Easy Crock Pot Vegan Apple Crisp

Here's another gem I discovered this weekend.  I got creative and just threw this together and it happened to turn out fantastic!  Take it to Thanksgiving or have it for dessert tonight.  The best part about it is you can make the apple pie filling in the crock pot all day, mix up the crumble and throw it in the oven for 15 minutes and have an amazing finish to dinner.  Vegan and very little sugar to boot.

Before the magic

Crock Pot Vegan Apple Crisp
serves 6-8

• 6-8 apples, peeled, cored, and sliced
• a handful or two of raisins
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla
• 3 tablespoons honey

For the Crisp Part

• 1 3/4 cup oatmeal
• 1 cup raw organic sugar
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• 1/2 cup butter substitute, like smart balance

Throw the apple part in the crock pot and cook on LOW for 6 hours or so.  Place the apple mixture in a baking dish and pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix in a medium to small bowl all of the crisp ingredients with a small fork.  Spread it out all over the apple dish and bake for about 15 minutes, or until the top is golden brown.  Serve warm.

Gluten Free/Vegan Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins

These things are, as Jeff said, the prettiest muffins I've ever made.  And they're good too.  You won't believe how well the chocolate and the pumpkin meld together in a lovely dance across your tongue.  They make one beautiful baby.  At only 140 Calories per muffin, less than a gram of fat and 2 grams of fiber each, you can use these babies to get you in summer shape as the winter months creep by. 

Gluten-Free/Vegan Chocolate Pumpkin Muffins

Makes 12

• 1 1/2 cup arrowhead gluten free flour (you can use 1/2 cornstarch and 1/2 buckwheat flour if you'd like,)
• 1/2 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 3 tablespoons unsweetened baking cocoa
• 1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
• 3/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal
• 6 tablespoons water
• 1 cup pumpkin puree
• 1/2 cup applesauce
• 1/2 cup honey

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Mix all the dry ingredients together in large bowl, then mix in the wet.  Pour into a greased cupcake pan, until all the batter is evenly divided.  Bake for 18 minutes.  Serve with a wink and a smile.  Bring to Thanksgiving Dinner and daringly put it on the dessert table.
Pumpkin

Homemade Applesauce in 5 Easy steps

I made applesauce today with a bunch of fresh picked organic apples.  It was my first try and I did alright.  It's pretty simple.

1. Take a bunch of apples.
2. Peel, core and slice them.
3. Put them in a giant pot with an inch of water on the bottom.
4. Heat on high, then down to medium high until apples are very soft and mushy.
5. Add cinnamon.

Wonderful.

 This is a heck of a lot easier than I thought it would be.  I'd always been very intimidated by the process.  Probably because of the boiling hot lava apple blobs popping out of the pot like a terrible bog of doom.  But I did it and survived.  Yes, a lid helped.

Apples

Gluten-Free Vegan Pumpkin Pie

I know I am a tad bit obsessed with pumpkin right now, but it's just the perfect food.  I won't even mention the vitamins and fiber, and naturally sweet flesh...it's just plain scrumptious.  So I tried out a recipe that blew me away last night.  I adapted it from gluten free goddess, (love her!)  It's great because I don't even have to mess with the crust, (not my favorite part of baking.)  It creates it's own delightful hint of a crust that dares you to have another slice.
Go ahead.
Bite into it.
It's such a sexy pie.
Plus, I broke down the calories, (because I couldn't resist,) and guess what?  Only 150 calories per slice, 4.6 grams of fat and 2.5 grams of fiber.  If you're doing weight watchers, this is only 3 points per slice.  Yumm.  So this is like marrying the hot guy, who loves kids and you and is handy around the house.  (Basically, my husband.)

Without further ado, the best part of Thanksgiving...

Pumpkin!

Gluten Free Vegan Pumpkin Pie
Makes 8 slices


15-oz can pumpkin
1 1/2 cups almond breeze vanilla milk
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
3/4 cup organic light brown sugar
1/2 cup flour
2 tablespoons cornstarch
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
Preheat oven to 350 degrees and lightly grease pie pan.  Blend all the ingredients together in a stand mixer until luxuriously smooth.  Pour into pie pan and bake for just under an hour, (until the edges are brown and the top is firm.)  Let cool slightly to allow it to set.  Enjoy.

The texture at first made my husband wonder if it needed more time.  But the pie sets beautifully, with a wonderful silk texture that will win even the most critical pie eaters. 
Pumpkin

Gluten-Free Egg-Free Pumpkin Cookies

I am going to do a series of recipes leading up to Thanksgiving that will involve gluten free, egg free and dairy free ingredients.  Most of the time, I try to do all three.  But sometimes, it will be one or two of them.  In any case, Thanksgiving is a great time to branch out and try new things, and these are the weeks to get practicing!  Good luck and have fun.

