Donuts AND Muffins? Oh Yeah !

I decided to combine this post and share with you two recently tested recipes that both turned out great. Both are cakey, rich and delicious. Both recipes deliver.

Sick kids = comfort food. Sure, chicken soup, grilled cheese....all of that comes to mind. But what about sick kids with a sweet tooth? That is where these two recipes come into play.

When I think of comfort food I think of cinnamon, apples, chocolate and peanut butter. No, not all combined together but rather paired up.

So with a household now coming down with some kind of winter virus, it was time to haul out the muffin tin and donut pan. First I started off with an apple cinnamon donut recipe that I found on Barbara Bakes. I love baked donuts not just for the sake that they are healthier but rather it keeps me away from hot oil; safety first !

These donuts are super moist and overflowing with apple flavor. I mean it - they contain apple cider, dried apple and applesauce. A triple dose of the good stuff!

I did adhere to Barbara's original recipe and only changed one thing - I dipped the tops of the still warm baked donuts in melted butter before dipping them into the cinnamon sugar mix. Amazing.

Barbara wasn't sure if these would be still good the next day though she seemed pretty confident they would be. Let me confirm that YES, they are amazing the next day. These do have more of a muffin texture to them and in fact you could bake them in muffin tins if you don't have a donut pan but whatever you do, make a batch !

RECIPE: Baked Apple Cinnamon Sugar Donuts

Next I whipped up 12 rich chocolate and peanut butter chip muffins. I used the chocolate muffin recipe from the HummingBird Bakery cookbook (also posted here on Lemon Drop) but changed it up slightly. I used Valrhona cocoa powder and 4 ounces of Ghiradelli dark chocolate chips. The final step is to fold in 1 cup of Reese peanut butter baking chips. That's it! You can take a lovely dark chocolate muffin recipe and really change it up by adding one simple ingredient at the end: Peanut Butter Baking Chips. How easy is that?

BASIC CHOCOLATE MUFFIN RECIPE: Hummingbird Bakery Chocolate Muffins

ENJOY !

Gluten-Free Chocolate Mint Cookies

I absolutely love the flavor of mint and chocolate combined into a sweet baked treat. So do my kids. As we are trying to stay with gluten-free goodies for the most part, I sat around contemplating recipe ideas for a great choco-mint cookie. And here it is !

The chocolate goodness comes from two 100 gram dark chocolate Lindt bars and the mint flavor is derived from gluten-free mint baking chips. Andes carries a variety that works well.

I used Authentic's Gluten-Free Classical blend flour but any pre-mixed GF flour blend that has a combo of brown rice, tapioca starch/flour and potato starch will do. Please do not use flours with any other additions - this includes xantham gum, baking soda, baking powder, salt, etc.

These cookies are easy to prepare and bake up with a lovely crispy exterior and chewy, soft interior. They keep for days in a sealed container at room temperature and are great lunchbox snacks.



RECIPE:

WHAT YOU NEED

6 tablespoons gluten-free flour mix
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon xantham gum
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
200 grams Lindt dark chocolate, broken up into bite-sized pieces
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, chopped
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 eggs
1/2 cup coconut sugar (or regular sugar if you prefer)
1 teaspoon vanilla bean paste
1/4 cup mint baking chips

MAKE IT

PREHEAT oven to 325F
LINE 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper

IN LARGE BOWL, whisk together first 4 ingredients and set aside
IN DOUBLE BOILER, Lindt chocolate, unsweetened chocolate and butter, set aside to cool slightly
IN BOWL OF STAND MIXER, fitted with paddle attachment, cream eggs, butter, sugar and vanilla for 5 minutes on HIGH speed
FOLD in melted chocolate mixture
STIR in flour mixture and baking chips
COMBINE thoroughly

PLACE tablespoonful size amounts of dough onto prepared cookie sheets leaving 1/2 inch space between each cookie
BAKE 8 minutes
LET COOL on cookie sheets resting on cooling racks completely before transferring to serving platter

ENJOY !

Banana Toffee Cake

A great gluten-free recipe that is sure to please many! This cake is loaded with bananas (4 in fact) and studded throughout with toffee bits. It does take awhile to bake but patience is a virtue, right?

The combination of toffee, cinnamon and banana make this cake nothing short of amazing. And trust me, you will never even know it is gluten-free. Gone are the days of chalky gluten-free desserts. With the right ingredients you can make this gluten-free cake that will beat out a regular flour-based variety any day of the week.

