It’s the end of the year and if you are looking to host a New Year’s Eve Party or just looking to make something different or special, here is my collection of recipes I have worked on over the year.
Gluten Free Almond Brownies
Now who doesn’t like Brownies?! I haven’t met many and amongst the many brownie recipes out there, I am sharing mine. This particular brownie got a lot of ‘brownie’ points 😉 from everyone who has tasted it. Apologies for the bad photo. Its the only photo I have of the brownies before they were demolished by my hungry friends and family.
Recipe
Prep and cook time : 1 hour
Ingredients
- 100 gm semi sweet chocolate
- 150 gm brown sugar
- 125 gm soft butter
- 2 Eggs
- 35 gm brown rice flour
- 35 gm sorghum flour (jowar)
- 30 gm corn starch/potato starch
- 1/4 tsp xanthum gum/flax seed
- 1/2 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 150 ground almonds
- Oil for the baking pan
- Icing sugar for dusting
Method
- Grease a baking pan and pre heat the oven to 200 Degree Celsius.
- Roughly chop the chocolate and make sure the chocolate is melted using the bain marie technique. This link explains exactly how you go about it. https://www.wheat-free.org/how-to-melt-chocolate.html
- Take a bowl and cream the butter and sugar with a electric mixer until light and fluffy. Use the whisk attachment if using a stand mixer. Beat in the eggs and chocolate the mixture.
- Mix the baking powder, xanthan gum with the flours thoroughly and then mix into the wet mixture and stir in the almonds.
- Once the batter is thoroughly mixed pour into the greased pan and bake for 30-40 minutes( depending on your oven). Pierce a toothpick in the center and when it comes out clean, the brownie can be taken off the oven.
- Place the brownie on a wire rack and once cooled, dust it with icing sugar and slice.
If you do not have all the flours I mentioned, use a good gluten free commerical brand of all purpose flour. Xanthan gum can be replaced by flax seed powder. To replace the egg, use a vegan egg replacer or for each egg dissolve 1tbp dissolve flax seed powder in 3 tbsp of warm water.
Gluten Free Diamond Cuts
My childhood memories of snack food have always been of my mother making vada’s or diamond cuts. Diamond cuts were made in December for Christmas and for Easter or any other special occasion. I still remember her cutting it out and storing it into big boxes so it would last the season.I am sure this snack will bring back good memories just like it did for me. The following recipe is inspired and adapted with help from Mrs. Annie George.
Recipe
Ingredients
- Multi purpose gluten free flour – 250 gms *
- Xanthan gum or corn starch/flour – 1/2tsp
- Milk – 3 tbsp *
- Egg – 1 or egg replace
- Oil – 1 cup neutral vegetable oil
- Butter – 80 gms
- Caster Sugar/Fine sugar -40 -50 gm
- * Icing Sugar – to garnish as required
Salt to taste
Method
Melt the butter.
Place the egg and sugar in a bowl and beat it well. To this mixture add the melted butter and salt.
Pour the milk into the bowl and stir well. Then add the flour and knead.
Cover the bowl with a lid and keep it closed for half an hour.
After the dough is rested. Sprinkle gluten free flour generously on your surface and use a rolling pin so you get a flat roti like appearance. Once the dough is flattened cut into diamond shaped pieces using a pizza cutter or even a fork.
Fry the pieces in a pan with hot oil.
Take them out and drain off any excess oil and place them on a kitchen tissue.
Garnish it with icing sugar.
* For gluten free flour use a good Indian or imported brand’s maida replacer. Wheafree/zero g or Mills and Browns. If you want to make your own ensure it is more of white flours and starch as you want a more soft dough
*If you are lactose intolerant diluted coconut milk will work
* Oil, apart from olive and mustard you can use any oil
* Powdered sugar,completely left to your discretion. Some people like it dunked in sugar and some just a little.
For those who want the savoury kind, use carom and cumin seeds.
Gluten Free and Vegan Gram Flour/Besan Pizza
I am sure most of you keep drooling at pizza photos and wonder when in India gluten free pizza will be easily available or how can you make an easy economical pizza without a whole lot of ingredients. I must say the gram flour crust pizza or the humble besan pizza ticks all the above boxes. It is easy, nutritious and can be made with simple ingredients. Add the right toppings and you will never know the crust is made of gram flour. The picture below has two pizza’s one made of roasted vegetables and other with cheese and chicken. One is vegan and gluten free and the other one is just gluten free.
