I started my usual Christmas baking today. Since this time last year, one of my children has learned that eating even one bite of gluten is extremely hazardous to her health. Today I realized that ALL of our go-to recipes for Christmas delicacies include gluten. And I know from past experience that just substituting gluten-free flour for all-purpose does NOT necessarily yield a great result.
While toying with a traditional sugar cookie recipe, I decided to try some almond scones. The recipe was shared recently at Diabetes Brought Us Together by my friend Heidi who learned it from her mother who acquired it from her friend Paula. These scones are incredibly delicious, and they are gluten-free, dairy-free, AND sugar-free! Heidi calls them Paula’s Impossible (to mess up) Almond Scones. I’m calling mine…
Heidi’s Incredibly Delicious Almond Scones
- 2 1/2 cups almond flour
- 1/4 cup raw honey
- 1 tsp. baking powder
- 1/2 tsp. salt
- 2 eggs
- *Pick an add-in combo
Mix all the ingredients until a thick dough is formed. Drop on baking sheet in generous tablespoon-sized blobs. Bake at 350° for 12 minutes.
*1/2 cup pecans and 1/3 cup shredded coconut
* Chocolate chips and 3 drops orange essential oil
*Dried cherries and chocolate chips
* 1 tsp pumpkin spice and pecans
*Lemon zest and blueberries
I made mine with orange essential oil and dried cherries, and, true to their name, they are incredibly delicious!
I then turned my efforts to our traditional sugar cookie recipe and was very pleased with the outcome!
Melissa’s Almond Sugar Cookies
Cream together 1 stick of butter, 1/3 cup sugar and 1egg. Add 1 tsp. vanilla extract.
Gradually add 1 1/2 cups of almond flour and mix thoroughly.
Form cookies by dropping about 2 tsp. of dough on to a parchment paper-lined baking sheet about an inch apart. (I tried using my cookie press but found the dough to be too thin. I see more experimentation in my future!)
Bake at 350° for 15 minutes.
And, finally, what to do about our family favorite, Apple Butter French Toast??
As a substitute for the French bread stuffed with a mixture of apple butter and cream cheese, I’ve decided to serve a gluten-free pancake and an apple butter/cream cheese spread. Here’s my favorite gluten-free pancake recipe.
Kristin’s Pancakes
Stir together:
1 cup gluten-free oats
1 cup almond milk
1 scoop protein powder
1/2 cup egg whites
2 Tbsp. ground flax seed
2 Tbsp. Greek yogurt
1/4 tsp. nutmeg
1/4 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking powder
Cook in coconut oil.
I hope my family will enjoy these seasonal substitutions. If you have other tried and true gluten-free recipes for seasonal favorites, please share!