Frosted or unfrosted is up to you. I left the finished product unfrosted so it is easy to slice and take with you as a portable snack. If you want to frost then I recommend a cinnamon buttercream or a cream cheese frosting.

The gluten-free flour I used is Authentic's GF Classical Blend . If you don't have this blend handy, then feel free to use Cybele Pascal's recipe for an amazing blended flour as follows:

• 4 cups superfine brown rice flour ( Authentic Brand is best)
• 1 1/3 cups potato starch
• 2/3 cup tapioca flour/starch

You will need 3 cups of the blended flour mix for this recipe.

I baked this cake in a 10" round cake pan and I recommend you do the same. It makes the perfect sized cake that slices wonderfully and remains super moist once sliced.

To obtain the smooth finish seen above, simply flip the cake upside down after it has cooled. Perfection.

Note: I used Heath Toffee Bits in the recipe. They were exactly what I was looking for but if you just want toffee bits without added chocolate then Skor baking bits would be a good choice.



RECIPE:
*adapted source recipe - Banana Cake, The Allergen-Free Baker's Handbook, Cybele Pascal

WHAT YOU NEED

3 cups Gluten-Free Flour Mix (see above)
3/4 teaspoon Xantham gum
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 cup toffee bits
3/4 cup buttermilk
4 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2 cup plus 2 1/2 tablespoons vegetable shortening ( I used Crisco)
1 1/2 cups firmly packed dark brown sugar
3 large eggs
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste

MAKE IT

PREHEAT oven to 350F
SPRAY a 10" deep sided cake pan with oil and line base with parchment paper

IN LARGE BOWL, whisk together first 6 ingredients
ADD toffee bits and stir , set aside
IN BOWL OF STAND MIXER, fitted with paddle attachment, cream shortening on HIGH speed for 2 minutes
ADD brown sugar and beat 2-3 minutes on HIGH speed scraping down sides when needed
ADD in eggs, one a time, blending well after each addition
STIR in vanilla extract
ADD dry ingredients, bananas and buttermilk in three batches alternating between flour, bananas and milk
BLEND until just combined
POUR batter into pan
BAKE 40 minutes
COVER top of cake with foil and bake another 20 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean
REMOVE from oven and let cake cool in pan on top of a cooling rack
WHEN completely cooled, invert cake onto cake platter
SLICE and serve

ENJOY !

Double Chocolate Cookies

Healthy and super chocolatey. Can such a thing exist? You betcha! These cookies contain whipped egg whites and arrowroot powder for stability, are sweetened with Sucanat and richly flavored with 2 kinds of chocolate. The key , as always, is using top quality products. For the chocolate I used bittersweet Ghirardelli chips and Cocoa Barry - Extra Brute cocoa powder. If dairy is an issue for you then replace the Ghirardelli chips with baking chocolate from Enjoy Life. They have excellent dairy free products.

These cookies also have an incredible texture. Crispy on the outside yet chewy inside with the yummy flavor of a brownie. If you liked added crunch then feel free to add your favorite chopped nuts to the batter.

The Sucanat will make the batter appear as if it is full of little grains of sand. Don't worry, this is expected and does not affect the taste or consistency in the finished product. The batter will also get quite thick and again, this is expected. In fact, I let the batter sit for about 10 minutes before I start scooping out my first batch. The cookies hold their shape better once the arrowroot has a chance to stiffen up.

Of course the winning aspect of this recipe for me, in addition to all I have stated above, is the fact that these are gluten-free. I am always on the lookout for great gluten recipes and have found a super one with this recipe from Clean Eating.

So without further ado, let's get baking!

RECIPE:
*adapted source recipe: Chocolate Cookies, Clean Eating Magazine

WHAT YOU NEED

6 oz bittersweet chocolate chips (good quality ONLY!)
3 large egg whites
1 1/2 cups Sucanat, divided
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/3 cup of dark cocoa powder (unsweetened). Cocoa Barry - Extra Brute works best
4 1/2 teaspoons arrowroot powder

MAKE IT

PREHEAT oven to 375F
LINE 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper

IN SMALL DOUBLE BOILER, melt chocolate chips and set aside to cool
IN BOWL OF STAND MIXER, fitted with whisk attachment, beat egg whites until soft peaks form
ADD 1 cup of Sucanant whisking just until combined
ADD vanilla extract
FOLD in melted chocolate
IN SMALL BOWL, stir together remaining Sucanat, cocoa powder and arrowroot powder
ADD dry ingredients to wet ingredients and fold in gently until thoroughly combined
DROP batter by tablespoonful onto prepared baking sheets leaving 1/2 inch space between each cookie
BAKE 10 minutes
REMOVE FROM OVEN and let cookies cool on sheet for 10 minutes before removing (with spatula) to cooling rack

ENJOY !


