Merry Christmas

It's been a while between posts here. I haven't been baking much the past few months. With studies, a new job, plus ensuing health issues, I've been keeping my diet simple, & quite natural & unprocessed. Lots of vegetables & a little bit of meat. All dairy has once again been struck from my diet, since the reactions I was getting from cheese was becoming almost violent. With the cold setting in, this has consisted of a diet of lots of steamed vegetables.

But, since Christmas is approaching, I figure this is the time of year to create something indulgent. My stomach hasn't agreed the last few days; it's chosen this time of year to react heavily. But what's one day, right?

This year I've made myself gingerbread, cinnamon rolls & chocolate truffles. The truffles were just a mix of coconut flour, cocoa, psyllium husk, erythirol, stevia, shredded coconut, ground almonds & hazelnuts, coconut oil, tahini & soy milk. Plus whatever spices tickled my fancy. I'd post a recipe for those, but there was really no measuring done. It was just a taste-as-you-go fest!



I made two batches of cinnamon rolls; one with grated zucchini & one without. The batter comes up quite moist with zucchini added. You can omit this if you choose. It will, however, yield a much smaller batch. Naturally these don't rise since there's no yeast, so they do come out quite small. I've used shredded coconut in place of pearl sugar. If you do not want this, simply omit.

I've also begun using erythritol, a sweetner derived from sugar alcohol which has no calories, can add bulk to baked goods, & goes well with stevia. It's a natural sweetner & doesn't raise blood sugar, & I've found no gastrointestinal distress while using it, though I do keep usage to a minimum & only use it as a partner to stevia. For more information, please read more here. If you don't feel comfortable using this product, simply omit. You could substitute with palm or coconut sugar, but as I've not used either of these sugar, I cannot say how they would affect the taste.

The batches below are really intended for one person. For a higher yield, double the amounts listed.

Please find below my recipes for Paleo-friendly, gluten-free, sugar-free, grain-free, dairy-free Gingerbread soft cookies & Cinnamon Rolls!

Soft Gingerbread Cookies
(paleo, gluten-free, sugar-free, dairy-free, grain-free)

Ingredients:
1dl & 1 tablespoon / 30g / 1/4 cup coconut flour
1 tablespoon psyllium husk
3 egg whites
1 egg yolk
1 tablespoon ghee, melted
2 tablespoons almond flour
2 mls powdered stevia (add more if you want it sweeter
2 tablespoons erythritol
1dl/100mls soy milk
½dl/50mls water
1 tablespoon apple-cider vinegar
1 ml bicarb soda
2 teaspoons cinnamon
2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1ml vanilla
pinch of salt

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius.
2. Add egg whites to a bowl & beat with an electric mixer till white peaks form.
3. Add egg yolk to whites & beat with mixer, blending in.
4. Add milk, vinegar & water, mixing to a good consistency.
5. Sift all dry ingredients together & add to the bowl. Add the melted ghee & mix together with a wooden spoon.
6. Once mixed together, all the mixture to sit for a few minutes. This allows the ingredients to hold together better.
7. Roll out onto baking paper & cut into shapes with cookie cutters or roll into small round cookie shapes.
8. Bake for 25-30 minutes.




Cinnamon Rolls
(paleo, gluten-free, sugar-free, dairy-free, grain-free)

Ingredients:
1dl & 1 tablespoon / 30g / 1/4 cup coconut flour
1 tablespoon psyllium husk
3 egg whites
1 egg yolk
½dl - 1dl / 50-100mls grated zucchini
2 mls powdered stevia (add more if you want it sweeter
2 tablespoons erythritol
1 tablespoon apple-cider vinegar
50mls soy milk
50 mls water
1 ml bicarb soda
1 teaspoon ground cardamom
pinch of salt
shredded coconut
extra egg yolk, for glazing

Butter mixture
2 tablespoons melted ghee
1-2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
up to 1 tablespoon erythirol
1-2mls stevia

Method:
1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius.
2. Add egg whites to a bowl & beat with an electric mixer till white peaks form.
3. Add egg yolk to whites & beat with mixer, blending in.
4. Add milk, vinegar & water, mixing to a good consistency.
5. Sift all dry ingredients together & add to the bowl. Add the melted ghee & mix together with a wooden spoon.
6. Once mixed together, all the mixture to sit for a few minutes. This allows the ingredients to hold together better.
8. Roll out onto baking paper & shape batter into a rectangle. Prebake in oven for 5 minutes.
9. Remove from oven. Spread butter mixture over batter, adding more cinnamon & sweetners once it's spread over. Roll up into a log & cut into slices. Glaze with egg yolk.
8. Bake for 25-30 minutes, removing halfway to turn & glaze with more egg yolk & sprinkle with shredded coconut.
Yields about 8-10 small rolls.




