I often like to attack vegan recipe challenges with gusto, spearing my spatula into the air while whisking a flax egg like a crazy person. However, as much as I like to consider myself a fearless vegan baker, there is one type of baking that makes me shake in my boots: Gluten-free baking.
I was recently asked to participate in a gluten-free and vegan recipe challenge with a group of bloggers, organized by Marly. The challenge is to create a gluten-free, vegan baked good, which will be appearing on our blogs on June 30th.
Fear set in.
Questions began to swirl through my mind.
Vegan…and gluten-free?…ahhhh! Would my oven burst into flames protesting the task? Would my husband disown me if I brought home one more ingredient from the grocery store?
Naturally, I hit reply and said I would love to participate. There would be no shaking in my apron allowed!
Given that the deadline is June 30th, I thought I would use the next few weeks to ‘get my toes wet’ with gluten-free baking. The recipe that I agreed to make for the challenge is a muffin recipe, but I decided to start with a cookie because it was ‘fail-proof’.
I think you know where this is going…heh.
I picked up Bob’s Red Mill All-purpose GF flour from the Superstore. I already had some Xanthan Gum, which has been collecting dust in my cupboard for about 2 years (it was originally purchased at Bulk Barn).
I was now armed to make GF and vegan baking magic happen! whohoo.
Mistake #1: Assuming that I could play around with a gluten-free and vegan chocolate chip cookie recipe….
Recipe called for too much oil.
Less oil, more applesauce, duh.
Too much sugar.
Less sugar, more…something, duh.
Uh oh, the batter is too wet.
More GF flour, duh.
As you can see, I’m a scientist in the kitchen.
Well, it wasn’t pretty. The batter- for lack of a better description- was like the coating on a worm. Glossy, and elastic. Not cool.
Mistake #2: I figured the oven could fix mistake #1.
The timer started to beep and I ran into the kitchen with nervous anticipation. I opened the door and saw a sight that no cookie lover should ever witness…
Mushy & puffy chocolate chip cookies that even Eric refused to touch. And this is coming from a man who would probably eat worms if they were covered in chocolate. I wouldn’t even go as far to say that they were ‘cake-like’ or ‘muffin-like’; they did not deserve such accolades.
‘Puffy cookie mush’ is all I can tell you.
And what the heck is going on with the cookie on the right? It looks like it exploded chocolate chips!
Alas, it might take me a few days to work up my GF and vegan baking courage again!
Fortunately, there’s always a vegan recipe that never lets me down. Ok, that was a lie.
It rarely lets me down…
That would be the Green Monster of course. A delight to the taste buds. A thank-you to the body. A reason why you should always check your teeth and green moustache before going out in public!
I knew today was going to be a hot one, so I set out for a 4-mile run just after sunrise. Before leaving for a morning run, I typically have 1/2 a banana for a bit of fuel. After the run, I did a sweaty 7-minute Whittle My Middle session (KILLER!) and then I made breakfast- a Cherry Banana Green Monster made up of 1 cup non-dairy milk, 1/2 cup frozen cherries, 1 frozen banana, 2 handfuls spinach, protein powder, and 1 tbsp chia seeds.
Perfecto!
Lately, I’ve been adding Nature’s Path Kamut puff cereal for fun. This is the good kind of puff. Those cookies were not.
[FYI- My Chilled No Bake Double Chocolate Torte is vegan and gluten-free if you are looking for a successful GF + vegan dessert recipe.]
Now, this whole challenge has me curious- do I have many gluten-free readers out there?
Have you ever tried gluten-free baking? Do you have any tips for me?
I have about 20 days to get my act together…or bust!
I eat gluten free and vegan, and have quite a time of it, getting enough food, because asthma and gout now prevent me from eating potatoes, tomatoes or eggplant (nightshade vegetables cause excruciating pain for gout, which is a form of rheumatoid arthritis). However, I remain cheerful, slim, optimistic, and always ready to experiment with one more recipe! I usually take my own food wherever I go, but since I’m used to it, everyone else pretty much expects it now too. This week I’ve been experimenting with varieties of carrot cakes and frostings (replace cream cheese frosting with vanilla soy yogurt, tofu and sweeteners blended together–there is a prepared cream cheese substitute but I didn’t care for it). To the cake I’ve tried adding carrots, zucchini, dates, pineapple, dried prunes that I wanted to get rid of, a sweet potato–that worked great–an orange, gf granola, cinnamon, nutmeg, stevia or honey or agave or Walden Farms zero carbs, zero calorie, zero protein pancake syrup, almonds and corn flour (I don’t like the prepared rice flour combination). The three cakes I’ve made so far have tasted great. Make sure you grease the pan well and don’t overcook or it dries out. Good luck!
I know this post is almost a year old, but I found it searching for a vegan gluten-free cake…and I laughed and laughed while I read it! Oh, you sound like you cook like me – a “real” scientist! Tried and true methods from other people – ha! lol Forge on – make a new recipe, er, flop – and finally figure out a marvelous NEW way of making gluten-free things. Love it. How did your challenge come out?
I’m new to the gluten/wheat-free scene. I’ve been vegan for over 16 years, so I’ve stopped quaking in my apron over that one (although I certainly did when allergies threw me into that arena.) Now, to add something else difficult into the mix, I’m back to quaking again. Only 1/2 of my crew (including me) needs to stay away from wheat – and possibly gluten, although that hasn’t been ruled out completely yet. Therefore, at times I am making 2 versions of a meal when I know the gluten-free choice leaves much to be desired.
Hi all, I am the mom of a 10-year-old daughter with celiac disease and I have been baking GF for almost 10 years now (can’t deprive a kid of cookies or cake!). I have also been baking dairy free because my ex husband was lactose intolerant. So…egg replacer is vital. So is some kind of fruit to help with moisture in baked goods. And Vegenaise helps too. I use a lot of Betty Hagman’s gluten free recipes and I twist them to make them dairy fee as well. Let me know and I can send you a few recipes if you want. I just wrote a blog entry for another site about my Best Ever Carrot Cake. Don’t know when it will be published online but it should be coming out soon.
Hang in there, Angela. You make such awesome stuff. You’ll get the hang of gluten free baking too.
My “tip” would be to add a bit of pectin, (like a teaspoon or so per batch). It makes for a moister, longer-lasting product which holds together better, at least in my experience.
As for Bob’s Red Mill gf flour mix, it made for the MOST extrordinary spice cake, (Carol Fenster’s recipe in “Wheat-Free Recipes & Menus, easily adapted to vegan.)
Thanks for sharing your thoughts about gluten free. Regards
I know a lady that makes the ultimate Chocolate CHIP cookie in fact it’s called THE COOKIE no one that tries it can believe it no one will ever have to look any further and every other recipe will be tossed she is making a book a it will be out maybe this year I’ll update when it comes out the recipe is priceless but she dosent realize it and it’s glutin free I almost perfected it off hand but cannot give away her ingredients. 3 bucks for one smallish cookie seems to good to be true you’ll spend over 20 dollars going back and back again in one trip you can’t get enough and they are dangerous even for the martinet of health eaters. Ha ha ha I won’t go on but seriously I don’t even look at any other chocolate chip cookies.