Recipe Review - Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies from The Super Allergy Girl Cookbook

Hello,

I was so happy to find this recipe for Soft & Chewy Chocolate Chip Cookies. They are the best cookies we have found so far! They were definitely soft and chewy (although I will admit you have to trust the timer because the cookies do not really brown like we are used to and they get harder without getting browner). There are some unique ingredients in these cookies like gluten-free baby rice cereal. I will just mention that we found Beech-Nut to be free of soy, but please check the label for yourself. Again, we use Enjoy Life! Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips. Everyone loved these cookies and we even took them to a party where many children thought the were delicious. You will too.

Recipe Review - Molassas Cookies from The Super Allergy Girl Cookbook

Hello,

If you are looking for a gluten-free Molasses Cookie recipe you may want to check out the recipe in The Super Allergy Girl Cookbook. We had gads of molasses left over from failed attempts at other recipes and I was hoping that maybe my children would love this cookie. But alas, we came up against the ginger problem again (even though I 1/2ed the amount) so even though my daughters numbers have gone down and the doctor says she can eat it, she still cannot stomach the taste of it.

I will let you know that I was very pleasantly surprised at how amazingly soft and chewy these cookies were. My little guy loved them and was thrilled that they were still soft 4-5 days after we had baked them. You can't say that for most allergy free cookies!

Recipe Review - Allergy-Free Chocolate Brownies from The Super Allergy Girl Cookbook

Hello,

When it comes to brownies, the recipe we like best is Allergy-Free Chocolate Brownies from The Super Allergy Girl Cookbook. The recipe was great for me because we have not found a baking chocolate that we feel is 100% dairy free and this recipe calls for baking chocolate or cocoa powder (which we have found is safe for our daughter). We tried two different flour combinations in this recipes. I found Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Flour to be a bit sour so I added around a cup of Enjoy Life! Semi-sweet chocolate chips. It worked very well. I also tried a combination of 1/2 cup rice flour, 1/4 cup corn or potato starch, and 1/4 cup tapioca flour (per cup in the recipe) in addition to the chocolate chips and it was much sweeter, but I did notice a more gritty texture. My children said they liked the brownies either way, and their friends agreed. These brownies do take a bit of time and effort to make, but they are very worth it. They also freeze very well and are great to take out for a party, play date, lunch box or trip. I would highly recommend buying The Super Allergy Girl Cookbook for the brownie and chocolate chip cookie recipes alone. They are so much better than anything else we have found.

Recipe - Rice Krispie Treats

Hello,

Now obviously this recipe belongs to the Rice Krispie company, but hopefully they will not mind if I publish it again here just so you see how easy it is to modify things you probably ate pre-allergy diagnosis.

Rice Krispie Treats

3 tbsp. margarine - Fleischmann's Unsalted margarine (contains soy) *
1 10 oz package of marshmallows (Several, including Wegmans and Jet Puffed did not contain any egg products, but always check the label.)
6 cups Rice Krispies

Melt margarine over low heat. Add marshmallows; stir until melted and mixture is smooth. Remove from heat. Immediately add cereal; mix lightly until well coated. Press firmly into lightly greased 9"x13" baking pan. Cool completely; cut into squares.

* This doesn't seem to work with Spectrum Organic Shortening. I am having a hard time getting it to melt, but I am still working on alternatives.

Recipe - Oatmeal Jam Bars

Hello,

This is another recipe that was shared by a friend, and we used it often, especially when we needed to take cookies to special events. No one could tell that it was dairy and egg free. This recipe does contain gluten in the flour and the oats. You can also use this as a breakfast treat similar to Nutrigrain bars.

Oatmeal Jam Bars

1/2 cup margarine (Fleischmann's Unsalted Margarine (contains soy) or Spectrum Organic Vegetable Shortening)
1 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 1/2 cups quick cooking oats (or regular oats)
1/4 cup water
1 tsp lemon juice
2/3 cup jam or jelly

Cream margarine and sugar. Add all other ingredients except lemon juice and jam. Spread half of the mixture in the bottom of an ungreased 9"x13" baking pan. Mix the jam and lemon juice in a separate container and then spread over the oatmeal mixture. Crumble the rest of the oatmeal mixture over the top and press down lightly. Bake at 350 º F for 20 minutes.

