It's the classic treat we all love, pumpkin muffins! (Ok, so maybe I love them a little too much; I can't get enough pumpkin!) I used sweet apple cider and canola oil to make them extra moist; you won't miss the butter or milk (or buttermilk :P), I promise.
Thank you for bearing with the occasional typos on my recipes, and for pointing them out! I don't know what it is with me, but sometimes when I'm typing out a recipe, I forget an ingredient (and we all know that one ingredient makes or breaks the recipe!).
Here's another thing that happens: I tend to bake on a whim, my kitchen is always a mess when I'm coming up with a recipe. This is Sophie-style baking: a million and one gluten-free flours crowd the kitchen counter, and (despite having been chided for this many times in my youth) I've left the refrigerator door open yet again (as I've probably done with the carton of cider or milk that I've left out for too long). Of course, I bet I've even filled the sink with eggshells (and maybe there's a bit in the mixing bowl :P)... you get the picture.
And when it comes to writing down the recipe, that's another story... with fingers covered in sticky dough, I usually grab the lonely scratch piece of paper stuck to the bottom of a molasses jar. Then what happens? I'll write half of the recipe on one side then jot down the rest on the top left corner of the not-so-sticky side. This has got to change. :P
So what does this have to do with pumpkin muffins? Well, my hubby was kind enough to make these muffins tonight (and a few nights before); he tested out the recipe a few times to make sure that I really did write down all of the ingredients and necessary steps :). You can be sure this recipe will yield tasty gluten and dairy free pumpkin muffins! Yay!
No Thingies Thursday this week! Instead, I'm posting 2 recipes :)!
What happens when a Californian moves to Texas where she marries her Southern-food-loving lover right before they trek off to Boston? No, not a culture-shock induced lobotomy...a really fantastic chili bean recipe! (Or is it chili beans recipe?)
I'm sure you're familiar with most Texan's love of barbecue, and you've probably heard of Boston baked beans, but how does California fit into this beany equation? Well, California is where I was born and raised until mid high school. It's where my mom used to crave chili beans when she was pregnant with me and where my parents used to sneak veggies into my chili so that I would eat them. Yes, it's odd. Chili was one of my favorite foods as a kiddo, but I hated veggies (sometimes I'd even cover them in ketchup, ewww!), so my parents would sneak them into my chili and hope that (after covering said chili with tons of cheese and sour cream) I wouldn't notice the little specks of green here and there...I did. The good news is, I now love veggies and I still love chili!
Chili doesn't always love me, though. My digestive system has geriatric mannerisms these days. Oh, I know all about hearburn and bile reflux, thanks to the absence of my gallbladder. So I try not to make it too spicy. Still, it's yummy comfort food, and it's also a food that reminds my hubby of back home, aka Texas. So, it's become a sort of comfort food to him too. But I wanted to make these beens extra special for my little Southerner, so I added liquid smoke, it's the answer to every Texan-transplanted-to-Boston's prayer. (Now, does the apostrophe go after Texan or Boston? I think it's Boston's, but that looks really awkward. Gosh, there goes that handy English degree!)
Ok...because a meal just isn't complete without dessert, I also made Sweet Potato Muffins. Boy, they are tasty! Honestly, I was impressed with their non-gluten-free texture, but they are very much gluten-free and butter/milk free. I actually feel bad about posting them after the chili, but I didn't have a fun story to go with the muffin recipe... You know, I don't even want to talk about how good they are because I want you to make them yourself, give 'em a try! Seriously, a great Thanksgiving/Fall treat. Oh, but if you do make 'em, make sure you have them right after the chili; now that's what comfort food's all about!
Ok...so I know what you're thinking. Why, out of what seems to be 'nowhere', am I posting a gluten-free recipe? Well, if you're somewhat of a long-time reader, you might remember this post, where I talk about some issues I'd been facing with my gut. Let's just say I wasn't diagnosed properly in the past. The doctor who told me I had IBS wasn't exactly on target; it still didn't explain why I'd felt not so great for awhile and lost so much weight (oh, about 15 pounds...which is a lot when your max weight your entire life was about 110 and you're 5'3"). Another thing I thought was kind of funny was that while most people gain weight when they're baking like crazy, I was losing weight! The more I baked, the more I lost! Ha! I also noticed that I felt the worst after eating sweets...and all along I thought it was just the butter or oil...
So I get to Boston, lose 4 more pounds while trying to deal with these weird gastrointestinal issues, and decide to pay our new awesome doctor a visit. She looks over my medical history, ruffles her brow while sitting confidently but comfortably in her chair, and ever so calmly asks the following: "Your symptoms sound a lot like they're related to a gluten allergy, have you ever been on a gluten-free diet?". Hmmm...no, I've never tried it. Thought it wasn't for me, as I tested negative on the blood test for Celiac disease (and my last doctor was convinced that I didn't have it). That's what I told this new doc of mine. Then she tells me about that blood test not being very accurate; that there are a ton of false negatives, and that there's a difference between gluten sensitivities and Celiac disease. She goes on to say that folks with my same symptoms have improved by altering their diets, eliminating gluten and sometimes other foods that they're 'sensitive' to, like casein -- which is in dairy products (not to be confused with lactose intolerance).
I give it a go. Reluctantly, I admit. I have my doubts, am very skeptical, but what do I have to lose? Sure, I can't eat baked goods that contain all-purpose flour, or condiments/other random foods that contain gluten, but it really isn't so bad. In fact, it hasn't been bad at all...to my surprise, I've been on this diet for about a week and I feel better already. What?! Yes, even I am surprised...pleasantly surprised.