*Note: I will start listing 'dl' measurements, as I live in Sweden, & measuring cups come in millilitre or decilitre measurements, not by cup. I will also list the millilitre as a guide to how much is required, & will list weights when this is taken.

This has been submitted to Amy's Slightly Indulgent Tuesday

The Ultimate in Flavours

I'm going to share with you now something that I discovered the other day, then ventured to make for myself.

Chocolate cookie goodness, with something surprising in the mix

What are they? Well, obviously something with glorious chocolate involved. Chocolate is something I haven't been able to have for almost a year. After I cut sugar & carbs out of my diet, I was still indulging in cocoa mixed with milk & sweetener. I was still getting over my lack of sugary delights in my diet, & it was something that I was making to compensate. But as I learnt more about Candida, & better understood the reactions I was getting, I realised that cocoa was causing issues. After I would have my mousse creation, I would still incur cramps, gas & bloating. It wasn't long till I realised that I had to give up cocoa too, adding to the growing list of things under the simple heading of 'No'.

Forward about 10 months later, & after tiring of closing so many recipe pages down when I saw the listing of 'cocoa' or 'cacao', in the ingredients list, I decided to give raw cacao a go. Realising that the fermentation process may have been upsetting my stomach, & after being on the anti-candida diet for so long, I decided to give the mighty cocoa bean one more chance. I bought a small amount of raw cacao from a local health food store, & tried a tiny amount mixed with coconut flour, vanilla, sweetener & milk (a little pudding mix I make for myself when I want something sweet but don't feel like baking). No reactions. So I kept trying here & there, & finding that I was ok with cacao, finally. The raw kind, at least.

So when I came across the concept of bacon chocolate cookies, I felt an internal explosion of sorts. Bacon, with chocolate!? It seems this phenomenon has existed for a while, but it was something I was completely out of the loop about.

Bacon. Chocolate. Cookies! Could there be a better combination of foods & flavours?!!? Ok, depending on your deposition, the answer could be different. But for me... I love bacon. I love chocolate. I was a vegetarian for two stints lasting 10 years in total, & when I had bacon again after relinquishing my vegetarian ways (for good as well, but I have my own personal reasons for that), I couldn't believe that I had gone so long without it. Now, after having a long time without chocolate, it's nice to savour the taste of that again too.

Look at those little hints of bacon, melded amongst the

crumbly, moist goodness of the chocolate cookie.

Oh, such a sight!

I couldn't stop thinking of making these when I found them. I devised the recipe in my mind, writing down my ideas for how to make my version of them, while referencing some recipes on the net. Then I gave them a go. & oh, how I love them!

They're wonderfully moist, salty & sweet, meaty bits of bacon sitting in the soft, chocolate casing. I am in love!

Bacon Chocolate Cookies

(Sugar-free, wheat-free)

Ingredients:

65mls (½dl + 1 tablespoon) coconut flour

1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted

1 tablespoon butter, plus 1 teapsoon for cooking the bacon

1 egg

50mls milk

20mls (1 tablespoon + 1 teaspoon) raw cacao

1ml white stevia

4 strips of bacon

½ teaspoon vanilla

1/8 teaspoon bicarb soda

Method:

1. Preheat oven to 180 degrees

2. Cook bacon in a pan with 1 teaspoon of butter. Allow to cool & dice. (Save the fat left over from cooking the bacon into a bowl)

3. In the same pan, melt the coconut & butter, collecting the cooked flavours of the bacon into the butter & coconut mix. Pour into the bowl containing the residue bacon fat.

4. Mix the cacao into the melted coconut, butter & bacon fat.

5. In another bowl, sift the flour, white stevia, vanilla & bicarb soda.

6. Whisk egg in a separate bowl. Making a well with the flour, add the egg, milk, butter/coconut/bacon fat mix, bacon & mix together. The batter should be rather wet.

7. Place some baking paper on a tray & using a spoon, drop the batter onto the tray. Bake for 10-15 minutes.

Yields about 10 cookies

I also made bacon gingerbread pancakes that morning, based on a recipe from Gluten Free Girl & The Chef's Pork & Spoon site. I was having a definite bacon fest that day!

I've also added this recipe to Brittany's Seasonal Sundays session & Amy's Slightly Indulgent Tuesday

God Jul!

Ok, so I'm little behind in regards to this post. I meant to share this before Christmas. But as is usually the case at this time of year, things were quite hectic & busy. Plus combined with the fact that it was my first White Christmas, & first Christmas in Sweden, my thoughts weren't exactly on updating my blog.

