Muffin Top

Moving puts quite the stress on a cook, especially one that blogs. Attempting to find new lighting spots, ideal backgrounds, and well in my case… your cooking supplies that are naturally shuffled and shoved ungracefully into your new pantry. And dears, I had a detrimental casualty become known to me last night...

The winds grew cold and misted our once beautiful dreams of consistent spring weather away for the day and I was in desperate need of comfort. Which you know darling readers very well  by now that leads to baking. I wanted something hearty but soft. Morsels that melt in your mouth, texture that tingles the taste buds. Which naturally led me to oatmeal chocolate chip cookies.

Excitedly I grabbed the ingredients, desperately dripped the last of my vanilla stash in the batter and bounded for my cookie sheet to plop the dough and pop in the oven. However, somehow the little sheet grew legs and decided to move to another apartment. Potentially out of neglect. I guess I cannot blame him, I have been a horrible companion over the last couple weeks while moving. RIP loving sheet, I wish you the best in your new home.

This did not deter me though, no worries friends. C’mon, you should know by now I am bit more stubborn than that. The wheels turned and turned, and turned into a brilliant bonbon of an idea. Muffin tin. Cookie batter. Thick, gooey, muffin/cookie concoction. A cooking tool that would essentially keep them intact while they cool too. See past lava like bake messes.

Mini “Muffin” Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies
I don’t know why I haven’t thought to bake cookies in trial in my muffin tin before. I probably could have avoided a lot of oven rack clean up and tears. These little perfections won’t fall apart while dunking in your ice cold glass of almond milk and cooked evenly. I see future chocolate chip “bowls” for ice cream… enjoy.

Ingredients
• 2 cups gluten free flour mix
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 ¼ cups organic brown sugar
• Pinch of salt
• 1 ½ sticks butter, melted
• ½ cup organic sugar
• 2 large eggs + 1 yolk
• 2 tbs almond milk
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 2 ½ cups old fashioned oats
• 1 ½ cups chocolate chips

Directions
Preheat your oven to 350 F.

In a bowl combine flour, baking soda and salt. Beat your brown sugar, butter, and white sugar in a mixing bowl until creamy. Add in eggs, milk and vanilla extract and beat well. Slowly add in your flour mix, carefully not spilling. If you add all at once you WILL decorate your kitchen.

Remove from the mixer and stir in your oats and chocolate chips.

Form golf size balls and place in greased muffin tin, gently patting down the top.

Bake for about 10 minutes, watching carefully for browning. When tops are lightly golden brown, remove and let cool for 5 minutes.

Pop out with a fork gently and serve with a cool glass of milk. Dunk without abandon.

I may not be sad next icky storm that comes through T-town…you know where I will be.

Pumpkin Please

Fall is by far my favorite season, and with the crisp leaves crunching under the soles of my boots, I feel like taking a walk in a new direction. A direction that involves more deep breathes of brisk morning air, more meditation, more time carved out for family, and more cooking.

Obviously the last bit is where you’re supposed to be excited. I know it’s been a while since my last post and I could throw a million excuses at you, but instead I shall throw you a recipe that makes up for lost time. And what do you know, it happens to incorporate my favorite fall ingredient…pumpkin.


The last few weeks I have been drooling over a local café’s pumpkin cookies. Queenies, a small shop housing big seasonal flavors in Utica Square, has been a favorite drop in lunch spot for me since high school, so it was no surprise that I was inspired by all their fabulous fall treats. Unfortunately their pumpkin cookies aren't kind to the g-free tummy so I was once again on a mission to sate my sweet tooth.

I probably searched for an hour yesterday for a recipe that I could easily adapt gluten free without a bunch of substitutes. I've honestly always been a little leary of recipes involving ingredients like xanthum gum or 8 different flours. After a long search I settled on a couple recipes to adapt from...and then I bought my first can of pumpkin of the season, shocked that it just purchased. Usually by now the stuff is in permanent stock in my pantry.

