Brownie Cookies

This is another great coconut flour recipe. It makes a nice small batch of semi-healthy cookies. The banana replaces butter and some of the sugar, and you can replace the sugar with honey or another kind of sweetener.

I find that these cookies have the best texture the day they are made, but they are still pretty good a few days old. Just store them in a sealed container at room temperature (They can be frozen but the texture isn't quite the same). This recipe only makes a dozen or so cookies, so chances are you won't have any leftovers!

makes 12-14 cookies

Ingredients

1/3 cup Coconut Flour

1/4 cup Cocoa Powder

1/4 cup Sugar (or honey or sweetener of your choice)

1 tsp Baking Powder

pinch salt

1 Ripe Banana

2 Eggs

1 tsp Vanilla

1/4 cup Chocolate Chips 

Directions

Mash banana in a bowl.

Beat in eggs and vanilla.

In a different bowl, sift together flour, cocoa powder, sugar, baking powder and salt.

Combine the 2 bowls and stir well.

Stir in chocolate chips.

Drop tablespoons of dough on parchment lined baking sheet.

Bake at 350 for about 15 mins. 

Cookie dough

Drop heaping tablespoons on parchment lined sheet

Bake at 350 for around 15 mins

Let cool and enjoy

Recipe based on this recipe at Home to Heather

Pumpkin Spice Donut Holes

I've been experimenting a bit with coconut flour lately. I really like it (and it's pretty healthy), but it's very different from other flours and starches. It really sucks up liquid, and will continue to absorb for a few minutes after mixing, so it's a good idea to let your dough rest for 5 minutes or so before forming the donuts, cookies, or whatever you are making.

Coconut flour will give your baking a sweet, coconutty flavour and a dense texture. Even a few tablespoons can have a big impact on a recipe. I used some coconut flour in a pumpkin scone recipe the other day. It was alright, but needs some more work before I'm happy with it. 

The flour is fairly expensive compared to other GF flours, but you don't usually use much in a recipe. I buy my coconut flour at the bulk barn, but you should be able to find it in any health food store. 

makes 18 donut holes

Ingredients

1/2 cup Coconut Flour

1/2 tsp Baking Soda

Pinch of Salt

1/2 cup Sugar

2 Eggs

3 Tbsp Oil

1/4 cup Pumpkin Puree (or substitute applesauce)

1 tsp Pumpkin Pie Spice (or apple pie spice or cinnamon and nutmeg)

1 tsp Vanilla

1-2 Tbsp Milk if needed (I used homemade pumpkin puree which has a little more liquid than the canned stuff)

1 tsp cinnamon and 2 Tbsp sugar for rolling donuts in 

Directions

Combine wet (except milk) and dry ingredients separately and mix together. Mix  in milk if needed.

Let dough rest for 5 minutes.

Make 1 1/2 inch balls and roll in cinnamon and sugar.

Place dough balls in mini muffin tins (you could probably just used a baking pan because they don't really spread out)

Bake at 350 for 14-16 minutes (until fairly firm)

Let cool and enjoy!

* You could also make a glaze for the donuts after baking instead of rolling in cinnamon and sugar.

Indian Rice Pudding (Kheer)

Gluten Free Indian Rice Pudding (Kheer)

This rice pudding features coconut milk, basmatti rice and cardamom. You can get kheer in most indian restaurants. Many recipes just use regular milk, but I love coconut milk and it really compliments the cardamom spice. I buy cardamom pods from the bulk barn. It can be pretty expensive, so it's nice to be able to buy just a little bit at a time. You can also use cardamom powder instead of the pods. If you like a strong cardamom flavour, open the pods and crush the tiny seeds before adding them.

with toasted almonds and coconut

Another traditional spice in kheer is saffron. I don't usually have that on hand, but if you do you can add a few threads during cooking. Top the pudding with chopped pistachios, toasted almond slivers or toasted coconut (or all three!). You can also just serve it as is.

Kheer can be served warm or chilled. It thickens up a bit more when it's chilled. If you like a more runny consistency, you can add extra milk. It's a great dessert to go with butter chicken or any other Indian dish.

