Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Pumpkin Bread

This post must be started with a disclaimer.

Every fall, women and children alike (I'm pretty sure not much of the male population is included in this) get incredibly excited for the arrival of pumpkin flavored goods.  The day Starbucks rolls out their pumpkin latte, everyone knows about it whether they care or not by the influx of social media attention. Really....I don't need to see another picture on Instagram of a Starbucks cup. Seriously. Stop it.

They get excited to buy cans of pumpkin and use it in every possible baked good they can think of, eat as many slices of pie as they can fit in their mouth, and light candles with the scent of the favorited orange squash.

The one woman-child that does not give a hoot about pumpkin flavored anything,would be this one right here. Yup. I really couldn't care any less about any of it. Actually thats not true, because saying I  couldn't care less gives the implication that I am indifferent to the whole thing, when in actuality I really quite despise it all. 

I said it, I do not like pumpkin.

I cannot stand pumpkin pie, I do not like the smell, the texture or the taste of any pumpkin goods I've come across. Maybe somethings just wrong with me, I dunno. 

Gluten Free, Dairy Free Popovers

Good afternoon, dear readers of this blog!

Did you all have a good weekend? I sure hope you did.

Did you fill it full of brunches? Waffles, eggs, crepes, popovers?

No!?

You don't know how to make gluten free popovers you say?

Well, my loves-its time to fix that.

Remember the other day, when I re-showed you how to make a delicious chocolate cupcake? 

Well, while I was deep in the loins of the blog early years, I came across this post.

Its dreadful really. I am pretty embarrassed by it.

I mean, look at those pictures. Awful.

Maybe its a bit of a blessing that my treasured computer was drowned by a glass of water. Who wants to keep and remember those photos forever, am I right?

sigh. I take that back. I'm still holding on to my hard-drive, for the day when someone somewhere can restore it former glory. Three years has not been long enough, I guess.

But, Popovers.

I did it guys. I made them pop over.

I'll be completely honest in the fact that this was only my second time ever making them.

I made them that first time, three years ago; than never again.

I feel a bit guilty about it, as I have two popover pans that have just been sitting unused for that whole time, collecting dust.

But the other day, while watching Food Network, I was reminded of those forgotten pans in my closet, and the failed baking attempt that I never redeemed.

I pulled them out right away, and made these little guys.

Let me tell you, I was glad I did.

Yum to the ee.

Popovers, if you don't know; are an egg based hollow roll, that pops over the top of the pan while cooking.

The insides, become a little bit custardy, and the outside crisp and flaky.

Popovers are a little bit harder to have gluten free, because they generally need the gluten to create shape and texture. 

Just like a baguette. Which someday, I will be able to create just right gluten free.

These puffy little babies require a good smearing of jam.

What woud be really good, and properly British would be some curd. Of the raspberry or lemon variety.

Oh my, that would be swell.

Let me share the recipe, with ya'll.

Here we go:

 *makes 6 popovers

Enjoy, my loves!

Food Find Friday! King Arthur Muffin Mix

'Ello, dawlings!

Food find is back!

For today anyway...

I am completely overwhelmed these days, when I walk into a grocery store and see the amount of gluten free products that are now on the shelves. 

We have come so far..(we-like I had anything to do with it. whatever)

So many different brands and products that I have tried, and many I have not.

I look forward to trying all those things though, in do time.

Last week, in the middle of a doom and gloomy monday, I needed a snack.

I needed something warm, delicious and easy and it had to be found in the current bare state of the kitchen.

While rummaging through the pantry, I found this; a forgotten box of King Arthur Flour gluten free muffin mix.

Right away, I knew it was the snack/lunch/dinner I needed.

Super easy-peasy to make.

 Honestly, the hardest part is waiting for them to cook. 

The second hardest part is waiting for them to cool. I failed at that part. 

To make them a little more exciting (the mix is just a basic muffin. fine enough for you to have as is-if your into that kinda thing.) I added chopped apples, and some cinnamon/sugar mixture to the batter.

I also made them in cheetah print liners, because I wanted to. It was a just the stupidest monday, and I needed some animal print in my life.

Plus I thought it would make me eat less of them. It didn't.

They were perfectly sweet and doughy, and altogether delicious.

The muffin mix is a perfect base for any kind of muffin you'd like. Chocolate chip, blueberry, whatever.

 Just needs some frosting, and we could call it a cupcake. Because really, thats the only difference between a the two.

My only problem with these muffins, they were a little too light. I could eat five and not feel an ounce of stomach fulfillment. Yummy, yes. But satisfying, ehh not so much.