Recipe - Old Fashioned Cookies

Hello,

This recipe was given to me by a friend and I am not sure if credit is due anyone. This makes a nice, soft cookie. Again, this recipe was before our gluten free days so it is only free of dairy, egg, and nuts. I will test a gluten-free version soon and let you know how it goes.

Old Fashioned Cookies

1 cup margarine, softened (Fleischmann's Unsalted Margarine (contains soy) or Spectrum Organic Vegetable Shortening (contains palm))
2 cups firmly packed brown sugar
Mix together 3 tbsp. oil, 3 tbsp. water, and 2 tsp baking powder and then place in bowl.
1 tsp. vanilla extract
3 3/2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt

Beat margarine at medium speed with an electric mixer; add sugar, beat well, set aside. Add wet ingredients; mix well. Combine flour, baking soda, and salt. Add to creamed mixture and mix well. Shape dough into two 16-inch rolls; wrap in waxed paper and chill at least 4 hours. Preheat oven to 375 º F. Unwrap dough and cut into slices. Place on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake for 6-8 minutes (again start checking early especially if you are trying to make this recipe gluten-free). Cool on wire racks. Makes 8 dozen.

Note: This dough freezes well. Slice the dough while frozen and then bake immediately. You can also cook these cookies without putting them in the refrigerator first.

Tip: This is a very mild cookie. You can add all sorts of things like cran-raisins, cranberries, blueberries, chocolate chips, etc.

Recipe - Our Favorite Sugar Cookie Recipe

Hello,

This is our favorite sugar cookie recipe. It does not get too crunchy, it rolls out well, stays fresh for several days and freezes well. The children love cutting it with cookie cutters, icing the shapes and decorating them with sprinkles. Our cookies look just like everyone else's, but they are allergy-free. I have yet to try a gluten-free version of this recipe, but I will try to see if I can do it soon.


Sugar Cookies

1 cup sugar
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter (Fleischmann's Unsalted Margarine (contains soy), Spectrum Organic Vegetable Shortening (contains palm))
1 cup oil (We use corn oil.)
1 tsp. vanilla

1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cream of tartar
4 cups flour

Mix all wet ingredients together. Mix all dry ingredients together. Add to wet ingredients and roll to 3/8" thickness. Bake at 350 º F for 7-8 minutes. TIP - I always time the cookies for about 6 minutes and then add extra time as needed.

Recipe - Birthday Cupcakes

Hello,

These are the cupcakes that I made during the few years when my daughter was able to eat gluten containing flours. They were so light and fluffy and tasted so good that I was even willing to share them with adults and friends who did not have allergies. This recipe can really only be used for cupcakes or sheet cake because the cake is so light that it falls apart if you try to make any other kind of cake, especially layer cakes or shaped cakes. I have not tried to make this recipe as a gluten free cake, but I may try soon. I'll let you know how it goes.

Birthday Cupcakes

2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2/3 cup butter or margarine (Fleischmann's Unsalted Margarine (contains soy) or Spectrum Shortening (contains palm))
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
2 eggs (1 tbsp. Ener-G Egg Replacer and 4 tbsp. water)
1 1/4 cup milk (We use Westsoy Rice Beverage with vanilla flavor)

For Cake

1) Grease and lightly flour a 9"x13" baking pan; set aside. Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; set aside.
2) In a large mixing bowl beat butter, margarine or shortening with an electric mixer on medium to high speed for 30 seconds. Add sugar and vanilla; beat till well combined. Add eggs, one at a time, beating 1 minute after each. Add dry mixture and milk alternately to beaten mixture, beating on low speed after each addition just until combined. Pour batter into prepared pans.
3) Bake in a 375 º F oven for 30-35 minutes or until a wooden toothpick comes out clean. Cool layer cakes in pans on wire racks for 10 minutes. Remove layer cakes from pans. Cool on racks. Frost. Serves 12.

For Cupcakes

1) Prepare cake as seen above. Put cupcake wrappers in cupcake pan. Fill each cup about 3/4 full. Bake in 375 º F oven for 18-20 minutes or until a wooden toothpick inserted comes out clean. (I usually start checking after about 16 minutes.) Cool. Makes approximately 24 cupcakes.

Recipe - Apple Saute

Hello,

We use this apple saute as a dessert.

Apple Saute

1) Slice a few large apples (2-4).
2) Add about a tbsp. of oil to a pan.
3) Saute the apples until they are soft.
4) Sprinkle sugar on apples and serve warm.

