Lemon Blueberry Poundcake

   I can't recall eating poundcake during my pre- gluten free days.  Although I do remember my mom telling a story of when my brother baked a poundcake... and that it was a heck of a lot heavier than one pound!

   But have no fear.  This recipe yields the most amazing and foolproof poundcake ever.  {And it weighs the appropriate weight!}  

   Regardless of whether I've eaten the gluten-filled version, I am so happy that I have discovered poundcake now.  This recipe is knock-your-socks-off amazing.  Light.  Fluffy.  Bursting with bright lemon and moist blueberry.  Especially perfect for spring.  

   It is perfect for brunch, dessert, {lunch... dinner... midnight snack...}, friends and family.  It's also perfect for those crazy dairy free people in your life. 

   So what are you waiting for?  Get baking!  It's an incredibly easy recipe to whip up!  

Lemon Blueberry Poundcake  adapted from Gluten Free Easily

ingredients

   2 1/2 cups gf flour (I use this flour ratio)

   1 ½ tsp xanthan gum

   1 ¼ tsp sea salt
   1 tsp baking powder
   ¾ cup olive oil
   1 c - 1 1/2 cups sugar (depending on how sweet you like your cakes)

   2 Tbs orange juice or lemon juice
   2 Tbs lemon emulsion

   lemon zest (I zested one whole lemon)
   3 eggs
   2/3 cup full-fat coconut milk

   2 cups frozen or fresh blueberries

method

   1.   preheat oven to 350F

   2.   mix dry ingredients in medium bowl

   3.   in large bowl mix sugar, olive oil, lemon emulsion, orange or lemon juice, and zest

   4.   add eggs one by one into wet mixture then add milk and mix for 2 minutes.  add dry              ingredients and mix well.

   5.   fold in blueberries.

   6.  scrape batter into greased bundt pan, 2 bread loaf pans, or angel food cake pan (that's what I used).

   7.   bake for 50 - 60 minutes then cool fully and Enjoy!

Linking up at these Fabulous Parties: 

A Little Valentine's Day Cake

   I made a cute little cake for Valentine's Day.  Well, actually a giant cupcake of a cake.  Rich chocolate cake with vanilla almond buttercream.

    This treat was so scrumptious the hubs and I ate every last morsel in twenty four hours  :)  

Linking up at these Fabulous Parties: Made It By Monday @ Baked in the South, Made from Scratch Monday @ Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease , Mangia Mondays @ Delightfully Dowling, Tuesday Talent Show @ Chef in Training, Crazy Sweet Tuesday @ Crazy for Crust, Gluten Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Sweet Treats & Swanky Stuff @ Something Swanky, Anything Goes Linky @ Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo, Sweets for A Saturday @ Sweet As Sugar Cookies

Valentine's Cake Pops

   Need a last minute Valentine's treat idea?  Try these Heart Valentine's cake pops!

  So simple... just make your cake pops like you normally would... dab a bit of melted chocolate on the back of your large heart sprinkle... and attach!

   I made these for my Coast Guard spouse game night.  They were double chocolate cake pops.  I can 100% guarantee your Valentine will love you even more if you make these  ;)  

Linking up at these Fabulous Parties: Made It By Monday @ Baked in the South, Made from Scratch Monday @ Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease , Mangia Mondays @ Delightfully Dowling, Tuesday Talent Show @ Chef in Training, Crazy Sweet Tuesday @ Crazy for Crust, Gluten Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Sweet Treats & Swanky Stuff @ Something Swanky, Anything Goes Linky @ Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo, Sweets for A Saturday @ Sweet As Sugar Cookies

Red Velvet Brownies

  I'm going to be completely honest here and say that I'm not usually a huge fan of brownies.  But these are so good!  Like melt in your mouth, perfect to dunk in almond milk good.

They are simple and quick to make, too!  I recommend using LorAnn's Red Velvet Bakery Emulsion to get that red velvet flavor (and color!)  It helps create that nice light, sweet, red velvet flavor without you having to worry about mixing vinegar with buttermilk and all that jazz.  (And another thing I love about LorAnn's emulsions - they're all gluten free!)   

