cakes

Gluten-Free Carrot Cake

January 18, 2012 Leave a Comment

This is moist and delicious, and is perfect with Mom’s Cream Cheese Frosting (recipe below). I just put the carrots in our blender to grind them up, which makes nice, fine carrot pieces, but they can also be grated.

Ingredients:

Gluten-Free Carrot Cake with Mom's Cream Cheese Frosting

1 ½ cups cornstarch

1 cup gluten-free oat flour

½ cup rice flour

1 ½ teaspoons xanthan gum

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon cinnamon

2 cups sugar

1 cup light olive oil

4 eggs

1 ½ cups ground or grated carrots, peeled

1 cup walnuts or pecans, optional

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease WELL two nine inch round cake pans for a two-layer cake, or a single eleven inch round cake pan. You can also use a 9 by 13 inch glass pan.

In a separate bowl, whisk together the cornstarch, oat flour, rice flour, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon.

In the bowl of your electric mixer, beat the olive oil, eggs, and sugar until well blended. Stir in the flour mix and fold in the carrots and nuts.

Cook for forty to forty-five minutes, see ‘Cake and Cupcake Tips’ in the ‘tips’ section for checking doneness.

Mom’s Cream Cheese Frosting

Ingredients:

4 ounces, (½ a stick) cream cheese

¼ cup (½ a stick) butter

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/2 cups powdered sugar, more or less

1/4 cup cream, half and half, or milk

In a double boiler (see tips), melt the butter and cream cheese, the butter until it is completely melted, the cream cheese until it is soft. Beat with electric mixer, then add vanilla extract and one cup of the powdered sugar. Beat, then add another cup. If the frosting is at about the right consistency and tastes sweet enough, then don’t add the remaining half a cup of powdered sugar. If you think it needs more, add the rest, and continue adding sugar until you think it is just right. Once frosting is at its perfection, you can add food coloring if you like. If you want chocolate frosting, add a tablespoon of cocoa. Spread onto your cake, cookie, or cupcake, with a knife or small rubber spatula.

Chocolate Coffee Brownies

January 17, 2012 Leave a Comment

This is a softer, richer version of the Basic Brownie. Probably not a good idea for kids anywhere near 9:00 at night, but they are perfect for a sugar/energy snack or an easy and quick thing to make when guests are coming over.

NOTE: Do not replace the rice flour with oat flour; I find that the oat flour gives far too grainy a texture.

Soft and moist Chocolate Coffee Brownie

Ingredients:

2 ½ cups sugar

1 cup cocoa

½ cup rice flour

1 cup gluten-free cornstarch

1 cup (2 sticks) butter

4 eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

½ cup coffee

1 cup semisweet chocolate chips

1 cup sliced almonds, chopped pecan pieces, or walnut pieces, optional

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F, and grease a 9 by 13 inch glass baking pan.

Set the butter to melt. I use a small saucepan at medium heat, stirring it now and then, but you can also use the microwave by going for 1 minute, stirring, and going for another minute.

While the butter is melting, mix together the sugar, cocoa, rice flour, and cornstarch. Add the butter, eggs, vanilla extract, and coffee. Stir until blended.

Pour in the chocolate chips and stir.

Pour the mixture into the pan, then top with nuts. I usually top only half of the brownies with nuts, since some people prefer no nuts.

Place in the oven and cook for 30-35 minutes, thirty minutes for rather ‘goopy’ brownies, and thirty-five for well done. A knife should come out dirty but with dry crumbs on it. Of course, their may be some melted chocolate chip upon the knife as well. See ‘Cakes and Cupcakes Tips’ for more on this.

Remove brownies from oven and let cool on counter-top. You may want to either remove them from the pan and put them in an airtight container or cover them with a towel or a cookie sheet, to prevent them from drying out.

Filed Under: cakes Tagged With: Brownies, Chocolate, Chocolate Brownie, Chocolate Coffee Brownie, Coffee, Coffee Brownie, gluten-free, Gluten-Free brownies, gluten-free chocolate, gluten-free coffee

Gluten-Free Cake and Cupcake Tips

October 4, 2011 Leave a Comment

Here are a few tips for making tasty gluten-free cakes and cupcakes.

Moist and soft, this is the Chocolate Coffee Brownie

Do Not Over Cook!

There are a lot of notices like this in cake and cupcake recipes on this blog. This is because a gluten-free cake or cupcake can get dry fast. You might find that eating it makes you want a drink of water, or the cake/cupcake is very crumbly. This is probably because that baked good has been over cooked! Here are a few things to know when a cupcake or cake is cooked:

-When you take them out of the oven, they should not wiggle at all.

-If they have cracks in the top (Unless if it is a cheesecake), it is definitely overcooked.

-If it feels really firm, it is overcooked.

-When you touch it with your finger and the place you touch makes a hole, it is not cooked.

This toothpick has several dry crumbs on it

-A toothpick inserted in the center should come out with dry crumbs on it, meaning that these crumbs should not be smeared all over the place. If the cake/cupcakes contain chocolate chips, then expect melted chocolate as well.

