Cheesecake

The second dessert I discovered that I can eat, and my go to for potlucks.

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For crust:
In a blender or food processor, blend to fine crumbs:
2 C nuts (unsalted) I usually use 2 different kinds
Add:
pinch of salt
3 Tbs. rice flour

Put into a bowl and mix in:
1/2 c. very soft organic butter

Press into a 9-inch buttered and wax paper lined spring-form pan. Set aside.

For cake:
In a bowl, beat with an electric mixer until stiff peaks form:
4 egg whites
Beat into whites:
1/2 cup agave syrup
24 oz. very soft organic cream cheese (or other soft, mild, white cheese of your choice. I leave the cream cheese out over night to get it soft enough. No, it doesn't go bad.)
When smooth, add:
1 tsp. vanilla
juice and zest of one lime (optional) or orange

Pour over crust.
 

Bake at 325F for 35 minutes, or until firm and lightly brown on top. Turn the oven off and let the cheesecake cool in the oven for about half an hour. It's great plain or topped with fresh berries.

Ice Cream

I had to give up processed sugars in 2007, and I went without sweets for a long time. Human physiology is amazing, and my tastes adapted quickly. (Especially considering that I used to start breakfast with a handful of M&Ms.) After a few months, milk tasted so sweet to me it made me nervous to drink it.

Then my mother gave my eldest kid an ice cream maker. Although baking with only liquid sweeteners (honey, maple syrup, agave) is a huge challenge, ice cream is easy! I recommend the type of maker with a chilled bowl you keep in your freezer. We use the Cuisinart, and have an extra bowl in case we want ice cream 2 days in a row.

Basic ice cream

2 cups heavy cream*
1 cup milk
1/4 C agave syrup
1 t vanilla

Whip the cream until it forms soft peaks. Stir in the other ingredients, and follow the directions for your ice cream maker.

Variations:
for Chocolate, add 1/4 C cocoa powder. You can also chop up a square of unsweetened baker's chocolate and throw it in.
For Fruit, puree 1/2 C of fruit and add another cup of pieces. (Whole, if berries, chopped, if peaches.)

*Be careful and read your labels! Fat-free "cream" is made of corn syrup and oil, and is not food. Don't eat it!

Barbeque

I'm not going to post many dinner recipes. Gluten and sugar free dinner is easy if you cook real food and don't serve bread. However, there are certain dishes that I love that are traditionally made with sugar. Of my two favorites, barbeque and sushi, we make both at home with great success. 

My children love this bbq sauce, and when they have more traditional sauces elsewhere, they don't like them! This recipe is adapted from Epicurious, first published in Bon Appétit magazine, March 2005, submitted by Joan and David Oswalt of Pasadena, California. Although I have made it with fresh berries, frozen works just as well.

The recipe as written is terrific, but I've slathered the sauce on chicken and pork chops as well. It's best when combined with the simple spice rub.

The rub:

4 teaspoons chili powder

4 garlic cloves, minced

1 teaspoon salt

The sauce:

2 1/2 cups fresh blackberries or frozen, thawed

1/2 cup salsa

1/2 cup honey

1/4 cup minced peeled fresh ginger

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

2 teaspoons hot pepper sauce

2 slabs baby back pork ribs (about 2 pounds)

Preheat oven to 400°F. 

Mix chili powder, garlic, and salt in small bowl; rub mixture into ribs. Place ribs on large rimmed baking sheet, meaty side up. Bake ribs 50 minutes.

Meanwhile, puree sauce ingredients in blender until almost smooth.  Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. 

Brush ribs with enough sauce to coat. Continue baking until sauce browns and forms thick glaze, about 10 minutes longer. Cut slabs between bones into individual ribs. Serve with remaining blackberry sauce. 

This sauce stores well in the freezer, and this recipe makes more than enough for two delicious dinners.

Clafouti

Fun to say, full of good stuff, easy make-ahead breakfast. I discovered clafouti on Nourished & Nurtured breakfast round-up, a fantastic resource.  This recipe is based on her apple or pear clafouti recipe, but use can use any fruit you want. Throw a bag of frozen cherries at the bottom. Go on, you won't regret it!

3 large apples or pears, peeled, cored, and sliced
1/2 C butter (or unrefined coconut oil)
2-3 T honey
4 eggs
1/2 C plain yoghurt, or sour cream
1/2 t cinnamon
1/4 t sea salt
dash nutmeg
1 t vanilla
1/3 C almond flour


Preheat oven to 325 degrees F, butter or spray an 8"x8" glass baking dish or 6 ramekins.

Divide the fruit amongst the ramekins (or spread it out on the bottom of the dish).

In a small saucepan gently melt a stick of butter and stir the honey into it.

Mix together eggs, yoghurt, cinnamon, salt, nutmeg, & vanilla. Pour in the honey butter and stir. Add the almond flour and mix well.

Pour the mixture over the fruit. Bake for 45-55 minutes.

These keep well in the fridge for a few days. Feel free to play with fruit and spice combinations. I prefer cardamon to cinnamon, myself.

Waffles

The greatest waffles in the world happen to be gluten-free. I found this recipe on Epicurious and saved it to my recipe box. Now when I log out and search for it, it never shows up, nor does it appear on Kitchen Frau's archive. I would hate to lose this every-weekend treat, so I'm posting it here for posterity. I routinely make double recipes and freeze the leftovers, which can be revived for 30 seconds in the microwave and crisped lightly in the toaster oven for a quick weekday breakfast.

Kitchen Frau's Gluten-Free Waffles

1 ½ cups rice flour (brown or white or combination)
½ cup tapioca flour
½ cup potato starch
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla*
4 eggs, separated
½ cup cooking oil
1 ½ cups milk

Mix all dry ingredients together with wire whip. Set aside.

Mix vanilla, egg yolks, oil and milk. Add to dry ingredients and mix thoroughly with wire whip.

In a separate bowl, whip egg whites with beaters until peaks form. Gently fold into batter.

Cook in waffle iron as directed, spraying iron with cooking oil spray as needed.


* Look for pure vanilla extract, without added sugar or corn syrup.

Ingredients

Being unable to eat gluten or processed sugar, there's very little processed food I can eat. Once you start reading labels, you will be shocked at the needless sugars thrown into everything we eat. Read your chicken stock label if you don't believe me! Gluten and sugar are hidden in many foods by many names. Celiac.com has good information on the G-F side. For the sugar side, I just tell people I can't eat anything that rhymes with gross (glucose, fructose, lactose). Of course, I can eat fructose in fruit and lactose in milk. In my particular case, it's when these sugars are processed out of their natural sources and shoved in something else that they make me sick.

Cooking gluten or grain free means you can't find everything you want in the aisles of your neighborhood grocery anymore. Here are a few resources.

Best source for rice, tapioca, and potato flours is your asian grocery. The closest one to us is almost an hour away, so we stock up when we go.

http://nuts.com/ Nuts, dried fruits (many with no added sugar), shredded coconut, coconut and almond flours

http://www.tropicaltraditions.com/ Coconut oil, coconut flour, selection of gluten-free products

www.amazon.com has a subscription service for Bob's Red Mill products - you get a good price if you subscribe to have 4 lbs delivered at intervals you select.

Vanilla extract in the grocery aisle is loaded with corn syrup, so I can't touch it. Trader Joe's carries a delicious Bourbon Vanilla Extract that is both gluten and sugar free.