Lemon & Buttermilk Meringue Pie

Pie and coffee are the official fare when friends and neighbors in our small community get together to talk business, or just do some catching up. 
The rich, tangy, homemade flavor of this pie wins it a blue ribbon every time, and for thrifty cooks, a pie recipe that uses both yolks and whites of the egg is always a bonus. Enjoy!

Filling

2 T. GF flour blend

2 cups buttermilk

4 T. unsalted butter, melted

1/2 cup cane sugar

6 egg yolks, beaten

2 lemons, 1 zested and  both juiced

1 pre-baked 9 inch GF pie crust

Meringue

6 egg whites

½ t. cream of tartar

¾ cup of cane sugar

1 t. GF vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 325˚F.

Make the filling by sifted the flour into the buttermilk in a medium bowl and stir well until smooth. Bring water to simmer in the bottom of a double boiler and transfer the flour mixture to the top pan. Whisk in butter and sugar. Gradually whisk in the egg yolks. Cook, whisking constantly, until the custard begins to thicken, about ten minutes.

Remove from heat, whisk in the lemon zest and juice, and set aside to cool to room temperature. When the filling has cooled, pour it into the pre-baked pie shell and bake the pie until the custard is just set, for about fifteen to twenty five minutes. Remove from oven, turning the oven up to 350˚F. Transfer to a rack to cool.

While the pie cools, make the meringue* by beating the egg whites with the cream of tartar in a bowl until stiff peaks form. Gradually beat in the sugar until the meringue appears glossy. Beat in the vanilla. Generously spread the meringue in a swirl pattern over the top of the pie.

Bake the pie for ten minutes more or until the pie is cooked through and the meringue is slightly browned. Transfer the pie to a rack to cool for ten minutes, then move to refrigerator to cool further. Slice when pie is completely firm.

Makes: One nine inch pie.

Notes: *This is a lot of meringue. Ideally, you will only need about 3 egg whites for this (nine inch) pie topping. I would recommend whipping all six of the egg whites as directed and make meringue cookies (yes, you have a bonus cookie recipe included with the pie!)with what is leftover after topping the pie. Place the meringue cookie dollops on parchment that is placed on a cookie sheet, top with some sliced almonds and bake for 1½ hours at 200˚F. Cookies should be crunchy on the outside and chewy on the inside.

This recipe is taken from my second cookbook:

"The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free: gluten free recipes that celebrate back to basics, wholesome and comfort foods."

To view a Youtube slide show "tour" of The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free, click this link...

"Healthy" Chocolate Candy "Bark"!

 My recipe for healthy chocolate candy can easily be made gluten free and sugar free. Try different nuts, dried cherries, even cinnamon and chipotle spice! 

Consuming a little chocolate and a little coconut oil daily has been shown to have many health benefits!

1 1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 to 1/3 cup good quality cocoa powder
stevia or coconut sugar to sweeten
3/4 cup salted peanuts or other nuts of choice
 a few teaspoons of caramel,
optional

Place chilled (this helps the chocolate to set up more quickly) nuts in the bottom of an 8 x 8 inch baking pan. 

Melt oil over low heat in a small saucepan on the stove. Whisk in sweetener of choice until the sweetener is thoroughly dissolved. Pour the chocolate mixture over the nuts, making a thin layer in the bottom of the pan. Place pan in freezer to set up until firm, for approximately 30 minutes.

Remove from freezer and drizzle a small amount of the caramel (if using) over the chocolate with a spoon. Allow the caramel to harden a bit, then break up the now solid chocolate bark with a table knife and store in the refrigerator.

Makes: 2 cups of chocolate candy "bark".

This recipe is taken from my cookbook:
"The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free"
which is available at various retail stores and at my website: www.celiacdiseaseinfo.org

Valentines... or anytime chocolate "salamis" as gifts or a special treat!

This is a festive fudge that is created by shaping the chocolate into a salami and dusting it with powdered sugar. The recipe was shared with me by an Italian friend who “skyped” this delightful recipe with a cooking partner in Italy. 

