Gluten Free Hemp Seed Wedding Cookies

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GLUTEN-FREE HEMP SEED WEDDING COOKIES

(Gluten-Free, Nut-Free, Vegan, Allergy-Friendly)

 

Just in time for Christmas! And, surprise surprise, they’re good for you too! One of the greatest challenges of living with food restrictions is getting proper nutrition. So I am always looking for ways to sneak nutrient dense ingredients into my allergen-free recipes.

Hemp seeds (also called “Hemp Hearts”) are a fantastically nutritious source of protein, and Omega 3 and Omega 6 essential fatty acids, which are often hard to get enough of when you can’t eat nuts or fish. These little seeds are not only nutritional powerhouses, they are also seriously tasty, and great in baked goods in place of tree nuts and peanuts. Contrary to popular belief, they are mild and “nutty”. They are great in cookies, tossed in a salad, or sprinkled over your oatmeal. In fact, I’m beginning to think, their possibilities are endless.

These cookies are not only fabulous for holiday parties, they’re good enough for any wedding, allergen-free or not.

What nutrients do you find it hard to get enough of on an allergen-free and/or gluten-free diet? Leave me a comment below.

 

Gluten-Free Hemp Seed Wedding Cookies

Makes about 40 1 1/2 -inch cookies

 

These little gems are normally made with walnuts, pistachios, pecans or almonds. This tree nut-free version is made with hemp seeds, is equally delicious, and highly nutritious. A perfect little sweet, full of  “Hemp Heart”, to share with lots of love!

Ingredients:

  • 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar
  • 1 cup dairy-free, soy-free vegetable shortening
  • 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
  • 2 cups my Basic Gluten-Free Flour Mix or Authentic Foods GF Classical Blend
  • 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 cup shelled hemp seeds* (Manitoba Harvest hemp seeds are allergen-free)
  • Confectioners sugar, for rolling

1. In a large bowl, combine 1/2 cup confectioner’s sugar, shortening and vanilla extract. Blend well.

2. In a separate bowl, measure out flour mix by spooning flour into a dry measuring cup, then leveling it off with a straightedge, or the back of a knife. (Do not scoop the flour directly with the measuring cup or you’ll wind up with too much flour for the recipe). Combine flour mix, xanthan gum and salt. Stir flour mixture and hemp seeds into sugar mixture, stirring until dough holds together. Cover the bowl and chill about 1 hour.

3. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Remove the dough from refrigerator. Shape dough into 1-inch balls, pressing together like you would with Play Dough.

4. Place balls 1 inch apart on cookie sheets. Bake cookies on center rack in oven for 18-20 minutes until set but not brown.

5. Cool for 10 minutes on cookie sheets. Gently remove cookies with a thin spatula (be careful, cookies are delicate) and roll them in confectioner’s sugar. Cool completely and re-roll in confectioner’s sugar.

TIP If cookies aren’t eaten within a day, store them in the freezer. Layer them in single layers between parchment paper. Enjoy them at room temperature.

GLUTEN-FREE HEMP SEED WEDDING COOKIES
© 2010 by Cybele Pascal

(Please note that all my recipes are completely free of all top allergens (wheat, dairy, soy, eggs, peanuts, tree nuts, sesame, fish, shellfish, and gluten), so as many people as possible can enjoy them. Additionally, all the ingredients are available at Whole Foods, and online at Amazon.com. If you have trouble finding something, let me know and I’ll help you find it.)

SAFETY NOTE: Because each person’s food sensitivity and reaction is unique, ranging from mild intolerance to life-threatening and severe food allergies, it is up to the consumer to monitor ingredients and manufacturing conditions. If manufacturing conditions, potential cross contact between foods, and ingredient derivatives pose a risk for you, please re-read all food labels and call the manufacturer to confirm potential allergen concerns before consumption. Ingredients and manufacturing practices can change overnight and without warning.

Gluten Free Coffee Cake

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Blueberry Boy Bait
Makes 8 servings (gluten, wheat, dairy, egg, soy, peanut, tree nut, and sesame free)

This moist, buttery coffee cake with its crisp, cinnamon-sugar topping is based on an old-fashioned recipe from the 1950s, called Blueberry Boy Bait, a coffee cake named for the effect it had on teenage boys. My boys aren’t teens yet, but this bait works for them. They’ll gobble it up in one daywith not a crumb left over.

