Crazy Tweaked Chocolate Chip Cookies for Everyone!!! (Vegan, Gluten Free, Soy Free, Oil/Margerine Free, Nut/Seed Free and Flaxseed Free)

Wa-Hooooooooo! I just invented the craziest chocolate chip cookie. “Invented a chocolate chip cookie?”, you may ask, “Hasn’t someone already done that?”. Nope, not like this. I am so jazzed I can hardly stand it. Here is how everything started:

A few days ago my sister issued me a challenge. She said, “I need a chocolate chip cookie that doesn’t have any oil/margarine or nuts or nut/seed butters in it, and no flax seed, and vegan, and gluten free. So, if you could work on that….that would be great.” Seriously? You want a Vegan, Gluten Free,  Soy free (That’s for me, might as well throw that in too!), oil/margarine free, Nut/Seed free, and flaxseed free. Luckily she didn’t say sugar free or I’ve got nothin’. I thought, “If I could actually make this recipe nearly everyone could eat it.”

 Hmmmm. My brain started churning. It seemed like you would need some sort of fat. I started thinking maybe avocado. Yes, I’ll run with that at see what happens. So, I started my concoction and other than the fact that the color was a bit weird they seem pretty good. I thought I had won. Nope. Then they cooled. They became dense and pasty. Everything you want in a cookie, right? Chalk up a loss.

I was haunted by my need to conquer this challenge. I hit the drawing board again today. Forget the avocado. I’ll do straight up liquids and dry ingredients and see what happens. I upped the sugar a bit, increased the liquid (rice milk), added some salt and baking powder (the first version only had baking soda) and increased the starch.  As they were baking they LOOKED like chocolate chip cookies. When I took them out they smelled and tasted like chocolate chip cookies. Could it be? Oh my God, I DID IT!!!!!! I am a creative problem solver by nature so this was sooooo excited to me. I hope I can sleep tonight……Yipee!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Oooo, another variation would be to omit the chocolate chips and add about a teaspoon (more if you like) of cinnamon and make them like a Snickerdoodle cookie. Mmmmmm.

Crazy Tweaked Chocolate Chip Cookies for Everyone  - Vegan (no dairy, no egg, no honey), Gluten Free, Soy Free, Oil/Margerine Free, Nut/Seed Free and Flaxseed Free

3/4 c. sorghum flour                                             

3/4 c. white or brown rice flour

1/4 c. potato or arrowroot starch

3/4 c. sugar

1/2 c. brown sugar

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. Xanthan Gum

1/2 tsp. salt

1/2 c. rice milk (or other dairy free milk)

1 tsp. vanilla

1 c. dairy free semi-sweet chocolate chips (like Ghirardelli Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips or dairy and soy free like Enjoy Life brand semi-sweet chocolate chips)

_________

In a mixer mix the sugars and the rice milk and vanilla. In a separate bowl stir all the other dry ingredients together using a wisk. Add the dry ingredients to the wet and mix well. The batter/dough will be a little looser than traditional chocolate chip cookie dough. It should slowly lose its form when scooped. If it is too stiff add an additional 1-2 TBS of rice milk. Stir in chocolate chips.

Spoon by rounded tablespoons onto the cookie sheet. Make sure you use parchment paper for these cookies because without any fat in the dough they will stick to a plan cookie sheet. You could use a SILPAT silicon baking pad, but I found that the paper worked better.

Bake at 375 F for 12-14 minutes. As long as they are not burning…. cooking slightly longer vs. shorter will yield better results. Cool slightly on the pan then move to cooling rack. Eat.

*Allow to cool very well before placing in airtight container.

