Gluten-free Blueberry Coconut Cookies

 

Well, I’ll be the first to admit that I struggle to make attractive-looking cookies. They usually taste great, but their appearance leaves a bit to be desired.

When I was photographing these cookies earlier today, I had three little helpers surrounding me telling me how to make them look better. I don’t think their advice really helped – there was a fair amount of styling and light manipulation going on to try and detract from the ordinariness of the cookies!

So you’ll just have to take my word for it. They are yummy – the dried blueberries really give them a lift. I used coconut sugar in this recipe, but do a direct swap for brown sugar if you can’t get your hands on any of the coconut variety. I was interested in layering the coconut flavours – coconut flour, coconut sugar and desiccated coconut – a little like a Sarah Lee creation (“Layer upon layer upon layer…”)!

After reading this post by Gluten-free Girl, I was interested to know whether my cookies would turn out better if I rested the dough in the fridge overnight. I did it twice and both times the dough became crumbly, as described by Gluten-free Girl, yet the mixture came together really well and cooked nicely. I didn’t test a batch of cookies without resting the dough, so I can’t comment on the extent to which it improved. But I can say that the baking process was much easier and quicker when I knew that I only had to whip up the dough on one night. The cookies could be rolled and baked the next day in a flash. I’m all for doing things quickly and easily, so I have no problems with dividing the baking process by resting the dough.

But if you need the cookies then and there, by all means skip the resting stage and roll and bake them immediately.

These cookies can be used  for a recess-time refuel. I’ve got a batch in the freezer for quick and easy school lunchboxes once we’re back from school holidays.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

40 g tapioca flour

40 g coconut flour

130 g brown rice flour

5 g psyllium husk

70 g coconut sugar (or brown sugar)

30 g desiccated coconut

2 eggs, lightly beaten

100 g butter, melted

1 tsp vanilla essence

70 g dried blueberries

Method

Preheat oven to 180° Celsius (conventional oven) or 160° Celsius (fan-forced oven). Grease and line a large baking sheet or cookie tray.

Into a large bowl, sift tapioca flour, coconut flour and brown rice flour. Add psyllium husk, coconut sugar and desiccated coconut. Stir to combine.

Make a well in the centre of the mixture and add eggs, butter, vanilla essence and blueberries.

Mix until combined. Cover bowl with plastic film and refrigerate overnight, or for at least 4 hours.

Remove bowl from refrigerator and microwave for 20 to 30 seconds to loosen the mixture.

Press the mixture together and roll into dessertspoon-sized balls. Flatten between the palms of your hands and place on tray, allowing room for spreading.

Bake for 20 minutes.

Makes 16.

 

Gluten-free Banana Choc Muffins

It’s taken me quite some time to decide to blog this recipe. I developed it months ago and have made it many times since then. The texture of these muffins is moist and springy and they hold together really well, as if they’d been made with gluten. But just as I thought about blogging the recipe, I noticed a few other recipes with the same flavour combination had started to appear. There’s this recipe by The Hungry Australian – muffins, also gluten-free and made with chocolate chips. Have a look at the photography. In Christina’s true trademark style, it’s simply stunning.

Then more recently, She Cooks She Gardens posted this recipe for Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies. They look fantastic and I think they could easily be adapted to gluten-free. I might try it!

Anyway, after seeing these variations of such a great flavour combination, I decided I should throw my hat into the ring with my own recipe. My kids love these for a recess-time refuel.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

2 eggs

50 g tapioca flour

70 g sorghum flour

60 g brown rice flour

20 g cacao powder

20 g baking powder

5 g psyllium husk

350 g ripe bananas (approximately 2), peeled and mashed

110 g brown sugar

125 ml oil

125 ml milk

1 tsp vanilla essence

Gluten-free chocolate buttons, to decorate

Method

Preheat the oven to 180° Celsius (conventional oven) or 160° Celsius (fan-forced oven). Grease and line 12 cavities in a 125 ml (half-cup) capacity muffin tray.

Beat eggs for 5 minutes in large bowl of an electric mixer. Sift in tapioca flour, sorghum flour, brown rice flour, cacao powder, baking powder and psyllium husk.

Add mashed banana, sugar, oil, milk and vanilla essence.

Mix until combined.

Spoon mixture into muffin tray, until each cavity is approximately three-quarters full.

