Gluten Free Condensed Milk & Brown Sugar Cinnamon Buns

Have you ever spotted a recipe that sounded pretty good but then decided not to make it because there were sooo many detailed steps?

I have!

I usually skip a few steps (if I do make it) or I just forget about it altogether, unless I manage to find the extra time to actually follow every step to the letter.

So why the heck did I go into so much detail with these instructions? Because I know I have a tendency of assuming people know what I'm talking about, so sometimes I'll be really vague and, in the end, I leave out a fair amount of significant information. I'm trying to be more detailed, so please don't let the lengthy instructions deter you from making these really good Gluten-Free Condensed Milk and Brown Sugar Cinnamon Buns! Sheesh! Even the title takes forever to read ;).

Ok yeah, so I've been a carbaholic lately. I admit this without shame! Proud carbaholic right here. Part of that addiction is due to wanting to perfect some of my favorite treats, with a gluten-free twist of course. Cinnamon buns/rolls were definitely a favorite of mine before switching to a gf diet, so I had to find a way to make them edible (and actually tasty) minus the AP flour.

Sometimes I feel bad for gluten-free foods, they're like the kid who always gets picked last for the tether ball/dodge ball game at recess (did anyone else play tether ball in elementary school?). These gf foods usually pale in comaprison to the star players, the wonderfully elastic and moist glutinous foods that don't contain strange ingredients like guar gum or xanwhatever.

I ate half of this one (so you could see the inside, of course ;).

THIS DOES NOT HAVE TO BE THE CASE ANYMORE! I refuse to let it happen, now's the time for gluten-free foods to take center stage without the sweaty palms.

So here they are, the tastiest gluten-free cinnamon buns you will ever eat. I promise, I promise!! They taste like a Cinnabon (oh how I loved eating those when I was little, it made going shopping for hours so worth it), but they also remind me of a bread pudding dessert. Believe me, these were not easy to make. Long before making them, off and on I'd literally daydream about a recipe that would work. This time I used buttermilk and condensed milk -- great partners in crime, both of them equally contributing to my insatiable carb cravings (aren't they the best baking ingredients?).

It only took me about 8 batches to finally come up with a recipe worth sharing! I've included step by step photos too :D!

ENJOY!

See recipe card for the recipe :)

Spread out the filling like this:


Roll it out like this
(see how well floured the outside is, so it doesn't stick):


Cut them out like this
(this is before rising):



After rising for 45 min. but before baking:


After baking and glazing:

Moist and Tender Gluten Free Strawberry Scones

I love berries! Last year we went berry picking in Austin and had so much fun. I've yet to go strawberry picking, but my grandparents had a strawberry plant in their front yard (and my parents had some on our porch, growing up). I couldn't wait to pick each one straight from the vine. I wouldn't even wash them -- that's what t-shirts were for; I'd stuff them right into my mouth. They were very tasty and tart, much smaller than the strawberries you'd find in a grocery store.

Sunshine and berries go hand in hand. Even though it's pretty rainy here, we're still experiencing warm weather -- that always puts me in the berry-eating mood. I'm a tea-drinker, I drink decaffeinated tea twice a day and I love having toast or something sweet and carby with each cup (even when it's hot, I just crank up the AC ;). So these strawberry scones are definitely the kind of treat I'd reach for to snack on with a cup of tea; they'd also be tasty with coffee or hot chocolate.

Oops! Almost forgot to include the pic of how the scones should be placed on the baking sheet :)

Unlike traditional scones, these gluten free strawberry scones aren't as heavy or dry or crumbly -- which is kind of funny considering gluten free baked goods tend to be all of those things. Instead, they're tender, moist and full of berry flavor. Eat 'em up (I ate about 3 within a 12 hour period :P)!

This is my first submission to this month's fruit-themed dessert gluten-free blog event, aka Go Ahead, Honey it's Gluten Free (hosted by Emilia at A Gluten-Free Day). The blogger behind this is Naomi from Straight into Bed Cakefree and Dried, check out her blog!

Gluten-Free sticky apple carrot pudding cake with apricot cinnamon sauce

Not all that's gooey is good. For instance, you know those green bags that are supposed to prevent your produce from getting old too quickly? Well, like all things that claim to halt or slow-down the aging process, they do stop working after awhile.

Stick your hand into one of these bags when it contains half an onion that hasn't seen the outside of the veggie drawer for a few weeks and you will encounter the bad kind of gooey.

How about walking over an already mushed grape on the kitchen floor without socks on? Not good.

Gooey things that are good: sticky toffee pudding -- yum, my favorite dessert! How about caramel sauce? Yes, very good. Another thing to add to the list? This gluten-free sticky apple carrot pudding cake with apricot cinnamon sauce! A mouthful it is. I wasn't sure if cinnamon and apricots would mix, but oh how they do, especially in a powdered sugar based sauce. It offers a nice combo of tart and sweet cinnamony flavors.

This cake does kind of remind me of sticky toffee pudding, but fruity and spiced up. If carrot cake and sticky toffee pudding got married in the fall, they might have this pudding at their wedding :).

By the way, did anyone see Diners, Drive-ins and Dives tonight?! I have been craving that burger with poached pears, brie and pancetta on a toasted pretzel bun since I saw it on the show. I just might have to figure out a way to make it this weekend! :D