Desserts
Red Velvet Amaretti Christmas Cookies
Ingredients:
- 2 cups of almond flour
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 2 tsp. cocoa powder
- 2 egg whites, whipped
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- 1 tube of gluten free red food coloring (I used Betty Crocker)
Directions:
Separate yolks from egg whites. In a bowl use a hand mixer to whip egg whites until it quadruples in size to a thick foam. Set aside. Mix almond flour, powdered sugar and cocoa powder in a large mixing bowl. Stir thoroughly until it looks like you have dried brownie mixture. Add in whipped eggs and blend well until you get a peanut butter texture. Add in vanilla extract and red food coloring. Mix well until the batter is bright red. Add about 2 tbsp. of powdered sugar to a bowl or plate. Use a teaspoon to scoop up cookie batter and roll into a ball. Toss in powdered sugar until it looks like a snow ball. Place on a greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
Amaretti Italian Almond Cookies
Ingredients:
- 2 cups almond flour
- 1/2 cup powdered sugar
- 2 egg whites
- 2 tsp. vanilla or almond extract
Directions: Separate yolks from egg whites. Whisk egg whites in a mixing bowl for about 8 - 10 minutes until it turns into foam. Add vanilla extract, powdered sugar and almond flour. Form dough into balls and toss in extra powdered sugar, shaking off excess sugar. Place cookies on a greased baking sheet and gently press down on cookies. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes.
Apple Pie
Ingredients:
- 1 store bought gluten free pie shell
- 1 cup of gluten free Bisquick mix
- 1 cup white granulated sugar
- 1/2 stick of salted butter (frozen) + 1 tbsp.
- 1/2 cup of ice water
- 3 apples
- 1/2 cup brown sugar
- ground cinnamon
- 1 tsp. fresh ginger (optional)
Blackberry Crumble Bars
Ingredients:
- 1.5 cups gluten free baking flour
- 1/4 cup brown sugar
- 3 eggs
- 1.5 sticks salted butter
- 1/2 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 tsp. vanilla extract
- juice from 1 lemon or lime wedge
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1.5 cups blackberries
Directions: In a mixing bowl, add 1.5 cups of gluten free flour, brown sugar, 2 eggs and 1.5 sticks of butter. Once the dough forms a cookie dough like texture, split it in half. Grease a baking dish and start pressing half of the dough into the bottom layer of the dish. Take the other half of dough split in half, set one half aside and use the rest to finish bottom layer of crumble. In a sauce pan, cook blackberries, 1/4 cup sugar and a drizzle of water until sugar dissolves. Set aside and let cool. Add cream cheese, 1/4 cup white granulated sugar, 1 tsp. baking powder, vanilla extract, lemon juice and 1 egg to a mixing bowl. Whisk until creamy. Pour cream cheese layer on top of bottom crumble layer. Add cooled blackberries on top of cream cheese. Take remaining crumble dough and crumble over top. Bake at 350 degrees for 50 to 55 minutes.
Cassava and Plantain Donuts (Accra - West African Street Food)
Ingredients:
- 2 - 3 cups of grated cassava
- 2 overripe plantains or bananas
- 1 cup of gluten free flour
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 egg
- 1/4 cup of powdered sugar
Directions: Peel and finely grate cassava (or process in a blender, making sure to remove hard stem/ core) until you have about 2 - 3 cups worth. Squeeze out excess liquid from cassava and place in mixing bowl. Peel and chop plantains, add to mixing bowl with egg, flour, sugar and baking powder. Blend well and form into balls. Fry in neutral oil (canola, vegetable) and then quickly toss in a bowl of powdered sugar.
Castagnole Ricotta Fritters
Ingredients:
- 1 15 ounce container of whole milk ricotta cheese
- 1.5 cups of gluten free baking flour
- 1/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 egg
- lemon juice
Directions: Add ricotta cheese to a mixing bowl and whisk with an egg. Slowly add in flour, baking powder and sugar. When the batter is firm enough (not too sticky or wet) roll the dough into balls and set aside. You'll need at least a few cups of oil to deep fry the ricotta balls in a pot/ pan. Heat neutral oil (canola oil, vegetable oil) until it sizzles when water is flicked over oil or toothpick forms bubbles around it. Fry balls, flipping occasionally until golden brown. Drizzle with honey or powdered sugar.
Peach Cobbler
Ingredients:
- 1 29 ounce can (3.5 cups) of peaches
- 1.5 cups of sugar
- ground cinnamon (be generous)
- 1 cup of gluten free Bisquick mix
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1.5 cups of milk
- 1 stick of salted butter (1/2 a cup)
Directions: In a large pot, add canned peaches, 1 cup of sugar and a generous helping of ground cinnamon. Let cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes, long enough for the sugar to dissolve. In a mixing bowl mix gluten free Bisquick mix, baking powder, 1/2 a cup of sugar, milk and ground cinnamon. In a 4x4 baking dish, place half a stick of butter and place in a 350 degree oven until melted. Once butter melts in baking dish, use oven mittens to carefully roll melted butter along sides of dish. Pour excess butter into Bisquick mix. Pour wet batter into baking dish. Then drop peaches along with the syrup in wet batter in sections. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Serve with ice cream and enjoy.
Plum Galette
Ingredients:
- 4 - 5 plums
- 1 1/4 cups gluten free baking flour, plus extra for rolling out dough
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/4 cup white granulated sugar
- 1 stick of salted butter
- 1/4 cup ice cold water
- 2 tbsp. brown sugar
- 1 egg (egg wash)
Directions: In a large mixing bowl, add gluten free baking flour, baking powder and white granulated sugar. Mix well. Cut up a stick of salted butter into small slices and mix into flour. Use a fork to break up clumps of butter. Add ice cubes and water to a glass. Use a spoon to pour ice water onto dough (not likely to need a full 1/4 cup of water, just enough to get dough to reach the consistency of play-doh.) Press dough until you can no longer see pieces of butter. Shape into a ball, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least one hour. Clean and thinly slice plums. Place in a bowl and coat with a few dashes of nutmeg, ground cinnamon and 2 tbsp. brown sugar. Set aside. Lay parchment paper or plastic wrap on a large, flat surface and dust with gluten free baking flour. Place dough on top of dusted surface and press down with hands to flatten. Then use rolling pin or tall coffee container to roll out dough. Once you reach desired shape, carefully lay dough on oven safe baking sheet. Arrange plums (or apples, peaches) on the center of the galette and work your way outwards. Carefully fold dough over fruit and brush outside with egg wash (whisked egg.) Add extra bits of butter in between wedges of fruit. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 35 minutes. Serve with ice cream and enjoy!
Sweet Potato Brownies
Ingredients:
- 1 cup sweet potatoes (3 small sweet potatoes)
- 3/4 cup chopped chocolate bark
- 1/4 cup cocoa powder
- 1/2 tsp. baking powder
- 1/4 cup peanut butter
- 2 eggs
- 1/4 cup of raw honey
- 1/2 stick of melted butter
Directions: Rinse potatoes and poke with holes using a fork. Wrap potatoes in foil and bake at 400 degrees for 1 hour. Peel potatoes and press through a potato ricer into a large mixing bowl. Melt the chocolate bark with butter and add to sweet potatoes. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir until thoroughly combined. Pour brownie mix into a greased baking dish. Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.