Gluten-free Pumpkin Cheesecake with Vanilla Bean Mascarpone

INGREDIENTS:

Crust:
1 pkg gluten-free ginger snaps
4 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp salt

Filling:
1 8oz pkg cream cheese, softened
1 c sour cream
1 15oz can pumpkin puree
¾ c sugar 
2 tbsp corn starch
1 tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp ground cloves
1½ tsp. vanilla extract
½ tsp. salt

Topping:
1 8oz pkg mascarpone (may want to double)
1 vanilla bean
¼ c - ½ c sugar

METHOD:

Preheat the oven to 350ºF.  

Crumble cookies in a food processor with cinnamon and salt. Drizzle melted butter in and pulse again until well mixed. Press crumbs done into a 9” spring-form pan and set aside.

Beat cream cheese until smooth (can use paddle attachment on Kitchen Aid). Add sour cream, pumpkin puree and sugar. (Can adjust amount of sugar to taste.) Add corn starch Add cinnamon, nutmeg, ground cloves and salt. Add vanilla extract.

Pour filling into pan. Bake for about 45 minutes until the filling has set to the center. (Might take an extra half hour.)

Let cheesecake rest until mostly cooled (about an hour). Refrigerate until completely chilled (about two hours).  

Whisk mascarpone with sugar and scraped vanilla bean.  Spread thinly over chilled cheesecake. 

Chocolate pecan pie -- gluten and egg free!

This is seriously the best pie I've ever made. Adapted from the Smitten Kitchen recipe. 

INGREDIENTS:

For the crust:
2.5 T ice water
1.5 T sour cream
1/2 T rice vinegar
6.5 oz gluten-free flour blend (I like King Arthur's, but Cup4Cup and Bob's Red Mill also work)
1.5 T sugar
1/2 t salt
1/4 t xanthan gum
8 T unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and frozen for at least 15 minutes

For the filling:
4 oz. dark chocolate

1/4 cup heavy cream

6 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
3/4 cup golden syrup
A pinch or two of sea salt
2 cups (225 grams) pecan halves
1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon bourbon (optional)
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
3 tablespoons cornstarch + 6 tablespoons water

METHOD:

Make the crust: Combine ice water, sour cream, and vinegar together in a bowl. Pulse flour blend, sugar, salt and xanthan gum together in food processor until combined. Scatter butter over the top and pulse mixture until butter is pea sized. Pour the sour cream mixture over flour mixture and pulse until dough comes together.

Flatten into a 5" disc and tightly wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Before rolling let dough sit out for 15 minutes to soften slightly. Roll it between 2 pieces of plastic wrap until it's 12" around, then use the plastic wrap to maneuver it into a pie plate. Fold and crimp around the edges. Cover loosely with plastic and freeze for 15 minutes, until firm.

Heat oven to 375F and bake pie dough for 20-25 minutes, turning halfway. I highly recommend using pie weights for this since the dough has the tendency to shrink/slump.

For the chocolate layer: After rolling out and parbaking your crust, put it in the freezer until solid, about 15 minutes. Melt 4 ounces of dark chocolate chunks with 1/4 cup heavy cream until smooth. Spread over bottom of cooled crust. Freeze the crust again until the chocolate is solid, about another 20 minutes, before pouring in pecan mixture.

Make the filling: Spread pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in the oven for 10 to 12 minutes, stirring once or twice so that they toast evenly. Set aside until needed. If you like smaller bits, you can chop them.

In medium saucepan, combine butter, brown sugar, golden syrup, cornstarch, water and pinch of salt. Bring to a simmer over medium heat and cook for 2 minutes, stirring. Remove from heat and stir in pecans, cider vinegar, vanilla and bourbon (if using). Pour into a bowl (so that it cools faster) and set the mixture aside to cool a little, about 5 to 10 minutes. Pour mixture into prepared pie shell.

Bake at 350F for 40 to 45 minutes. The pie is done with the edges are set and puffed slightly and the center is slightly firm but a little jiggly. Cool on a rack.

Gluten-free, egg-free sponge cake

Makes two regular-height 8" round cake layers, or three thin layers.

Ingredients:
190 grams King Arthur multi-purpose gluten-free flour blend
70 grams chickpea flour
4.5 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
105 grams butter, softened
90 grams sugar
1.5 tablespoons golden syrup or honey
1 cup milk

Method: 
Preheat the oven to 375 F. Grease 8" round cake pans and line bottoms with parchment.

