Archives for “breakfast”

Old-Fashioned Bread Pudding (Gluten Free, Dairy Free–If You Wish)

March 12, 2010 · Filed Under Friday Foodie Fix, bread, breakfast, dessert, easy, gluten free, recipe, treats ·18 Comments

Along with pound cake, bread pudding is a dessert I grew up eating. One of my grandmothers made great bread pudding. It was one of the few things she was still making “from scratch” when I was growing up. My mom’s bread pudding was very similar to that made by my dad’s mother—both in taste and quality. Of course, I learned from both of them and made bread pudding the same way—using stale bread and saved ends of bread and throwing it all together with a few eggs, spices, and milk. There was never a recipe. You sort of eyeballed how much bread you had once you crumbled it in a bowl, covered it with milk, added some eggs, and went on from there. This method actually worked pretty well, but you were never 100% sure your bread pudding would be a success until you had your first bite. Then one day a good friend of mine, Denise, brought her bread pudding into work for a luncheon. It was wonderful! It had a rich custard flavor, but wasn’t heavy in any way, and the cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla made both the smell and taste lovely. Best of all, Denise had an actual recipe … with measurements. What a concept! LOL With her recipe, one could re-create delicious bread pudding over and over—with no moments of uncertainty. I passed the recipe on to my mom and she’s been enjoying using it for many years now. Denise’s recipe guarantees success every time. Incidentally, Denise also made a scumptious pound cake. That recipe she would not share. Instead, she made pound cakes for everyone during the holidays. As you can imagine, nobody complained about the lack of the actual recipe.

Of course, going gluten free made me push the bread pudding recipe card to the back of the box. But, when I had some leftover gluten-free challah bread from a vendor’s donation to our support group, I thought it was time to pull out the recipe again. I’m happy to report that it worked beautifully! So start saving your stale bread and look forward to a delightful dessert. It makes a very nice breakfast, too. Bread pudding is often served with distinctive sauces like lemon, vanilla, caramel, and even whiskey, but I grew up enjoying it with a little milk poured over it. (We actually did that for any type of pudding.) This time, I enjoyed it with a drizzle of honey mixed with some vanilla.

Oh, Mr. GFE is not a big fan of bread pudding … unless I add some raisins, then he’ll enjoy a bowl or two. I added a small amount of raisins to part of the bread pudding mix left in the bowl to allow one section of the pan just for him. Unfortunately, I didn’t take any photos that really show the raisins. But, if you love raisins, be sure to head over to Diane’s Friday Foodie Fix at The W.H.O.L.E. Gang where you’ll find lots of recipes that feature raisins.

Old-Fashioned Bread Pudding (Gluten Free, Dairy Free–If You Wish)
(Click here for a printable version of this recipe.)

6 eggs
1 ¼ cup sugar
1 tbsp cinnamon
1 tbsp nutmeg
1 tbsp vanilla extract
12-ounce can evaporated milk (see coconut milk substitution in notes below)
½ can (¾ cup) of water
1 cup raisins, optional
4 cups of gluten-free bread, crumbled (I like chunky pieces)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

Grease 9 x 11 baking pan.

In large bowl, mix eggs, sugar, cinnamon, nutmeg, and vanilla extract.

Add bread and raisins (if used) to mixture.

Pour milk into saucepan. Fill milk can halfway with water; add to saucepan with water. Heat milk and water over medium heat until warm, not hot.

Add milk and water mix to other ingredients in bowl. Let sit 5 minutes.

Pour into baking pan and bake for 45 minutes. Serve warm or cold, topped with milk or any sauce of your choice.

Shirley’s Notes: Any leftover bread, muffins, waffles, and such, should work. Even the results of failed recipes for such “bread” products could potentially be used. If you only have a small amount at any given time, just stockpile them in a container in the freezer until you have 4 cups worth. If using coconut milk, you can use the full can, which is generally 14 ounces, but be sure to use only ½ cup of water in that case.

Adapted from my friend, Denise

The bowl in the photos is from my grandmother’s china. Even with cracks and chips, it gives me such joy to use it. Spooning my bread pudding out of this bowl, I can almost imagine myself back at Grandma’s table.

Shirley
Not just gf, but gfe!

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Tags: bread, breakfast, dairy free, easy, GFE, gluten free, go ahead honey, pudding, raisins, recipe

Pleasing Pecan Pie—Raw, Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Vegan

February 11, 2010 · Filed Under Suite of Sweets, breakfast, dairy free, dessert, easy, flourless, gluten free, raw, recipe, sugar free, treats, vegan ·25 Comments

This post is linked to Friday Foodie Fix–Pecans.

It’s day 4 of SSS—Suite of Sweets for Sweethearts! When I shared My First Raw Pie I mentioned that one of the other recipes I planned to make later was the raw pecan pie. I like pecan pie a lot. It can be a bit intense though—a jolt of sweetness–so it’s not a pie that I make very often. I did make a crustless version for Thanksgiving that my family loved and a few gfe readers have really enjoyed as well. This raw pecan pie appealed to me because it’s naturally gluten free and dairy free. Plus, it takes its sweetness from dates, and honey, if used, which also makes it refined sugar free. If no sweetener or agave nectar is added, this pie will also be vegan.

