s fabuloso!) And, then four different kinds of fish and side dishes ensue. We never actually achieve SEVEN fishes although some years we’ve tried. For dessert—cannoli, sfogliatelli, cookies, fruits and nuts.

Finally, there’s a lot of groaning (ate too much) and whining by the little kids (can’t wait to open presents) while we clear the table. Then we gather and exchange presents—wrapping paper flies, many oohs & aahs, and smiles all around the Christmas tree. It’s a beautiful thing.

My gift to you this year is the pasta recipe—Vermicelli Aglio e Olio. It’s not my recipe or my family’s recipe. It’s one of the universally known dishes I’m sure thousands of families and restaurants prepare every day. It’s very easy and your kitchen smells like heaven when you’re making it! Enjoy!

Wishing you and yours a wonderful, happy, healthy holiday season!

Vermicelli Aglio e Olio

A few turns of good olive oil
8 large garlic cloves, sliced thin
1 can of flat anchovies, undrained
1 small bottle of capers, drained and rinsed
1 pound vermicelli or thin linguine

Pour the olive oil in a heavy cast iron skillet. Add the sliced garlic and fry until it is light brown. You need to watch the garlic so it doesn’t get too brown—it will keep cooking after you take it off the burner.

Meanwhile, open the anchovies. Take the skillet off the burner and add the anchovies. With a heavy flat fork mash the anchovies until they become a paste (yes, right there in the frying pan). Mix in thoroughly with the oil. Add the capers. Set the pan aside.

Boil the pasta until al dente. Reserve 2 or 3 cups of the pasta water when you drain the vermicelli.

Pour the vermicelli in the serving dish. Add about 3/4 of a cup of the pasta liquid to the skillet with the garlic anchovy mixture. Mix it all up and pour it on top of the vermicelli. Mix and add more water if needed.

We usually serve the remaining pasta water on the table with the vermicelli in case anyone wants to add it to their dish.

PRINT RECIPE

Rosemary Lime Cookies

2009-12-16T17:22:36Z

My sister is responsible for the Christmas cookies. She usually bakes Chocolate Chip, Biscotti, Russian Tea Cakes (her specialty) and maybe some kind of surprise cookie. They’re all traditionally made—with flour, eggs, and butter. *sigh*

I have only so much willpower folks. I need Christmas Cookies! That means I’ll be baking cookies, too—gluten-free, egg-free, dairy-free Christmas Cookies.

Here’s the plan—Rosemary Lime Cookies, Cherry Nut Biscotti, and Dutch Cocoa Cookies. OK, so the Rosemary Lime Cookies are done (and really good!). The biscotti have been baked once but the recipe needs a little tweaking even though my taste tester hubby loved ‘em as is. (I’m going to try to get to those today.) And, the Dutch Cocoa Cookies are pretty easy so they’ll be next. If I can fit anymore in I’ll let you know.

I have this image of my family sitting in the kitchen with milk or hot cocoa munching a few cookies and musing over all the holiday things we didn’t seem to get done. Maybe the tree won’t get put up and decorated or the presents won’t be wrapped. (That’s right! You heard it—I don’t have my tree up yet! Oy!) But, I guarantee we’ll have cookies!!

On to the Rosemary Lime Cookies. Isn’t rosemary one of the best scents on earth? (I need to make a list of the 10 Best Kitchen Smells.) I have a little rosemary plant in my kitchen and it’s so aromatic. If you sniff gently I’m sure you can smell it.

The rosemary and lime in this cookie are wonderful together. Lime takes center stage and rosemary is just a subtle accent. And, they’re festive, too, don’t you think?

Rosemary Lime Cookies

For the cookies…

1 1/2 cups sorghum flour

1 1/2 cups GF flour mix*

1/3 cup tapioca flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup Earth Balance, softened

3/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons lime zest

1 teaspoon fresh rosemary, crushed

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 tablespoons lime juice

For the glaze…

1/2 cup confectioners sugar

1 tablespoon lime juice

Sprinkles or decorative sugar, optional

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Whisk the flours and salt together in a medium bowl.

In the bowl of a stand mixer, cream the softened Earth Balance and sugar on medium speed for 2 or 3 minutes. Add the lime zest, crushed rosemary, lime juice and vanilla—beat another minute or so until everything is incorporated and the batter is smooth.

Reduce the speed to low and slowly add the flour mixture a little at a time. Mix until just combined.

Pull the dough together with clean, dry hands and split into two round sections. Wrap in waxed or parchment paper and place in the refrigerator until firm (about a half hour).