I like raisins in my pudding, but you can easily make it without.


makes 3 servings (can easily be doubled)
Ingredients

1/4 cup uncooked Basmatti Rice
1 1/4 cups Milk (I use 1% but 2% or whole would make it richer and creamier)
3/4 cup coconut milk (half a can) (I use the coconut milk with the higher fat content)
3 Tbsp Sugar
6 Cardamom Pods (or 1/2 tsp ground cardamom)
3 Tbsp Raisins (optional)
1/2 tsp Vanilla Extract (optional)
2-3 Tbsp Chopped, Toasted Pistachios, Almonds or Shredded Coconut

Directions

Combine rice, milk, coconut milk, cardamom and raisins in a sauce pan.
Bring to a low boil on medium heat (stirring often)
Turn down to medium-low and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, until rice is cooked and pudding has thickened (about 20-25 minutes).
To let the cardamom flavour infuse the milk, gently squish each pod with a wooden spoon once the pods have softened a bit. You don't really want all the little seeds to fall out but you want the milk to pull a lot of the flavour out.
Stir in sugar and vanilla until incorporated.
Serve warm or cool in refrigerator for a few hours. (Remove cardamom pods before serving)
Garnish with toasted pistachios, almonds or coconut.

combine rice, cardamom and milks in a saucepan

 

boil then simmer until thickened (20-25 minutes)

 

serve warm or chilled with garnish of your choice

No Bake Chocolate Lovers Pie

Gluten Free No Bake Chocolate Lovers Pie

This recipe comes from my mom. I have never made it, but I have tasted it and it's delicious! Very sweet and creamy. This is a great make ahead dessert because you can easily make the pie in stages (crust one day, filling another and freeze for up to a month). It's also great for summer because you don't have to turn on the oven!

makes 1 pie
Ingredients

Coconut Crust
1 cup Unsweetened Dried Coconut
3/4 cups Icing Sugar
1/3 cup Cocoa Powder
1/3 cup Margarine or Butter
1/4 tsp Salt

Chocolate Filling
1 envelope Unflavoured Gelatin
 Tbsp Cold Water
2 Tbsp Instant Coffee Granules
1/4 cup Boiling Water
1 cup Sugar
1/2 cup Cocoa Powder
2 Cups Whipping Cream (before you whip it)
1 tsp Vanilla



Directions

Coconut Crust
Toast 1 cup of unsweetened coconut in frying pan over medium heat stirring constantly.
In a bowl, sift together icing sugar, cocoa powder and salt.
Melt margarine.
Combine coconut, margarine and dry mixture.
Press into a greased pie plate or parchment lined 9 inch spring form pan ( I would recommend spring form pan because it will come out a bit easier... especially that first piece)
Pie crust can be frozen for a later date or move straight to making the filling.

Chocolate Filling
Sprinkle gelatin over cold water; let stand 5 minutes to soften.
Add coffee granules and boiling water; stir until dissolved.
Let cool 5 minutes.
Combine sugar and cocoa powder with coffee mixture.
In a mixing bowl (or with a hand mixer) whip the cream and vanilla to about 2/3 of the normal whip cream thickness.
Slowly add coffee mixture to cream while continuing to whip it.
Whip until the mixture is stiff and pour into crust.
Chill a few hours to let set or you can freeze it for a later date.
For added decadence, top with a dollop of whipped cream and chocolate shavings before serving.

Crust Mix

Press mixture into pie plate or spring form pan

Coffee and gelatin mixture

Dry ingredients added

Finished product

Granola Cookies

Gluten Free Granola Cookies

I found this recipe on pinterest the other day and just had to try it. I love that there is no sugar or sugar substitute, but it's still sweet from the mashed bananas. I made a few minor changes, but the idea is the same. This blogger called them breakfast cookies, but I decided to call them granola cookies because they are very similar to granola bars, only in cookie form. They do make a great (and healthy) breakfast on the go, and I'm sure kids would be ecstatic to have cookies for breakfast! With all the protein and fibre, they are a satisfying breakfast or snack for anyone.