Be creative with different variations, such as adding a little chili powder for a Mexican chocolate version, adding dried fruit, different liquors, and hazelnuts or macadamia nuts.**

8 ounces of good quality bittersweet chocolate

1 stick of unsalted butter, chopped into pieces

1 T. Dutch cocoa

14 ounce can sweetened condensed milk

2 t. GF vanilla extract

½ cup nuts of choice (I prefer pecans or black walnuts)

1 box Pamela’s gluten free shortbread cookies, broken into chunks*

Powdered sugar

Carefully melt the chocolate on medium temperature in the microwave at 30 second intervals or until melted and easy to stir. Add the butter and stir until smooth. Add the cocoa, condensed milk, and vanilla and continue to stir. Gently fold in the chunked cookies and allow to cool to room temperature.

Place cooking parchment on an oblong cookie sheet. Pour one half of the mixture onto the parchment and roll into a tube shape about 8 inches long by 3 inches in diameter, making certain to fold over the ends of the tube so that the mixture doesn’t ooze out the ends of the parchment

casing. Repeat with remaining mixture and twist the ends to secure the salamis.

Tightly encase the salamis in foil and place in the refrigerator for a few hours until firm. (You may choose to re-shape the salami as it chills and sets up, creating a more perfect “tube” shape.) Roll in powdered sugar for a “dusted” salami appearance.** Slice into ½ inch slices when serving.

Makes: Two 8 inch x 3 inch “salamis”.

Notes: *For a variation, use Pamela’s Peanut Butter cookies in place of the shortbread cookies.

**For a gift presentation, wrap the finished, sugar-dusted salami in a little waxed paper or baking parchment. Now wrap in festive paper or fabric, tying the ends with ribbon or raffia and attaching a gift tag. Keep in mind that this is fudge, so it should be kept chilled until ready to slice and serve.

This recipe is available in my second GF cookbook: The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free". Go to www.celiacdiseaseinfo.org to purchase.

Snowball Cookies

The secret ingredient in this cookie is ricotta cheese! This is a wonderful, slightly crunchy on the outside, moist and chewy on the inside cookie.

2 cups GF flour blend
1 t. baking powder
½ t. baking soda
Pinch of salt
½ cup butter (one stick)
1 cup sugar
1 egg
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 t. GF vanilla or maple extract

 Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar, 2 T. milk
1cup coconut flakes for garnish

Heat oven to 350˚F. Coat 2 baking sheets with non-stick cooking spray or parchment.

Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt together until blended; set aside. Beat butter and sugar together until blended. Add egg, ricotta and vanilla and beat until combined.

Mix flour mixture into liquid mixture until blended. Chill dough for one hour, if desired.

With oiled hands, roll dough into rough one inch balls OR just scoop out portions with a teaspoon. Place onto cookie sheets two inches apart. Bake at 350˚F for 15 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges of cookies. Cool on a rack.

Glaze
Beat powdered sugar and milk until well blended. Dip tops of cookies into glaze and sprinkle with coconut. Set aside on waxed paper until glaze has hardened.

Makes: Three dozen cookies.

This recipe is available in my first cookbook: 
"Delicious! The Very Best of Gluten Free and Wheat Free Cooking" www.celiacdiseaseinfo.org

 

Simple Cranberry-Orange Scones

So simple, moist and  full of flavor! A wonderful holiday meal accompaniment.

2 cups GF flour blend
1/3 cup  coconut (or regular) sugar
1 T. grated orange (or lemon) peel (zest)
1 1/2 t. baking powder
1/2 t. baking soda
Pinch of salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into chunks
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup dried or fresh cranberries
1/2 cup almond slivers, optional

Preheat oven to 425˚F.

In a medium bowl, mix flour, sugar, orange peel, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Cut in the butter with a pastry blender, until the mixture looks like fine crumbs.

Stir in the buttermilk just until the dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Fold in the cranberries and almonds, if using.

Drop dough by 1/3 cups onto a greased cookie sheet.

Bake for 12-15 minutes or until light brown. Immediately remove scones from the cookie sheet.

Serve warm.

Makes: Ten scones. 

This recipe is from my cookbook: "The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free".