Like the first raw pie I made, this one has a great taste. It really pretty much tastes like what you expect a pecan pie to taste like … just not over-the-top sweet. Instead, it’s just sweet enough for my taste. And, once again, I was impressed that I could actually cut this raw pie into slices like a traditional baked pie. A small piece is more than enough, because this pie is delightfully dense and filling, although it doesn’t taste “heavy” in any way. I would have a hard time choosing between this raw version and crustless, baked pecan pie. This pie is healthy enough to eat for breakfast and that’s just what I am going to do! (Incidentally, offering a piece for breakfast may be a way to get your raw food skeptics to give it a try.)

Pecan Pie (Raw, Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Vegan)
(Click here for a print version of this recipe.)

2 cups pecans, divided
2 tsp coconut oil (liquefied)
3 tsp honey, divided
½ cup medjool dates, pitted
cinnamon, a few dashes (to taste)
1/3 cup water (may use less if dates are very fresh and juicy)

Crust

1 cup pecans, frozen
2 tbsp coconut oil (liquefied)
1 tsp honey (optional; agave nectar may be used. I did not use either.)

Filling

1 cup pecans
½ cup medjool dates, pitted
2 tbsp honey (optional; agave nectar may be used; but either sweetener is optional. I did not add either.)
A few dashes of ground cinnamon
1/3 cup water (may use less if dates are very juicy)

For crust:

Place 1 cup of frozen pecans in food processor; process 15 to 30 seconds, until mostly ground. (Should not be finely ground, should have a few small pieces still.)

Add coconut oil and honey (if used). Process a few more seconds until the pecans and coconut oil are blended.

Press into 5-inch pie plate (or similar serving dish).

For filling:

Soak medjool dates in 1/3 cup of water for 10 minutes, stirring after 5 minutes.

Add dates, pecans, and water (after the 10 minutes have passed) to food processor.

Process 15 to 30 seconds or so, slowly adding honey (if used).

Pour filling into crust. Garnish with pecan halves, etc., if desired. Serves 4.

Pie crust adapted from recipe from About.com. Filling adapted from a recipe included in newspaper article attributed to Beth Wood, Creators.com.

Shirley’s Notes: Freezing the pecans is supposed to make them bind better with the shortening to make a more viable crust. I’m not sure if it’s really necessary. I froze my pecan halves fairly quickly by spreading them out on an uncovered cookie sheet in the freezer. However, you can try them without freezing and just process with the coconut oil a shorter amount of time. I liquefied my coconut oil just by having the small amount in a bowl on top of my stove while I baked something else. Melted butter (dairy or non-dairy) can be used instead of coconut oil. (Of course, with the addition of dairy butter, this pie will neither be dairy free nor vegan.) In the filling, ½ cup of raisins and ½ cup pecans can be added instead of 1 cup of pecans. Finally, I used sliced raw almonds and dried cranberries for garnish.

Enjoy your day off from baking! Be sure to check out previous Suite of Sweets for Sweethearts entries:

~Surprise Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream

~Cinnamon-Sugar Crusted Almond Popovers

~Perfect Pound Cake

Last, in the “don’t forget” category … The Spunky Coconut Cookbook giveaway, A Hand for Haiti ebook charity purchase opportunity (matching funds through Feb. 12!) at Celiac Teen, and Diane’s Friday Foodie Fix—Scallops over at The W.H.O.L.E. Gang.

Shirley
Not just gf, but gfe!

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Tags: dairy free, easy, GFE, gluten free, honey, pecans, pie, raw, recipe, vegan

Cinnamon-Sugar-Crusted Almond Popovers

February 9, 2010 · Filed Under Suite of Sweets, Valentine's Day, What can I eat ..., bread, breakfast, dessert, easy, gluten free, recipe ·29 Comments

This recipe is linked to Tempt My Tummy Tuesdays at Blessed with Grace and What can I eat that’s gluten free? over at Linda’s The Gluten-Free Homemaker.

It’s day two of SSS … a Suite of Sweets for Sweethearts. With that wintry stuff moving into our area again, I thought I’d share this recipe for melt-in-your-mouth breakfast (or dessert) popovers. These can surely make your forget about your “I’m over winter” blues. They would also be ideal for breakfast on Valentine’s Day morning … or brunch … or afternoon tea. Frankly, I can’t think of any time these popovers wouldn’t be good. I adapted this recipe from David Lebovitz’s Sugar-Coated Popovers recipe (an adaptation of an earlier recipe of his shared both in the New York Times and this Maida Heatter cookbook).