I am not claiming this recipe to be “healthy” dear readers, but we all need a treat or two every now and then right? I am sure you are hoarding halloween candies in your households so a little butter and sugar won't hurt. Just go for a long walk in the wispy autumn wind afterwards!

I decided to test the recipe on my husband and son without letting them know it was gluten free to get a true response. They both scarfed down a few within minutes so I think that gives you an honest answer. They were pretty astonished when I revealed my little secret, and then promptly both helped themselves to another. My co workers had praise as well, and I do believe I will be repeating this for them very soon.

Pumpkin Cookies with Cream Cheese Frosting
These cookies turned out cakey, almost to a muffin top consistency. Fluffy and rich inside and topped with smooth icing helps them glide down easily, and the pumpkin and spice bring all the delicious flavors of fall to your taste buds. Try and eat just one, I dare you. My son loved them without icing, but everyone else doted on them with icing. You should definitely try both! Recipe adapted from Very Best Baking.

Ingredients
• 2 ½ cups bob’s gluten free flour mix
• 1 tsp baking soda
• 1 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp ground nutmeg
• 1 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tsp ground cinnamon
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 ½ cups baker’s sugar
• ½ cup butter, softened
• 1 can organic pumpkin
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp organic vanilla extract
• Gluten free cream cheese frosting (optional)

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350F.

In a mixing bowl whisk together all dry ingredients (spices, baking soda, powder, and flour) and set aside.

With a mixer, cream together butter and sugar until fluffy. Add in egg, pumpkin, and vanilla and beat until combined. Slowly add in dry mixture until fully combined. Your batter will be pretty sticky so you may have to scrape down the sides every so often.

Spoon batter onto cookie sheets and lightly press down. This will ensure the middle cooks all the way and allow you to create form to the cookie.

I baked there batches of a dozen at a time, for about 13-15 minutes. Watch the edges of the cookies and pull when they are slightly golden brown.

Let cool completely, then ice with your favorite cream cheese frosting!

100th Post Toast!

GF INDIE has reached 100 posts. WHEW! We made it!
I believe that with any landmark in one’s life comes an appropriate celebration. We could drink oodles of champagne or yell from the top of the mountain but…that one glass of champagne simply won’t cut it and unfortunately the only thing close to a mountain around Tulsa is “Turkey Mountain” which my friends is sadly a tall hill. However when someone asked me what I did over the weekend I CAN legitimately say I climbed/hiked/trail ran a mountain right? I trust you will keep my secret.


I have a better celebratory contender that beats the bubbles and the belt out though. Sprinkles! Oh yes, those colorful little slits of sugar that sit atop sundaes. But these won’t be adorning cupcakes or creamed desserts my friends. Oh no, that wouldn’t be enough for this Indie.

Enter, cake batter cookies. Moist, addicting, ooey gooey celebratory sprinkle bliss. Spread all over pinterest I knew this would be the perfect recipe for disaster on my diet celebrating 100 posts. A small fix here and there to the ingredient list to make it gluten free and these cookies were close to holy grail standard. I added an egg for binding, and upped the oil just a tad to keep them moist.

Ill keep the cork on the champagne, skip the hike, and instead toast you from the kitchen in a cake batter cookie salute.

Thank you all who have put up with me for 100 posts. Maybe I will sneak one more cookie to cheers to the next 100…

Gluten Free Cake Batter Cookies
I don’t know what else you could possibly ask for in a cookie. They are packed with fun sprinkles, easy and quick to make, require few ingredients, and even come out splendid with store bought gluten free cake mix! But I had you at sprinkles right? I made 2 batches of 12…some of the cookie dough may have not made it to the cookie sheet though!

Ingredients
• 1 package gluten free cake mix, I used Pamela’s Yellow Cake Mix

• 1 tsp baking powder

• 3 eggs

• ½-3/4 cup vegetable oil

• 1 tsp vanilla extract

• 1 cup sprinkles!

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350F.

Combine dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add the rest of the ingredients and stir to combine. Try not to eat too much of the dough.

The batter will be sticky so I suggest to light wet your hands for the next part.