These cookies are perfect to bring over to someone's home if you'll be away this Thanksgiving.  You can even stow them in your luggage if you have to make a flight.  Yummy.

Photo by Crystl

Gluten-Free/Egg-Free/Dairy-Free Pumpkin Cookies

• 1 cup cornstarch
• 1 cup white rice flour
• ¼ cup masa flour (or sorghum flour)
• 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 ½ teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
• 1 teaspoon baking powder (gluten-free kind)
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 cup melted butter (or dairy-free margarine)
• 1 cup packed brown sugar
• 1 (15 oz.) can pureed pumpkin
• 2 tablespoons flaxseed meal
• 6 tablespoons water
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2 (12 oz) packages chocolate chips (or dairy free chocolate chips)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease baking sheet.
    
2. Mix cornstarch, rice flour, masa flour, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl. Beat butter and brown sugar in large mixer bowl until creamy. Beat in pumpkin, flaxseed meal, water and vanilla extract. Gradually beat in flour mixture. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop by rounded tablespoon onto prepared baking sheets.
    
3. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes or until edges are lightly browned. Cool on baking sheets for 2 minutes. Move to wire rack to cool. Serve warm.

Pumpkin

Easy Gluten Free Deserts for Beginners

When first diagnosed with a gluten allergy, the world can seem very overwhelming. So it's best to start with desert. Once you've handled the desert situation, life doesn't seem so overwhelmingly complicated. After all, you can totally survive off of chocolate chip cookies, right?

(This article I wrote for wisebread.com a while back. It was before we went dairy and egg free. If you'd like to adapt them, I'm writing an article on substitutions later today so you can make all of your favorite recipes adaptable to your allergy needs.)

Gluten-Free Deserts

Photo by angusf

GF Dairy/Free Egg/FreePumpkin Pancakes

Want to know what my family has been living off of for breakfasts lately?  Pumpkin pancakes.  I love the fall, this recipe makes it feel like the season has arrived.  Bonus: high fiber, lots of vitamin A and low sugar makes this recipe great for building up your kid's immunity against back to school cold and flu bugs.

Photo by Shelly_Ginger

GF Dairy/Free Egg/Free Pumpkin Pancakes

1 cup pumpkin puree
2 tablespoons oil
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1 1/2 cup rice milk
3 tablespooons honey (or brown sugar)
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
3 tablespoons water
2 cups cornstarch/white rice flour blend (1 cup of each)
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
1 teaspoon baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1 teaspoon allspice

1. Blend in a standing mixer the pumpkin puree, oil, vinegar, rice milk, honey, vanilla, flaxseed meal, and water until well blended.  
2. In a separate bowl, mix in the flour blend, xanthan gum, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice until well blended.
3. Add in the flour mix to the pumpkin mix until well blended.
4. Pour onto a preheated, nonstick griddle at about 325 degrees, 1/4 cup of batter per pancake.  If the batter seems too thick, spread it around with a spoon.  Turn over when bubbles begin to form  Serve hot and with your choice of topping.

Pumpkin

Gluten-Free/Dairy-Free/Egg-Free YUMMY CARROT CAKE!!

Don't let the name fool you.  Our fourteen year old, very picky babysitting friend loved it.  I made it for Jeff's big 35 birthday yesterday and it was magnificent.  Just a glorious piece of yummyness that didn't leave me bloated and tired this morning from all the bad stuff in it.  Now, usually, I substitute sugar with honey.  But since this was a birthday I went all out.  Oh yeah, baby.  REAL sugar.  Kind of.  Brown sugar, anyway.  But I cut the oil down to almost nothing and subbed applesauce.  The frosting was made with cashews, honey, vanilla and water thrown in a food processor until it begged for mercy.  DELICIOUS!!  No butter needed here!  Without further ado, the recipe from heaven:

Carrot Cake, anyone?

Gluten/Dairy/Egg Free Carrot Cake

4 Tablespoons flaxseed meal
12 Tablespoons water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup applesauce
2 cups brown sugar
3 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup cornstarch
1 cup white rice flour
1 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
2 teaspoons baking soda
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
3 cups grated carrots
1 8oz can crushed pineapple, drained

1. Preheat your  oven to 350 degrees.  Grease and flour a 9x13 inch pan, or 2 circle cake pans.
2. In a large bowl, beat together the flaxseed meal, water, oil, applesauce, brown sugar, and vanilla.
3. In a separate bowl, blend the cornstarch, white rice flour, xanthan gum, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg until well blended.
4. Add the flour mixture to the wet mixture while beating on low.  Blend on medium to high after all the flour is in, until well blended.  Stir in the carrots and pineapple.  Pour into prepared pan(s).
5. Bake in the preheated oven for 40-50 minutes or until an inserted toothpick in the middle of the cake comes out clean.  Let it cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn it onto a wire rack to cool completely.
6. Once completely cool, frost the cake

Cashew Honey Frosting

1 1/2 cup raw cashews
1/3 cup honey
1/4 cup water
1 tablespoon vanilla

1. Place the cashews, honey, water and vanilla in a blender or food processor.  Blend until desired consistency, adding more water as needed.
2. Spread all over your cake, cinnamon roll, toast, or use it as a dip for apples.  

