WOO a GREAT Gluten Free Deal!

Rhapsodic Bakery  in downtown Orlando has a living social coupon today!
Check it out! $20.00 worth of purchasing power for only $10.00.
Click here now to get your deal!!!

Clicking the link for their website is joy enough! Such gorgeous delectables pictured there. Kate, the owner and webmistress does a beautiful job virtually...and in the kitchen! We purchased a GF cake for my mother's birthday last year and it was hands down delicious!

My favorite part about Rhapsodic? I can stop in at any time and pick up a Gluten Free treat...my favorite is the chocolate cupcake with a kick of hot spice :)

Don't miss out on this deal! It expires April 28, 2011

OH...and you don't have to be a GF'er to enjoy...Rhapsodic is all handmade, all vegan and organic. Guilt free goodies :)

Banana Pudding Pie a.k.a Easter Numminess!

Last Friday after a positively perfect pizza pie, the hub and I headed over to Whole Foods in search of a GF B to BYOB. I wound up with Green's Endeavor. It wasn't bad, but I don't think I'll buy it again. It was rather sweet for a dark beer...and before I knew I was intolerant, I was quite the beer connoisseur so the sweetness really killed it for me.

While we were there I took a gander at the dessert offerings. Dessert was my task for Easter dinner with the fam and I admit...I was looking for a quick "bring it instead of bake it" option when I spotted Gluten Free ready made pie crust!

Two crusts come in a package for $6.99...if the taste was right, this would become a staple of my baking and I found myself excitedly thinking over different fillings as I gingerly placed the score in my beloved Feed 100 Bag from my Cage Free kindred spirits.

So today was the day...being Easter and all.
I decided on a Banana Pudding Pie, the crust could take the place of the nilla wafers.

I baked the crust for 30 minutes prior to filling. The directions called for pie weights so I improvised and used sunflower seeds which did the trick quite nicely. Bouns... when the pre-baking was over, I had a nice breakfast treat...warm, toasted sunflower seeds are nummy! I read that dried beans or rice also work nicely as a replacement for fancy schmancy pie weights but don't plan to use the beans afterwards, save them for the next time you need pie weights! OH and be sure to put a piece of parchment or wax paper between your weights and your crust!



Before the final 30 minute baking



Golden nummy deliciousness after baking!



ingredients ready for action!

This recipe is an alteration of a version I found here.

1/3 cup sweet sorghum flour
dash salt
2 1/2 cup low fat milk
1 can fat free sweetened condensed milk (Eagle Brand is GF)
2 large egg yolks
2 tsp. Spice Islands vanilla extract (GF and no added corn syrup)
3 cups sliced ripe bananas
4 large egg whites
1/4 cup Stevia in the Raw
Pre made Gluten free crust

Bake crust for 30 min at 325.

Place flour and salt in medium sauce pan
Add milks and egg yolks, stir well with whisk.
Cook over medium heat 13 - 15 minutes or until thick. (This is 5 to 8 minutes longer than called for in the original recipe)
Remove from heat and stir in vanilla extract.
Layer bananas and pudding mixture in crust ending with a pudding layer.

Beat egg whites at high speed with electric mixer until foamy.
Gradually add Stevia 1 TBSP at a time until stiff peaks form.
Pour over pie mixture sealing all edges.
Bake at 325 for 30 to 35 minutes or until golden brown.

* This actually makes enough filling for 2 pies or, like we did, one pie and one baked banana pudding

**Next time, I will add the bananas to the final few minutes the pudding is simmering so they are a bit more "mushy" in the pie. This is my hub's personal preference...and since banana pudding is his all time favorite, his preference wins :)

Dessert got rave reviews at dinner.
The crust is buttery and flaky tasting and has no GF aftertaste. I already have plans to quiche the one waiting for me in the freezer!


For more great dessert ideas...check out Gluten Free Homemaker's Wednesday Carnival in search of dessert bar recipes!! YUM

I've waffled before, I'll waffle again.

A few weeks ago I spotted NEW Gluten Free Bisquick on the dreaded bottom shelf of our local grocer. I'm SO glad I saw it!