Roll into small almost golf size balls, and lightly pat down onto a cookie sheet. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack.

ENJOY!

Meredith's Monster Cookies

Last Friday night brought a dinner party with close friends, pleasant patio weather, and delectable dishes. We enjoyed an easy menu of Greek salad, pizza, wine, and my contribution, dessert! I have been dying to try a cookie recipe that my cousin Meredith sent to me last week, and this was the perfect chance to whip up a batch. They sounded so naturally scrumptious, and I wouldn’t have to tweak the recipe to make it gluten free. Less work, more flavor? I am there!

The only thing I needed to change was the enormity of a recipe name: Sugar-Free, Egg-Free Peanut Butter & Banana Chocolate Chunk Cookies. That simply wouldn’t do. I think this dessert deserves a decent name, one that gives credit where credit is due too. Meredith’s Monster Cookies is a bit sweeter, and you won’t go blue in the face trying to say it with one breath!

I made mine with vegan semi-sweet chocolate that I had on hand but you can use whatever your little chocoholic heart desires. The result? They turned out to have the perfect cookie texture, a crunchy outer shell and a burst of gooey smoothness in the center. I attribute it to the banana that I pureed instead of mashing. I didn’t want chunks of banana, but rather a banana flavor. I was tempted to throw a flax egg in the mix because the dough was pretty soft but they held together nicely. Loads of lip smacking goodness is packed into tasty treats!

Thanks Meredith for sharing this recipe with me. It will definitely be on my cookie recipe hotlist!

Meredith’s MONSTER Cookies

Ingredients
· 3 large, ripe bananas
· 1/2 cup peanut butter, preferably all-natural
· 1/3 cup canola oil
· 1 tsp vanilla extract
· 2 cups old-fashioned oats
· 1 tsp baking powder
· 1/4 tsp cinnamon
· 1/4 tsp salt
· 1/2 – 1 cup semi-sweet vegan chocolate chips



Directions
Preheat oven to 350˚F.

Puree the bananas and put into a large bowl. Add your peanut butter, oil and vanilla. In another bowl stir together the oats, baking powder, cinnamon and salt. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients along with the chocolate and stir until combined.

Drop spoonfuls of dough onto a baking sheet lined with parchment or coated with nonstick spray. I made the first batch a little bigger so I baked for almost 20 minutes. The second batch baked for about 16 minutes.You are looking for a rich golden brown color on the outside.

Remove and let cool. Sneak one or two to taste test…then serve!

The King's Peanut Butter Cookies

“I’ll sing you a story of a silly young king

Who played with the world at the end of a string,
But he only loved one single thing --
And that was just a peanut-butter sandwich.”
Shel Silverstein’s Peanut Butter Sandwich

Better bow down!

There is something quite childlike about peanut butter. I used to eat enough peanut butter sandwiches to rival Shel Silverstein’s king who ate his mouth shut. I could easily devour half a jar in a sitting, heaping creamy ribbons around soup spoons. I digress. Clearly I adored and adore to the stuff. So when I saw Elana from Elana’s Pantry post PB&J thumbprints I giggled in immature delight as the hunger butterflies fluttered in my tummy. I knew what sweet ending would sate my peanut butter fever.

That night after a delicious open faced veggie burger, yes those little patties are flying out of my freezer and flocking to my plate this week, I decided I had to change up our savory palates and pile on some peanut butter. I flipped Elana’s recipe out of my purse and begin to gather the ingredients. Alas, I did not have any decent jam or jelly though. I felt my heart sink into my stomach slightly. Pride and persistence made my eyes leap through the ingredients I did have and what I did have was plenty of peanut butter. No shame in a simple peanut butter cookie…

Maybe I was thwarted by the “chopped” episode in the background but I wanted to give myself an on the spot challenge. A peanut butter cookie that was 5 ingredients, vegan, gluten free, flourless, and could be enjoyed in 10 minutes (not including cooling). Mission. Accomplished.