  These brownies are the perfect dessert to make for your loved one.  The hubs loves brownies and said these are one of the best he's ever had.  So I urge you to share the love.  This recipe is too good to keep to myself - or yourself!  

  Happy early Valentine's Day!

  Red Velvet Brownies adapted from Gluten Free Goddess

ingredients

1 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/2 cup coconut oil

1/4 almond flour

1/4 cup rice flour mix

1/4 cup sorghum

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp seat salt

2 eggs

1 Tbsp red velvet emulsion

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

method

1.  Preheat oven to 350 F.  Grease 8x8 baking dish or cover with foil.

2.  Melt chocolate chips and coconut oil over low heat.

3.  In large bowl, mix dry ingredients together.

4.  Add wet ingredients and mix well for 2 minutes with hand mixer.

5.  Stir in chopped nuts.

6.  Bake for approximately 30 minutes, let cool, and Enjoy!

Linking up at these Fabulous Parties: Mangia Mondays @ Delightfully Dowling, Tuesday Talent Show @ Chef In Training, Gluten Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Tasty Thursdays @ Mandatory Mooch

Happy National Cake Pop Day!!

Thanks to Bakerella and other cake pop "pioneers" we can now enjoy National Cake Pop Day!

Linking up at these Fabulous Parties: Made It By Monday @ Baked in the South, Made from Scratch Monday @ Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease , Mangia Mondays @ Delightfully Dowling, Tuesday Talent Show @ Chef in Training, Crazy Sweet Tuesday @ Crazy for Crust, Gluten Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Sweet Treats & Swanky Stuff @ Something Swanky, Anything Goes Linky @ Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo, Sweets for A Saturday @ Sweet As Sugar Cookies

"Oh. My. Yum. Vegan Meatballs"

There is a new adjective in Michelle's Thesaurus of a brain ... yup, that's right... the wheels were totally a-turnin' on this one: "Oh. My. Yum."
Seriously though, who literally says that out loud when they eat something so savory, so delicious, so so good?

I don't see any hands.  Well, I guess I'm crazy  {Did I hear you say you already thought that?!}.  Because I couldn't stop saying that phrase when I ate these (vegan) meatballs and soon enough you'll find yourself saying the same phrase.  They are that good.
By now my household is about 90% vegan.  No cheese.  No dairy.  No meat.  We only eat seafood once in a blue moon and organic eggs.  Honestly I feel great.  And am learning that it is SO true that your physique is 80% diet.  But that should be a post for another day.
Instead let's focus on how completely satisfying and mouth-wateringly scrumptious these meatballs are. And healthy.  Pair these with spaghetti squash and spinach tomato sauce and you will be in heaven.  
Dear "Real" Italian comfort food... move on over because you have some major competition here. 

"Oh. My. Yum. Vegan Meatballs"  adapted from the veggie nook
Ingredients 1 1/4 cup raw sunflower seeds 3/4 cup nutritional yeast 3/4 cup sundried tomatoes 2 cloves garlic 1 tsp oregano (I didn't measure, just shook a whole bunch in) 1 tsp fennel seeds (same, didn't measure) red pepper flakes dash sea salt 1-2 Tbsp water Method 1.  Blend sunflower seeds in Blendtec or food processor until it resembles coarse flour 2.  Add all ingredients except for water.  Blend together. 3.  Add water to help ingredients stick together if needed. 4.  Roll into little balls and eat.  Or refrigerate for later snacking!