Carrot

Honey Marshmallows

I have been fascinated and intimidated by the making of marshmallows for years.  It all begin with my late nineties obsession with Martha Stewart.  I tried to make her treats but lacked the kitchen aid stand mixer that really should have been a parting gift to Eve when she got booted out of the garden.
But as an eternal example of God's grace, I now have a free standing Kitchen Aid mixer and so I am able to make marshmallows.
This is really great news since we've cut out processed sugar and had to switch to honey.  I found a recipe that uses only honey, gelatin, small amounts of powdered sugar, salt and vanilla. After reading stories online, I got nervous.  Everyone talked about the mess, the strings, the sticky goo that gets everywhere.

Visions filled my head with a cross between "The Blob" and an episode of "I Love Lucy" gone horrible wrong.  I was beginning to think this was maybe not the best idea. 
But my love of marshmallows took over and I took the plunge.
It really wasn't hard.
A few tricks:

• Line your 8x8 pan with wax paper or parchment, and oil it well.
• Oil your spatula when you scrape out the bowl
• Don't stick your fingers in to taste
• DON'T stick your fingers in to taste...
• and don't forget to keep your fingers out of the tasting bowl

 Healthy Honey Marshmallow Recipe from Green Diva Mom

By the way, I subbed the sugar/cinnamon mixture she uses for powdered sugar.

Gluten-Free/ Vegan Delicious Banana Applesauce Muffins

I just made my favorite applesauce muffins and tried a new flour.  For those of you new to gluten-free living, it's best to use a staple recipe when you try new flours and flour blends.  The reason is, you can start to get a feel for the textures of flours.  For example, rice flour leaves a grainy texture.  Not so great, but you can do a couple things to remedy that:  you can soak the rice flour in whatever liquid you're using to bake, or you can add some flours to the mix that will balance it out.  Starches are the best for this.  Tapioca and potato starch are nice and delicate for things like cakes, while cornstarch is a happy everyday starch to gluten free flour blends.

Now, before I go too far on a tangent, let me get to the point:  I tried a new flour blend and I am thrilled by the results.  I used Arrowhead Mills Organic Gluten Free Flour Mix, (pictured at the left,) and what I got was fluffy, light and delicious muffins.  Oh my goodness!  They are/were yummy!
Now I happened upon this glorious flour blend at my local dollar store and got a bunch of bags for $1.49 each.  That is a steal of a price.  To be fair, I think for special occasions, I may even  pay full price for these answers to my gluten-free prayers.  (The shock!)

So to let you know how I did this:

Applesauce Banana Muffins

Preheat oven to 400 degrees

• 1 1/2 cups Arrowhead Organic Gluten-Free Goodness Yummy Yum flour
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1/2 t. baking soda
• 1/4 t. sea salt
• 1 t. cinnamon
• 1/2 t. nutmeg
• 3/4 cup mashed banana
• 2 Tbl flaxseed meal
• 6 Tbl water
• 1/4 cup applesauce

Throw them all together in a medium to large bowl.  Mix it up good.  Add whatever you want, craisins, raisins, chopped up dates or prunes.  Divide them evenly into a greased muffin pan.  Bake at 400 degrees for 15-20 minutes.  Keep an eye on them to see how they're doing around 15 minutes.  They'll be glorious golden brown puffballs of muffin happiness when you're finished.  (And I aint' just whistling Dixie...What exactly does that mean, anyway?)

The flour blend has a hint of vanilla, and actually started puffing up and rising in the bowl when I walked away from it for a few minutes!  Amazing!  Seriously, these things are healthy and don't taste it.
Apples

Gluten Free Oreos!

For real, these are the true deal.  They are NOT, I repeat, NOT healthy.  But they are gluten free!  So Bon Apetite!  Take all those gluten free trans fats and enjoy!  Because, we've got to every now and again, dang it!

Homemade Oreos

Homemade Graham Crackers, Whole Wheat and a Gluten-Free Version

These graham crackers are perfect for s'mores and after school snacks.  I included a healthy, low sugar type as well for you glutenites that are so lucky you can eat processed food but are trying to eat healthier.

gluten-free-graham-crackers