Brownies!!!

Tonight we had a fabulous dinner and my mom was going to make some brownies for dessert for my brothers and my dad. Feeling left out, I decided to try my hand at re-creating my favorite brownie recipe, my mom's recipe I just love the perfect consistency, chocolatelyness, and texture. So I just tried them and they were absolutely delicious!!!! They tasted just like the one's I grew up on. I hope you enjoy!

Gluten Free Brownies
Preheat oven to 325F
In a small saucepan combine 1/4 cup natural cane sugar, 1/2 cup coconut sugar, 1/3 cup earthbalance vegan buttery stick, and 1/8 cup water, bring to JUST A BOIL. Remove from heat. Add 1 cup enjoy life chocolate chips or any chocolate chip you prefer and 1 tsp. vanilla; stir chips until chips melt. Beat in 2 eggs one at a time. In small bowl combine, 3/4 cup Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Flour, 1/4 tsp. baking soda, 1/4 tsp. salt, 1/8 tsp. xanthum gum. Gradually add flour mixture to chocolate mixture. Spread in greased 8x8 pan. Bake for 25-30 minutes.

Gotta Love that Coconut

So I am in love with all things coconut. After trying coconut yogurt, coconut milk, coconut ice cream and a variety of coconut baked goods that all are so delicious, I was delighted to see creamer made with coconut milk. It seems as if they read my mind because almond milk in coffee just wasn't really cutting it as cream for my coffee. I was yearning for that heavy and milky addition of half and half to my daily cup of joe but sort of gave up on having coffee like I used to have it. So when I saw this at Vitamin Cottage and in three flavors I couldn't believe it. I have tried all three and have to say that the sugar content is a little high in the flavored versions but for just using it as little cream in coffee is perfect. I also tried the french vanilla flavor in my hot chocolate and it added a nice vanilla taste. This makes my morning joe amazing and is the reason I can't stop my addiction to coffee.

123 Gluten Free

So I made Pumpkin Muffins just in time to get in the groove of the holiday season. A couple of friends came over to watch the Office, 30 Rock, and Parks and Recreation and one of them just found out she has celiac disease. So I whipped out my newly purchased 123 Gluten Free Muffin and Quickbread Mix and went to their website for additional recipes. I found the recipe for Pumpkin Muffins and even though they did not suggest anything other than butter I thought I would still try using coconut oil and added two teaspoons of pumpkin pie spice to cut the coconut flavor. I popped them into the muffin tin and added chocolate chips to half and pecans to the others. After 20 minutes we were all able to enjoy these amazing muffins!! Everyone loved them and my other friend with celiac's disease complimented me all night and had three whole muffins. I have to admit that I also had three because they were just that good! They were gone before I knew it and I am itching to stock up on my new favorite mix. The only downside to me is that I am not able to control the type or amount of sugar that is used. Overall, this is a great mix with tons of potential for variety. The website has all kinds of recipes that definitely helps keep my need for variety satisfied.

My New Favorite Blog

So I just discovered this new blog: www.thespunkycoconut.com and I am officially addicted to the recipes that use coconut oil, coconut flour, are mostly sugar free, dairy free, corn free, and gluten free. I have tried the brownies, banana bread, and chocolate chip bars and they were amazing! I haven't bought the vanilla creme stevia that most of the recipes require but I just use vanilla and stevia instead because of the $10 cost. I really want to try her cake recipe which uses beans which I know would equate with a moist rich cake. You have to go and check out her recipes they are amazing!!! I just think I can't get enough of coconut oil and even her deserts are just so nutritious with almond butter and not a ton of sugar. I also like that the recipes were easy to make and didn't require buying a ton of expensive flours. I think that coconut flour is a great flour full of fiber that can be tricky to use but is worth the try.

Coconut Pancakes

So I found this great recipe for coconut pancakes on www.examiner.com. I tried a couple of coconut flour pancake recipes and they just didn't turn out right. They are a different texture than what you are used to but they were crispy, fluffy and with some Enjoy Life chocolate chips and pecans they were delicious!! They also are more on the lower carb side and with the coconut oil it gets you some much needed essential fats. So easy to make too! Here is the link: http://www.examiner.com/x-20151-Manchester-Gluten-Free-Examiner~y2009m8d31-Gluten-Free-Pancakes-Using-Coconut-Flour

• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 T oil
• 2 T yogurt or 2 T milk (any kind)
• 1 t agave or 2 t sugar or honey
• 1/2 t vanilla extract
• ¼ t salt
• 1/4 C coconut flour
• ¼ t baking powder
• 1/4 t cinnamon

Directions:

1. Heat enough oil or butter to lightly coat cooking surface. 
2. Blend together eggs, oil, yogurt or milk, agave, vanilla, and salt. Combine coconut flour with baking powder and add a 1/3 of the dry ingredients at a time, whisking thoroughly as you go.  If the batter appears too thick, add a bit of milk (a little goes a long way).  If it's too runny, add a bit of coconut flour (again, a little goes a long way).
3. Spoon batter onto hot skillet making pancakes about 2 ½ to 3 inches in diameter.  Makes 5 - 6 pancakes.

These are light, fluffy, and totally delicious! A warning - they seem to burn easily. Watch them carefully and you will be rewarded! Also, because they are quite delicate, top with fruit rather than adding it right into the batter.