Gluten-free Spritz cookies

Spritz cookies.  That sounds easy enough.  I've been wanting to try them for quite a while now because I've had the press for several years actually and just never got around to giving it a try.  The recipe is very easy, yes, but the contraption that is supposed to push the dough out was ridiculous!  I think it was a cheap model so I'll cut it some slack but it did not want to push the dough.  It would only go about half way and then it was done.  It also wouldn't cut off the dough so I had to pull it off after each press.

It was a little frustrating of an experience but, I'll try it again some time and give it another chance.  Maybe the press was just having a bad day, we don't know what's happening in another's life when they choose to be a complete poop to you sometimes and I always try to give at least a second chance :)

The recipe that I used for these came from the book "Gluten-Free Christmas Cookies" by Ellen Brown

1 c. white rice flour

1 c. confectioners' sugar

1/2 c. sweet rice flour

1/2 c. potato starch

1/2 c. almond meal

1 tsp. xanthan gum

1/4 tsp. salt

1/2 pound butter (2 sticks), sliced

1 lg egg

1 lg egg white

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 tsp almond extract

Gluten free sprinkles

Combine white rice flour, confectioners' sugar, sweet rice flour, potato starch, almond meal, xanthan gum and salt in a food processor (I used my blender - but it was a little messy and I think I'll skip this step next time and just go straight to the stand mixer) blend for 5 seconds.  Add butter to the flour mixture in the bowl and pulse until mixture looks like coarse meal.

Combine egg, egg white, vanilla and almond extract in a small cup and whisk well.  Drizzle into work bowl and pulse 10 times or so until the dough comes together (or using the paddle attachment of the mixer, stir on low for @30 seconds) if the dough is dry and doesn't come together add milk by 1 tsp amounts until dough forms a ball.  I had to do this and used almond milk.

Divide dough into 2 balls, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour or up to 2 days.  When ready to use take it out and let it get to room temperature before adding it to the press.  Run it through the press according to your press' instructions, decorate with sprinkles or other toppings and bake at 350 for 8-10 minutes.  Or until the edges are just brown.  

I found this recipe to be a little less flavorful than I was hoping, just a little bland for me.  I think that next time I try my press I might use a full sugar cookie recipe and see how that goes.

Glorious Gluten Free Fudge

Fudge is one of the staples of the holidays, but I don't know why it needs to be pushed to such a small portion of the year!  It is one of my favorite treats - just enough for those afternoon chocolate cravings.  Yum! 

This recipe is a tried and true one for me and I've been making it for years; it is Foolproof chocolate fudge from the Hershey's Chocolate Lover's cookbook.  I was a little sad when I started preparing for the holiday baking season and thought I might not be able to make it because of the gluten-free standard I now live by.  But I was so excited to realize that it was already gluten free as long as I bought the right brands as ingredients.  

                                            

I spent quite a bit of time trying to research each brand and came to the conclusion that most likely all sweetened condensed milk brands are naturally gluten free, but the only one that actually stated it was Eagle brand.  It can be frustrating when something is naturally gluten free because it's not always easy to tell when shopping.  However, now there seems to be more and more products that are being re-labeled as gluten-free and sold as a specialty product.  Sometimes sitting right there on the same shelf, side by side and even though they are exactly the same product the one with the new label is significantly higher priced.  It pays to do your homework, but it is a time-consuming venture to be sure.

But, back to the fudge itself.  I love the texture of this recipe because it is smooth and creamy with a dense melt-in-your mouth richness.  It is sturdy and can hold up to sitting out all day without drying out or melting yet, as soon as you take a bite you are feeling velvety goodness immediately.  

Recap of 2013

Happy 2014!!  I thought I would do a photo recap of some of my favorite baking/decorating adventures from the last year.  I went on a lot of road trips in 2013 as well and I thought I would try to count the states I visited and maybe put up a picture for each one.  Just a fun way to decide how many pictures to include, except that I was in 32 states!  I have been to 46 of our 50 states so far and plan on completing Alaska, Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana in the next couple of years but this year checked off a lot!  I went through some of them before and just "re-visited" but it was still a lot!

I think I'll just hit the highlights in cake :)

Have a sweet and blessed 2014!