G-F Pecan Tassies

A g-f Cookie Exchange.  Happiness on a platter.  Here are the recipes in advance this year.

A chewy and crusty Christmas favorite made gluten free and grain-free!

The gluten-free cookie exchange was delightful with beautiful music, people and food.  It was delicious and I'm posting the delightful recipes that I grabbed.  Thanks Cheryl for the party.  We loved it so much, and I'll be eating for a week... or maybe a day.

Clockwise from left:  Triple Chocolate Cookies,  Mounds Candy,,   Salted Caramel Macaroons,    Caramels, Pecan Turtles, Coconut Caramel bars,  Pecan Tassies, (see recipe below), Pretzel Peanutbutter Buckeyes and Coconut Macaroons.

Cheryl's Pecan Tassies

Crust

1/2 cup butter
1 cup almond flour
3 oz. cream cheese

Mix together, form into one inch  dough balls and place each into a mini muffin pan.  Press to the edges of the pan with your fingers to form a crusty bowl in each tin cup.

Filling:

3/4 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon melted butter
1 egg

1/2 cup pecans chopped
1 teaspoon vanilla

Mix filling and add a scoop into each dough cup.

Bake at 350 15 minutes and then turn down the oven to 250 and bake 10 more minutes.
Cheryl says she didn't bother to turn down the oven, she just baked them for 20-25 minutes until set.  (That's easier!)

Cool and Try Not To Eat All THESE before you serve them!

Valentine GF Peanut Butter Cups

2-12-13  update 

This is a fast, fun and delicious Valentine idea. The younger Mr. Darcey (he's 13) made the recipe and pressed it into a heart shaped pan. It cooled well and dropped nicely out of the pan.

First posted 11-9-11

I want to thank the group of people who fed my g-f missionary. He loved all of the food that he enjoyed in Chugiak and I am grateful to people who care.

The Man-On-A-Mission in Alaska has requested a batch of Reeses Peanut Butter Cups.

Yes, I know, that candy is typically gluten-free and I'm sure he would be happy with a package from the grocery store. But there are a multitude of lessons to be learned in this simple task.

When I was younger, the family suffered through my baking artistic blue period--the time of replicating recipes just to see if I could. While they ate through my failures, eventually they discovered there were recipes that were as good as store bought.

After such heady success, there was waning of the need to accomplish this. But, the youngster wants to make homemade candy so Mr. Darcey Jr. will get the chance to learn the intrinsic value of making food from scratch.

1 cup peanut butter

1 cup powdered sugar

Mix together and knead with hands until well blended. Form into balls and dip in chocolate or press into foil pans lined with chocolate.

Melt chocolate chips in a bowl over warm water, stirring often or nuke in the microwave on low twenty seconds at a time. If you cook it too fast and it gets too hot, it will seize like an Alaska glacier.

Cool the finished product in the refrigerator.

Delicious.

I know why the Alaska man requested homemade. He can't buy these in Alaska because the store cashier doesn't hand them to him with the words, "How are you? and I love you."

And that is why I am making them from scratch today. And I'm making them big and delicious and shipping them off to the frozen tundra in his Thanksgiving holiday package.

GF Holiday Treats

"Oh No, We're now G-F!"

"There go all the holiday traditions!"

NEVER!  

I was shocked to hear those words out of a friends mouth.  I Would Never Give Up Tradition.  

My mantra is MODIFY, DON'T DIE!

Favorite holiday links also include the gifts to take to the neighbors.  Most candy recipes are gf or easily made so.

Buckeyes are gluten free!  Use the pbcup recipe, roll centers in a ball and dip in chocolate.
Pecan Turtles  -  g-f pretzels, rolos and a pecan.  You can do this!
Chocolate Dipped Pretzels 
Coconut macaroons   These cookies are fast easy and beautiful if you thumbprint with caramel.
Caramels - Easy, fast and always successful.
Pralines (Go to Paula Deen for that recipe.)
Thin Mints

What is your holiday tradition?  Maybe I can modify it.    