Recipe
For the Pizza Crust
Ingredients
- Chickpea flour – 2 cups
- Water – 1 cup
- Oil preferably olive oil – 2 tsp
- Salt – to taste
Toppings for Roasted Vegetable and Hummus
- Onion – 1 or two dependng on which pizza you are making
- Tomato – 1 big or 2
- Hummus – 2 tablespoon or mixed seed butter
- Oregano/Basil – few for garnish
Toppings for Chicken and Cheese Pizza
1.Pizza sauce – 5 tbsp you could buy the readymade gf sauces like Barillo or Prego or make your own
- Chicken – a few cooked pieces. I used leftovers from a cooked chicken curry
- Mozzarella – 1 Cup
For making your own pizza sauce
- Garlic – 1 clove
- Onion – 1 small
- Basil or oregano – a few leaves
- Tomatoes – 3 -4 big
- Sugar – a pinch
- Salt to taste
- Olive oil – 1 tbsp
- Black pepper – 1/4 tsp
To make the sauce :
Heat Olive oil on a skillet, fry the garlic once it starts giving a nice aroma add in the onion and sauté it. Once the onions are translucent add the tomatoes. When it starts boiling and you get a thick purée add salt, sugar and black pepper. Add the basil or dried oregano to it too
Method for Pizza
Pre heat the oven to 180 degree Celsius. Prepare a baking tray with parchment paper or oil a tray.
Mix gram flour/besan, water, oil and salt. You will get a batter which is thicker than idli batter or pancake batter.
Pour the batter in a circular motion over the tray. Let it bake for 15 – 20 minutes
Once the edges are crispy take it out and reverse the crust. Then put on the toppings and bake for 5 to 10 minutes.
For the Vegan Pizza –
Apply the hummus or mixed nut or seed butter first and then the other vegetables.It is best you sauté the onions a little bit before it makes it way onto the crust this helps in reducing the baking time.If you use vegetables like mushroom or leafy veggies like spinach that release a lot of water on cooking just sauté it before it is put on the crust this is to avoid too much water being released when it is being baked.
For the Cheese and Chicken Pizza, apply the tomato sauce and the chicken and then the cheese.
Once the pizza is baked, slice it and it is ready to eat.
The taste of besan is not strong at all and with the right toppings you will never know the difference. Besan is high on protein and thus makes it nutritious as well as filling. ( Adapted from the Colorful Kitchen)
Gluten Free Walnut Eggless Cookies
Who doesn’t like Cookies with walnuts especially this time of the year. Apologies to my friends who suffer from nut allergy, I’ll try to experiment with this recipe and come up with something which does not need it.
Recipe
Ingredients
Ingredients
- 1 cup Ground walnuts
- 1 1/2 cup Gluten free flour
- 6 Tbsp Butter
- 1/2 cup Sugar
- 1 tsp Vanilla extract
Method
- Preheat the oven to 175 degree Celsius. Place baking paper on your baking tray
- Beat the butter and sugar till it becomes fluffy and light in colour
- Add in the vanilla extract and flour mix 1/2 cup at a time. The dough will slowly start coming together.
- Use an ice cream scooper or a scoop rounded tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking paper.
- Flatten each cookie and bake for 15 to maximum 20 minutes or until they are golden around the edges. Allow cookies to cool.
Sweet Potato Quinoa Patties/Burger/ Tiki’s ( Vegan and Gluten Free)
This is a versatile dish. Snack on it, use it as a filling in your gluten free roti / bread or burger bun. It’s nutritious and the herbs lend it flavour as well.
Recipes
Serving size – 6-8 depending on the size you want to mould into.
Ingredients
Sweet potato roasted/cooked -1 cup
Cooked quinoa – 1 cup
Corn starch – 1/4 cup
Garlic cloves – 3 minced
Coriander and mint leaves – fistful
Onion – 1 medium, thinly sliced
Salt – 1/2 tsp or to taste Pepper – 1/4 tsp
Method
Roast the sweet potatoes in a pre heated oven for 40 minutes or till they are soft and cooked. For all my recipes if you do not have an OTG, a microwave with a convection setting is enough.
In the meanwhile, mix all the other ingredients. Once the sweet potatoes are roasted let it cool for a bit and then mash them into the quinoa herb mixture.
You should get a dough which is not sticky. Place a spoonful of dough into a baking sheet or mould them into the shape you like. Place the baking tray in a pre heated oven for 15-20 minutes at 180 degree Celsius or till the patties get a nice golden colour on either side. Serve it with a dip of your choice or dunk in tomato sauce.
*Always wash quinoa before you cook it and soak it for at least 10 minutes. It takes lesser time than rice.
I hope these recipes add to your New Year cheer and hope they fill your bellies with flavour 🙂 Let me know what kind of recipes you would like to see more of.
Happy New Year! Love, warmth, peace, joy and good health for the new year and always.
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