Gluten Free Pumpkin Cake

Well, I suppose it’s that time of year to dust off the cans of pumpkin languishing in the pantry. It’s time to dig out the jars of cloves and nutmeg that have been buried in the cupboard. I love pumpkin desserts, yet I‘m always perplexed as to why I don’t make them more throughout the year. For me, and I’m sure for most people, pumpkin treats have an unbreakable association with family and holidays.  Food is often about more than flavor. At times, food is about the memories and feelings surrounding it. So I guess a big pumpkin pie on a hot July day doesn’t have the same feel as it does right now. Enough rambling already…sheesh. I was looking for a nice little pumpkin cake to try out. I found this recipe and I made it without taking any pictures for my blog. My small family devoured this cake like we hadn’t eaten for weeks….I assure you we eat plenty. Anyway, I was “forced” to make this again to capture it for you to enjoy. This cake is soooo moist and delicious. This would be a great breakfast cake or even just something for people to snack on as you’re preparing your other holiday dishes. Let’s get to it.
Gluten Free Pumpkin Bundt Cake:
adapted from All Recipes
Cake:
2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup oil (vegetable or canola)
1/2 cup applesauce
1 tsp vanilla
1 can of pumpkin (15oz Libby’s or 2 cups fresh pumpkin)
4 eggs
2 cups GF flour mix plus extra for preparing the pan
3 tsp baking powder
2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp each –ginger, nutmeg, and cloves
Cream Cheese Icing:
5 ounces cream cheese
2 ounces butter (4 Tbs)
1 tsp vanilla
1 cup powdered sugar
3-4 Tbs half & half or milk
I would start by measuring out the cream cheese and butter. Set them aside to come up to room temperature.Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.  Next, whisk all your dry ingredients (except the sugar) together in a medium bowl.In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine the sugar, pumpkin, oil, applesauce, and vanilla. Mix until thoroughly combined. Next, beat in the eggs one at a time. Mix the dry ingredients into the wet and thoroughly combine them. Pour the batter into a large prepared Bundt pan. I prepared my pan by spraying it with Pam and lightly coating it with extra GF flour mix. Bake in a 350 degree F oven for 45-50 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean.I let the cake cool in the pan for about 5-10 minutes before inverting onto a plate or rack.To make the topping, whisk together the butter, cream cheese, powder sugar, and vanilla. Next, whisk in just enough half & half or milk to make the icing pourable. You don’t want it thick like frosting and you don’t want it so thin that it all runs off. I used about 3 Tbs of half & half. This gave the topping the consistency of molasses which pour easily onto the cake but also stuck to it and didn’t run all over.
Give the cake a little time to cool down and then pour the icing over it.
All that’s left to do now is cut a piece and relax. Even though we are in the giving and sharing season, you may be tempted to keep this all to yourself. Enjoy!!! Have a great Thanksgiving!

Gluten Free Lemon Meringue Waffles

I must admit I have been a bit of a blog slacker lately. Little things like family, work and life in general seem to get in the way of devoting the time needed to keep this little gluten free recipe machine running. I do want to sincerely thank everyone who does find the time to stop by my blog and leave a comment or check out my recipes. I appreciate all the support.

My wife really wanted a Belgian waffle maker for Christmas this past year. I wasn't real excited about adding another small appliance to our kitchen. I assumed that it would just be another dust collector taking up room in a cupboard. But, if there's one thing I've learned over the years, it's that my wife usually gets what she wants and she often chooses wisely. I can't believe I just put that in print. I hope she doesn't read this. Anyway, the waffle maker has made several appearances since Christmas. My wife would be more than content to make simple waffles with butter and syrup. I on the other hand, can not leave well enough alone. I can and must tinker with everything to try something new and different. The one thing I won't mess with is the basic waffle batter recipe. We use Pamela's Baking and Pancake Mix and follow the recipe for pancakes or waffles. The pancakes are pretty good. However, the same mix made into Belgian waffles is outstanding.

All right, let's tackle this tasty Dinner/Dessert/Breakfast. First, you need to make up some Lemon Curd. This is so simple and I can't believe I've never made it before.
Lemon Curd:
from the Joy of Baking
3 large eggs
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice (2-3 lemons) (avoid the bottled juice if possible)
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbs lemon zest
4 Tbs unsalted butter (room temperature, cut into small cubes)
In a stainless steel bowl placed over a pan of simmering water (double boiler), whisk together the eggs, sugar and lemon juice. Stir constantly to prevent the eggs from curdling. The mixture will begin to thicken up, like sour cream. This can take anywhere from 5-10 minutes. Check the temperature of the mixture. It needs to cook until it reaches 160 degrees F. I just dipped an instant read thermometer into the mix. Once it reaches 160 degrees, remove from the heat and strain the mix through a fine mesh strainer into a bowl to get any little cooked egg pieces out.
Whisk the butter in until it is completely melted and stir in the lemon zest. Cover with plastic wrap. Push the plastic wrap down onto the top of the lemon curd to prevent a skin from forming. Refrigerate for at least an hour. This can be made a day or two ahead of time. The lemon curd will thicken a bit more as it cools. This makes about 1-1/2 cups of lemon curd.

