Gluten Free Banana Oat Coconut Muffins

I forgot just how easy it is to make muffins. And how rewarding! Not only do you get warm fluffy treats... your house smells comforting and delicious!  Making muffins is basically as easy as mixing the dry with the wet ingredients, filling up some cupcake pans, and throwing them into an oven for 15 or so minutes... then poof!  It's off to muffin munchin land!

There's so many muffin making possibilities that it's hard to imagine running out of tasty combinations to experiment with.  For example, take a base flavor like banana.  I've had many variations of banana walnut muffins, but there are many more flavor combinations available to play with.  These banana muffins include gluten free oats and coconut chips, a little ground cloves and nutmeg, and a topping of sprinkled pecan pieces.  You could leave out the coconut, add chocolate chips or something else, maybe mango chunks... whatever sounds good to you, I say go for it. With muffins, the worst case scenario is rarely less than yum.

Makes 12 regular size muffins

Total Prep Time: Less than 1 hour

Ingredients

• cooking spray
• 1 1/2 cups GF Flour (I use Bobs Red Mill GF All Purpose Baking Flour)
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 4 over-ripe bananas (smashed)
• 1/2 cup white sugar
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 1/3 cup canola/vegetable oil
• 2 eggs (room temp)
• 1/8 tsp. ground cloves
• 1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
• 1/2 cups gluten free oats (I use Bobs Red Mill GF Certified Oats)
• 1/2 cup coconut flakes
• Pecan pieces for topping

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. (175 degrees C.).  Spray muffin pan with cooking spray.
2. Sift the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, ground nutmeg & cloves in a large bowl.
3. Mix the bananas, white and brown sugar, oats, coconut flakes, canola oil and eggs together in a separate large bowl.
4. Fold the banana mixture into flour mixture until just incorporated. 
5. Scoop batter into prepared muffin pan.
6. Top the mixture in the muffin pan with a coating of pecan pieces. 
7. Bake until muffins spring back a little when you tap them on the top with a spoon (about 14-16 minutes).
8. Let cool for a little while and then ENJOY!

Gluten Free SemiSweet Fruity Chocolates

Here's another candy making experiment of mine.  My first try at being a Chocolateur used white chocolate, mixed nuts and a handful of cranberries.  This one steers clear of nuts and focuses on being nice-n-fruity. All you need is a bag of semisweet chocolate chips and around 2 cups of chopped dried berries.  I used a combination of dried strawberries, blueberries, cherries and cranberries. 

These chocolates were much more popular than the white chocolate candies I made. I could tell how good they were by the way people tried to hoard them, or how they would force themselves to eat only a few a day in order to savor them:).  Regarding proportions... use about 1/2 cup more chocolate chips than fruity bits, and you can't go wrong.

Ingredients

• 1 bag of semisweet chocolate chips (about 2-2/12 cups)
• 2 cups of mixed dried berries
• Cocoa powder (for dusting)
• Non-stick baking sheet or wax-paper

Directions

1. Chop your dried berries up as fine as you're able.  These chocolates work best if filled with lots of tiny fruity bits, and not large chewy chunks.
2. Melt and stir your semisweet chocolate chips in a double boiler, or in 30-second microwave bursts, until  nice and creamy.
3. Add the chopped berries and stir until completely incorporated.
4. Let cool until the consistency of thick molasses. 
5. Spread some wax-paper out, or use a non-stick baking sheet, and spoon small globs of fruity-chocolate about 1-inch apart.  
6. Let the chocolate cool for a while before dusting your chocolates off with cocoa powder.
7. Once completely cool, dig in and smile big:)

Gluten Free Cheesy Broiled Polenta with Mushrooms

With half of my family living in the deep south, grits and polenta have always been among my favorite side dishes.  In this recipe corn meal takes the main stage in a delicious meal that can be served hot or cold, although bubbling hot is the best!  You can use any kind of mushroom you wish; experimentation is best when tasty.  When using the broiler, make sure to keep a close eye on your polenta, since it can quickly go from a beautiful golden brown to a charred black in a matter of seconds.  Try not to like this one:)

Total Prep Time = 30 minutes
Serves = 6

Ingredients

• 3 cups water
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 cup cornmeal (I used Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Corn Meal)
• 3 tblsp. olive oil
• 1 1/2 cups fresh mushrooms (diced)
• 1 large garlic clove (minced or pressed)
• 1 tblsp. dry white wine (or water, but wine is better)
•  1/8 tsp. salt (in addition to the salt needed for the boiling water above)
• 1/2 cup smoked cheddar or provolone cheese (shredded)
• ground black pepper (to taste)
• dash of marjoram, basil, or tarragon (optional)

Cooking Directions

1. Bring 3 cups of water and 1/2 tsp. of salt to a boil. When the water is rapidly boiling, add the cornmeal slowly while stirring constantly to avoid creating lumps.
2. Lower the heat and simmer for about 10 minutes, making sure to stir often to avoid sticking, until the polenta is nice an thick.
3. While the polenta is cooking, heat the olive oil in a skillet and saute the mushrooms and garlic over medium heat until the oil is absorbed.
4. Stir in the wine (or water), and 1/8 tsp. salt. Simmer gently for a couple minutes.
5. Preheat the broiler.
6. Spread the polenta evenly in a buttered or oiled flameproof casserole dish.  Sprinkle the shredded cheese on the polenta. Spoon the sauteed mushrooms over the cheese, and top off with another layer of shredded cheese.  Add ground pepper according to your taste.
7. Broil for 3 to 5 minutes, until the cheese is golden brown. 
8. Remove from broiler and top with a sprinkling of marjoram, basil or tarragon if you wish.
9. Serve bubbling hot and pull up the blanket of comfort food you're about to enjoy!