You can also add cinnamon or lemon juice if your children can stand these tastes.

Recipe - Easter Bunny Cake

Who says your child can't have a great Easter dessert? Now honestly I was in a hurry with this one and never even thought of posting the picture, so it's not the best, but I hope it will encourage you to try.

I used the gluten free yellow cake mix and white icing from Cherrybrook Kitchen. I added Spectrum shortening and water/rice milk to make it a bit more creamy and shiny. I made poofs of icing around the mouth and used Wilton's pink and black icing and one pink jellybean for decoration.

Recipe - Chocolate and Strawberry Dessert

For Valentine's Day this year I decided to create something extra special for the children. Katie has just started eating things that have a chocolate taste, so I came up with this idea. I used the gluten free chocolate cake mix from Cherrybrook Kitchen and poured it into a heart-shaped cupcake pan. I happened to find mine on sale at Wegman's, but if you do not have one, you could simply make a sheet cake and use heart-shaped cookie cutters. After the cake was done I sprinkled it with powdered sugar, surrounded it with cut strawberries in a glaze made from powdered sugar and water, and then placed the small heart shaped chocolate on top. I was able to make the heart shaped chocolate by melting approximately a cup of Enjoy Life semi-sweet chocolate chips with approximately 1/2 tbls. or less of corn oil. This was an experiment, so I do not have the exact measurements. I then placed the melted chocolate into some heart shaped silicone (or flexible plastic) ice cube trays. I put the chocolate in the freezer for about 15 minutes, popped the chocolates out and placed them on top of the chocolate cake. The kids were thrilled.

Recipe - Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Hello,

This recipe is not gluten free, but it was a staple during the 3 years after Katie "got over" her allergy to wheat and gluten and before we were told that she needed to avoid wheat and gluten once again. The thing I love about this recipe is that no one could ever tell that it did not have milk or eggs. Everyone loved these cookies.

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

1 cup (2 sticks) margarine, softened (Fleischman's Unsalted Margarine (contains soy) or Spectrum Shortening (contains palm))
1 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 eggs (1 tbsp. Ener-G Egg Replacer + 4 tbls. water)
1 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (I miss those days!) (You could try Bob's Old Red Mill Gluten Free Baking Flour)
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon (We avoid.)
1/2 tsp. salt (optional)
3 cups Quaker Oats (These contain gluten.)
1 cup raisins (We avoid. Do not use if your child is sensitive to Salicylates.)

Heat oven to 350 º F. Beat together margarine and sugars until creamy. Add eggs and vanilla; beat well. Add combined flour, baking soda and salt; mix well. Stir in oats and raisins (if using); mix well. Drop by rounded teaspoonfulls onto greased cookie sheet. Bake 10-12 minutes or until golden brown. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet. Remove to wire rack. Makes 4 dozen. For bar cookies, bake 30-35 minutes in ungreased 13"x9" baking pan. These store and freeze well.

Recipe - Peach Cobbler

Hello,

I am still in the process of trying to make the cobbler in this Peachy Cobbler thicker, and more like the cobbler I grew up with. I tried doubling the cobbler portion, and I am still working out the exact Xanthan Gum proportions, but it still tastes good. It is especially good over ice cream which I will be posting a recipe for soon.

Peachy Cobbler

2 cups (29 oz can) sliced cling peaches, drained
3 tbsp. lemon juice
1 cup light brown sugar
1 tsp. cinnamon (We omit.)
3/4 cup flour (Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free All Purpose Baking Flour)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. Xanthan Gum
1/4 tsp. salt
3/4 cup milk (We use Westsoy Rice Beverage, Vanilla flavor.)
1/3 cup butter or margarine, melted (Fleischman's Unsalted Margarine, Spectrum Shortening, or oil)

Arrange drained, sliced peaches in a 9" or 10" square baking pan. Pour on lemon juice. Spread brown sugar over peaches. Sprinkle on cinnamon.

In a mixing bowl combine flour, sugar, baking powder, salt. Add milk and beat until smooth. Batter will be very thin. (You can choose to double the cobbler portion, but you will need to bake the cobbler longer.)

Pour batter over peaches and brown sugar. Drizzle melted butter or margarine over batter.

Bake in preheated 350 º F oven for about 35 minutes. Makes 8-10 servings.