GF Chocolate Dipped Pretzels

Retro 2011

I'm alone most days preparing the holiday foods and it gets kinda boring.

So even more creepy of my being alone, I decided to spoof the "elf on a shelf" frenzy that is booming on pinterest. So I have a monkey in the trunky and he's helping me cook.

I know, I know, certifiable. But it's getting me through the holidays.

Happy Baking for you too.

For these pretzels, I used Glutino's brand.

I melted the almond bark in the microwave and dipped the pretzels. What was fun was the Wilton candy melts melted in the microwave in a ziplock. I snipped the corn and that makes it so easy to make great designs.

This monkey screams when he's slammed on the counter and sometimes with G-F cooking, that helps.

GF Peanutbutter, Pretzel Buckeye Candy

Bite through creamy chocolate and delicious peanut butter filling and be pleasantly surprised by a crispy crunch in the center.  It's a wonderful texture experience.

Our hostess at the Holiday exchange went over and above to make everyone feel comfortable.  She expended extra effort to make her selections for lunch and her candy gluten-free.  

She makes me feel so loved and that is a beautiful gift for the season.  Thanks Cheryl!

Cheryl's Peanutbutter Pretzel Buckeyes

FILLING:

1 cup creamy peanut butter (could also have been chunky and delicious)

1 cup powdered sugar

1 cup g-f pretzels, crushed (our hostess used Glutino brand and these stayed crispy even days later.)

4 oz. cream cheese softened

12 oz. high quality dipping chocolate

Mix peanut butter and cream cheese, microwave a moment if necessary to soften.

Add powdered sugar and pretzels until a dough forms.  Form into balls, dip in chocolate and cool to set.

G-F Goof-Proof Caramel Candy

 Easy 15 minute goof-proof caramel candy recipe that can stand on it's own against the priciest competitors.  And It's GF!

Recipe reposted FIVE years running and here it is again for the holidays.  It's a mainstay.  On my fourth batch already this season.  

Most homemade candy is naturally gluten free or could be made that way very easily, so that must be why I have only a few candy recipes on my blog--although I eat a lot of it!

Reality Bite: These caramels are equally delicious and successful when honey is substituted for the corn syrup! I KNOW! WOW!!!!! Happy Holidays

I'm particularly grateful for this goof-proof recipe developed by my aunt and niece.   They worked Aunt Betty's recipe over and over until it was perfect. This year I forgot to add the last half-can of milk before I poured.  And yet everybody still loved them. Recipe is wonderfully forgiving.  

PREPARATION:

Buttter a large buttered jelly roll pan (19 x 10)
2 cans sweetened condensed milk (opened and set aside)

2 cups white corn syrup

1 cup butter (2 sticks)

4 cups sugar

Melt all syrup, sugar and butter together in a heavy saucepan until the mixture comes to a boil.  Set the burner at about medium heat.  If the mixture boils too vigorously, turn it down.  If it barely simmers, turn it up.   Aim for a nice soft lazy boil.   

Add 1/2 of a can of the sweetened condensed milk and stir until it reboils. Start timing for 5 minutes, stirring all the while.

When the timer goes off, slowly add the second half of the can while still stirring and wait til the boil resumes then set time for another five minutes. 

Then add the first half of the second can and time for a third 5 minutes. After you have stirred for a full fifteen minutes, and the caramel has reached a good color, pull off the heat and add the final half can of sweetened condensed milk and 1 tsp. vanilla (optional).

Pour immediately into a deep sided jelly roll pan, (13x20?) and cool. You could pour it into two pans, and also a  dish for eating.  That works too.  Cut and wrap in wax paper. Keep in the fridge to avoid crystalizing.

Cranberry Fudge Recipe Evaluation

How To Seasonally Diet Successfully--Go to Lots of Parties!  

It's sounds so crazy, but this food philosophy works for me.

