BabyCakes's Madeleines

Instead of normal Christmas gifts, I had thought it would be nice to give my friends some tummy warming baked goods. For my friend Tana, I had decided to make her something out of the latest BabyCakes cookbook: BabyCakes Covers the Classics by Erin McKenna. We've really taken to this adorable little bakery, which happens to feature a lot of gluten-free and (GASP!) vegan delicacies. I got this cookbook a couple of months ago, and I've been itching to make something tasty from it. After many hours of page turning, I finally decided upon the adorable looking madeleines.

Madeleines are basically little plump cookie cakes. Most recipes are usually flavored with lemon or vanilla, but when I worked at Balthazar Bakery, they rotated pistachio and chocolate too. All of them were incredibly moist and delicious. And who could resist its cute scallop shell shape? Just waiting to be dunked into a hot cup of chocolate or tea.

Now, the ingredients list did look a little daunting, but you can find all of this stuff at Whole Foods or any well stocked supermarket/health food store. Personally, I used all three resources, and got everything I needed at a reasonable price.

Makes 24 Madeleines.

1/2 cup melted refined coconut oil or canola oil (I used canola oil because it's less pricey. I used a great coconut baking/cooking spray to grease the pans. You can use the canola to do that too. Refined coconut oil doesn't have a strong coconut flavor, so don't worry if you're not a fan.)
1 1/4 cups white or brown rice flour
1 cup vegan sugar
1/2 cup potato starch (NOT POTATO FLOUR)
1/4 cup arrowroot
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/4 tsp baking soda
6 tablespoons unsweetened applesauce
3 tablespoons vanilla extract
1/2 cup hot water
1/2 cup vegan powdered sugar (I couldn't find this for the life of me. So I didn't use it.)

Preheat the oven to 325 F. Brush 2 madeleine trays with coconut oil (or you can use the canola oil, or in my case, your trusty coconut oil spray) and set aside. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, vegan sugar, potato starch, arrowroot, baking power, salt, xanthan gum, and baking soda. Add the 1/2 cup coconut oil (or canola), applesauce, and vanilla and stir with a rubber spatula until the batter is smooth. Gradually add the hot water, stirring constantly, until incorporated.

Drop a rounded tablespoon of the batter into each mold, gently spreading it to fill the mold (make sure you fill them so they'll rise up nice and plump). Bake for 12 minutes, rotate the trays, and bake for 6 minutes more, or until the tops of the madeleines are golden brown. Remove from the oven and let stand in the trays for 15 minutes. Place the cooled madeleines on the prepared baking sheet and dust the tops with the powdered sugar.

Look at how beautiful and brown they came out! The coconut oil gives the cookie a beautiful, crunchy, buttery crust. Next time, I'll use coconut oil in the batter, too. Inside, the cookie was moist and fluffy, with a fragrant vanilla aroma.

A dozen of these were nicely packed away in a holiday box for Tana...and the other dozen? Well, those stayed right at home with me. And they were delicious dunked into a big cup of hot cocoa. Try them!

Gluten Free Adventures: Broiled Sesame Shrimp and Peppers and other Tasty Treats

Michelle and I went on our somewhat annual Best Friend Vacation to Florida a couple of weeks ago.  It was a glorious 5 days of chilling in the sun and reuniting with a good college friend of ours that lives down there. Derek went to college with us our freshman year, and even though he transferred out, we always kept in touch. After he moved to Florida to work permanently, I started making my pilgrimages to the sunshine state. Michelle joined me after my first visit after she saw all of my happy pics and stories, and she's been hooked.

After we disclosed to Derek our plans for cooking for him, he dropped a bomb: he was allergic to gluten. The last time we were in FL, Derek was complaining of stomach pains he'd been having for a while, and...other issues that are less decorous to share. The pains were complications due to his body saying "NO BUENO" to gluten.

Now, I know we hear the term gluten and have no friggin' idea what it is. Basically, gluten is a protein found in wheat that makes bread chewy and toothsome. Unfortunately there are people who are really sensitive to it, with the most severe case being celiac disease. Derek's case wasn't that serious, but, it was serious enough for him to make some changes to his diet and to start drinking gluten-free beer (my verdict: it's not bad!).

Most of the things we thought about cooking for him flew out the window. Could I make a gluten-free meal that we all (me, Michelle, Derek, and his roommate, Jesse) could enjoy? I used a couple of different resources, and I think everything turned out pretty damn splendidly.

Broiled Sesame Shrimp & Peppers

This recipe I got with the help of Tasty Kitchen's Special Dietary Needs section! They're sitting on a bed of gluten-free spiral pasta...I forget the brand name, but it's made of rice flour instead of the regular kind. I would have preferred rice noodles though..and if I had looked hard enough through Derek's pantry, I would have found them. WHOOPS. This was light, tangy/sweet, and delicious.

Orange Balsamic Glazed Chicken with Mac n Cheese and Roasted Carrots & Asparagus

Okay, I know most of people (including myself) find Rachel Ray REALLY irritating. But, she does have some really good recipes, and this one was really easy to make gluten-free. Easily found the gluten-free chicken broth at Publix, and made a substitution. Unfortunately, the mac and cheese was the Kraft kind, and Derek couldn't eat it...which is why I roasted veggies (400 degrees, toss them in olive oil, salt and pepper, and desired fresh herbs...I used thyme) on the side. Since Michelle isn't a huge veg fan, she was happy with the mac. The rest of us ate it ALL. The only thing I would change about the recipe is maybe using less chicken broth. I probably used a little too much oil in the sauteing of the chicken as well. I really wanted a tight glaze and I got a somewhat liquid-y consistency. Otherwise, this came out really good as well.

On the baking front were these two delights:

PW's Orange Marmalade Cake and Toll House Choco-Chip Cookie Bars

For the baked goods, I used two regular recipes and just substituted gluten-free flour for the regular kind. I made the cake, and Michelle made the cookies. The cake and the glaze are both made with yogurt, and made good use of the big ass jar of orange marmalade I bought. The cookies are the regular Toll House recipe, put into a rectangular pan so we wouldn't be scooping out cookie dough all night. I noticed that the flour swap made for a denser product with a slightly browner crumb, but other than that, everything tasted amazing.


And here is proof:

Please not that those chunks they cut, they thought were appropriate serving sizes. Boys are just animals, aren't they? :-)