Tag Archives: Carob Brownies

Gluten Free: Days 8,9&10

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I tortured myself by making brownies. FULL OF GLUTEN. All for a worthwhile cause. Click photo to learn more!

Is it cheating to put three days together? I’ll let you be the judge of that.

I could write them separately, but it would get pretty repetitive. My meals for the past three days have been pretty standard. I guess that’s a sign that I’m settling into this gluten-free business.

Lazy night, chili for dinner. Fortunately it was homemade (by me) and gluten-free

We got invited out for sushi the other night, and I got really excited. Fish + Rice = gluten free right? Then I remembered the soy sauce….a crucial ingredient. Is there gluten-free soy sauce? I could just bring my own! And then there’s the tempura. I’m not sure what it’s made of…but it sure seems like something that would involve wheat (Wikipedia confirms my suspicions).

Fortunately I was busy, and couldn’t make it, but it got me thinking. Is sushi safe for people with gluten intolerance? If you avoided the soy sauce and the tempura would the possibility for contamination still make it too dangerous?

This is what you end up with when you are babysitting and spaghetti is for dinner.

Note: As I am writing this the TV is on in the background and they are playing House Hunters International, moving to Japan and eating lots of sushi!

If you have experience with this dilemma please let me know.

It could be time to find my bamboo mat and practice my sushi making skills. I can’t live without sushi forever!

Today I will get back on the bread bandwagon. I’ve purchased a HUGE bag of gluten-free all-purpose flour and some brand new yeast. Fletcher has also requested that I try to make pizza, so we are going to experiement for dinner tonight.

I am also going to try making granola bars, so look forward to some exciting new recipes coming soon :)

 

The Breakfast Montage

Chocolate-Free Chocolate Brownies (Carob Brownies)

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These brownies are some of the best I’ve ever made, despite not having any chocolate in them. You can easily sub the cocoa back in, just make sure to use less. You use about 2.5x more carob powder than you would cocoa.

My messy kitchen. You are welcome (and even encouraged) to have a more organized work-space :)

 

 

Ingredients

1/2 cup butter (melted)
1 cup white sugar
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 eggs
1/4 cup cream cheese
1/2 cup heavy cream
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup carob powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup semi-sweet carob chips

 

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350F & grease and flour an 8×8 (or similar) baking pan.

2. Whip butter, cream cheese and sugar until light and fluffy

3. Add eggs and whip some more

Batter should look like this

4. Add vanilla and cream. Mix well.

5. Mix dry ingredients together (or, if using a mixer you can just add them one at a time). Be careful with the carob powder, mine poofed (is there an actual term for this?) into the air when I scooped it, and I ended up inhaling it.

6. Slowly add dry ingredients to wet ingredients and mix well.

7. Add carob chips.

8. Your brownie mix should still be thick enough to stick to the spatula, but thin enough the move a little. If you feel like you need to thin out the batter a bit you can add a small amount of vegetable oil or more cream.

If you don't flatten it will just bake in this shape

 

9. Scoop brownie mixture into pan and smooth out so it is flat.

10. Bake for 40min at 350F, or until toothpick comes out clean.

Ready to go!

11. Let cool for 10 minutes, then enjoy.
Happy Baking!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chocolate-Free Chocolate Brownies

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I decided to switch things up a little bit yesterday.

I had received a request from a friend to create a cocoa-free, but still chocolate flavored, dessert.

You see, the poor girl (who I happen to know has a sweet tooth like no other), has developed an allergy to chocolate.

Unfair to the extreme.

If you’ve never had it, you can live without it, but if you are a chocoholic? Well that’s just plain cruel!

The only thing I could find that claimed any resemblance to cocoa is carob. Some of you may know it well, but I was (until yesterday) a carob-newbie.

I asked around and was told that it’s OK, but it’s not chocolate.

Save some for everyone else!

I decided that coming up with a delicious chocolate-free, chocolate brownie required pulling out All the stops.

White flour, white sugar, eggs, butter…you get the picture.

We had a full house last night, so it seemed like the perfect scenario for testing out a new recipe. Especially a new recipe that I’m not allowed to eat….

Who doesn’t want a warm brownie right from the oven?

Exactly. No one.

So, along with my new favorite kitchen companion, Helen (my mixer, I’m certain that I will soon lose the ability to bake without her), I set out to bake some chewy, chocolaty, amazing brownies, and hopefully trick everyone into thinking they were full of chocolate.

As people arrived I offered them brownies. They loved them.

After a moment of basking in the pleasure that comes from people enjoying something you’ve made, I asked them to guess what “essential” ingredient was missing.  The first guess was gluten (kind of a trick question I suppose) then eggs, dairy, butter, and finally chocolate.

I have to admit, I did taste them. I know, I know! I will justify this two ways 1)I’m supposed to have a tiny bit of gluten so this experiment doesn’t cause me to have a gluten intolerance, and 2) You have to taste your cooking before you serve it to other people. It’s selfless really (even if they are delicious) putting the needs of others (a yummy brownie) above the needs of myself (no wheat).

Fortunately they were all eaten up and there are none left to tempt me!

I call this a major success and one lucky lady can look forward to receiving a package in the mail sometime soon!

Click here for the recipe and more pictures.

Happy Baking!