(makes about 2 dozen small cookies)
Ingredients

3 Medium Mashed Bananas
1/4 cup Canola Oil
1 Egg (may be omitted)
1 tsp Vanilla

1 1/2 cups GF Oats (I used quick oats but rolled would work too)
1/2 cup Dried Coconut (sweetened or unsweetened)
1/2 - 3/4 cup Dried Fruit (raisins, craisins, apricots, etc)
1/2 cup Chopped Nuts
1/4 tsp Salt
11/2 tsp Cinnamon
1/4 tsp Nutmeg


Directions

Combine wet ingredients in a large bowl.
Add dry ingredients to bowl and mix thoroughly
Drop spoonfuls of mixture on parchment lined baking sheet and form into desired shape.
Bake at 350 for 15-20 mins until they just begin to brown.
Store any left over cookies in freezer.

Before Baking (line with parchment - unlike me)

After Baking

Coconut Pudding



Gluten Free Coconut Pudding

I am home recovering from a coronary angiogram. They stuck a catheter into my heart through a vein in my neck and one in my radial artery (wrist) too. Results were good, but I'm not supposed to use my wrist much for a week because of the bleeding risk. This includes typing (and sadly, crocheting) so this post will have to be short.



Coconut Toasting

I loved making this for dessert as a kid. So easy and so good. If you love coconut, you'll love this pudding too.

See, short and sweet. Now for the recipe.

(makes 4 servings)
Ingredients

1/2 cup Sugar
pinch of Salt
3 1/2 tbsp Cornstarch
2 cups Milk (could sub other milks if dairy intolerant)
2 eggs
1/2 +1/4 cup Shredded Coconut
1 tbsp Coconut Oil (or Margarine)
1 tsp Vanilla or Coconut Extract  - optional

Directions

In a medium saucepan, whisk together cornstarch, milk, and eggs.
Add sugar, salt, 1/2 cup coconut and coconut oil.
Bring mixture to a boil over med-high heat.
Reduce heat and stir until thick.
Remove from burner and add extract if using.
Stir and let cool a bit. (can be served warm or chilled)

Meanwhile, add 1/4 cup shredded coconut to frying pan (non-stick preferably).
Toast on high heat, stirring very frequently, until coconut is browned and fragrant (This only takes a few mins. Don't let it burn.)
Let cool.
Use as a garnish for each dish of pudding.



Whisk milk, eggs, cornstarch together and add other ingredients



Bring to a boil, reduce heat and stir until thick



Once thick, set aside to cool.



Toast coconut in frying pan



Stir very frequently



Toast until browned and fragrant



Garnish pudding with toasted coconut


Variation - omit 1/4 cup coconut and toast the rest. Instead of adding it to the pudding before cooking, stir it in after the pudding has thickened and cooled somewhat.

Tropical Traditions Virgin Coconut Oil Review

The other day, I received a jar of Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil from Tropical Traditions. I had heard great things about their coconut oil (especially for gluten free baking) and couldn't wait to try it out. I wasn't exactly sure where to start, so I went to their free coconut recipes blog. If you have coconut oil or are planning to buy it, this is a great resource and I highly recommend checking it out. Although I didn't use any specific recipes from their blog, I got a general idea of how coconut oil can be used in baking as well as in cooking. But, before I go into my experiences cooking with this product, I should tell you a little bit about Tropical Traditions' unique method of extracting their coconut oil.

Basically, the Tropical Traditions Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil is made by hand, in small batches, and the oil is allowed to separate naturally, avoiding the need to use chemicals and other harsher methods of extraction. For more information, check out this short video (3:22) explaining the process and the background of the company. It's actually quite interesting to see how it's made.