Sift the flours, baking powder and xanthan gum into a bowl.

Cream the butter, sugar and golden syrup or honey together in a bowl until light and fluffy. Add a little flour, then a little milk, and repeat until all of the flour and milk has been added and the mixture is smooth and well combined. (Add a little extra milk or water if the mixture is too stiff.)

Divide the mixture between the cake pans. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes, or until risen and golden-brown.

Remove the cakes from the oven and set aside to cool slightly. Remove the cakes from the tins and set aside to cool completely.

Finish as desired. 

Lavender Tea Bread (gluten-free, egg-free)

(Adapted from this recipe)

INGREDIENTS: 
3/4 cup milk
2 Tbsp. dried lavender flowers
190 grams King Arthur gluten-free multipurpose flour

90 grams garbanzo bean flour
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt

3/4 tsp. xanthan gum
6 Tbsp. butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
6 Tbsp. plain yogurt

METHOD: 

Grease a 9x5x3 inch loaf pan. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Heat milk with lavender almost to a boil, then steep until cool. Mix flour, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt together in bowl. In another bowl cream butter and gradually add sugar, then yogurt, beating until light and fluffy. Add flour mixture alternately with lavender milk, in three parts. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 45 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool in pan 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to cool. When completely cool, drizzle with a simple sugar glaze with more dried lavender added to it.

Egg-free raspberry chocolate macarons

I discovered several years ago that I'm sensitive to eggs, and it was only last year that I learned about using aquafaba (chickpea water) as a substitute. It really whips up just like egg whites! I've had macarons before, but it's been a long time and I've never made them myself until recently. For that reason, I found this video incredibly helpful, especially because it provides tips on how to make sure the macarons come out well. Ignore her recipe but pay attention to her method, especially if you've never made these before.

INGREDIENTS: 

Macaron shells:
150 grams aquafaba (chickpea liquid)
1/16 teaspoon cream of tartar
Pinch of salt
100 grams almond meal
90 grams powdered sugar
50 grams superfine sugar
Red food coloring
4 drops raspberry essence

Chocolate ganache: 
4 ounces dark chocolate

3/8 cup cream

1 tablespoon butter


INSTRUCTIONS:

Shells: Drain the liquid from a 15-ounce can of chickpeas (garbanzo beans). You should get about 150 grams. In a small saucepan, bring the liquid to a simmer, and reduce it to 75 grams. Chill it in the refrigerator (or freezer, but don't let it freeze) until it's very cold.

Sift the almond meal and powdered sugar into a bowl. Set aside. 

Whisk the reduced, cold aquafaba with cream of tartar and salt in a mixer on high until it forms soft peaks. Make sure there is no more liquid left at the bottom of the bowl before moving on to the next step. Gradually add the superfine sugar (if you don't have superfine, you can grind regular sugar in a coffee grinder) while the mixer is turned on. Add drops of food coloring until your meringue is the color you want, and then add the raspberry essence. You should end up with a thick, glossy meringue.

Add half of the almond and powdered sugar mixture to the meringue. Fold gently with a rubber spatula. Add the rest of the almond and powdered sugar mixture, continuing to fold the batter. Keep going until the mixture is viscous and flows off the spatula like lava (again, check out the video above). 

Fill a piping bag fitted with a round nozzle -- or a large ziplock bag with a hole cut in one corner -- with the macaron mixture. Pipe it into 2-inch mounds on a cookie sheet lined with a Silpat or silicone baking paper. This recipe makes about 30 individual macaron shells, so you may need to have a few trays ready.

Once piped, slam the tray on your kitchen counter a few times to eliminate any air bubbles. Leave your trays to rest for two hours, or until they're matte and you're able to touch the surface of the shells without anything sticking to your skin. 

Preheat oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Bake each tray of macarons individually for 28-30 minutes without opening the door. Remove tray from oven and leave to cool thoroughly before peeling macaron shells off from the Silpat or baking paper.

Repeat baking process with remaining trays of macarons.

Filling: Chop the chocolate and put it in a bowl. Heat the cream and butter until it's hot and almost boiling. Pour it over the chocolate and stir until the chocolate is melted and the ganache is smooth.