Bake for 25 minutes. Remove tray from oven and arrange chocolate buttons on the top of each muffin. Bake for a further 5 minutes.

Remove from oven and leave in tray to cool.

Makes 12.

Gluten-free Berry Bombs

The whole world’s gone crazy for bliss balls. You know, clean little treats that are delightful combinations of dates, cacao powder, coconut in its various forms, cashew nuts, or whatever else tickles our fancy. And for good reason. They’re portable, easy to make, no baking required, and a great place to hide lots of healthy stuff that’s great for growing bodies and hungry tummies.

I love bliss balls because I can make up to four times the recipe’s quantity and then freeze them – they’re just fantastic for lunchboxes.

This recipe is another variation of the bliss ball. I came across a packet of mixed dried berries recently (and I know that berries are getting bad press at the moment, so if you’re worried about the recent health scares from frozen berries that are imported to Australia, please check your packaging carefully). Then for the first time ever, I came across a packet of coconut milk powder, THEN in my latest issue of Australian Gluten Free Life Magazine, I spotted a bliss ball recipe using the coconut milk powder.

Then the idea of these berry bombs gelled.

They’re gluten-free, egg free, dairy free, refined sugar free and nut free. That makes them safe to send to school and fantastic for a recess-time recharge.

The balls in this picture look more orange than red, but I think that’s due to the combination of the blueberries and goji berries when mixed. But don’t worry about the colour – judge them by the taste.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

250 g mixed dried berries (for example goji berries, blueberries and cranberries)

100 g dried apple rings

100 g coconut milk powder

170 g desiccated coconut

20 g coconut oil, melted

60 g desiccated coconut, extra, for rolling

Method

Put berries and apple in a large microwave-safe bowl. Cover fruit with cold water and then cover bowl with plastic film. Microwave on high for 3 minutes. Drain thoroughly and then put fruit into the bowl of a food processor. Process for approximately one minute or until fruit is roughly chopped.

Into the food processor bowl, add coconut milk, 170 g desiccated coconut and coconut oil. Process again for 1 or 2 minutes, until mixture is smooth and well-combined.

Put extra 60 g desiccated coconut into a small bowl.

Roll dessert-spoonfuls of the mixture into balls and then roll balls in the desiccated coconut. Continue until all the mixture has been used.

Refrigerate until ready to serve.

Makes approximately 32.

 

Gluten-free Chocolate Cake with Guilt-free Icing

Now that I think about it, it seems kind of obvious that a chocolate cake should have featured in my recipe collection before now. It is, after all, a baking staple.

But, simply, I’ve never managed to get around to it. Then late last year, I needed to make a cake in a hurry for a friend’s birthday. I just threw some ingredients together and hoped for the best, and actually the end result wasn’t too bad at all. I used prunes, which make this cake delightfully moist and they compliment the chocolate flavour beautifully.

With a bit of tweaking, I’ve managed to come up with a cake that is low in added sugar, and icing that is guilt-free. That’s right – it’s free of the bad stuff. Guilt-free icing also makes it ideal for the lunchbox, so go ahead, make your day (and your kids’ day) – serve it up for recess time.

As I was running low on cacao powder, I used cocoa powder instead. Either will do – you may need to adjust quantities to get the chocolatey taste just right.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

Cake

2 eggs

250 g pitted prunes

60 g brown sugar

50 g tapioca flour

65 g brown rice flour

70 g sorghum flour

20 g baking powder

20 g cocoa powder

1 tsp psyllium husk

1 tsp chia seeds

125 ml oil

125 ml milk

1 tsp vanilla essence

Icing

20 g cocoa powder

60 g rice malt syrup

50 g coconut butter, melted

1 tbs coconut sugar (or desiccated coconut), to decorate

Method

Preheat oven to 180° Celsius (conventional oven) or 160° Celsius (fan-forced oven). Grease and line a round 20 cm baking tin.

In the large bowl of an electric mixer, beat eggs on medium speed for 5 minutes. In the meantime, put prunes in large microwave safe bowl. Cover with plastic film and microwave on high for 3 minutes. Drain and purée. Set aside to cool.

Add brown sugar to the eggs and beat on medium speed for a further 2 minutes.

Sift into the egg mixture the flours, baking powder, cocoa powder, psyllium husk and chia seeds. Add oil, milk, vanilla essence and prunes. Mix until well combined.