 To view a slide show "tour" of The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free,
click this link...

 

 

Autumn Pumpkin Dip

Dip apples and crunchy GF ginger snaps in this creamy dip for a memorable Fall treat! Great served with my ginger cookie recipe in this blog.

8 ounce package LF cream cheese, room temperature

1 cup GF powdered sugar (or substitute stevia to taste)

15 ounce can pumpkin (or less)

1 T. ground cinnamon

1 T. pumpkin pie spice
1/2 t. ground ginger

1 T. Grand Marnier, optional
1 cup plain non-fat Greek yogurt
Ground cinnamon for dusting

In food processor, blend cream cheese and powdered sugar until smooth. Blend in the pumpkin, spices, and liquor. Fold in the yogurt.

Chill until ready to serve. Dust top of dip with cinnamon. 

Serve on a platter with apples and gluten free ginger snaps*; Enjoy!

Makes: About four cups of dip. 

Notes: *Mi-del Ginger Snaps are also great if you don't have time to bake a cookie. 

This recipe is from my cookbook: "The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free."

To watch a slide show "tour" of the cookbook, click this link:

Youtube slide show "tour" of book here:

 

No Bake Country Fruit Tart

An incredibly simple, low sugar, low carb tart that requires no baking. Any fruit may be used, but I made use of the summer harvest from our large peach tree.

Crust

1 cup raw pecans or almonds, finely ground

1 cup almond meal
3/4 cup pitted dates, ground

4-5 cups of thinly sliced peaches

12 ounce jar of good quality peach or apricot preserves
2 T. sugar  
2 T. Amaretto liquor, optional

Mix the ground nuts, almond meal, and dates together. Spray GF baking spray onto an 8-9 inch tart or spring form pan. Press the crust mixture into the bottom of the pan and one inch up the sides to create a uniform crust. Place in the refrigerator while preparing filling and glaze.

When ready to fill the pie, arrange and overlap the sliced peaches into the crust, overfilling it slightly. 

Stir the preserves in a small pan over medium heat until melted. Stir in the sugar until it dissolves and the mixture makes sticky strings that fall from the spoon. (225 degrees on a candy thermometer). If using the liquor, add it in at the very end of the cooking. Pour the warm glaze over the peaches, allowing it to drizzle down between the crevices of the fruit.

Refrigerate the tart for 1-2 hours.

Serve with whipped cream or ice cream.

Makes: Eight slices.

For more recipes from my cookbook: "The Farmer's Daughter Cooks Gluten Free". It is available at:   

http://www.celiacdiseaseinfo.org.

Coconut Custard Ice Cream

The richest coconut ice cream you will ever taste! This is rendered very smooth and creamy by adding egg yolks.

1 cup unsweetened dried grated coconut

1 13 ounce can reduced fat orgnaic evaporated milk

1 13 ounce can reduced fat unsweetened coconut milk *

1 can or plastic squeeze bottle of coconut cream** 

Agave syrup or sugar to taste

6 egg yolks

2 T. dark rum, optional

Toast the coconut for about ten minutes or until golden in a pan on the stove or in the oven.  Set aside.

Heat the evaporated milk, coconut milk, coconut cream, and agave syrup or sugar in a medium saucepan on the stove until it simmers. (You won’t need much sugar because the coconut cream is very high in sugar.) Do not boil. While this mixture is heating, mix up the egg yolks in a separate bowl. Take 2 cups of the simmering mixture out of the saucepan and add it into the egg yolks, whisking quickly. Now, incorporate the egg yolk-milk mixture back into the simmering milks in the saucepan and bring to a simmer once again or until the back of a metal spoon is coated by the thickened custard. Remove from stove and mix in the rum, if using.

Chill mixture in your refrigerator for at least an hour or two. Pour into ice cream freezer and freeze. Half way through the freezing, add in the toasted coconut.

Makes: Approximately one quart of ice cream.

Notes: *I use Trader Joe’s. ** Found in your grocery’s liquor dept.

For recipes from my cookbook: "Delicious! The Very Best of Gluten Free and Wheat Free Cooking. It is available at:   

http://www.celiacdiseaseinfo.org