Also linked here:

Attention Ottawa, Ontario Dessert Lovers !

I usually don’t write consumer reviews but today I have decided to make an exception. Why? Because I am one happy consumer.

Now let me start off from the beginning. You see, a few days ago my dear sweet puppy dog decided it was a good idea to trip me on the stairs. Oddly enough, I always suspected the cat would be the villain in such an incident but I was shockingly wrong. As I tumbled down 2 steps I heard a clear “snap” emanating from my left foot. Sure my toe hurt but it wasn’t until the next day when I woke up and realized how bad it really was. I had broken my baby toe.

As you can imagine, or know by experience, sporting a broken toe makes everything a challenge. I have been housebound for days and I think cabin fever is setting in. Overall, not fun! Being a home baker, my passion does require me to stand on two feet; quite the challenge when one is all gimped up. Besides, the day after my accident I didn’t feel like baking anyway and had no idea when I would in the near future. So with me out of commission, who will handle the sweet treats around here???

As luck would have it, I came across a local bakery here in Ottawa, Ontario totally by chance. In fact I cannot recall all the steps that led me to discover Totally Squared but I did find them on Facebook. Let’s chalk it up to divine intervention.

After viewing their website and seeing all their yummy assortment of squares I figured, why not, let’s order a dozen! So I did. Was I pleased with the results? YES!

Vanessa, the owner of Totally Squared, hand delivered my order directly to my front door. She also provide me with a discount (a one day special offered to her Facebook followers) and even tossed in over a dozen assorted cookies. How is that for top-notch service?

These baked delights arrived beautifully presented and impeccably made. You can bet I wasn’t long digging in. I first sampled the Shortbread Squares and all I can say is WOW!

Moist, super buttery and baked to perfection. These are absolutely fantastic treats to enjoy all year long but shortbread and the holiday season go hand in hand.

Then I moved on to the Double Chocolate Caramel Squares (see photo top right). The rich chocolate chip cookie base laid the ideal foundation. Then came the caramel; soft, sweet and gooey. These two layers were then topped off with a layer of ganache. I have to say, that chocolate ganache was out of this world. Smooth and rich – the way a fantastic ganache should be!

So would I recommend Totally Squared? I think you can figure out the answer to that! In fact I raved about them on my own Facebook wall and advised the owner that I was one happy client. She was so pleased that she followed up personally with an email and guess what, Ottawa readers? She provided me with my own discount code to share with all my family and friends.

This means YOU!

So if you want to enjoy some phenomenal squares then Totally Squared is the place to go. They do deliver to certain areas within the National Capital Region and all of this info is readily available on their site. Here are the details:

Totally Squared: http://www.totallysquared.com/

Use the following code at check out and receive 10% off your next purchase.

Coupon Code: 10-OFF

Expires January 15, 2012

ENJOY !

Giveaway Winner and GF Baking Tips !

So excited to share the winner's name with all of you today. This was a fun giveaway and a prize close to my heart - well, anything to do with cupcakes is close to my heart (which oddly enough is an organ quite close to the tummy).

The winner of the Christmas themed cupcake kit giveaway is:

Les rêves d'une boulangère (Brittany)

Congrats, Brittany ! You will definitely enjoy putting your prize to good use. Please email me your shipping address so I can send it off to you first thing on Monday, December 12th. Email: lemondropfoodie@yahoo.ca

As you can all probably guess, the next giveaway will be coming in January and will be a Valentine's Day themed prize ! So I hope you will all enter into the draw to win.

Now on to some valuable gluten-free baking tips.

Many people are rather confused about how removing gluten from a recipe doesn't result in absolute baking disaster. I mean gluten is the glue that binds, correct? And that it is. But there are options out there that yield the same results without the nasty gluten side-effects many people try to cope with day in and day out.