Cinnamon Muffins with Crunchy Topping (traditional, gluten free, and vegan options)

I came up this recipe while vacationing with my family on Sebago Lake in Maine. We were staying at a friend’s beautiful lake home that they so graciously let us use. The house had a full kitchen and many basic supplies. We had gone to the store to pick up our groceries for meals and my flour supplies for any random pancakes or such that needed to be made. One morning, another “I need a muffin” morning, I wanted to make muffins but realized that I didn’t have any of my normal muffin ingredients with me...no cocoa....no blueberries….no lemons…no chocolate chips. BUT… I did find cinnamon in the house. So my tweaked gluten free cinnamon muffins were born.

These muffins have become a favorite for me. I love them because they are delicious, and I love them because I always have the ingredients I need to make them. (Who doesn’t always have cinnamon lying around?)  They taste like coffee cake and could easily be made in a 9 inch round pan or a 9 inch(ish) spring form pan rather than muffin tins if you prefer. The baking time would likely be about 35-40 min if you choose to do this, oh, and grease the pan.

The crunchy streusel style topping really throws these muffins over the top. And the recipe for the topping below actually makes twice as much as you need…but rather than adjusting the recipe I keep making the extra and just store it in the fridge in a zippered plastic bag. That way I’m ready for round two of cinnamon muffins in a week or so, and the topping is already done. Yum. Yum. Yum.

Cinnamon Muffins with Crunchy Topping (traditional, gluten free and vegan options)

Muffins

2 ¼ c. flour mixture of choice (I use 1 1/8 c. brown rice flour and 1 1/8 c. sorghum flour                            tweak  for traditional : use white or whole wheat flour)

1 1/3 c. sugar

2 tsp ground cinnamon (can use more or less to taste)

2 tsp baking powder

½ tsp xanthan gum

¼ tsp salt

1 c. rice milk product of choice or other dairy free milk (tweak for traditional: use cow’s milk)

2 eggs beaten (tweak for vegan:  use vegan egg replacer or use 2 TBS ground flaxseed plus 5 TBS water wisked together)

½ c. oil ( I like grapeseed)

½ tsp vanilla

Topping (vegan or traditional)

2 TBS softened butter (Tweak for vegan: use regular or soy free non-hydrogenated margarine)

¼ c. brown sugar (packed)

¼ c. brown rice flour (Tweak: for traditional use white or whole wheat flour)

Prepare topping first. Smash ingredients together with a fork until fine crumbles form. Set aside if fridge. Fluff with fork as needed before adding to muffins.

Combine all dry ingredients. Stir with wisk to combine. Combine wet ingredients and wisk together. Add wet mixture to dry mixture and fold together until combined. Spoon into greased or paper lined muffin tins. Top with previously prepared crunchy topping.

Bake 375 F for 20-22 minutes until muffins feel spongy and spring back. Cool in tins for 5-10 minutes then remove if desired.

Gluten Free Tortilla Discovery!

Today I had fully intended to share a delicious cinnamon muffin recipe, but then I went grocery shopping at Hannaford. And while I am not sharing anything I have tweaked, I certainly made a discovery for those tweaking their diets. I just ate one of the best store bought gluten free things I’ve ever had. Not only is it gluten free, it’s corn free (except for possibly some minute trace of corn in the xanthan gum), it’s soy free, it’s potato free and it’s vegan. And it doesn’t taste like cardboard!

Food for Life® (They are the Ezekiel Bread/Cereal people.) is now making a brown rice tortilla. I had never seen it before so maybe it’s new or maybe I’ve just missed it but thought I’d give it a try. I’ve been trying to come up with my own tortilla but have yet to find a combination I love. So, I figured worst case scenario…I’m out $3.69.

When I got home I let the tortillas thaw (they were in the natural section of frozen foods) and pulled one out and warmed it on the stove top over an open flame. Well, I was in a state of shock after the first bite. I fully expected it to be fine but not yummy. Texture wise it is not as supple as a wheat flour tortilla. It definitely has more “chew” but kind of in a good way. The flavor and texture reminded me very strongly of a fine artisan French baguette or bole bread. For those of you with fond memories of bread……you know how those loaves would have a crisp outer crust covered in tiny, superficial crunchy bubbles and the crust and bread together would have this well bronzed flavor and this “chew”. Mmmmmmm. So, for someone like me who hasn’t had bread in 2 years, I was in heaven. And frankly, I could care less if I ever make them into a burrito or sandwich (Oooo, a sandwich!). I am happy just eating them plain right out of the bag.