Each time, I’ve made these popovers, if there were more than two of us eating them, they disappeared in mere minutes. These popovers even inspired Mr. GFE to suggest that there should be a special feature here on gfe—Mr. GFE’s Recipe Pick of the Month. Of course, this recipe would be his first pick, he said. Son proclaimed these popovers to be the closest thing to a cinnamon bun that he has eaten since going gluten free. (The cinnamon-sugar mixture I always use is very heavy on the cinnamon.) Then Son ate four, in fairly rapid succession … even after he’d stated that he was only going to eat half of the fourth one. Maybe this recipe should be called Mr. GFE’s Top Pick Willpower-Busting Popovers. These popovers were a family collaboration of sorts. It was Son’s idea to prepare a little honey butter (using raw honey from our bees) for topping these popovers. That was a brilliant idea!

I’ve added almonds to my recipe, which Mr. GFE and I love. For those with nut allergies, skip the almonds and you will still have delightful popovers.

Cinnamon-Sugar-Crusted Almond Popovers
(Click here for a print version of this recipe.)

For the popovers:

2 tablespoons butter, melted (non-dairy should work)
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup milk (whole, 2 %; non-dairy should work)
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
1 cup gluten-free flour mix (I used my gluten-free flour mix*)
1 tsp xanthan gum

For the topping:

about 1/3 cup of sliced almonds

For the sugar coating:

1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon (more or less depending how much you like cinnamon) (UPDATED: I just made the popovers again and made a new batch of cinnamon-sugar. One tablespoon of cinnamon was too much. Start with 1 teaspoon and add more if necessary after taste testing your popovers.)

For dipping:

1/4 cup melted butter in small bowl

Softened butter, for greasing the pan (I always just use a butter wrapper.)

1. Preheat the oven to 400º F. Grease a nonstick popover or muffin pan (with 1/2-cup indentations), with softened butter.

2. For the popovers, put the 2 tablespoons melted butter, eggs, milk, salt and sugar in a blender and blend for a few seconds.

3. Add the flour and blend for about 10 seconds, just until smooth.

4. Pour into 9 greased molds, filling each about 2/3 full.

5. Sprinkle each with about a teaspoon of sliced almonds.

6. Bake for 35 minutes, or until the popovers are golden/deep brown. (I do my usual toothpick doneness test.)

7. Toward the end of the baking time, you’ll want to get ready for the popovers by creating a little assembly line for final processing. Melt butter in a small bowl and place on your work space. Mix cinnamon and sugar in another small bowl and place to the right of the butter. Place plate or napkin-lined basket to the right of the cinnamon-sugar bowl.

8. Remove popovers from the oven. At this point, you can wait a few minutes until they are cool enough to handle or you can do what an impatient person (that would be me!) does. I stick a toothpick in each popover, remove it from the pan and follow an assembly line process. Dip the popover in the bowl of melted butter rotating until bottom and sides are buttered. (Alternatively, you can brush the butter on the popovers using a pastry brush.) Keep the popover on the toothpick and dip into the bowl of cinnamon-sugar. Roll bottom and sides into mixture. Place on plate or in napkin-lined basket. Each one is a warm, buttery, cinnamon-sugar bundle of goodness ready to eat!

Recipe adapted from David Lebovitz

*I can’t tolerate many of the healthier, gluten-free flours; e.g., sorghum, buckwheat. Therefore, my gluten-free flour mix is 3 parts Asian white rice flour and 2 parts cornstarch. I gently mix three one-lb bags of the Asian white rice flour and two one-lb boxes of cornstarch in a very large bowl and then store the mix in several airtight containers (like large glass jars). No refrigeration is needed. If you’d like to learn more about how to select the right gluten-free flour for all your recipes, you’ll want to check out Amy’s (Simply Sugar & Gluten-Free) current series on Understanding & Choosing Gluten-Free Flour—Part 1 here and Part 2 here.

Shirley’s Notes: That last photo is actually of recovered, “mistake” popovers that I made during our last snowstorm. As soon as I popped the muffin pan into the oven, I saw the bowl of melted butter sitting on the counter. I had gotten distracted by a couple of ”brown-outs,” while preparing the batter. Long ago, I might have scrapped the whole batch and started anew. Not any more … I set the muffin pan on the stove and spooned a little melted butter into each muffin cup and gave a tiny stir, then replaced the muffin pan in the oven and baked per usual. As you can see, the popovers suffered no ill effects. I also had forgotten to allow the eggs to come to room temperature. No worries … the recipe still worked fine. The popovers might have turned out a teeny tiny bit better if the eggs had been at room temperature, but we certainly didn’t find anything to complain about.

Enjoy, and if you’re on the snowy East Coast of the U.S., stay safe. These popovers will take care of the usual, second part of that parting statement— ”stay warm“—at least for a bit. They’ll warm your tummy and bring some sunshine into your life. Later, you can enjoy yesterday’s SSS offering … Surprise Mint Chocolate Chip Ice Cream, because at this point, I really don’t think you want to be eating that snow cream. Just sayin’.

Shirley
Not just gf, but gfe!