Linking up at these Fabulous Parties: Made It By Monday @ Baked in the South, Made from Scratch Monday @ Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease , Mangia Mondays @ Delightfully Dowling, Tuesday Talent Show @ Chef in Training, Crazy Sweet Tuesday @ Crazy for Crust, Gluten Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Sweet Treats & Swanky Stuff @ Something Swanky, Anything Goes Linky @ Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo, Sweets for A Saturday @ Sweet As Sugar Cookies

Cutesy Cupcake Cookies {GF, Dairy Free, Nut Free}

 It's pretty obvious I have already failed at my first New Years Resolution... *ahem* I should have posted last week... But that's ok.  Because... I have been oh so busy doing stuff.  {insert sarcasm}

And because I've been swamped with busy-ness (like a gazillion loads of laundry with my new fancy washing machine!) I've decided to share these gluten free, dairy free, nut free sugar cookies with you.

I made these cookies for my awesomesauce neighbor to bring in to her students.  And since 99% of kids have allergies these days, she asked that they be free of those three allergens.  

The verdict?  Totally kid approved.  Easy to roll out and shape with a cookie cutter.  And cute.  Super cute.   Want to try the recipe?  I followed Adventures of a Gluten Free Mom's Sugar Cookie Recipe and simply made royal icing to decorate!  Easy Peesy.  And yummy wummy.

Cashew Corn Chowder with Cilantro Cream

So as you know (or may not know) I love love love Pinterest.  Just like almost every other girl.  And just like almost every other girl, I pin mouth watering recipes... Like this recipe for Cashew Corn Chowder with Cilantro Cream.

Since my sweet hubby gave me a Blendtec a month ago (eeee I'm up to 50 uses on it already!!!), I have been itching to try this recipe.  I mean come on, creamy chowder made with cashews instead of cream?  A cream made with cashews instead of dairy?  I've been reading every where in blog land how soaked and blended cashews mimic dairy, but I had yet to try it.
Until... I discovered that Alta over at Tasty Eats at Home was hosting Adopt A Gluten Free Blogger - a  super fun party where GF bloggers "adopt" another GF blogger and recreate at least one of their recipes.
I chose Sarah from My New Roots who, of course, created the Cashew Corn Chowder.  Sarah's blog is wonderful.  It features fresh nutrient rich ingredients and drool worthy photographs.  She is also a holistic nutritionist so her recipes are chock-full of super foods that fuel your body and leave your taste buds begging for more.
This corn chowder was ridiculously easy to make and can easily be adapted to your taste preferences.  (Like... basil can easily substitute the cilantro, canned corn for fresh, etc).  It also freezes beautifully and reheats wonderfully.  
So what are you waiting for??  Check out Sarah's recipe for Cashew Corn Chowder and get cooking and blending!  :)
Linking up at these Fabulous Parties: Made It By Monday @ Baked in the South, Made from Scratch Monday @ Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease , Mangia Mondays @ Delightfully Dowling, Tuesday Talent Show @ Chef in Training, Crazy Sweet Tuesday @ Crazy for Crust, Gluten Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Sweet Treats & Swanky Stuff @ Something Swanky, Anything Goes Linky @ Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo, Sweets for A Saturday @ Sweet As Sugar Cookies

Healthy Mint Chocolate Mousse

I'm back I'm back I'm back!  Did you miss me?  I think I missed you... just a wee bit ;)

So here's what I've been up to/ MIA here on The GF Wife: 
*Marathon training: just ran 20.5 miles this past Saturday.   I. Am. Beast.  (slow beast) *Work. *I volunteered to be the Ombudsman for USCG Air Station SF and there's lots of work needed to improve that program.  And soon I have to do formal training for it.  (Oh, and the Command took me out to lunch a couple weeks ago!) *Beau is away for training.  So it's just myself, the pups, and crazy kitty for a month and a half. *Beau also gave me a honey-to-do list. *I finished watching seasons 7 & 8 of Grey's Anatomy.  Obviously more important than the honey-to-do list. *AND Beau bought me a Blendtec!!!!!!!!!!!

