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Gluten Free Choc Chip Cookies

Gluten Free Choc Chip Cookies

My son found a recipe online choc chip cookies which we tried, though we replaced the standard flours with gluten free variants. These were nice, but they were a little too crisp and a little too sweet.

He then adjusted the recipe and the result was tasty chewy gluten free choc chip cookies. What I and my son liked about them was that they were very similar in taste and texture to the fresh (non-gluten) cookies you can buy at supermarkets that he use to enjoy before he went gluten free.

Ingredients

225g of unsalted butter
125g gluten free bread flour
125g gluten free plain flour
1 egg
1 egg yolk
100g caster sugar
120g light brown sugar
85g plain chocolate chips
130g plain chocolate chunks or chopped chocolate bar
One teaspoon salt
One teaspoon bicarbonate of soda
Two teaspoons of vanilla essence

The adjustments we made to the original recipe was to increase the amount of flour, reduce the amount of sugar and swap the dark brown sugar for light brown sugar.

Melt the butter in a pan and bring to the boil, stirring frequently. The aim is to boil off some of the water off the butter. The recipe said to go ensure the milk solids got a nutty brown. I was a little wary in case of burning the butter, so didn’t probably go far enough. Once the butter melted and had turned slightly brown this was removed from the heat and cooled to room temperature.

Cream the liquid butter with the sugar, vanilla essence. The idea is to mix it until it is light and fluffy. The recipe calls for an electric mixer, ours was broken, so we did it by hand, which was hard work. Beat in the eggs until they are incorporated into the mixture.

Combine the flours, salt and bicarbonate of soda.

Stir in the dry ingredients a third of it at a time until it is incorporated.

Using a wooden spoon fold in the chocolate chips and chunks.

Chill.

Place six small balls, about 2-3cm across, of dough on a baking tray and bake for 6-9 minutes.

This quantity of ingredients will make about eighteen cookies.

After cooking leave on the tray and then after three minutes move to a rack to cool further.

Eat!

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Gluten Free Colourful Victoria Sponge

Gluten Free Colourful Victoria Sponge

This is a tasty but colourful gluten free colourful Victoria sponge cake.

The recipe is based on the weight of two eggs

Ingredients

For each layer of the cake

      • 3 standard eggs
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs of soft butter
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs in caster sugar
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs in self-raising gluten-free flour
      • Vanilla essence
      • Food colouring (different colour for each layer)

For the filling

      • Strawberry jam
      • Whipped cream

Method

Cream the sugar and butter until you have a smooth consistency. I try and leave the butter out so that it is really soft.

Beat the eggs, add some vanilla essence. I then added athe food colouring to brighten the cake mixture.

Stir the eggs into the creamed butter and sugar with some of the flour, until the mixture is smooth and consistent.

Then fold in the remaining flour until it is combined with the rest of the mixture.

Spoon the mixture into a greased cake tin.

Repeat the process for the second (and if required third layer).

The bake the cake in a 180º normal oven or 160º fan oven for 25-30 minutes or until a metal skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Cool and then construct the cake, spreading jam and then cream.

Finally dust the cake with icing sugar.

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Gluten Free Chocolate Fudge Cake

Though I do make my own cakes I sometimes use mixes, both for convenience, but also sometimes to try something new.

One pack we recently used, and really enjoyed was Betty Crocker Gluten Free Devil’s Food Chocolate Cake Mix.

Despite what you see on the box, you don’t get the icing, so you need to buy that as an extra.

As well as the mix you also need:

      • 125ml vegetable oil
      • 250ml water
      • 4 medium free range eggs

There are three steps:

      1. Mix the eggs, oil, water and cake mix gently together and whisk (by hand or electric mixer) for 2-3 minutes until smooth and creamy.
      2. Pour the cake mixture evenly into two greased cake tins.
      3. Bake in the centre of the oven for between 23-28 minutes or until a rounded knife inserted fully into the centre of the cake comes out clean. 

Once cool you can smother the cake with chocolate fudge icing.

It was rather good, and to be honest you wouldn’t know it was gluten free as it had the taste, texture and smell of a chocolate fudge cake even without the icing.

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Colourful Gluten Free Cake

This is a tasty but colourful loaf cake.

The recipe is based on the weight of two eggs

Ingredients

      • 3 standard eggs
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs of soft butter
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs in caster sugar
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs in self-raising gluten-free flour
      • Vanilla essence
      • Yellow food colouring
      • Red food colouring
      • Green food colouring

Cream the sugar and butter until you have a smooth consistency.

Beat the eggs, add some vanilla essence. I then added a little yellow food colouring to brighten the cake mixture.

Stir the eggs into the creamed butter and sugar with some of the flour, until the mixture is smooth and consistent.

Then fold in the remaining flour until it is combined with the rest of the mixture.

Spoon a third the mixture into one side of a loaf tin. Then separate the remaining mixture into two portions.

With one of the portions, add some red food colouring to the mixture and stir it carefully until you have a nice consistent coloured mixture. With the other portion use green food colouring.

You can of course use whatever colours you like.

Spoon these cake mixture portions into the loaf tin.

I then used a knife to gently swirl the three coloured mixtures together, you’re trying to achieve a swirly effect, not to combine the mix.

The bake the cake in a 180º normal oven or 160º fan oven for 30-35 minutes or until a metal skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Cool and then serve in slices.

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Gluten Free Red and White Cake

This is a tasty but colourful loaf cake.

The recipe is based on the weight of two eggs

Ingredients

      • 3 standard eggs
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs of soft butter
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs in caster sugar
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs in self-raising gluten-free flour
      • Vanilla essence
      • Yellow food colouring
      • Red food colouring

Cream the sugar and butter until you have a smooth consistency.

