Gluten Free

My entrance into the world of gluten free has been a slow one and a learning experience for me in the kitchen. Gluten free baking is becoming a part of my work in providing some of the baked goods for the Deli.

Even my Gluten Free vocabulary and knowledge is expanding with the different types of flours, starches and even using Xantham gum, which holds the dough and mixture together.

I even know what grocery store carries the gluten free products that I need to use in my baking. I usually have no trouble finding these products at Whole Foods, which has a really good selection. Even Soergel’s Farm Market carries these products.

The Gluten Free products are kept separate from the other regular products and I usually set aside a day to make strictly gluten free baked goods.

I never imagined I would become an aficionado of Gluten Free but I have. It is easy and everything that I have tackled so far has been a welcome seller at the Deli, like the scones, peanut butter cookies, blueberry loaf cake and Liz’s Brownies. I am looking forward to making more gluten free products.

A Brownie with a Kick!

Aaron Sanchez’s Mexican Brownies

For Cinco de May, I found an interesting recipe for Mexican Brownies. The recipe was by a food chef, Aaron Sanchez.

Making the brownie from scratch was simple and fun. What made the brownie delicious were the Mexican cinnamon and the cayenne pepper, which the recipe called for. Chili powder could be used instead of the cayenne pepper. I didn’t have Mexican cinnamon, either, so I used Vietnamese Cinnamon, which was close in taste to the Mexican one. The brownies turned out nice and moist and had a bit of a kick to them, which made them even better.

The first day my daughter put the brownies out to sell at her Deli, she sold 8! I definitely knew that I needed to bake more.

When I sampled a brownie, all I could think of was Mucho Gracias, Aaron Sanchez, and then I promptly made two more trays of the brownies. The brownies are a welcome change at the Deli and they are steadily selling out.

Liz's Gluten Free Brownies

Sometimes, I find myself dragging my feet when I am asked to make a certain recipe. I don’t know if making something new scares me, or I just want to do what I am used to doing. My daughter, the Chef, asked me to make gluten free brownies and I kept putting it off. Then she sent me a hand written recipe and I printed it out and I would bring it into the kitchen.

My daughter told me that she promised the man who gave her the recipe that she would have them baked and brought into her Deli the next day. Before I could tackle the brownies, I needed to purchase potato starch and rice flour. I already had the Xanthan gum that I needed. I found the two products at Whole Foods and promptly drove to the Kitchen to start my baking.

The customer who gave my daughter the recipe assured her that it was the best brownie that he had ever eaten. His wife, Liz, perfected the recipe. Besides following the recipe correctly, he gave us three rules to follow...only make a single recipe, use an 8x8 baking pan, and when the browies were  sold in the Deli to call them  -  Liz’s Brownies.

I read and reread the directions and placed everything on my prep table that I would need. I sprayed the pan, mixed the ingredients, and baked the brownies. When the brownies had cooled, my daughter cut them and both of us sampled a piece. Oh yeah!

            ...they were chocolatey!

...they were moist!

...they were delicious!

I           ...and they were one of the best brownies that we had ever ate!

My only hope was that I did justice to Liz’s Gluten Free Brownies!