Sunday, December 11, 2011

Panko Chicken in Mustard Cream Sauce


  • 1/3 C low-fat buttermilk
  • 1/2 C panko
  • cooking spray
  • 2 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (about 4oz each), all visible fat discarded
  • 1/4 C fat-free, low-sodium chicken broth
  • 2 Tbsp fat-free sour cream
  • 1 Tbsp Dijon mustard
  • 1/4 tsp dried tarragon, crumbled
1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2. Pour the buttermilk into a shallow dish. Put the panko in another shallow dish. Lightly spray a baking pan with cooking spray. Set the dishes and baking pan in a row, assembly-line style.
3. Dip the chicken in the buttermilk, turning to coat. Roll each piece in the panko, lightly shaking off any excess. Arrange the chicken in a single layer in the baking pan. Lightly spray the top of the chicken with cooking spray.
4. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the chicken is no longer pink in the center.
5. Meanwhile, pour the broth into a small saucepan. Heat to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Whisk in the sour cream, mustard, and tarragon. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, or until smooth and heated through, whisking constantly. Pour the sauce over the cooked chicken.

Robyn's notes: this is a heart-healthy and diabetic-friendly recipe, thus the "fat-free" qualifiers in the ingredients. Substituting the regular version of each of those would likely be fine, though obviously the nutritional information below would be inaccurate. This was fine, but not exciting for me, mainly because I'm not a big fan of Dijon mustard. But it went quickly and the chicken turned out well, moist inside but with a crispy coating. I served it over plain couscous (not included in the nutritional analysis below).

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Nutritional Facts: Exchanges=1 starch, 3 lean meat. Calories 195; Calories from fat 30; Total Fat 3.5g; Saturated Fat 0.9g; Trans Fat 0.0g; Polyunsaturated Fat 0.7g; Monounsaturated Fat 1.2g; Cholesterol 70mg; Sodium 280mg; Total Carbohydrate 11g; Dietary Fiber 1g; Sugars 2g; Protein 27g

Monday, December 5, 2011

Sour Cream Chocolate Ganache

  • 6 oz premium-quality milk chocolate, finely chopped
  • 3 oz premium-quality bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, finely chopped
  • 1/4 C plus 3 Tbsp sour cream
  • 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • pinch of salt
1. Place the chocolates in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave on medium power until glossy, 2 to 3 minutes; stir until smooth. Let cool; whisk in the sour cream, vanilla, and salt. Let stand until thick enough to spread.

Robyn's notes: there were many problems with this recipe. It's hard to give it a rating, because two of the problems were on my end, but overall I'm still rating it down because neither of them should have made that much difference. First, my microwave will not allow "medium power". If I press the button for power level, the display says "power level may not be changed at this time". I don't know why. However, I have melted chocolate in the microwave every year for at least 25 years. I always do it on high for a minute or less, stir, then another minute, stir, repeat if necessary until the chocolate is melted. Second problem that may have been on my end was that the semisweet chocolate I had in the house was a little on the old side. Not out of date, but close to it. That should not have made a difference, but I acknowledge it for what it's worth.
The chocolates would not melt properly. The semisweet chocolate would do nothing but solidify into clumps. I eventually gave up, because it is possible to over-melt chocolate, even in the microwave. As a result, the final product was not smooth, it was lumpy and unattractive. It tasted ok, but not exciting. The recipe says the yield is 1 Cup, but after I used it to frost two mini cakes I poured the leftover into a plastic storage container and still have more than a cup of frosting. Since I feel that the point of using a small-batch cookbook for frosting is to not have leftovers, that was the final straw.
I will probably try the recipe again sometime with fresher semisweet chocolate, just for fairness, and if it comes out better I'll remove the above notes.