Assembly: Place the shells on a kitchen counter with the flat side up (rounded side down). To fill, pipe a thick circle of ganache inside one shell, then sandwich with another shell. Repeat the process until all your shells have been sandwiched.

Place macarons in a box and leave in the fridge overnight -- this gives them time for the textures to even out.

Gluten-free, egg-free pumpkin pie

INGREDIENTS:

For the crust:
2.5 T ice water
1.5 T sour cream
1/2 T rice vinegar
6.5 oz gluten-free flour blend (I like King Arthur's, but Cup4Cup and Bob's Red Mill also work)
1.5 T sugar
1/2 t salt
1/4 t xanthan gum
8 T unsalted butter, cut into small pieces and frozen for at least 15 minutes

For the filling:
2 1/3 c. pumpkin puree (roast your own! I used a butterkin pumpkin.)
1 2/3 c. whole milk
3/4 c. brown sugar
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. ginger
1/4 tsp. cloves
1/4 tsp. allspice
3.5 T cornstarch
3 T bourbon (optional; if omitted, use a 1 t of lemon juice instead)
Pinch of salt


METHOD:

Roast the pumpkin using the method in the link above. While it's roasting...

Make the crust: Combine ice water, sour cream, and vinegar together in a bowl. Pulse flour blend, sugar, salt and xanthan gum together in food processor until combined. Scatter butter over the top and pulse mixture until butter is pea sized. Pour the sour cream mixture over flour mixture and pulse until dough comes together.

Flatten into a 5" disc and tightly wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate at least one hour. Before rolling let dough sit out for 15 minutes to soften slightly. Roll it between 2 pieces of plastic wrap until it's 12" around, then use the plastic wrap to maneuver it into a pie plate. Fold and crimp around the edges. Cover loosely with plastic and freeze for 15 minutes, until firm.

Heat oven to 375F and bake pie dough for 20-25 minutes, turning halfway. I highly recommend using pie weights for this since the dough has the tendency to shrink/slump.

Make the filling: Combine all the ingredients in a bowl or food processor, just until blended, and pour them into your warm, par-baked pie shell. Bake at 450F for 10 minutes, then lower oven temperature to 350F and bake for one hour. Let cool completely before serving.

Gluten-free, egg-free chocolate cake

(adapted from a recipe from "Luscious Chocolate Desserts" by Lori Longbotham)

INGREDIENTS:

1/2 cup natural cocoa powder

1/2 cup boiling water

350 grams flour (I used King Arthur's gluten-free multi-purpose blend)

1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda

1/4 t salt

3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter at room temperature

1 3/4 cups sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 teaspoon coffee extract

1/2 cup applesauce

1 1/3 cups whole-milk yogurt (I used Strauss)

1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum (if making a full-sized cake)

DIRECTIONS:

Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 350F. Butter and flour two 9-inch round cake pans (2 inches tall), and line the bottoms with parchment. 

Whisk together the cocoa and boiling water until smooth. Whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. 

Beat the butter, sugar, and vanilla with an electric mixer on medium speed in a large, deep bowl until well blended; the mixture will be dry. Add in the applesauce. Reduce speed to low and beat in the flour mixture alternately with the yogurt, until blended. Add the cocoa mixture and blend well. Divide the batter evenly between the prepared pans. 

Bake for 40 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Cool in the pans and turn out when cool. Ice with chocolate buttercream frosting. 

Serves 8-10. 

Cupcakes: Bake for 30-35 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean. Makes 28-30. 

Fruit crumble

I love making crumbles. They're so simple -- way easier than pie -- and at this point I don't really work from a recipe. I just mix, taste, sense. So I'll try to explain the basic idea and you can hopefully work from there.

Step 1. Preheat your oven to 375F and get your baking dish. You can use a pie plate, a glass baking dish, a ceramic baking dish, or even a cereal bowl if it's oven-safe. The one in the picture above is a ceramic mini loaf pan (I think I got it at a craft store for a few dollars). I often use cereal bowls because I want to make just enough for two adults and a kid.

Step 2. Cut up your fruit into bite-sized pieces. The above is a mix of defrosted (formerly frozen) blueberries and fresh strawberries, cut up and mixed. I defrosted the blueberries in the pan so that the juices would stay in it. Cut enough fruit so that the pan is most of the way full but there's maybe 1/2" clearance on top for the topping.