Mine did crack some while I was eating it…but if it had been filled with rice and beans, etc. that moisture may have prevented some of the brittleness.

(5 minute break…..be right back… need another tortilla)

Okay, so I had to add some sort of tweak as I eat my second tortilla (plain). To warm the 2^nd one I quickly ran both sides under tap water and patted dry with a towel. Then over the open flame on my gas stove I heated the tortilla flipping 3 or 4 times at about 3 second intervals and Ta-Da!!!, no more brittle tortilla….still chewy though……still is a good way. The water on the outside is essentially steaming the tortilla. You could also use a very warm pan on the stove top too, but the tortilla will need a bit more time to warm. You could also try warming them either over a pot of boiling water with a cooling rack on top or by placing them in a slightly dampened tea towel and then wrapping them in foil to warm in the oven.

Sorry for no recipe today, but I HAD to share this with you. I hope find them as good I do.

Coming soon......Cinnamon Muffins!!!!

THE Chocolate Cake

Okay. Valentine’s Day is coming so I thought I’d embrace the event and have decided to share what is seriously the world most delicious chocolate cake. Seriously. And let me add that it is just as good made gluten and/or dairy free. I’ve even made it vegan before. I first started tweaking this cake using whole wheat flour. I think it made me feel a little less guilty for eating the entire thing! More recently, I make it gluten free using whole grain flour. The whole grain flours make it food instead of junk food, right? Yes, yes it does.

The first time I had this cake I was working in a large ophthalmology practice when a co-worker (out of the kindness of her heart) decided to bake this amazing cake and brought it in to share. (It could have been someone’s birthday but one bite of this cake and all my other memories were wiped out!) The cake was so rich, chocolaty and moist and the frosting was like a cross between chocolate ganache, fudge and heaven. Well, I HAD to ask for the recipe not knowing if she would share it since it must have been a secret family recipe passed down from generation to generation probably dating back to the Mayflower (..well, maybe not the Mayflower). So, I said, “This is probably the best chocolate cake I’ve ever had. Would you be willing to give me the recipes?” And she said (drum roll, please), “Sure, it’s right on the back of the Hershey Cocoa box.”

What?!??!?! All my life this amazing information had been sitting in my cabinet all along? Really? How could this non-secret be such a secret? But, it makes perfect sense. Who better to develop a chocolate cake recipe loaded with cocoa than the very people who want you to keep buying cocoa. Making one of these cakes uses almost an entire box of it. It had come to be known as THE Chocolate Cake in our family. The question is never, “Are you making chocolate cake?”. The question is always, “Are you making THE Chocolate Cake?”.

So, stock up on cocoa, grab some wine or gourmet brew and have a very Happy Valentine’s Day. And remember being alone on Valentine’s Day is okay, it just means more cake for you!! Mmmmmmm.

Happy Chocolate!

Hershey’s® “Perfectly Chocolate”™ Chocolate Cake (Original, gluten free, dairy free and vegan options)

2 c. sugar

1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour (tweak for gluten free: I use 1 cup sorghum flour and 1 cup brown rice flour. I find that the recipe needs slightly more flour for gluten free, and I find this true for many recipes… needing about 2 TBS more flour per cup. If you would like a lighter cake you could replace the brown rice flour with white rice flour. Also add 3/4 tsp xanthan gum.)

3/4 c. cocoa

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp salt

2 eggs (tweak for vegan/egg free: I’ve only made this vegan once but it worked pretty well. You can use 2 TBS ground flax seed to replace the egg, or you could use a store bought egg replacer. Don’t worry about the missing liquid. This cake is very moist and it won’t be missed.)