Which leads me to one of my new favorite desserts that can be whipped up in no time.  Healthy Mint Chocolate Mousse Pie with a chocolate cookie crust!  
I shared this dessert with my friends the other week... and they loved it!  The crust didn't break when I cut it and it complemented the mousse oh so perfectly.  
And I bet you have no idea that its secret ingredient is...  drum roll...  tofu!  ;)

The Mint Chocolate Mousse recipe is lightly adapted from my favorite vegan dessert blogger Chocolate Covered Katie.  She's a genius.  Seriously.
Ingredients for cookie crust (adapted from Gluten Free Baking Classics):
1/4 cup brown rice flour 2 Tbs oat flour 1/4 cup cornstarch 3 Tbs tapioca flour 1/4 cup sugar 1/4 cup cocoa powder 1/2 tsp xanthan gum dash sea salt 5 Tbs cold butter/ vegan butter 1 tsp vanilla extract
Ingredients for mint chocolate mousse:
1 package (12-14 oz) firm organic tofu 1/4 cup + 2 Tbs cocoa powder 4 Tbs coconut oil 1/4 cup agave 1 tsp vanilla 1/4 tsp peppermint dash sea salt
Method:
1.  Place all ingredients for cookie crust (except for vanilla extract) into Blendtec or food processor and pulse until it looks like coarse cornmeal. 2.  Add extract and pulse until it starts to form a dough. 3.  Lightly oil a pie dish and press the dough into an even layer in pan. 4.  Bake at 350 F for 18 minutes. 5.  Let cool completely. 6.  When crust is completely cool, combine all ingredients for mousse to Blendtec and pulse until completely mixed together and smooth. 7.  Fill pie crust with mousse and place in fridge until firm!  (Or just eat it right then.  Or out of the Blendtec container.  Not like I do that or anything...) 8.  Enjoy your healthy guilt-free treat!!!!
Linking up at these Fabulous Parties: Made It By Monday @ Baked in the South, Made from Scratch Monday @ Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease , Mangia Mondays @ Delightfully Dowling, Tuesday Talent Show @ Chef in Training, Crazy Sweet Tuesday @ Crazy for Crust, Gluten Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Sweet Treats & Swanky Stuff @ Something Swanky, Anything Goes Linky @ Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo, Sweets for A Saturday @ Sweet As Sugar Cookies

Lemon Meringue Cupcakes

Today, August 15th, is National Lemon Meringue Day.

And today was my first day of work!
Oh, yes... I am officially a workin' woman now!  You're looking at the new Manager for a local children's store named Generations {the website is a little out dated... that's one of my tasks I will work on up the road... but check it out!}

But enough about "work" already... let's celebrate my ability to help pay the bills with some Lemon Meringue Cupcakes - with a little surprise in the inside - strawberry preserves! 

This is my favorite lemon cake recipe to date.  I tweaked a few things here and there from Annalise Roberts' Lemon Layer Cake recipe.  I think it's to die for.  Light.  Fluffy.  Delish.

Ingredients
1 & 1/3 cups sugar 4 Tbsp ground flax mixed with 12 Tbsp warm water (mix & let congeal in fridge for 30 min or more) (OR use 4 large eggs) 2 & 1/2 cups flour mix (2 parts rice flour, 2/3 part potato starch, 1/3 part tapioca flour) 1/2 tsp salt 1 Tbsp baking powder 1 tsp xanthan gum 1 cup canola oil 1 cup milk 1 tsp vanilla extract 1 Tbsp lemon extract 1 Tbsp grated lemon rind strawberry preserves, lemon curd, other jam - optional

Method
1.  Preheat oven to 350 F.   2.  Beat sugar and flax "egg" (or real eggs) in large bowl until fluffy. 3.  Add in rest of ingredients and mix for about 1 minute on medium speed. 4.  Fill cupcake pans halfway, then spoon a little strawberry preserves (or lemon curd, other jelly, etc) into the middle of the batter, then cover with remaining batter.   5.  Bake in oven.  (to bake 12 jumbo cupcakes: bake for 25 minutes, 24 regular cupcakes: bake 18-20 minutes, 2 8inch rounds: bake  35 minutes) 6.  Cool cupcakes or cakes for 5 minutes and then take out of pan and cool completely on cooling racks.