Pour into cake tin and bake for 40 minutes. Allow to cool in tin.

To make the icing, put cocoa, rice malt syrup and coconut butter in bowl. Stir to combine. Once cake is totally cooled, remove from tin. Spread icing evenly over cake. Sprinkle over coconut sugar.

Makes 8-10 slices.

 

Gluten-free Cranberry and Cacao Balls

Gluten-free Cranberry and Cacao Balls

The countdown’s on. One week ’til Christmas. Kids are on holidays, social engagements are mounting and we’re all trying to work out how to finish the last of the Christmas shopping without having to endure the Christmas rush.

Even though Christmas exhausts me, I have been delighted by some of my kids’ quirky Christmas rituals. One that’s now in its second (or third?) year is a very thrifty idea for gift-giving to family members. If you’re needing to save a few dollars, or lamenting about the sheer volume of stuff that finds its way into your home at this time of year, you may like this one.

My kids sneakily confiscate their siblings’ belongings and gift-wrap them. The gift wrapping turns into a bit of a craft project, with presents piling up under the tree. They just like the thought that all those pressies are for them. I was a little concerned this year when I caught my eldest daughter gift wrapping my favourite lipstick, but she assured me that I had another in the same shade. It’s all a bit of fun, although last year the whole scheme nearly came unstuck when my other daughter took my husband’s credit card and wrapped it. It was a good thing we caught it in time!

This idea came from my brother who, one year when we were kids, had no money to buy presents. So he individually gift-wrapped bananas for each family member. It was a thriftily clever idea, as it remains the most talked-about Christmas that we’ve ever celebrated together and the story is now family legend.

Gluten-free Raspberry and Orange Christmas Cookies

Gluten-free Raspberry and Orange Christmas Cookies

Ah, right … there’s nothing like coming up empty just at the time I’m meant to be posting a new recipe. And this week I’ve got nothing, nada, zilch.

There was meant to be something – a great savoury recipe, in fact. A little something for the lunchbox that I think will go down a treat with the kids. But it’s not quite right yet, so I’ll carry on working it out in the hope that I can post it soon.

I’ve actually been really busy of late. In addition to all the usual end of school and Christmas stuff,  there’s some big changes on the horizon with this blog, and things started happening this past week. You may have noticed that my Facebook page is now called Gluten-free Lunchboxes. My Instagram account is now also called @glutenfreelunchboxes and soon this blog will carry the same name. There are further changes in the works, too, and I’ll be sharing those with you in a few weeks’ time, just as soon as I have all of my ducks lined up, so to speak.

In the meantime, it’s that time of year when we are trying to work out what to give our kids’ teachers for Christmas. If you want a food gift that is a healthier, low-fructose option and full of wholesome goodness, try this recipe for Raspberry and Orange Christmas Cookies. I developed it for the December 2014 issue of Nourish Magazine. Involve the kids by getting them to cut out the cookie dough and tie the end product with ribbon. They can even put them into gift boxes, wrapped up in cellophane and tied with ribbon. Or just send them in the lunchbox for recess-time snacks. Whatever works!

Enjoy!

 Ingredients

150 g fresh or frozen raspberries

150 g rice malt syrup

Finely grated zest of 1 large orange

100 ml freshly squeezed orange juice

90 g tapioca flour

110 g sorghum flour

110 g brown rice flour

1 tsp ground cinnamon

50 g coconut oil, melted

1 tsp vanilla essence (optional)

2 eggs, lightly beaten

Tapioca or brown rice flour, extra, for dusting

Method

Preheat oven to 180° Celsius (conventional oven) or 160° Celsius (fan-forced oven). Grease and line two large cookie sheets.

Into a small saucepan, put raspberries, 100 g of rice malt syrup, orange zest and orange juice. Bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 10 minutes or until fruit is broken down and mixture has a jam-like consistency. Allow to cool a little.

In the meantime, sift into a large bowl tapioca flour, sorghum flour, brown rice flour and cinnamon. Add coconut oil, remaining 50 g of rice malt syrup, vanilla essence, eggs and raspberry mixture. Stir to combine. The mixture should come together into a firm dough.

Using extra tapioca flour or brown rice flour, lightly dust a clean and dry bench surface. Shape dough into a ball on the bench. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough, regularly loosening it from the surface and turning it to prevent sticking.