  • 2 cups my Basic Gluten-Free Flour Mix or Authentic Foods GF Classical Blend
  • 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
  • 1 tablespoon double-acting baking powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 cup dairy-free, soy-free vegetable shortening
  • 3/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup granulated sugar
  • 4 1/2 teaspoons Ener-G egg replacer mixed with 6 tablespoons rice milk
  • 3/4 cup rice milk
  • 1 cup fresh or frozen blueberries tossed with 1 tablespoon Basic Gluten-Free Flour Mix
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar mixed with 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease a 9 by 9-inch baking pan and sprinkle with a little gluten-free lour mix, tapping out any extra.
  2. Whisk together the flour mix, xanthan gum, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
  3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the shortening, brown sugar, and granulated sugar. Mix on medium-high speed for 2 minutes, or until fluffy.
  4. Add the egg replacer and mix for about 20 seconds.
  5. Reduce the speed to medium and beat in one-third of the flour, mixing for 15 seconds.
  6. Add half of the rice milk, mixing for 20 seconds.
  7. Beat in half of the remaining flour, then the remaining rice milk, and finally the remaining flour mixture, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.
  8. Add half of the batter to the pan, using a frosting spatula to spread the batter evenly across the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle with half of the blueberries. Top with the remaining batter, spreading it as evenly as possible across the blueberries. Top with the remaining blueberries, then sprinkle with the cinnamon-sugar mixture.
  9. Bake in the center of the oven for 1 hour, until the cinnamon-sugar mixture has begun to caramelize and the top is golden. Let cool in the pan for 30 minutes before turning out onto a serving platter (or just cut into pieces and serve out of the pan). Serve warm or at room temperature. This cake is even better on day two!

Tip: If using frozen blueberries, keep frozen until the last minute, or they’ll turn your batter blue-green.

Reprinted with permission from The Allergen-Free Baker’s Handbook: How to Bake Without Gluten, Wheat, Dairy, Eggs, Soy, Peanuts, Tree Nuts, and Sesame. Copyright © 2009 by Cybele Pascal, Celestial Arts, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, Berkeley, CA. Photo credit: Chugrad McAndrews.

Allergy Free Old Fashioned Gingersnaps

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Gluten-Free, Allergy-Free Old-Fashioned Gingersnaps

(Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Egg-Free, Soy-Free, Nut-Free, Vegan)

Makes 24 1.5-inch Cookies

It’s cookie season (my favorite)! And if your house is anything like my house, then you’re thinking about what you can bake up that’s safe for everyone, regardless of his or her dietary restrictions. This recipe harkens back to your grandmother’s cookies. These old-fashioned treats are richly flavored with molasses, spices, and bitter orange marmalade. In fact, they were inspired by my own Grandmother Catherene’s love of all things ginger.

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup dairy-free, soy-free vegetable shortening
  • 1/4 cup granulated sugar, plus 2 tablespoons for rolling cookies
  • 2 tablespoons light brown sugar
  • 2 tablespoons molasses
  • 2 tablespoons bitter orange marmalade
  • 1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
  • 1 cup my Basic Gluten-Free Flour Mix (see recipe below), or Authentic Foods GF Classical Blend
  • 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
  • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
  • 1/8th teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
  1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
  2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine the shortening and 1/4 cup granulated sugar, mixing on medium speed until smooth and fluffy, about 1 minute. Add the brown sugar, molasses, orange marmalade and vanilla extract. Mix thoroughly for about 2 minutes.
  3. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour blend, xanthan gum, baking soda, cream of tartar, salt, ginger, cinnamon and nutmeg.
  4. Add flour mixture to shortening mixture and beat on low speed to combine, scraping down sides of bowl as necessary.
  5. Using your hands, roll teaspoon-size pieces of dough into balls.
  6. Pour the remaining 2 tablespoons sugar into a shallow bowl or plate. Roll the balls in the sugar and place on the parchment paper.
  7. Bake cookies in the center of the oven for 12 to 14 minutes, until puffed into perfect little domes and just starting to crack.
  8. Let cool about 5 minutes on the baking sheets before transferring to a cooling rack to cool completely.

Each cookie contains 66 calories, 2g total fat, 1g saturated fat, 0g trans fat, 0mg cholesterol, 47mg sodium, 12g carbohydrate, 0g fiber, 0g protein.

Gluten-Free, Allergy-Friendly Old-Fashioned Gingersnaps © 2009 by Cybele Pascal

This recipe was first published in the December/January 2009 issue of Living Without magazine.

Cybele’s Basic Gluten-Free Flour MIx
MAKES 6 CUPS

4 cups superfine brown rice flour**
1 1/3 cups potato starch (not potato flour)
2/3 cup tapioca flour/starch

Measure out flour by spooning into a dry measuring cup, then leveling off with a straightedge. Combine all ingredients. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

**Tip: Superfine brown rice flour is available from Authentic Foods (authenticfoods.com). To make your own, process brown rice flour in a clean coffee grinder.