So the day may have passed, but I still want to share with you what I had for Christmas. Being the only one in my (new) family who is heavily intolerant to a lot of foods, I decided to make myself some sweet Christmas treats, so I wouldn't feel like I was missing out on anything. Here's my spread:

I do wish I had taken more photos, I apologise for that not being the best shot. But you get the idea. I made myself choc-hazelnut truffles, Scandinavian thumbprint cookies, gingerbread cookies, & blueberry raspberry blondies. The gingerbread was my own recipe concoction I've been playing around with for a while (since so many of the spices in gingerbread are so very good in helping to combat Candida). The truffles I made where another bit of guesswork, based on Elana's various truffle recipes; the Scandinavian thumbprint cookies were my alteration of Kelly's recipe, & the blondies were another alteration of a recipe, this time courtesy of Amy

I'll post my altered recipes for each soon, as well as my yummy gingerbread. H was very impressed with my spread (even helping me eat my blondies & thumbprint cookies!). His mum tried my gingerbread & said that it tasted just like pepparkakor, just without the crunchiness the original ones contain (mine are rather soft, as there is no syrup in them to harden them).

Sugar-Free/Gluten-Free/Flour-Free Gingerbread Cookies

Ingredients:

½dl (50g) coconut flour

½dl (50g) soy flour (can alternate with other bean flours if soy is not tolerated)

1 tablespoon (15g) psyllium husk

½dl (50 mls) water

½dl (50 mls) milk (for dairy free, use soy/oat/rice/almond/coconut milk)

1 egg

2 teaspoons liquid sweetener (equals 100g sugar)

1 tablespoon coconut oil, melted

1 tablespoon butter, melted

1/4 teaspoon bicarb soda

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1½ teaspoons dried ground ginger

1 teaspoon cardemom

1 teaspoon ground cloves

2 mls vanilla essence

pinch of nutmeg

pinch of salt

Method:

- Sift the flours into a bowl. Add the rest of the dry ingredients & mix well.

- Melt coconut oil & butter. Whisk egg in another bowl, & add the rest of the wet ingredients. Stir together.

- Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients & stir together. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or place the dough into an airtight container & leave it in the fridge overnight.

- Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcius.

- Roll dough flat with a rolling pin, then cut into cookies using cutters. Place the cookies on a tray covered with baking paper & bake for 15 minutes.

Enjoy! Writing about this now makes me want to go & bake another batch...

Strawberry Mookies

I'm making my first recipe submission! A little exciting & nerve-wracking. I don't know if what I make is really for other people's tastes besides my own, but I'm never gonna know if I don't throw myself out there & take a chance, now am I? I'm going to submit it to Amy's great site Simply Sugar & Gluten Free. I've been following her site for a few months now, & have tried a variety of her recipes, so I'm a little nervous & excited about doing this.

I made these after some experimenting with coconut flour. As I've stated before, coconut flour has opened many doors for me food-wise. Most flours I cannot tolerate, as with most nuts. & I'm not too keen on nut flour only mix in my baked goods. I can't enjoy an indulgence in them, as the fat content lays heavy on my mind (even if they are good fats. I still like to keep this to a healthy limit. & I like to have the 'freedom' to indulge when those whims hit without the mental guilt barrage I put myself through - silly, I know).

I call these 'mookies', as they're about cookie size but oh-so soft & fluffy like muffins, therefore mookies. The light & fluffy consistency is thanks to the coconut flour. & because of this ingredient, these are also high in fibre & oh-so nutritious. Sweet, healthy, tasty food is fun :)

Again, this is a small serving recipe, as I tend to bake for myself. H doesn't have a sweet tooth like I do, & I figure having a small amount to indulge in is better than too much. Feel free to double the ingredient amounts as needed. As for sweetners, I use liquid sweetener. Stevia in Sweden is hard to come by, where I am located, anyway. I'm still on the lookout, & will use it once I find it (I was using it in Australia). But until then, I use a liquid sweetener that I buy at the supermarket here.

Strawberry 'Mookies'

65g coconut flour

15g psyllium husk

1 egg

15 mls water

50 mls milk

50 mls coconut milk

30g coconut oil, melted

5-6 strawberries, chopped

2t cinnamon

2mls vanilla essence

70mls liquid sweetner or 70g sugar/sweetner

pinch of nutmeg

pinch of salt

Method:

Preheat oven at 180 degrees celcius.

In one bowl, sift the coconut flour & mix together the psyllium husk. Add the rest of the dry ingredients, & stir well together.

In another bowl, whisk the egg. Add milk, water, coconut milk & oil, sweetener & vanilla essence & mix well. Add this to the dry ingredients, & stir to get a moist, sticky batter. Add more milk or water if needed. Add the chopped strawberries & stir into the mix.

Spoon into mini muffin tins, or roll into small cookies. Bake for 25-30 mins.

Cool & serve. Can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge. Yields about 10 'mookies'.

Enjoy! Feel free to tweak the recipe as needed. You could use different berries instead of strawberries, & you could replace the coconut oil with butter (& add more to your liking). These came out soft & moist for me. I ate some with a dollop of creme fraiche on top. Yums!