What are they? Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum. I know weird names but trust me, they work and you cannot be without them when you venture into the world of gluten-free baking.

These 2 ingredients, Xanthan Gum and Guar Gum, can be used interchangeably in your gluten-free baking recipes. They nicely take the place of gluten as the key missing link. Personally, I opt for Xanthan Gum - easier on the tummy , especially if you have any digestive concerns.
Below I have 3 bullets that are a good rule of thumb BUT keep in mind, nothing is exact with GF baking. Trial and error is truly the only way to go. Start off with the minimum amounts as per below and see how it works out for you !
When converting a flour based recipe over to gluten-free, in addition to adding a *GF flour blend you would also need to add the following amount of either Xanthan or Guar Gum to achieve favorable results.

• Cakes: 1/4 to 1/2 tsp to each cup of gluten/wheat free flour
• Breads: 1/2 to 1 tsp to each cup of gluten/wheat free flour
• Cookies: 0 to 1/4 tsp to each cup of gluten/wheat free flour

* NOTE: Some GF pre-made mixes already have these thickeners added so pay special attention to the ingredients !
In closing, a little tidbit of info to share with you all. I am presently working on my first e-book which will be jam-packed with absolutely delicious gluten-free recipes that will result in you, yes YOU, baking up childhood favorites your entire family can enjoy ! The launch date has yet to be determined (still in the recipe creation phase) but you will all be the first to know!

Linda @ Lemon Drop

Edward's Warm Apple and Plum Pudding

Nothing says the holiday season like a warm pudding. Toss in apples and plums and you can pretty much hear Santa's bells ! The kicker though is to top it off with a scoop of french vanilla ice cream and then a generous drizzle of warm caramel sauce.
My oh my !

This altered recipe comes from one of my British baking cookbooks The Great British Book of Baking and I absolutely love it. After tasting it I actually equated it to " having a bite of Christmas itself". All the flavors are there: cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, clove . The apples and plums add a lovely consistency and sweet flavor. The pudding part itself is a thick batter that is golden, rich and sheer perfection.

I wish I had more pics to share with you but I don't. It was overcast that day and though I intended to set up some artificial lighting the pudding was gone before I had a chance to do so. So just go with this one and only pic plus my written guarantee that you will ADORE this !

Ready? Let's get started

RECIPE:
* altered source recipe Edward's Warm Apple and Plum Pudding, The Great British Book of Baking

WHAT YOU NEED

PUDDING

115g unsalted butter at room temperature
175g golden brown sugar
1 medium egg, lightly beaten
150g all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1⁄2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
pinch of cloves
100g pecans or walnuts, finely chopped
4 Granny Smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into 1 cm pieces
3 plums, halved, stoned and cut into 1 cm pieces
2 tablespoons chopped glacé ginger or 1 tablespoon of ginger syrup

CARAMEL SAUCE

200g granulated sugar
225ml whipping cream, at room temperature
20g unsalted butter
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

MAKE IT

MAKE PUDDING

PREHEAT oven to 350F
GREASE Grease an 8" springform pan with cooking spray and line base with parchment paper.

IN BOWL OF STAND MIXER, fitted with paddle attachment, add butter and beat on MED speed for 2-3 minutes until light and creamy
ADD sugar and continue to beat MED speed for another 2-3 minutes
ADD egg and mix to combine
IN MEDIUM BOWL, sift together flour, baking powder, salt and spices
FOLD dry ingredients into butter mixture and blend until combined
GENTLY fold in apples, plums, nuts and ginger
DOLLOP batter into prepared pan (yes it will be super thick!) and smooth top.
BAKE for 30 to 40 minutes, or until the top is golden brown and sponge springs back when lightly pressed. While baking, proceed to making the caramel sauce below
WHEN PUDDING IS DONE, REMOVE pan from oven, run a round-bladed knife around inside to loosen sponge, and unmould. Serve on a warmed serving plate

MAKE SAUCE

IN SMALL DOUBLE BOILER, add sugar and continue to stir of low-med heat until it starts to melt and turn golden brown. Be careful not to burn it.
WHEN SUGAR IS A RICH GOLDEN BROWN, remove from heat and stir in cream. Be careful as the cream will splatter
RETURN to heat and gently stir until any large chunks are dissolved. The mixture will continue to darken slightly and thicken
WHEN the sauce is smooth remove from heat and stir in butter and extract
SPOON over warm pudding

ENJOY !