Roll out the dough to a thickness of approximately 4 millimetres. Using a star-shaped cookie cutter (or a Christmas-themed cookie cutter), cut star shapes out of the dough and place on cookie sheets.

Bring the leftover dough back together into a ball and roll out to a thickness of 4 millimetres, dusting the surface with more flour if necessary. Cut out more shapes and repeat the process until all the dough is used.

Using a wooden or metal skewer, gently make a hole of approximately 5 millimetres near the top of each cookie.

Bake for 18 minutes. Remove from oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool.

When completely cooled, thread coloured ribbon through cookies and tie in a loop.

Makes approximately 30 cookies.

Gluten-free Strawberry and Vanilla Ricotta Cakes

Gluten-free Strawberry and Vanilla Ricotta Cakes

It’s been a super-duper bumper strawberry season here in South Australia, so a couple of weeks ago I took the kids strawberry picking at Beerenberg Farm in the Adelaide Hills. We had a ball – the kids really loved picking the food that they would be able to enjoy later. We don’t have a vegetable garden at home so this experience was a novelty for them.

We ended up with a whopping 3 kilograms of strawberries. I make lots of preserves, so making some strawberry jam was a no-brainer for me. We ate the rest – they were amazing. I even let the kids melt some chocolate for a fondue as a special treat.

So with all these amazing strawberries in season, it was only fitting that I post a strawberry recipe of some description.

Here it is. These little ricotta cakes are great for entertaining and handy for a recess-time snack.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

250 g fresh strawberries, rinsed, drained, hulled and quartered

350 g ricotta cheese

1 large egg, lightly beaten

1 tsp vanilla bean paste

50 g butter, melted

200 g gluten-free icing mixture

100 g gluten-free plain flour

Method

Preheat oven to 180° Celsius (conventional oven) or 160° Celsius (fan-forced oven). Grease and line 9 cavities in a 125 ml capacity muffin tray.

Put strawberries in a small saucepan with 125 ml water. Bring to the boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and simmer for 10 minutes. Set aside to cool a little. Purée.

In the meantime, beat ricotta cheese and egg in large bowl of an electric mixer for 2 minutes on medium speed. Add vanilla bean paste and butter. Sift in icing mixture and flour and mix until ingredients are combined and batter is smooth.

Spoon ricotta mixture into muffin cases until approximately three-quarters full. Over the top of the mixture, spoon 2 tsp of strawberry purée into each cavity. Using a teaspoon or skewer, gently stir each cake to combine the strawberry mixture with the top of the cake batter.

Bake for 45 minutes.

Makes 9

 

Gluten-free Apple and Raisin Weet-Bix Slice

Gluten-free Apple Raisin Weet-Bix Slice

Well, y’know, it had to happen. I mean, it was pretty momentous when Gluten Free Weet-Bix was launched in Australia just a few months ago. You could just about hear the collective cheers from gluten-free folk across the nation. There was certainly a great celebration in our household and amongst the extended Coeliac family members.

So it was only a matter of time before I worked out how to put my daughter’s new favourite breakfast cereal into her lunchbox.

Gluten-free Bircher Style Tapioca Pots

Gluten-free Bircher Style Tapioca Pots

I was delighted to have this recipe included in the September 2014 issue of Nourish Magazine. It’s a really versatile and simple dish that you can whip up for breakfast (just soak the tapioca pearls in the orange juice overnight), send to school in a sealed container with a spoon for recess, or even as an after school snack or healthy dessert.

The tapioca has a starchy, creamy texture and you can use an endless combination of flavourings. Think seasonal fruits, nuts, pepitas, chia seeds, citrus zest … the list goes on! You can even drizzle over some rice malt syrup for a bit of extra sweetness.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

½ cup tapioca pearls

200 ml freshly squeezed orange juice

1 medium-sized apple

½ cup Greek yoghurt

6 large strawberries

Seeds of ¼ pomegranate

Extra strawberries and pomegranate seeds, to garnish

Method

In a large bowl, combine the tapioca pearls and orange juice. Cover and refrigerate overnight (or for at least 4 hours, until the pearls are soft and have absorbed most of the liquid).

The next day, peel, core and grate the apple. Add to the tapioca, along with the yoghurt, hulled and quartered strawberries and pomegranate seeds. Stir to combine.