I think next time, I need to throw in some fiber somehow-but moral of the story; there will be a next time. :)

On a side note: I was not initially planning on blogging said muffins. I was just planning on eating them. It seems certain people think that anytime I make something food related, that I have to take pictures of it. (an exact quote from a certain nine year old, over my egg breakfast: "that looks really yummy, aren't you gonna take a picture and put it on facebook or something?" Not on facebook young one...so much to learn..) 

Anyhow, I'm only to happy to oblige.

 Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Banana Muffins

I may or may not have purposely let some bananas go bad so I could make some banana bread. Than I did it again a few days later. 

Yup. I made these twice in one week. 

To my credit, I did make the second batch to be frozen.

It just so happens, that only about half of the dozen actually made it to the freezer.

I did give some of them away though, so theres that.

My three little monkeys {aka nephews} also thought they were pretty tasty, so they must be a keeper.

As with the blueberry muffins, I used buckwheat and honey instead of sugar. I also threw in some agave. 

Let me tell you why, honey is cheaper than agave, agave is sweeter than honey, honey has more substance than agave. 

Thats why there is both. Honey to replace sugar, agave to add some more sweet.

It makes sense to me anyway.

You wont miss the sugar, or the gluten or the dairy. I promise. They are amazingly amazing.

Buckwheat Banana Bread 

the original recipe is from me madre, with several changes by muy.

Ingredients:

-1 cup Bobs Red Mill GF all purpose flour

-1/2 cup ground Buckwheat

-1/4 tsp baking soda

-1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon

-1 egg

-3 mashed bananas {about 1 cup}

-3/4 cup Honey

-1/8 cup agave

-1/8 cup cooking oil

-a squeeze of lemon juice {about 2tsp}

-1/2 cup chocolate chips, chopped walnuts or pecans {or both, if your into that sorta thing}

Directions:

-Preheat Oven to 350degrees

-grease bottom and sides of loaf pan-or-use muffin liners

-In medium mixing bowl, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon, and a pinch of salt. Make a well in the center of the dry mixture;set aside.

-In another bowl, combine egg, bananas, honey, agave, oil, and lemon juice. 

-Add egg mixture to dry mix all at once.

-Stir just until mixed and moist {batter should be lumpy}

-spoon into pan. For muffins, you want to fill almost all the way to the top. they don't rise very far up.

-Bake about 20-25 minutes for muffins/50-55 minutes for loaf, or until toothpick comes out clean.

-cool on wire rack.

makes 1 loaf, or 18 muffins.

scrumptious! 

Buckwheat Lemon Blueberry Muffins: gluten, dairy, sugar free!

I've been on a big muffin binge lately. I'm not sure why exactly, but in the last few weeks my breakfast, lunch and dessert of choice is a big deliciously moist muffin.

As I think about it, it started at farmers market a couple weeks ago; I've been on a mission to go to farmers market every week. This involves waking up early every saturday morning and usually missing breakfast to go fill up my little basket with fresh tomatoes and avocados. The first week I went, we happened upon a booth from a somewhat local bakery that I had never heard of before. We stopped due to the gluten free sign that was up, and when it was discovered that the muffins they had for sale where not only gf, but dairy and refined sugar free as well, I had to try one. It was amazingly delicious, and extraordinary moist. 

It had buckwheat.

Buckwheat, which is not actually related to wheat, is a gf grain I did know about, but I had never used before. I have eaten in the past foods made with buckwheat flour, and I even had a bag of it in my freezer, just never quite knew what recipe to use it in-or what texture it would create.

After eating that muffin at farmers market, I decide to make my own and test out the flour. 

I decided this one day at approximetaly three a.m. I had been lying in bed waiting patiently for the sandman to make a visit, when I began thinking about muffins. (yes--I often think myself to sleep with recipes, I wouldn't recommend it) Than I got hungry, and I gave up on sleep happening so I headed to the kitchen and made these guys. Since I was incredibly sleep deprived, I may have gone a little overboard on some things (like the quantity of blueberries) but they turned out great and my tummy was very happy.

Buchwheat Lemon Blueberry Muffins

3/4 cup coconut yogurt
1/4 cup dairy free milk (I used almond milk)
1/4 cup lemon juice
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup Buckwheat flour
3/4 cup Honey
1/8 cup agave
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 egg
1 cup blueberries

-preheat oven to 400degrees
-Mix yogurt, milk, lemon juice, honey, agave and egg in small bowl, set aside.
-Mix together flours, baking powder, cinnamon, and salt.
-Add wet ingredients to dry and mix well.
-Fold in blueberries to mixture.
-spoon into muffin tins {to almost the top}, and bake until toothpick comes out clean; about 20-24 minutes.

I have some more muffins coming your way this week!