Beat the eggs, add some vanilla essence. I then added a little yellow food colouring to brighten the cake mixture.

Stir the eggs into the creamed butter and sugar with some of the flour, until the mixture is smooth and consistent.

Then fold in the remaining flour until it is combined with the rest of the mixture.

Spoon half the mixture into one side of a loaf tin. Then in the mixing bowl add some red food colouring to the remaining mixture and stir it carefully until you have a nice consistent coloured mixture. Spoon the rest of the cake mixture into the loaf tin.

I do use loaf tin liners in my loaf tin. Makes getting the cake out of the tin much easier.

I then used a knife to gently swirl the two coloured mixtures together, you’re trying to achieve a swirly effect, not to combine the mix.

The bake the cake in a 180º normal oven or 160º fan oven for 30-35 minutes or until a metal skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

Cool and then serve in slices.

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Rocking the Gluten Free Rocky Road

During the lockdown I have been making gluten free rocky road a fair bit.

In a large pan, gently melt 150g of dark chocolate, 50g of butter and 3 large spoons of Golden Syrup. The key here is gently, too harsh then the butter and chocolate will burn. Once it has melted then leave for 15 minutes. You need to leave it to cool down otherwise when you add the marshmallows they will melt.

Crush some gluten free biscuits. I usually use a 160g pack of gluten free digestives, but have used a 120g pack of Schär Viennese Biscuits as well (though these are a lot more crumbly than the digestives. You easily make your own biscuits instead. I also add 50g of gluten free chocolate rice cereal as well, for  added crunch. Then add 50g of small marshmallows. 

This mixture is then stirred carefully to ensure that all the ingredients are coated in the chocolate mixture.

Spoon the mixture into either a greased lined baking tray or a foil tray. Press down into the tray and ensure that it is evenly spread.

Then sprinkle the top of the rocky road with decorations. I use small marshmallows, white chocolate stars and fudge pieces.

Chill in the fridge and then cut into squares or slices.

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Gluten Free Loaf Cake

loaf cake

This is a tasty plain loaf cake.

The recipe is based on the weight of two eggs

Ingredients

      • 3 standard eggs
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs of soft butter
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs in caster sugar
      • Take the same weight of two of the eggs in self-raising gluten-free flour
      • Vanilla essence

Cream the sugar and butter until you have a smooth consistency.

Beat the eggs, add some vanilla essence.

Stir the eggs into the creamed butter and sugar with some of the flour, until the mixture is smooth and consistent.

Then fold in the remaining flour until it is combined with the rest of the mixture.

Spoon into a loaf tin and bake in a 180º normal oven or 160º fan oven for 35 minutes or until a metal skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

I do use loaf tin liners in my loaf tin. Makes getting the cake out of the tin much easier.

Cool and then serve in slices.

I used some yellow food colouring in the recipe, as we like to eat bright cakes….

To make a Maderia Cake version of this recipe, add the grated zest of one lemon to the egg mixture as you add the vanilla essence. Add 50g of ground almonds when you add the flour.

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Gluten Free Chocolate Loaf Cake

Gluten Free Chocolate Loaf Cake

This is a tasty rich chocolate loaf cake.

The recipe is based on the weight of two eggs

Ingredients

3 standard eggs
Take the same weight of two of the eggs of soft butter.
Take the same weight of two of the eggs in caster sugar
Take the same weight of two of the eggs in self-raising gluten-free flour.
Two large spoons of cocoa powder.
Vanilla essence.

Cream the sugar and butter until you have a smooth consistency.

Beat the eggs, add some vanilla essence.

Stir the eggs into the creamed butter and sugar with some of the flour and the cocoa, until the mixture is smooth and consistent.

Then fold in the remaining flour until it is combined with the rest of the mixture.

Spoon into a loaf tin and bake in a 180º normal oven or 160º fan oven for 35 minutes or until a metal skewer inserted into the cake comes out clean.

I do use loaf tin liners in my loaf tin. Makes getting the cake out of the tin much easier.

Cool and then serve in slices.

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Gluten-Free Biscuits Recipe

Gluten-Free Biscuits

This is a simple recipe for gluten-free biscuits. You could of course use the same recipe with regular flour.

They are quick to make and quick to bake.

Ingredients

1 standard egg.

Take the same weight of the egg in cold butter.

Twice the same weight of the egg in plain gluten-free flour.

Same weight of the egg of sugar.

Vanilla essence.

Take the flour, and add the cold butter, cut into small cubes. Combine the butter and flour by rubbing the butter into the flour, until there are no lumps and the mixture resembles breadcrumbs. 

Then stir in the sugar. 

Add the egg and vanillla essence combine until the biscuit dough is smooth.

How you could take spoonfuls onto a banking sheet, but what I do is wrap the dough in cling film and cool in the fridge for a fair few hours. This firms up the dough, so then you can roll it into a 2cm roll of dough and then slice it into 1cm rounds. 

These rounds can the be placed onto a baking sheet or tray.

One tip I have is to crunch up and screw the baking parchment into a ball and then unscrew it. This means it lies flat on the baking tray. The biscuits will spread to about twice their original size, so leave plenty of space around each

Bake in a pre-heated oven, at 180 degrees for about six minutes until the edges are brown.

Place on a cooling rack.

Enjoy.

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Time for an incredible Harry Potter Cake

Harry Potter Cake

No I did not make this cake, but I saw it in the window at Patisserie La Reine in Broadmead in Bristol. I like the book form they have used, and have not gone for a simple closed book, it actually looks like an open book too. They have managed to catch the character of the sorting hat, though does a hat even have character? My only thought was why did they choose that colour?