Last night I made homemade belgian waffles following the recipe on the back of the box. I added 2 Tablespoons of pecan meal for some flavor and BOY oh BOY were they delicious! My family raved over them and has definitely put them on the "make these again" list!

The pecan meal made them bake a bit browner in the waffle iron but the consistency was fantastic and the flavor was delish!

The box offers recipes for pancakes, waffles and biscuits along with some side panel recipes for pizza crust, chicken and dumplings and chicken nuggets so this box would be a good one to have in the family pantry!

Again, I add my "safety tip" that you should check to see whether or not YOU can tolerate the PPB that are allowed in any foods that are produced with a GF label.

I also recently received a cook book I can't WAIT to try out, You Wont Believe it's Gluten-Free by Roben Ryberg. I always "read" my cookbooks before I try anything. With tabs in hand I mark pages of recipies that look interesting then can flip to the tabs when I'm feeling creative.

If you're anything like me, you have 6 or 7 different gluten free flours in the pantry without the slightest clue of what to do with them. In my desperate search for some sort of normalcy in baking I wound up with some I can't even pronounce! This book makes sense (and use) of them all!

I'll be sure to post recipe successes (and failures) here soon!

You say it's your Birthday!

This Saturday is my lil bro's birthday.
He's not so little any more and I won't out him on a global platform but the fam is getting together tonight to celebrate his decades on the planet and it's MY responsiblity to bring the cake (otherwise I don't get to eat any!)

I've had great success with Betty Crocker's Gluten Free baking mixes before and opted for the Devil's Food Chocoalte mix for this occassion. **Like I've mentioned before, some products that are labeled Gluten Free may not be safe for all with an intolerance or Celiac. The PPB (parts per billion) required for the GF label may be more than you can tolerate. This is more than I understand right now so my disclaimer is...be sure you check with your doctor if you have questions!

To me, these mixes are a blessing because they are quick and easy just like a Betty Crocker Mix should be, and they pass the family taste test. Some GF cake mixes or prepared cakes we've tried in the past taste gluten free (as my kids put it). The Betty Crocker mixes just taste like awesome cake; my family actually prefers them over store bought cake. Our only wish...they'd offer it in more flavors! They are pricier than regular mixes at around $3.50 to $4.50 a box but given the alternative of not having cake...I spend the extra couple of bucks!

Tonight's cake is a layer cake with Polaner's Seedless Raspberry Fruit Spread between the layers and a vanilla glaze. Can you say YUM?

Namaste Foods Gluten Free Muffin Mix

We started the New Year right with Cran-Blueberry muffins made with Namaste Foods Gluten Free Muffin Mix.

I'll admit I was quite nervous about these. We've had horrible luck with biscuit mixes in the past with results that looked and tasted more like plaster pucks than anything remotely interesting for breakfast.

Nerves have been quelled! These muffins are fabulous. I stuck with the straightforward recipe on the package. I added 1 cup of blueberry juice infused dried cranberries to the batter and sprinkled the tops with stevia and cinnamon. The package directions call for a baking time of 12 - 15 minutes in a 400 degree oven. I baked them on the middle rack in two separate muffin pans lined with paper cups and they took a total of 18 minutes to bake.

Nine minutes into baking a peeked through the oven window and exclaimed, "They're poofing up!" This is a big deal with GF baked goods. As you can see from the picture above, they rose nicely and as my daughter would say, look like muffins inside and out. The package made 12 generously sized muffins that were moist and cakey not crumbly like some other baking debacles we've experienced.

The proof was in the tasting. I served them up warm with a dab of butter and they passed muster.
Next time we'll veer off the basic package directions and add some pure vanilla extract to the base mix, then they will be perfect.

I can see them mixing well with bananas and walnuts or dark chocolate chips and dried strawberries and there is a recipe for Lemmon Poppyseed Bread on the side of the package we'll definitely try.

At a price of $4.79 at my local grocery store, this is a mix we're sure to keep in the cupboard!

Try them and let me know what you think!