These PB puppies were plump and decadent, melting into delicious morsels as soon as you popped it into you mouth. I had to show some serious restraint dear readers as I am sure you will too. I dedicate these cookies to the king, whose royal passion for peanut butter held me captive in its verses while I clutched my many childhood peanut butter sandwiches.

The King’s Peanut Butter Cookies

Ingredients
• 1 cup smooth (or crunchy if you wish) Peanut Butter
• ½ organic brown sugar
• 1 tbs organic vanilla
• 1 tsp baking soda
• Flax egg (1 tbs ground flax seed + 2.5 tbs warm water)

Instructions
Preheat your oven to 350F.Mix your flax egg in a small bowl and let sit for 10 minutes.

Combine all your ingredients in a large bowl and mix until thoroughly combined. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Form 12, 1 inch balls of dough and place them on the sheet. Do not flatten! Put that fork down and step away…I did sptinkle a teeny but of kosher salt on the top which yes I know technically makes it "6" ingredients but I am sure you can forgive me hehe.

Bake for 8-10 minutes until lightly golden brown and the cookies look “set”. Take them out and let cool for at least 10 minutes. The longer the better. They will continue to slightly cook on the sheet so do not worry if they don’t look done when you pull them out.

Plate and enjoy! I popped half in the freezer and enjoyed them last night. I highly suggest doing this if you have any left to save!
I made one dozen and saved the rest of the dough for future craving (tomorrow).

You can find Elana's Peanut Buttter and Jelly Recipe here: http://www.elanaspantry.com/

“A puff of dust, a screech, a squeak --
The king’s jaw opened with a creak.
And then in voice so faint and weak --
The first words that they heard him speak
Were, “How about a peanut-butter sandwich?”

Shel Silverstein’s Peanut Butter Sandwich

New No Bake Memory

There is always that cookie that reminds you of your Yiayia’s (grandmother’s) house. That cookie that sparks so many memories. Whether you made it with just her, or with your mum, or your cousins, or occasionally if you were feeling nice, your little sister. Have it in your head? Are the sweet smells swarming around you as you read these words?

THAT cookie for me would be No Bake Oatmeal Cookies.

I remember the smells and sounds of her kitchen while we prepped and prepared these sweet little gems. We would anxiously circle my Yiayia while she stirred the peanut butter and chocolate, her always grabbing the oats at just the right time. We would anxiously grab our spoons and clump the mixture onto wax paper, our breaths growing quicker as we tried and get the cookies on before they cooled in the pot. After the stressful task of dolloping we would enjoy the bits of batter that stuck to our spoons. Then we waited. I cannot say patiently because inevitably one of us would end up with chocolate dipped fingertips from ‘testing’ to see if they had dried. Anyone who has made these know that you can visually tell when they have dried on the wax paper but we pretended that we didn’t of course.

Unfortunately my friends, when I have made these mementos outside of my Yiayia’s kitchen it’s just not the same. Maybe the memories that were created in her kitchen are so closely attached to that recipe that nothing can really compare. All the more reason to create something just as memorable though right? And lucky for me, one of the blogs I follow posted a no bake vegan almond butter chew recipe for me to try. Only 5 ingredients and 5 minutes of my time. Which was perfect timing for me because my son had a sleepover and I had to sate their sweet tooth cravings STAT. Trust me, if two hyper first graders demand sugar, you provide sugar. Unless you have a death wish.

I varied from “oh she glows” blog’s recipe slightly in ingredients but obviously our directions our the same.

Here is the link to her recipe:
http://ohsheglows.com/2011/01/05/5-minute-5-ingredient-no-bake-almond-butter-chews/

No Bake Vegan Almond Butter Chews

•1/4 cup chunky all-natural almond butter
•1 ½ tsp pure vanilla extract
•1 cup rice crisp cereal – I used Nature Path’s Organic Koala Crisp
•3 tbsp organic brown rice syrup
•2 tbs chopped bittersweet organic chocolate – I found a small container in the produce section of whole foods that was delicious!