The first thing I noticed about this coconut oil was the amazing smell. When I first opened it, I tasted a bit of the oil straight from the jar, and I was surprised at how strong the coconut flavour was. I am a big fan of coconut so this was a definite plus for me. My husband wanted to try it out right away, so he made a little vanilla coconut steamer with some of the oil. I'm not sure that this is the best way to consume coconut oil, because it kind of floats on the top, but he seemed to enjoy it. The first thing I tried was some stove top rice pudding. I combined some leftover rice with sugar, milk, shredded coconut, cocoa powder, corn starch and coconut oil. I really liked the taste of the coconut oil in my simple rice pudding, but I really wanted to try the oil in gluten free baking.

Cocoa Coconut Rice Pudding made with Tropical Traditions Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil

I tried substituting the coconut oil in place of canola oil in some of my gluten free recipes. I liked the coconut taste and the great texture it gave to my gluten free pumpkin cream cheese muffins. It made the muffins sturdier and gave them a nice springy texture. I also tried the coconut oil in some pumpkin pancakes (can you tell it's fall?) along with some coconut flour. I loved how it kept the pancakes strong (not crumbly) but they still felt soft (almost a melt in your mouth kind of thing). I substituted coconut oil for canola oil in one of my GF bread recipes, and while it was great for texture, I found it a bit strong flavour-wise for bread. I'm not sure that the sweet coconut flavour would be great for savory sandwiches.

Pumpkin Pancakes with Tropical Traditions Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil

GF Multigrain Bread made with Tropical Traditions Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil 

Tip: Since the coconut oil is solid at room temperature, it is necessary to have all of your ingredients at room temperature so that the coconut oil doesn't re-solidify when you add eggs or milk (this I learned the hard way).

I had read on many different websites, that coconut oil is great for making shell chocolate that hardens on contact with cold things (like ice cream - think dairy queen dipped cones). I decided to try out this shell chocolate by melting some coconut oil with chocolate wafers (in a double boiler) and dipping banana halves in the mixture. Then I simply froze them on a tray, but you could push a popsicle stick into one end to make your own choco-banana popsicles (or even try rolling them in nuts or shredded coconut). I was heasitatn about eating frozen banana, but I was pleasantly surprised. The subtle coconut flavour went really well with the chocolate and banana. It made a yummy (and healthier) substitute for those frozen ice cream bars. Unfortunately, I didn't get a picture of these. Oh well, I will just have to make them again!

I am happy to give two thumbs up for this product and for the Tropical Traditions company!

Information for buying Gold Label Virgin Coconut Oil can be found on their website (for USA here, Canada here, and Europe here). They often have great sales going so check back often!


Disclaimer: Tropical Traditions provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose.  Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review in return for the free product.

Buckwheat Pancakes with Coconut Cream Sauce



gluten free buckwheat pancakes

I love the flavour buckwheat gives to these pancakes! Despite the "wheat" in the name, buckwheat is gluten free and actually in the same family as rhubarb. Buckwheat flour is a very healthy substitute for other gluten free flours. Even many gluten-eaters make buckwheat pancakes instead of wheat for the health benefits and interesting taste. I get buckwheat flour from the bulk barn.

The Coconut Cream Sauce is a must for coconut lovers! It's easy to make and goes well with fruit or other kinds of syrup on any pancake.
(makes 8 large pancakes)
Ingredients

2/3 cup buckwheat flour
1/3 cup tapioca starch (or rice flour, or a combination of both)
1 tsp baking powder
2 Tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg
1 cup milk
2 Tbsp oil
1 mashed banana, blueberries, etc (optional)

Directions

Combine dry ingredients.
Add beaten eggs, milk and oil.
You can add more or less milk depending on how thin you want the batter.
Cook on non-stick frying pan on medium heat.

Coconut Cream Sauce

Ingredients

1 can coconut milk
1/3 cup sugar (more or less to suit your taste)
1Tbsp corn starch
3 Tbsp milk

Directions

Pour coconut milk into a small sauce pan.
Mix corn starch with milk until no lumps and add to sauce pan.
Add sugar and stir to combine.
Heat to a boil then reduce heat to simmer for a few minutes until sauce starts to thicken (it will thicken more upon cooling).
Remove from heat and serve with buckwheat pancakes and fruit.