Step 3. Mix some sugar, flour and spices into the fruit. Usually a couple tablespoons of flour is enough for an 8x8" pan of fruit; I used a scant tablespoon for the one above. (Gluten-free flour blends work fine.) Sprinkle a few tablespoons of sugar (again, assuming 8x8" -- use more if your pan is bigger, less if it's smaller), plus a teaspoon of cinnamon and whatever other spices you like: nutmeg, cloves, cardamom, allspice... whatever you have on hand and goes well with the fruit. Mix everything together so the fruit is coated with the sugar, flour and spices. Taste your spoon and see what you think. If it's not enough sugar or spice, add more. If your fruit isn't super-rich tasting, add a spoonful or so of jam and mix it in thoroughly. Apricot jam is good for peaches, berry jams are good with berries. You get the idea.

Step 4. Get a separate bowl for the topping. Scoop some flour in, say 1/2 cup for 8x8". Then add an equal amount of brown sugar. Add some nuts, broken up into small pieces, enough that you'll get a couple in each bite. Or use a handful of oats if you don't like nuts. Add more spices, whatever you used with the fruit. Cut some butter into small pieces and add it to the bowl, starting with a few tablespoons. Now squish everything together with your hands until the butter is well mixed in -- if you don't have enough for the topping to start to stick together, add a little more butter. It should squish but not quite hold together.

Step 5. Pour the topping onto the fruit, and smooth it out until it forms an even layer over the fruit. It's okay if it doesn't cover everything, and it's okay if it's on the thicker side. It all works. Just try to spread it out somewhat evenly.

Step 6. Cover a cookie sheet with foil and put your crumble pan on top of the foil (it's likely to bubble over, and bubbled-over fruit can make your kitchen smoky in a hurry). Pop it in the oven. Bake for 30 minutes and then check it. If the fruit is bubbling up around the edges of the topping and the topping is golden brown, it's done. If not, keep checking it every 5 minutes or so until it's done.

Brownies

I've been hoping to discover, or come up with, a great brownie recipe for a long time. I think I've found it. It's adapted from this one.

INGREDIENTS
3 Tablespoons hot water
2 Tablespoons ground flax
245 grams all-purpose gluten-free flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
7 Tablespoons cocoa powder
4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, chopped into ¼ inch pieces
1 teaspoon coffee extract
¾ teaspoon salt
¼ cup boiling water
1 cup plus 3 Tablespoons sugar
6 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract

½ cup nuts

In a small mixing bowl mix together the 3 T of water and flax and set it aside. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees and put your oven rack on the bottom groove. In an 8x8 baking pan, make a "sling" with two pieces of parchment paper, like this.

In a mixing bowl, blend together the all-purpose flour and baking soda. Set aside. In a larger bowl or your stand mixer, add the cocoa powder, semi-sweet chocolate, espresso powder/coffee extract and salt. Add the 1/4 cup boiling water and mix until everything's blended and the chocolate is melted and smooth. Add the sugar, butter, vanilla, and flax/water mixture and mix again. Add the flour/baking soda blend and mix one more time. 

By now the batter -- more like a dough -- will be really thick. Use a rubber spatula to scoop it into the parchment-lined pan, and then use the spatula to smooth out the dough so it's even. Pop it in the oven. Check after 35 minutes. I found mine needed about 42 minutes before it was done and a toothpick came out clean. Let cool completely -- at least an hour -- before cutting. 

Makes 16 brownies.

Chia-Seed Pudding

I know it sounds like weird hippie food, but I really love chia seed pudding, partly because it's so healthy and partly because it's so easy to make. It comes out a little like tapioca pudding without the cooking. It's also super versatile -- you can put all sorts of flavors in it. Here's one combination I like, which is a riff on certain Indian ice cream flavors:

INGREDIENTS
1/2 cup coconut milk (not "lite")
1.5-2 T chia seeds
1.5-2 T rosewater
1 teaspoon ground ginger or cardamom
1 teaspoon to 1 T honey

Put all the ingredients into a 1/2-pint mason jar and put the lid on. Shake vigorously. Open it up and taste it, and adjust -- if you want more rose or spice flavor, add that, and if you want more sweetness squeeze a little more honey in. When you've got it where you want it, close the lid on the jar and put it in the fridge for several hours or overnight. Makes for a good dessert, afternoon snack or breakfast treat (especially with fruit added).