Roll out one chilled section of dough between two layers of parchment. It should be a little thicker than 1/8 inch. Cut out the cookies using a cookie cutter and place them about an inch apart on a parchment lined cookie sheet. Press the scraps together and return to the fridge. Follow the same procedure with the other section of dough. Pull the scraps together into a ball, roll out and cut out more cookies.

Bake the cookies, two sheets at a time, for about 10-12 minutes or until the edges are golden brown. Swap the position of the cookie sheets about halfway through the baking time. Remove and cool on a wire rack.

Lime Glaze

Whisk the confectioners’ sugar and lime juice together until it’s smooth and there are no lumps. Spoon it into a pastry bag (I use a plastic zipper bag with the tip of one of the bottom corners snipped) and pipe onto the cooled cookies. Sprinkle with decorating sugar, jimmies, or nonpareils, if desired.

Once the icing has hardened you can place them in an airtight container in the fridge for about 5 days. These freeze well if you want to make them in advance.

*Note: I used Authentic Foods Gluten-Free Multi Blend Flour.

PRINT RECIPE

Sweet Potato Biscuits

2009-12-11T15:17:07Z

Gluten-free biscuits are the new gluten-free bread.

I’ll admit I haven’t made GF bread—yet. And, I stay away from commercial GF breads because, well, do I need to explain why to you of all people? You know they’re not so great. OK for breadcrumbs, but not much else.

GF biscuits are another story. They’re divine—light, a little crumbly, savory not sweet. Perfect warm with fig jam. Ah, and they would make tasty little ham and cheese sandwiches. In fact, this recipe in Bon Apetit was the inspiration for The Sensitive Pantry’s version of Sweet Potato Biscuits. IMHO these little guys beat bread hands down.

I’m kind of excited because I found another wonderful way to serve them—topped with beef barbecue, Sloppy Joes, the kind with ground beef and barbecue sauce. You know, the kind the cafeteria ladies served in Middle School. (And maybe your Mom made them for you but I’m pretty sure my Italian-American Mom never even had a Sloppy Joe let alone actually made them!) Sloppy Joes really need a soft bun underneath them and I’ve yet to find soft GF buns on the grocery store shelves. But these Sweet Potato Biscuits are perfecto for Sloppy Joes!

If you’re up for a little reading on the subject of baking biscuits you might try Dorie Greenspan’s Biscuits on Parade: A Recipe + A Biscuit Tip-Sheet.

Sweet Potato Biscuits

1 cup sorghum flour

3/4 cups GF flour blend*

1/4 cup tapioca flour

1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum

2 tablespoons dark brown sugar

2 tablespoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

8 tablespoons Earth Balance (cold)

1/2 cup rice or hemp milk (cold)

1/2 teaspoon lemon juice (cold)

1 cup sweet potato puree (cold)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Mix the dry ingredients (the first 8 listed above) together in a large bowl. I like to use a whisk for this.

Mix the cold milk and lemon juice then put it back in the fridge until needed.

Add the cold Earth Balance to the dry ingredients and mix together with a fork or pastry blender. I usually start out with one of these tools and then abandon it for mixing with clean, dry hands. The dough should be a bit clumpy with the clumps about the size of peas.

Add half the milk mixture and the cup of sweet potato puree to the flour. (I used canned organic sweet potato puree that I picked up at Whole Foods. You can make your own by boiling and mashing fresh sweet potatoes. You may have to adjust the amount of milk you add to the dough to get the desired moisture and consistency.)

Stir everything together with a large spoon, adding more milk mixture as you go, until all ingredients are fully incorporated. Pull the dough together with your hands forming it into a ball. A note about the dough—it should be a medium-light weight dough and able to hold together. You may need to add more liquid or more flour at the end to reach the right consistency but avoid over-handling the dough.

Transfer the dough to a very lightly floured pastry mat. Press the ball down into a disk and place a piece of parchment or plastic wrap over top. Using a rolling pin gently roll it out to about 1/2 inch high.

Remove the plastic wrap and cut the dough into 2 inch rounds with a biscuit cutter. Tip: dip the cutter in flour between cuts. And, if you don’t have a biscuit cutter you might try a sharp edged glass.

Pull the dough scraps together and repeat.

Place the rounds onto a parchment lined cookie sheet and bake about 15-18 minutes until they just begin to brown. Serve warm.

*Note: I used Authentic Foods Gluten-Free Multi Blend Flour. You could use your own GF flour blend or, if you don’t have any on hand, try subbing with brown rice flour + 1/8 teaspoon xanthan gum.

PRINT RECIPE