Gluten free cookies and pancakes

This will also be in Becky Holm's Douglas County News.  After I move, I will continue to write for her, so keep reading Good Food, Cheap!


GLUTEN FREE BAKING
By Larisa Sparrowhawk
Gluten Free flour blends tend to be expensive and disappointing in many baked goods. Those with tapioca or corn starch produce gummy and flat breads and are better saved for pancakes. In my recipes I use individual flours rather than a prepared mix.
Gluten Free Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies - These have a “pecan sandies” texture from the rice flour but taste marvelous.
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Mix 1 3/4 c brown rice flour, ¼ cup cocoa powder, 1 tsp. baking soda, ½ tsp. salt and 1 tsp. cinnamon together and set aside.

Cream ½ cup plus 2 tbsp. of softened butter with 1 cup brown sugar. Beat in 2 large eggs and 1 tsp. vanilla flavoring. Mix wet and dry ingredients together, then fold in a bag of chocolate chips. (Check the label on the chips to ensure they do not contain gluten!)

Bake on parchment (best) or non stick cookie sheet 14 minutes or until set but not hard.

Buckwheat Fruit Pancakes – I didn’t realize how much I missed pancakes until I had a few bubbling on the stove. I devoured every one of these within a day all by myself.

Mix 1/2 cup brown rice flour with ½ cup buckwheat flour, ¼ cup tapioca starch, 2 tsp. baking powder and a pinch or two of salt. Add 1 egg, ½ cup of milk or nutmilk and 3 tbsp melted butter. Open a Celestial Seasonings blueberry teabag into the batter and add frozen blueberries or dried cranberries. Or use a cinnamon apple tea bag and raisins. Whisk together thoroughly and pour into a greased skillet to cook.

Coming soon: pumpkin sweet bread and sourdough gluten free bread!

Larisa Sparrowhawk will be available in Localvore, 115 E. Central Ave. in Sutherlin until the end of October and afterwards by email only: localvorefresh@aol.com.