Now it seems my blog might actually be living up to its name. Flour Arrangements. Yep, that's what it's definitely turning in to, an arrangement of various flours. I have a new collection in my pantry ranging from amaranth to brown rice and tapioca flour. This whole gluten-free baking thing is fairly new to me. It's a little intimidating, but fun. My kitchen is turning into a crazy lab, where I try to make up gluten-free treats that actually have the consistency of a delectable baked good. All that I ask is that you bear with me, as I am still trying to figure out how each and every one of these different flours work and taste :). It's exciting. Most of all, I'm happy to report that I'm feeling better. Over time, things should improve even more. I'm finding out that I might have other food allergies/sensitivities, which you'll probably be able to pick up on as you stay tuned for more recipes. I'm not the least bit disappointed, though, nor do I feel robbed of anything. In fact, I feel somewhat relieved. Things make sense now...what a relief! Who knew that even gallbladder disease could be caused by a gluten allergy?!
What's all this talk about muffin-scones? Ok. I admit, I initially wanted to make muffins...but these minis came out looking more like scones with muffiny centers. They're having an identity crisis, let's just put it that way. But they're cute, so we have to excuse them for their inability to decide what kind of starchy dessert they really are. In my opinion, they look like muffins on a 'bad hair' day, and we can all relate to that! Honestly, the flavor is right on target; they're quite addicting, to my surprise. Blueberries have a way of making everything taste delicious, though, so I'll credit them for the tastiness of these mini muffin-scones :).
P.S. If you're curious about gluten allergies and aren't feeling so hot yourself, I've found that these two sites are pretty informative: click here and here.
Congratulations! You've made it through the middle of the week! Celebrate! Bake yourself a chocolatey treat, you deserve it!
Funny, but Wednesday is my favorite day of the week. Why? Because I can look back at Monday and Tuesday and say to myself, "Hey, I've made it this far. I can do two more days. No problem! Just hand over the goods, the sweet treats, and I'm ready to go!". I'm not as grateful for Thursday, though; it doesn't give me the same sense of accomplishment. It's right smack dab in the middle of Wednesday and Friday.
Thursday is like the day before Thanksgiving, the kitchen smells like heaven but I'm stuck in foodie purgatory - where tasting is done with the nose and eyes, but never with the mouth. Know what I mean?! TORTURE!
So let's celebrate Wednesday with these chocolatey desserts! Guess what? I've even included a 'light' recipe in this tiny collection of rich desserts! The Mondo Chocolate Muffins are quite huge; they're packed with chocolatey goodness...and applesauce, not butter! But, if you're having one of those days where Wednesday feels more like Thursday, then you'll definitely need some powerful ammo to get you through the rest of the week. The Chocolate Fudge or a French Silk Pie should do the trick!
(Ok...so the French Silk Pie isn't that traditional; I converted the chocolate filling into a curd-like substance because I wanted to expose the eggs to some heat. I feel so uncomfortable serving folks raw eggs! EEK. I used the fudge recipe for a work-project; I basically followed it to the T - just divided it in half and threw in a few extra spices. As for the muffins, they're a Flour Arrangements original recipe.)
I've been pretty busy lately, which is why I didn't post this weekend! Between traveling for Mother's Day, mailing off gifts, and baking various treats, I haven't had much time to blog. So before I begin this next entry, I'd like to thank Camilla from Enlightened Baking and Lina from My Life is Yummy for the blogger awards they gave Flour Arrangements -- thank you both for your kindness :) (I've posted the awards on the "About" page :). I look forward to passing these along to other bloggers some time in the near future!
Speaking of showing thanks, just yesterday we took the time to show our mothers and mother-figures how much we appreciate them. I don't know about you, but I tend to run out of ideas when it comes to thinking of the perfect homemade and one-of-a-kind Mother's Day gift (I prefer to make gifts for special days like these). It usually takes me awhile to come up with an original and thoughtful gift that somewhat captures my love and respect for the receiver of that gift. Most of the time, I make cards, but this year I thought I'd do something a little different...why not make up a recipe? Well, sadly, I wasn't able to do this for everyone, I still need quite a bit more baking experience, but I was able to do it for my mom. I created a Hearty Breakfast Pumpkin Muffin recipe in her name, making sure to use ingredients that she'd like. For instance, my mom is not a fan of bleached flour, so I used multigrain flour :). Thankfully, she really liked the muffins!
I've decided that I plan on giving baked goods away as gifts more often. I know I'm obviously not the first to realize that it's a great idea -- just think of how the stereotypically dreaded holiday fruitcake came about ;). But...I do think it's a great way to show someone you care, especially if you use their favorite ingredients :D. Plus, you don't have to worry about it becoming another white elephant gift :P!
I bet you're thinking the muffins are topped with crushed nuts of some sort! Nope! Jose recently introduced me to steel cut oats, they're much healthier than the quick rolled oats we normally eat for breakfast. Why? Rolled oats are more processed than steel cut oats, they undergo a change that makes them easier to cook. If you're allergic to nuts, steel cut oats are a great baking alternative. Topping these breakfast muffins with steel cut oats gave them a crunchy texture that's similar to that of crushed nuts. Try them out, they even have better flavor than rolled oats! You can read more about them here. You'll find the recipe for the oversized muffins below, they're huge but tasty :)!