Serve in small pots or bowls (approximately ¾ cup capacity). Garnish with extra strawberries and pomegranate seeds.

Makes 4 small serves.

Gluten-free Wild Strawberry and Rhubarb Bircher Slice

Gluten-free Wild Strawberry and Rhubarb Bircher Slice

I’m cheating a bit with this post. It’s a recipe I developed a few months ago, for a competition. Mamamia Food Blogger Idol, to be exact.

Yup, crazy name, amaaaaazing prize, as you’ll see if you click on the above link.

Anyway, I didn’t get anywhere with it and shelved this recipe. It was probably a bit too off-the-wall, come to think of it. But I thought I’d dust it off just for you, and here it is. The name sounds fabulously exotic. It’s because the competition terms required that one ingredient be a particular brand of yoghurt. Don’t worry if you can’t find Wild Strawberry and Rhubarb yoghurt. Just go for whatever flavour you like. It will still work. And you could also add a little fresh, frozen or dried fruit for colour and flavour.

I included a recipe for stewed rhubarb as well, for a scrummy breakfast treat. Or just pack the slice into the lunchbox for a lovely recess.

I also had to take about a gazillion photos for a photo journal of me making the recipe, so what the heck, there’s a pic of me below in my ancient kitchen. I am now a master of the self-timer on my camera. And using a tripod. That’s what I call skill development.

Here’s my entry.

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Oh, how I love Bircher muesli. I adore how the oats, soaked for hours, become all mooshy and absorb the flavour of the other ingredients. I love the yoghurt, the apple, the endless possibilities of flavour combinations. I just love it.

Since my daughter was diagnosed with Coeliac Disease more than 3 years ago, Bircher muesli hasn’t featured very prominently on our household menu. She cannot tolerate the gluten-like protein in oats, so we don’t rub it in too much by parading it around in front of her.

Whilst it’s true that there are plenty of gluten-free Bircher muesli options, I haven’t come across any that I actually like. So I’ve been thinking about doing my own version of gluten-free Bircher for some time now.

Then, as luck would have it, Mamamia decided to run the Food Blogger Idol competition, with Rachel’s Gourmet Low Fat Yoghurt being the featured ingredient. So I decided Bircher muesli was the go, but I’ve put it into a slice so that it can easily be included in kids’ lunchboxes. It’s still soft and mooshy, still has those lovely flavour combinations, and I’ve included a recipe for stewed rhubarb so you can make the most of it and have it for a special breakfast, if you wish.

Enjoy!

Ingredients

1 cup gluten-free cornflakes

2 cups gluten-free puffed rice

2 peeled, cored and grated apples (approximately 150 g of grated apple)

½ cup Rachel’s Wild Strawberry & Rhubarb Gourmet Low Fat Yoghurt

1 egg, lightly beaten

Method

Preheat oven to 180° Celsius (conventional oven) or 160° Celsius (fan-forced oven). Grease and line an 18 x 28 centimetre baking tray.

Put gluten-free cornflakes into a large plastic bag. Tie or seal the bag and lay it on a flat surface. Gently hit the bag with a rolling pin until the cornflakes are smashed.

Tip cornflakes into a large bowl, along with all other ingredients.

Stir with a metal spoon to combine and tip into baking tray. Spread evenly in tray, pressing down with the back of the spoon and ensuring mixture is evenly spread to all sides and corners of the tray.

Bake for 20 minutes. When completely cooled, cut into 3 x 5 centimetre slices.

Makes approximately 14 slices.

Serve cold as a lunchbox treat or accompanied by stewed rhubarb (recipe below) and Rachel’s Wild Strawberry & Rhubarb Gourmet Low Fat Yoghurt for a special breakfast.

Stewed Rhubarb

Ingredients

Bunch of rhubarb (approximately 500 grams)

½ cup white sugar

Method

Wash and trim the rhubarb, ensuring that all leaves are removed and discarded (as they are toxic).

Cut rhubarb into 2 centimetre pieces.

Put rhubarb in medium-sized saucepan, along with sugar and 2 cups of water. Stir to combine.

Put saucepan on high heat on stovetop. Bring to the boil, and then reduce heat to medium and simmer for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until rhubarb has softened and broken down. Serve hot or at room temperature.

Makes approximately 2 cups.