-If the dough is runny, it is definitely not cooked.

-With cupcakes, if I have an extra one, I usually break it open just to check.

Does it Stick in Your Teeth?

If the cupcake or cake sticks in your teeth, there’s a problem.

A good way to take care of this problem is by using a little less xanthan gum. If it crumbles too much, however, then you are using too little xanthan gum. If it sticks in your teeth, this may also mean it is slightly under cooked.

Make Sure You Have All The Ingredients:

We live about an hour away from a store, so when I bake I need to be sure that I have all the ingredients. This doesn’t just apply to cakes and cupcakes. It applies to any recipe that you bake.

Is it Sticking to the Pan?

A good way to make cupcakes is to use wax paper liners. They are available at the local grocery store and keep the pans clean and the cupcakes nicely contained. For cakes, if the dough is sticking to the pan, try adding a little more butter/oil to the pan when you make it. Also, if the pan is even slightly wet, the dough will stick badly. I learned this the hard way once when I made brownies in a wet pan. It was virtually impossible to get them out.

One way to make sure it doesn’t stick is to cut out the edges around the pan before it cools. When it cools the edges may harden to the pan, so if you cut them loose beforehand, they wont stick.

If none of this works, line the pan with wax paper.

Filed Under: cakes, Gluten-Free Tips Tagged With: cake, cakes, cupcake, cupcakes, gluten-free cake, gluten-free cake and cupcake tips, gluten-free cupcake, gluten-free tips, tips

Chocolate Coffee Cake / Cupcakes

October 4, 2011 Leave a Comment

Gluten-Free Chocolate Coffee Cupcakes with powdered sugar and strawberries.

This is tasty. Anything with coffee and chocolate combined would be. The key is not to over cook it. This recipe can be used for cupcakes or cake. If you want, you can add ½ cup chocolate chips to the batter.

Dry Ingredients

¾ cup rice flour, or GF oat flour

¾ cup GF cornstarch

¾ cup cocoa powder

1 cup pure granulated white sugar

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon xanthan gum

½ teaspoon salt

Wet Ingredients

½ cup lukewarm coffee

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 egg

½ teaspoon apple cider vinegar

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 inch round cake pan or place wax paper cupcake holders inside a cupcake pan.

Whisk together the dry ingredients in a large bowl. Add in the wet ingredients and beat with electric mixer until smooth.

Place the batter in the cake pan or fill each wax paper cupcake holder until the dough is about ½ an inch from the top.

Bake on a rack positioned in the center of the oven for 20-25 minutes, until surface is just set. Do NOT overcook.

Cool completely. You can frost them or coat them with powdered sugar.

Filed Under: cakes, gluten-free recipes Tagged With: gluten free cupcakes, gluten-free cake, gluten-free chocolate, gluten-free chocolate coffee cake, gluten-free chocolate coffee cupcakes, gluten-free chocolate cupcakes, gluten-free coffee cupcakes

Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes

September 30, 2011 Leave a Comment

Tasty Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcakes

Sweet, yummy, and absolutely delicious. These little treats are quick and can be used for all sorts of occasions. When I first made them, they were an immediate success.

Note: You can make chocolate-bottomed vanilla cupcakes by simply separating ½ a cup of dough from the rest of the dough and stirring in 2 tablespoons cocoa. Then place the remainder of your vanilla cupcake mix inside of the cupcake casings and add a teaspoon of chocolate-mix on top of this. The chocolate will sink into the vanilla dough throughout the baking.

Ingredients:

1 stick (½ cup) butter, slightly colder than room temperature

1 cup sugar

3 eggs

¾ cup cornstarch (gluten-free)

¼ cup oat flour (gluten-free) or rice flour

½ cup gluten-free plain yogurt

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon xanthan gum

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Place 12 wax-paper cupcake holders in a 12-hole muffin/cupcake pan.

Cream together the butter and the sugar (see ‘tips’ section for directions on ‘creaming butter’). Add the eggs and beat until light-colored and thickened.

Add the remaining ingredients and beat until combined. Spoon dough into prepared wax-paper cupcake holders, evenly filling all 12 holes. Make sure the dough is at least ½ an inch from the top of the cupcake holder; or the cupcake will overflow while baking.

Place the pan in the oven and cook for 30-35 minutes.

Use your favorite frosting recipe to frost them, or go without. On this website there is a great cream-cheese frosting recipe that tastes wonderful with these cupcakes if you prefer that.

Filed Under: cakes, gluten-free recipes Tagged With: gluten-free, gluten-free vanilla cupcakes, Vanilla cupcakes

Gluten-Free Chocolate Zucchini Cake or Cupcakes

September 30, 2011 Leave a Comment

This is Delicious

Gluten-Free Chocolate Zucchini Cake

The first time I made it we brought it to a picnic with some friends. It was soft and moist, which is sometimes hard to get in gluten-free cakes. I have used this recipe a number of times when I need to cook a simple batch of cupcakes for a party or a tasty birthday cake. When I first made this in the cupcake version I brought it to another picnic. I watched as they rapidly disappeared. Nobody would possibly guess this is gluten-free!