Gluten Free Lemon Meringue Waffles:
from Crepes, Waffles and Pancakes!
Waffle Batter:
Make a double batch of Pamela's waffle batter
1 tsp lemon zest
Meringue:
2 egg whites (room temperature works best)
1/8 tsp cream of tartar
1/4-1/2 cup superfine granulated sugar (you can use regular white sugar as well)
Waffle Topping:
6 Tbs plain Greek or whole milk yogurt
6 Tbs lemon curd
small pieces of toasted meringue

For the waffles: add the lemon zest to the waffle batter, cook until golden brown.

For the Meringue: using a stand mixer or hand mixer with a whisk attachment, whisk the egg whites and cream of tartar until soft peaks form. Add the sugar and continue whisking until firm peaks form. I then toasted pieces of the meringue over a gas stove burner using wooden skewers. Kind of like roasting marshmallows. A small kitchen torch would work a little better.
For the rest of the topping; mix equal parts of lemon curd and Greek yogurt together.
Spread a little lemon/yogurt mix over the warm, fresh waffle and top with some toasted meringue. Mmm, Mmm Good. Enjoy!!!

Gluten Free Chex Mix

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving. We did not host Thanksgiving at our house this year which meant that we traveled to various relatives' homes in the area over the holiday weekend. Although it was busy, we had a great time with everyone. This week at the the Gluten Free Homemaker, the theme is party food. I'm sure everyone out there has made Chex mix before, right? I usually whip up a batch around this time every year. In the past I've had to use faux Chex cereal that was gluten free. Now that Chex have officially gone GF, I can use the real thing. The original recipe calls for a blend of rice, corn, and wheat Chex. I just add more rice and corn Chex to make up for omitting the wheat ones. I also use gluten free pretzels from Glutino, we buy them at Whole Foods. Chex mix is so versatile. If you like it a little spicy, add some chili powder, cayenne, or even a bit of smoked paprika would be a good addition. I stuck with the original recipe.
Chex Mix:
modified to be GF
1-1/2 cups mixed nuts
1-1/2 cups pretzels
4-1/2 cups Rice Chex
4-1/2 cups Corn Chex
6 Tbs butter (melted)
2 Tbs Worcestershire sauce (Lea & Perrins is GF)
3/4 tsp garlic powder
1-1/2 tsp seasoned salt (I used regular salt)
1/2 tsp onion powder
Baking Directions:
Spread on one or two baking pans and bake at 250 degrees F for 1 hour, turning every 20 minutes.
9 cups of cereal looks and sounds like a lot but trust me you'll be glad you made the full recipe. In a large bowl, gently mix together the cereal, nuts, and pretzels. In a small bowl, melt the butter, then add the remaining ingredients. Pour the butter/seasoning mix over the cereal a little at a time. Mix the cereal around to coat it as evenly as possible.
Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. Spread the Chex mix on to a large edged baking sheet, like a jelly roll pan. You may have to use two pans. Once the mix is spread out, I usually splash a little more Worcestershire sauce here and there on the mix for a little more flavor. Bake for 1 hour, turning the mix about every 20 minutes.
Chex mix is so good when it is warm and fresh out of the oven. After it cools, if there's any left, you can bag it up and take it to your party for everyone else to enjoy. Be on the look out next week, I've got a post coming soon that you won't want to miss.

Gluten Free Sweet and Spicy Pecans

OK, I know what you're thinking. "I came to check out this blog and all you have to offer for the Holiday Food Fest are some pecans, come on." Hold it, hold it, let me explain. Don't underestimate the need for easy snacks around the holidays. Everyone gets focused in on the big ticket items; turkey, stuffing, etc. You can't neglect the snacks. What are you supposed to munch on while all the other food is cooking? Besides, Thanksgiving is a pretty serious meal. You don't want to walk in on game day unprepared. If you start eating snacks and treats now, you may just have enough time before the big day. You wouldn't run a marathon without taking a few laps around the block ahead of time. What makes you think you can tackle a turkey day meal without a little warm up?

Here is a quick, tasty snack that can be made up to a week in advance. Just be sure to cover them up at night to keep them fresh.
Gluten Free Sweet and Spicy Pecans:
1/2 cup granulated sugar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cinnamon
a pinch of cayenne pepper
1 egg white
2 cups of pecan halves
Bake in a 300 degree F oven for 30 minutes Start by mixing the sugar, salt, chili powder, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper in a small bowl.
In a larger bowl, lightly beat the egg white with a fork. Toss the pecans in and mix until thoroughly coated with egg white.
Next, sprinkle the spice mixture over the pecans and generously coat them. You may have some of the spice mix left over. Place the pecans on a parchment lined or lightly greased cooking sheet. Try to separate the pecans so they don't clump together. Bake at 300 degrees F for 30 minutes.
Allow the pecans to cool for five minutes. You're all set. Let the training snacking begin. Enjoy!!!