Gluten Free Orange Walnut Cream Scones

Yesterday morning I woke up with an incurable craving for breakfast, not like cereal or some quick toast but one those breakfasts that takes a while to eat, one where you press the crumbs onto the bottom of your fork so you don't miss any... one of those kind of breakfasts. So I decided no better way to start out my day than a plate of seasoned potatoes, poached eggs and scones.

Bake in my wheat days I used to make these scones that were spectacularly simple to make so I have modified this version for your gluten free enjoying pleasure!

Orange Walnut Cream Scones

• 1 cup sweet sorghum flour
• 3/4 cup brown rice flour
• 1/4 cup potato flour
• 2 tablespoon corn starch
• 1/4 cup cane sugar
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 1 tablespoon orange zest
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
• 1 1/2 cup - 1 2/3 cups whipping cream
• juice of half an orange
• 1 cup powdered sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375.

2. In a large bowl combine sorghum flour, brown rice flour, potato flour, corn starch, sugar, baking powder and salt. Mix thoroughly.

3. Add walnuts and orange zest. I recommend using organic oranges as it's probably a safer option.

4. Slowly pour in whipping cream and mix till combined. You need to use enough cream that the dough sticks together but is not dry. Form into a large ball.

5. Flour a cutting board with brown rice flour and transfer dough. Pat to create a round that is 1/2 an in tall.

6. Cut into 12 wedges. If you wish to make smaller scones you can make 2 rounds and cut those rounds accordingly. 

7. Place wedges spaced with room to rise on an ungreased baking sheet. 

8. Bake in oven till edges begin to golden. Remove from oven and allow to cool on sheet before removing. 

9. In a small bowl mix powdered sugar with juice from half an orange. Drizzle over scones once they are no longer super hot. 

10. Serve immediately or store in air tight container. 

Enjoy! xoxo - Iris

Eggless Egg Salad

What is great about this recipe is it is super simple, involves no cooking and can be modified to your personal preferences.  Also because we are using tofu here and not eggs it is a little healthier for you and so even non vegans can appreciate that.

Also I really like using turmeric. If you are interested in the health benefits of turmeric you can check out this website.

"Turmeric (Curcuma longa), the bright yellow of the spice rainbow, is a powerful medicine that has long been used in the Chinese and Indian systems of medicine as an anti-inflammatory agent to treat a wide variety of conditions, including flatulence, jaundice, menstrual difficulties, bloody urine, hemorrhage, toothache, bruises, chest pain, and colic." (World's Healthiest Foods)

Eggless Egg Salad

• 1 package extra firm tofu 16 oz (1 lb)
• 1 tsp turmeric powder
• 1/2 tsp tarragon
• 1/2 tsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp dry dill
• 1/2 to 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 cup Vegenaise (or other mayonnaise alternative, just be sure that it is gluten free)
• 1 tablespoon prepared mustard (check label to be sure gluten free)
• 1 tablespoon catsup

Directions:

1. Remove tofu from package, drain. Pat dry with clean dish towel or paper towels. 

2. Crumble tofu into large bowl. Sprinkle evenly with turmeric, tarragon, garlic powder dill and 1/2 tsp salt. Toss gently till covered. By adding the spices before the wet ingredients you will season the tofu and not just coat it. Also the turmeric while adding a nice flavor gives the tofu an "egg" color.

crumbled seasoned tofu

3. Add vegenaise, mustard and catsup. Stir to combine. Taste and add additional salt to taste.

4. Serve as desired.  

Enjoy! xoxo- Iris

Cashew Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies (Vegan and Gluten Free)

It's wonderful to make recipes using nut flours because they impart a moistness to the cake or cookies and you can typically eliminate additional fat from the recipe. Almond meal or almond flour is pretty common but recently I've been experimenting with cashew and even sunflower seeds. 

The use of banana in this recipe makes for a cakey cookie but the nut makes the edges chewey and golden! 

Cashew Banana Chocolate Chip Cookies

• 1 cup cashew meal (available at Trader Joes or make by grinding up raw unsalted cashews in the food processor)
• 1 1/4 cup brown rice flour
• 1/4 cup potato flour
• 2 tablespoons corn starch
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup cane sugar
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1/2 tsp sea salt
• 2 large bananas
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 tablespoons almond or soy milk
• 1 cup vegan chocolate chips

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease baking sheet, use vegetable shortening or coconut oil.