Cream (check ‘tips’ section for directions on ‘creaming butter’):

1 stick ½ cup butter, soft but still cold

1 2/3 white granulated sugar

Add and beat:

2 large eggs

Add:

1 cup gluten-free oat or rice flour

½ cup cornstarch (check label for gluten-free)

1 cup pureed fresh zucchini (I use our electric mixer)

½ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (try dutch cocoa for extra-dark chocolate yummyness!)

¾ teaspoon xanthan gum

¼ teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon baking powder

Beat until well-blended and smooth. You can use a greased 8×8” square baking pan, a 9” round one, or a 12 cupcake pan with waxed paper cupcake holders. Bake at 350 degrees F for 40-45 minutes.

Makes 1 cake or 12 cupcakes.

Filed Under: cakes, gluten-free recipes Tagged With: cake, chocolate cake, chocolate zucchini cupcakes, cupcakes, gluten free cupcakes, gluten-free cake, gluten-free chocolate zucchini cake, gluten-free zucchini cake, gluten-free zucchini cupcakes

Delicious Gluten-Free Chocolate Cake

July 5, 2010 Leave a Comment

Gluten-free chocolate cake makes a tasty dessert

We have used this recipe many times for birthdays, holidays, and normal desserts. It is delicious with frosting, or without, and it would also be very good with chocolate chips or nuts.

Ingredients:

¼ cup salted butter, melted

¾ cup sugar

2 eggs

½ cup plain yogurt

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

1 cup cornstarch, potato starch, or half-half potato starch/ rice flour, or cornstarch/rice flour mix, whichever is available. Rice flour will make cake grittier and slightly dryer.

1/3 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tablespoon baking powder

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon xanthan gum

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Lightly grease a 9 inch round or square baking pan.

In your bowl, mix the butter with the sugar and beat with electric mixer. Add the eggs, and beat until lighter and thicker. This will take about two minutes. Add the other ingredients. Beat well. The batter will be a thick cake batter. Pour into prepared pan and bake for 30-40 minutes, until a toothpick tests cleanly, and cake doesn’t jiggle.

Filed Under: cakes, gluten-free recipes Tagged With: chocolate cake, gluten-free cake, gluten-free chocolate cake

Gluten-Free Chocolate Cupcakes

July 4, 2010 Leave a Comment

chocolate cupcake picture

These are rich, delicate, and sweet. They are good with or without frosting, and would also be great with nuts.

dry ingredients:

½ cup rice flour or sorghum flour

½ cup cornstarch

¼ cup potato starch or cornstarch

¼ cup cocoa powder

1 ½ teaspoons baking powder

½ cup granulated sugar

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon xanthan gum

2/3 cup semisweet chocolate chips, optional

Wet ingredients:

1 large egg

2/3 cup milk

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Heat oven to 350 degrees, line one muffin pan with wax paper cup liners.

Whisk flours, cocoa, baking powder, sugar, salt, and xanthan gum in a medium sized mixing bowl. I just whisk the ingredients by hand with a little metal whisk, but you can always whisk with an electric mixer. After whisking, add chocolate chips.

In another mixing bowl whisk egg, milk, oil and vanilla until well blended.

Pour the wet ingredients in with the dry ingredients, and stir until blended, don’t over beat. Spoon batter into prepared muffin pan and bake for about twenty minutes, until toothpick comes out clean, and cupcake top feels springy but solid on touch. Remove from pan and cool, I put them in the refrigerator, because I am always impatient to put the frosting on. When cooled, put frosting on. You can use your own recipe, or the one on this site. I usually decorate them with chocolate chips after they are frosted. You can do this, or come up with your own nifty decorations.

Filed Under: cakes, gluten-free recipes Tagged With: chocolate cupcakes, gluten free cupcake recipe, gluten free cupcakes

Basic Brownies

February 6, 2009 Leave a Comment

Picture of gluten-free brownies with coffee

gluten-free brownies make a good snack.

This is one of the recipes my mom gave me. These brownies are gooey, chocolaty, and delicious. They are always the first thing to vanish, at a party. It is a very simple recipe, and i would recommend it for when you want to cook a quick dessert. You can really frost this thing up, cover it in chocolate chips, and make it into a birthday cake as well.

2 cups sugar

½ cup cocoa

1 ¼ cups cornflour

1 cup butter

4 eggs

1 12 oz bag of chocolate chips

Butter a 9 by 13 by 2” glass pan, and preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Set the pan aside. Combine the sugar, cocoa, and flour in a bowl. Break the eggs in a separate bowl, and beat them with a fork. Melt the butter, then mix it into the flour and sugar. Add the beaten eggs into the mix. Stir them in, until they are well blended. Add the chocolate chips, and stir them in. Pour the mixture into the pan, and place in the center of the oven. Cook for 35 to forty minutes,(depending on wether you like goopy brownies or well done.) until the center seems set. The brownies will still seem not cooked when you remove them from the oven. Let them set for about ten minutes, until they are cooled, and they will have become perfectly light, and delicious.

Filed Under: cakes, gluten-free recipes, Other desserts