I once was in a shopping mall in California (Sears, I believe), and read a screen t-shirt that was soooo hilarious to me that I took a picture of it. It said (and I quote), “Muffins are just ugly cupcakes”. It had a picture of this beautifully conceited cupcake staring down its low-esteemed muffin companion.
I know – pretty mean – but I had to laugh!
Now of course, I view it as “Cupcakes are just pretty muffins with hats on”, but that is neither here nor there.
Image source: Gluten Free South Florida/Facebook Page
That’s right. Dunkin’ Donuts is the latest nationwide chain to try out gluten-free.
According to its website, Dunkin’ Donuts is the world’s leading baking and coffee chain, serving more than 3 million customers per day. Now Dunkin’ Donuts has determined “it’s time to bake the donuts” gluten-free style.
Dunkin’ Donuts is testing gluten-free muffins and donuts in select stores in the Boston and Miami areas. These include blueberry muffins and cinnamon sugar donuts. The products are certified by the Gluten Free Certification Organization (GFCO). The cinnamon sugar donuts sell for less than (more…)
Fall is here! My favorite time of year. At school we have a Starbucks on each campus I see everyone enjoying the pumpkin muffins, pumpkin coffees etc. and it drives me crazy that I can just run in and grab one of those delicious looking muffins with the cream cheese on them… (more…)
I love bringing along homemade muffins with me on hotel vacations. They’re fantastic for snack or breakfast, can be filled with protein and healthy fats (which I always seem to lack when I travel), and even if they get squished during my trip, they still taste (more…)
The original Morning Glory muffin recipe is said to have originated on Nantucket Island, the creation of Chef Pam McKinstry. I can’t think of a better gluten-free breakfast and snack muffin than Morning Glory muffins with well over a quart of healthy fruits, carrots and nuts added. And these fragrant cinnamon spiced muffins are gluten and dairy free.
This recipe is a gluten-free adaptation of “The Original Morning Glory Muffins” which appears in The Earthbound Farm Organics Cookbook – Food to Live By by Myra Goodman with Linda Holland and Pamela McKinstry.
For me breakfast is the hardest meal of the day. For starters, I get up at 4:00 am and I just can’t eat that early, so I normally take something with me and eat it on my way to campus. My breakfasts usually consist of a Greek yogurt or a scone that I have baked. This is also the only meal that I get jealous of people without celiac disease, because they could eat just about anything they wanted for breakfast. We with celiac do not have the convenience of stopping at Starbucks (which we have two on campus) to grab something quick to eat.
Making eggs, or pancakes in the morning is just not an option. It would take too long, can’t really eat it on the go, and I would take the risk of making too (more…)
Quinoa is a very nutritious food, being a complete protein, but it can have a rather acrid flavour. This is caused by the coating the seed has to discourage insects from eating it. If you rinse whole quinoa you can get rid of this. I have used rinsed quinoa in these muffins, which I then toasted to a light brown before adding to the flour. The whole quinoa gives a crunchy texture. If you don’t want this blitz the quinoa in a blender to get a smooth texture.
If you have ever been in a social situation and can’t have the food around the buffet table, whether it’s related to allergies, religion or weight loss, it can be quite difficult.
What if it was the other way around? Imagine arriving and being able to eat everything! I thought it would be useful to create some ideas for gluten-free occasions (after getting some great advice from Amy Sherman of Cooking with Amy). So here is my first holiday list: Halloween.
Maybe you are the host and you are getting ready for a ghoulish party. If you need to plan it around one or more gluten-free eaters, you might need some ideas beyond hummus and rice crackers or tortilla chips with guacamole.
Gluten free pumpkin muffin with pumpkin cream cheese frosting
When you are doing your planning, think about the items that you can’t eat when you are gluten-free: bread, crackers, pretzels, pizza, cookies, cakes and cupcakes, doughnuts. Today, there are many options for all of these items. Of course, if you are the one hosting, you will have much more control. That’s my plan this year; delegation! And, even if you aren’t gluten-free, you can use the ideas below to plan your own party.
If you are the host and not the one with the sensitivity, make sure you understand the needs of your guests. Someone with Celiac disease looks at gluten as seriously as someone with a peanut allergy. Gluten can be in ketchup and bbq sauce and is almost always in (more…)
Based on the contents of my past few CSA boxes, zucchini is doing really well this year. Or at least there’s a lot of it growing. It’s a veggie that you can easily add to just about anything, and that’s pretty much what I’ve been doing with it. Grated, it makes a wonderful “raw” pasta substitute, I love it lightly stir-fried with other veggies, it’s delicious sauteed and added to salads, omelets, or whatever else is cooking, and then of course there’s always zucchini bread. My grandmother used to make it every summer. She would bake it in loaves, and then sandwich softened cream cheese between thin slices. It tasted like cake, and I suppose it practically was the way she made it. YUM.
I started looking online for gluten free zucchini bread recipes, and I came across some zucchini mini muffins with chocolate chips over on Elana’s Pantry. I love that website, and I have her Gluten Free Almond Flour cookbook, which I use regularly. She now also has a Gluten-Free Cupcakes book, which is now on my wish list, if anyone is feeling generous.
In the fall, it’s easy to get fresh, local carrots in the San Franciso area from the grocery store and farmer’s markets. There seems to be something very comforting about muffins and breads flavored with cinnamon. But on a gluten free diet, one is often denied these flavors.
GF Carrot Muffins, by A. Fothergill
Try this recipe which gives you the full flavor and texture of a traditional carrot muffin. Once cooled, top it with a little cream cheese frosting. As a muffin or dessert, this little wonder is sure to please. (more…)