It's so hard to evaluate Christmas treat recipes while on a food refit!  It technically called a diet, but the word diet has taken on a whole new meaning than just going without food to lose weight. Diet means I'm modifying my food habits to promote health.

Once again, everything aches, so to improve my joint function and lower inflammation, I'm trying something different.  But the food refit bans all sugar!   I know, crazy to attempt this during the holidays, but I'm really just hoping to minimize the damages.
Not to worry!  Today I'm baking for a party tonight, so I feel confident that I have a place to deliver the results and still keep an eye on my prize.

http://www.momontimeout.stfi.re/2013/11/white-chocolate-cranberry-fudge/?sf=aorbgnr#aa

Let's see how it turns out?

This fudge has a different texture than typical fudge.  It is creamy, yet has more of the feel of divinity but not as solid.  I enjoy it, but think that I may like it more with lots more cranberries.  I like the zip and tang of the berries contrasting with the sweetness.

Will I make it again?  We'll see.  It's not my most favorite, but we'll see how much of a crowd-pleaser it is tonight when I present them at the party.

Gluten Free Safe Candy Link

http://glutenaway.blogspot.com/2012/10/gluten-free-candy-list.html

Twix are NOT GF! This picture is purely for the sake of the candy, not the list. Click for the link to the list! 

Thanks to glutenaway and Jennifer C the president of our Tulsa CSA group.  She rocks.

Gluten free CHOCOLATE

Hershey's GF website

http://www.thehersheycompany.com/brands/special-nutrition.aspx#/Gluten-Free

Homemade Toffee Bits

Okay, 8 ounces of Heath toffee bits costs $3.75 and today i found out I can make double that much with only two ingredients and a little time.

I took Grandma's heaviest candy pan, the pressure cooker (you know what one I mean) and I put

• one square of butter (1/2 cup) and
• 1/2 cup sugar and while stirring constantly (even whisking) I heated until the two melted and combined.

I then stopped stirring and watched while the mixture softly simmered and carmelized. Once in a while I stirred off the bottom and uniformly browned the mixture. When it looked about the right color (internet says 263 degrees, but I didn't want to hunt up the thermometer) I tested it the old fashioned way (a drizzle in a cup of ice water) and it sizzled and hardened nicely. I poured it out onto a jelly roll pan lined with aluminum foil and popped it into the fridge to cool.

A half hour later, I put it in a ziplock and beat it into crumbs. WOW! Cheap and delicious!

This would be particularly delicious with nuts and chocolate melted atop. And it took only minutes.

GF Chocolate Truffles

How can this recipe be so delicious? Fat and Sugar always works.

3 Tablespoons butter

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 pound Chocolate chips (high quality)

In a heat-proof bowl, heat cream and butter in the microwave until butter is melted and cream is steaming, add chocolate chips and gently stir until creamy and smooth. Pour into an 8x12 pan and refrigerate. You'll know when it's just right to scoop when the metal melon baller scoops balls nicely and drops off nicely. If it's too hard, leave it out to soften a moment.

Roll balls in chopped nuts, coconut, or powdered sugar. I added four drops of peppermint extract and the mint ones were extra delicious!

Store in the fridge, serve at room temperature.

( Not a chocolate connoisseur, I prefer milk chocolate, but the bittersweets are recommended.)

Holiday Spiced Pecans

Three day English Toffee

This is one of those recipes you do not want to repeat.

I was flying high on the caramel recipe, so I tried one for baked English Toffee. It seemed so easy, bring ingredients to a boil, pour into a pan, bake 15 minutes.

Didn't work.

Not fifteen minutes, not half an hour, instead I boiled the mess again the next day and when that didn't work, I did it again the next day. Finally the mess solidified and I melted chocolate and scattered pecans.

Lovely and delicious, but I can't recommend this recipe.

FMI (For my information) Do not repeat this next year.

GF Licorice, Need I say more?

GF Licorice? Need I say more?

https://www.licoriceinternational.com/licorice/pc/Gluten-Free-c14.htm?pageStyle=h&ProdSort=1&page=2&idCategory=14