2. In a large bowl combine cashew meal, brown rice flour, potato flour, corn starch, brown sugar, cane sugar, baking soda and sea salt. Mix together till thoroughly combined. 

3. In a small bowl mash bananas so no lumps remain. Add vanilla extract and milk. Mix till combined. 

4. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix thoroughly. Fold in chocolate chip cookies. 

5. Let batter sit for 10 minutes. This allows the dry ingredients to absorb some of the moisture from the wet. 

6. Spoon batter onto prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. 

7. Remove cookies from oven and allow to cool before removing from sheet. 

Enjoy! xoxo - Iris

Amaretto Pear Cobbler (Gluten Free)

You can use just about any fruit with this recipe but I was feeling like the winter weather meant I needed to go with the something like apple or pear... in the summertime I could see it as a cobbler with nectarines, peaches or berries...

Amaretto Pear Cobbler

• 1 3/4 cup brown rice flour
• 1/4 cup potato flour
• 2 Tablespoons corn starch
• 1/4 tsp baking soda
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1/2 cup cane sugar 
• 1 tsp sea salt
• 6 Tablespoons soft butter
• 1 1/2 cup buttermilk
• 1 large egg

For filling: 

• 3 cups fruit (in this case I used pears)
• 1 tablespoon amaretto liquor
• 2 tablespoons corn starch
• 1/2 cup cane sugar

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease casserole dish.

2. In a large bowl mix brown rice flour, potato flour, corn starch, baking soda, baking powder, cane sugar, and sea salt.

3. Add soft butter and mix. 

4. In a small bowl beat buttermilk with egg and then add to batter mix. Mix till combined.

5. Mix cornstarch with sugar and then toss sliced up fruit till coated. You can prepare the fruit to your own preference. I used peeled and sliced pears in this instance. 

6. Drizzle mix with amaretto liquor and toss. 

7. Spoon batter into greased casserole dish until bottom is covered. Gently add fruit filling. 

8. Spoon remaining filling on top of fruit. Sprinkle top with 1-2 tablespoons of cane sugar, this will give the top a sugary sparkle. 

9. Place in oven and bake for 50 minutes or until the top is golden brown. 

10. Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes before serving. Excellent with a side of home whipped cream or vanilla ice cream. 

xoxo- Iris

Quick Buttermilk Fresh Baked Sweet Sorghum Bread (Gluten Free)

I decided if I ever owned a Cafe that my guests would be treated to a warm basket of mini loafs of this bread with soft butter. I can think of no more welcoming way to say to my guests "you have entered a gluten free zone and it is delicious!"

This was actually my first foray into baking for Sweet Sorghum Flour and I wasn't sure what to expect. I tried googling descriptions of the taste and came up empty handed. So to clarify it tastes a bit like a mild sweet corn. In the nutritional scheme of things Sorghum flour is higher in protein than rice flour but if you are using rice flour then brown rice is nutritionally superior to white, higher in protein and lower in calories.

Quick Buttermilk Sweet White Sorghum Bread

• 1 cup White Sweet Sorghum Flour
• 3/4 cup Brown Rice Flour
• 1/4 cup Potato Flour
• 2 Tablespoons corn starch
• 1/2 cup cane sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 cup buttermilk (if your buttermilk is thicker you may need an additional 1/4 cup)
• 1 large egg
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 350. Grease 3 x 8 bread pan with either butter, shortening or a cooking spray.

2. In a large bowl combine all dry ingredients flours through salt and mix thoroughly. 

3. In a smaller bowl combine buttermilk, egg and oil and beat. 

4. Add wet ingredients to dry and mix gently till just combined.

5. Immediately transfer into prepared pan. I find if you wait too long the dry ingredients will start to absorb the moisture so you want to do this immediately to achieve the nicest shape. 

6. Place in preheated oven and bake for 50 minutes to an hour or until the top of the loaf is a dark golden and when you look at the side of the loaf you can see that it has turned golden too. If your loaf is too dark on top and seems light on the side you can cover the top once it is par baked and continue to bake. This will allow the sides to darken and not over brown the top. 

7. Remove baked loaf from the oven and permit to cool for about 20 minutes before removing from pan and slicing. 

I loved this loaf fresh from the oven with a generous smear of butter. It tastes like a very delicate corn bread and satisfies all cravings for fresh baked bread. This bread would be great with jam or perhaps a nice creamy brie cheese. 

Enjoy! xoxo - Iris