Line a plate with parchment paper. In a medium sized bowl, stir together the almond butter,

brown rice syrup, and vanilla. Microwave on high for 45 seconds. Stir well and immediately add in the rice crisp cereal and chocolate. Stir until all the cereal is well coated.
Wet your hands thoroughly and shape the mixture into ‘golf-balls’. Press mixture together firmly so it will hold. Wet hands after each ball is formed so the mixture will not stick to your hands. Trust me you need to do this or you will make a sticky mess. Plus it makes it so much easier to form the cookies.

Place the balls onto parchment paper and freeze for 10 minutes. You can keep these chews in the freezer in a sealed container. I really enjoy them straight from the freezer. They remain nice and chewy.
Her blog Makes 7 golf-ball sized chews. I somehow managed 10-12 chews but I tend to not exactly measure my ingredients. Guilty… but I ended up with more chews so we aren’t complaining!

A Very Cherry Christmas

My husband has been craving all things cherry the last few weeks. Cherry shakes, cherry cobbler, cherry this and cherry that. So of course when the

local newspaper featured a huge story on the 12 days of Christmas cookies, my husband zoned in on, you guessed it, the cherry icebox cookies. Shocking I know.

Now those of you who have followed my blog know that gluten free baking and I have had our showdowns in the past and that I have been sticking to cookie dough that steers clear of substitutions that potentially forecast a doughy flood in my oven. I make non gluten free goods for him all the time, but I was feeling rather brave yesterday. Maybe it was because I had my son home with me and he is always willing to fearlessly dive into whatever project I come up with that day. I decided that I needed to woman up and take whatever consequences this adventure threw at us. Plus my son would no doubt get a kick out of the mess that was likely to ensue on my counters and in my oven. What we mothers do to bring a smile to our little one’s faces.

After returning from the store with our ingredients and new found spunk towards the wintery afternoon’s culinary exploration, we tied our apron strings, laid out our tools on the counter, and began a sweet discovery into cherry bliss. Which of course started with breaking into the cherry jar and popping two or three in our mouth at a time. Hey, we needed all the energy we could get!

After the prep work had been finished , our aprons and faces sprinkled with sweet rice flour, and the dough nestled into saran wrapped cocoons in the refrigerator to cool, we kicked up our feet and admired the first round feat.

A couple outdoor games, art projects, and one Polar Express movie later, the cookie dough had cooled and the two us got our hands dowsed in dough once more as we sliced and situated our cookies on the pan. 9 minutes later a taste test.

Perfection.

Sweet Perfection that melted in our mouths. Oh, these cookies will for sure make Santa’s cheeks a little pinker and the twinkle in his eye a little brighter this year. This recipe makes enough cookies to satisfy Santa, the reindeer, and most the elves so expect to be sharing! Tis the season for that anyways though right? They would make darling presents for coworkers or friends. Just jazz them up in fun holiday trimmings and make everyone’s spirits bright!

Cherry Icebox Cookies

•1 cup butter, softened
•1 cup sugar
•1/4 cup organic packed brown sugar
•1 large organic egg
•4-1/2 teaspoons lemon juice
•1 teaspoon Pure Vanilla Extract
•3-1/4 cups sweet rice flour
•1/2 teaspoon baking soda
•1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
•1/2 cup chopped walnuts
•1/2 cup chopped maraschino cherries
•1/3 cup maraschino cherry juice


In your mixing bowl cream your softened butter and both sugars until light and fluffy. Then beat in the egg, cherry and lemon juices. Slowly add your vanilla. Pour all dry ingredients in a separate mixing bowl and whisk until thoroughly combined. Then gradually add to the creamed mixture and mix on medium until well combined. Remove from your mixed and carefully stir in walnuts and cherries.

Divide the dough into 4 even parts and roll into a cylinder shape. The dough might be pretty thick. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate for about 3-4 hours or until firm.

Remove dough just before baking. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Unwrap a roll and cut into quarter inch slices. Place 2 in. apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake at 375 for 8-10 minutes or until the edges begin to brown. Remove to wire racks to cool.

This recipe makes about 6 dozen cookies depending on how much dough actually makes it to the oven!