1 c. milk (tweak for dairy free: Use the same amount of a dairy free milk. I usually use Rice Dream Enriched but any would work.)

1/2 c. vegetable oil (I use grapeseed oil)

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 c. boiling water

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour two 9 inch round baking pans (You can use sorghum flour for gluten free).

Combine dry ingredients in large bowl. Add eggs, milk, oil, and vanilla. Beat on medium speed 2 minutes. Stir in boiling water (batter will be thin). Pour into pans.

Bake 30-35 min (I find it is often more like 35-40) or until a wooden toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes. Remove from pans to wire racks. Cool completely. Frost with “Perfectly Chocolate”™ Chocolate frosting. 10-12 servings.

“Perfectly Chocolate”™ Chocolate Frosting

1 stick (1/2 c.) butter or margarine (tweak: use a natural non-hydrogenated margarine)

2/3 c. cocoa

3 c. powdered sugar

1/3 c. milk (tweak for dairy free: Use a dairy free milk like rice, almond or soy.)

1 tsp vanilla

Melt butter or margarine (making sure not to burn it). Stir in cocoa. Place in mixer. Alternately add powdered sugar and milk beating on medium speed to spreading consistency. Add more milk if needed. Stir in vanilla (I just beat this in.). Makes about 2 cups.

Pancakes (traditional and gluten free)

 Pancakes are always a fun weekend treat or a "breakfast for dinner" dinner. I’ve yet to find someone who doesn’t love some sort of pancake, probably linked to childhood memories for most of us. My kids love chocolate chip pancakes with no maple syrup and my husband loves blueberry with maple syrup (real maple syrup of course!). Me… I like both and probably most other pancake combinations too.

I usually end up with a little extra batter after everyone is full. So, I make up the pancakes (usually chocolate chip for the kids) and put them on a cooling rack in the freezer. Once frozen, I put them in a Ziploc bag. Then I can just warm them in a pan or in the microwave (30 seconds to 1 minute) some other morning.

I’ve been making the gluten free version for quite awhile. I think I got the original “traditional” recipe out of my Better Homes cookbook (my go to cookbook for looking things up). Even if you are not making these gluten free, remember, you can play with your flours. Try part or all whole wheat flour instead of white flour or use half brown rice and half wheat. Mix it up. Do your own tweaking!

Happy memories to all!!!

Pancake Recipe (traditional and gluten free options)

1 cup flour (tweak: for gluten free I use 1/2 c sorghum flour and 1/2 c brown rice flour plus  1/4 tsp xanthan gum)

2 tsp baking powder

1-2 TBS granulated sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup milk (tweak: for dairy free chose a dairy free milk like Rice Dream Enriched milk)

2 TBS oil (I use grapeseed oil)

1 egg (tweak: for gluten free add an additional egg..This OPTIONAL step helps ensure a nice spongy texture.)

Mix all the dry ingredients together using a wisk. Wisk the wet ingredients together in a separate bowl. Then add the wet mix to the dry mix and stir together with the wisk. The batter should not be watery nor should it be thick. A nice in between is perfect… like a pudding that is just beginning to set. Add more flour or liquid as needed to desired consistency. Let batter sit for 5-10 minutes while you warm your pan.

Wipe the surface of your pan with oil and remove any excess (non-stick pans work best). Heat you pan on medium heat and adjust as needed. Spoon/ladle batter in the pan creating your desired size. (Sometimes I shake the pan slightly to spread the batter.) Drop topping of choice onto the pancakes. Allow to cook until you can see the edges of the pancake are beginning to cook and bottom is light brown, then flip then over with a spatula and cook for a couple more minutes. If you try to move your pancake and it doesn’t stay together, wait a bit longer before you flip them over or increase the heat on the pan slightly. (*If you find some of your toppings have cooked onto the pan while you still have more pancakes to go, simply wipe pan with a little oil and a paper towel to clean it off.)

Remove from heat and enjoy!!! Mmmmmmm.