For the lemony meringue frosting, I used the recipe from Carla's Confections but added a pinch of cream of tartar and substituted lemon extract for the juice.  I also halved the recipe. 
I piped the "frosting" with my Wilton 1M tip, placed in a preheated oven to  350 F, baked it for about 10 minutes until it turned light gold, then added some edible gold shimmer!
Linking up at these Fabulous Parties:  Made It By Monday @ Baked in the South, Made from Scratch Monday @ Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease , Mangia Mondays @ Delightfully Dowling, Tuesday Time Out @ Reasons to Skip the Housework Tuesday Talent Show @ Chef in Training, Crazy Sweet Tuesday @ Crazy for Crust, Gluten Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Tasty Thursday @ The Mandatory Mooch, Sweet Treats & Swanky Stuff @ Something Swanky, Anything Goes Linky @ Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo 

Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp

  This past weekend Beau and I took a trip "down south" to Gilroy where we attended the Annual Garlic Festival!  We watched a cooking competition, ate garlic sweet potato fries, and tasted garlic ice cream... which was actually really good!  After a few hours it got really crowded there so we decided to drive the long way home on scenic highway 1.  On our way home we stopped at a local strawberry farm and picked strawberries!  There were so red and juicy and sweet mmm.  We also found a local farm stand and came home with this bounty of freshness:

  But one thing's for sure- when you pick fresh strawberries they don't last too long.  So I needed to come up with a quick and easy way to enjoy them.  Crisps and cobblers are one of my absolute favorite desserts so I decided why not make a fresh strawberry rhubarb crisp!

Fruit crisps are one of the easiest and quickest ways to prepare a dessert.  They're perfect for serving guests as well as settling your sweet tooth without all the guilt.  I make my crisps with next to nothing sugar.  Most recipes out there call for 1 cup plus of sugar just to coat the fruit.  Fruit is already loaded with sugar so why add more?  It tastes so much better without the added sugar.  Trust me.

Ingredients (for fruit mixture)

2 pounds strawberries, washed, leaves removed, sliced

2-4 stalks green rhubarb sliced to 1 inch thickeness (I only had 2 but I wish I had more for some tartness!)

raspberries (optional)

2 Tbsp sugar

1 Tbsp cornstarch

Ingredients (for crisp topping) (I actually halved this recipe because I didn't have enough ingredients on hand!  Feel free to make as little or as much as you'd like!)

2 cups gf flour mix (1 cup rice flour, 2/3 potato starch, 1/3 tapioca flour)
1/2 cup brown sugar (or less!)
1 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1 tsp xanthan gum
2/3 cup cold dairy free butter substitute such as Earth Balance (or regular butter) cut into chunks

Method:

1.  Place sliced fruit in large bowl and mix in sugar and cornstarch until fruit seems coated.  Place into 9x 13 in glass baking dish.
2.  Measure out your flours, spices, and xanthan gum and mix in bowl.
3.  Add your butter of choice and using a pasty tool or fork, mix butter and flour until it resembles coarse corn meal.
4.  Sprinkle topping onto fruit.
5.  Bake for about 45 minutes.  Serve warm or cool, top with homemade ice cream, and Enjoy!

Or serve for friends over for dinner!  Our neighbors loved it!  :)

 
Linking up at these Fabulous Parties: Made It By Monday @ Baked in the South, Made from Scratch Monday @ Living with Food Allergies and Celiac Disease , Mangia Mondays @ Delightfully Dowling, Tuesday Time Out @ Reasons to Skip the Housework Tuesday Talent Show @ Chef in Training, Crazy Sweet Tuesday @ Crazy for Crust, Gluten Free Wednesdays @ The Gluten-Free Homemaker, Allergy Free Wednesdays, Sweet Treats & Swanky Stuff @ Something Swanky, Anything Goes Linky @ Bacon Time with the Hungry Hypo