** 2 Stars: Acceptable. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, if I make changes

Classic Chocolate Cakes

This recipe comes from Small-Batch Baking for Chocolate Lovers by Debby Maugans. She has a full page of instructions for cooking individually-sized cakes in clean cans (14.5 or 15 oz cans that once held diced tomatoes or beans or soup, for example). I am not including those instructions. More information about that is in the notes after the recipe.
  • unsalted butter for greasing cans
  • 1/4 C whole milk
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp well-beaten egg
  • 1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1/4 C plus 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
  • 1/3 C plus 1 Tbsp sugar
  • 3 Tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
  • 1/8 tsp baking powder
  • 1/8 tsp baking soda
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 3 Tbsp unsalted butter, softened
  • Sour Cream Chocolate Ganache
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly butter the insides of two clean 14.5oz cans and lightly dust them with flour, tapping out the excess. Line the bottoms of the cans with rounds of parchment paper and set them aside. Alternatively, line 4 regular-size muffin cups with paper liners.
2. Whisk the milk, egg, and vanilla in a small bowl.
3. Combine the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a fine-mesh sieve placed over a small, deep mixing bowl. Sift the dry ingredients into the bowl. Add the butter and half of the milk mixture; beat with a handheld electric mixer on low speed until the dry ingredients are moistened. Increase the speed to medium, and beat until the batter has lightened and increased in volume, about 45 seconds. Scrape down the sides of the bowl. Add the remaining milk mixture, and beat until well blended, about 20 seconds.
4. Scrape the batter into the prepared cans or muffin cups. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of one comes out clean, about 20 minutes for cupcakes and 27 to 29 minutes for cakes. Cool 10 minutes on a wire rack. Loosen the edges of the cakes from cans using a small sharp knife; invert the cans and remove the cakes. Cool completely. Cut in half crosswise with a sharp knife. Frost with the Sour Cream Chocolate Ganache, between layers and on the tops and sides of the cakes, or on the tops of the cupcakes.

Robyn's notes: this recipe is way too complicated for what you get. It comes out as two perfectly acceptable small chocolate cakes. Not great cakes, not special cakes, just fine. I cooked the cakes in the cans, to see how well it would work, and it wasn't worth the trouble. Yes, the final product came out looking like actual mini cakes instead of like cupcakes, but to have to remember to set aside empty cans, clean them, remove the labels, store them, then grease them, flour them, cut parchment paper rounds just the right size to sit inside the bottom of the cans...too much hassle. Cupcakes are fine.
In one of the Amazon reviews for the cookbook, someone complained strongly about the suggestion to use cans, because Maugans does not mention anything about the BPA that is in most cans. The reviewer felt this was very irresponsible, as they feel it's a health risk. I don't really care about that aspect, because I'm re-using cans that I've already eaten the contents of, which means I've already been exposed to the BPA of that can once. If I were seriously concerned about BPA, I wouldn't have commercially canned foods in the house and therefore wouldn't have cans to use for this recipe, thus would be using muffin tins.
In step 3 of the recipe, I didn't bother with any of that sifting through a fine-mesh sieve. Doing it the way she's described doesn't change the measurements (sifting dry ingredients through a sieve
before measuring them does, sifting them afterward does not), and the dry ingredients incorporated with each other just fine without sifting, so I didn't need to use yet another tool that I'd later have to clean (this recipe already uses a bowl for beating the egg, fork or whisk for beating the egg and whisking the wet ingredients, a bowl for the milk mixture, the main bowl, beaters, two measuring cups, four measuring spoons, a spatula, a muffin tin or cans, and that's before making the frosting).
The one thing I can't really speak to is the size of the finished cakes. My sweetheart prefers cake batter to cake, so he kept dipping a spoon into the bowl and then into the filled cans. When I finally got them away from him and into the oven, they came out different sizes, one about 2.5" tall, the other about 3.5" tall.

** 2 Stars: Acceptable. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, if I make changes

Monday, November 14, 2011

Green Bean Un-Casserole


Most Americans are familiar with the 56-year-old Thanksgiving side dish that calls for cream of mushroom soup and french fried onions. This is a much lighter and healthier version, sized, of course, for two.
  • 1 tsp butter
  • 1/4 C panko
  • 1 1/2 tsp dried minced onion flakes
  • 1/4 tsp salt (to taste)
  • 1/2 lb green beans, trimmed and cut
  • 1/3 lb mushrooms, thinly sliced
1. In a small pan, melt butter over medium-low heat. Add panko, onion flakes, and salt. Saute about 6 minutes or until crumbs are slightly toasted.
2. At the same time, steam green beans and mushrooms for 6 minutes.
3. Place green beans and mushrooms in serving dish, top with crumb topping.

Robyn's notes: as a refresher, to steam the vegetables with a steamer basket, place a pot on the stove and add about an inch of water. Place steamer basket into pot so that the veggies are not touching the water, but with the water almost reaching the bottom of the basket. With the lid on the pot, bring the water to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low and steam for the required time.
This recipe is obviously not as rich as the original, but my taste-testers both enjoyed it.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Saturday, November 12, 2011

Panko

Panko is a Japanese-style bread crumb, which is made from bread without crusts. Panko is coarser than the usual dried bread crumbs, airier, with larger flakes that tend to stay crispier longer. It also contains far less sodium, and doesn't generally absorb as much grease, so makes a good substitute for those trying to eat healthier.

Although several years ago it was difficult to find outside of Asian food stores, panko is now much more widely available and can usually be found near other packaged bread crumbs, or in some areas of the country in the Asian section of the store.

Wednesday, October 12, 2011

Chicken Alfredo Crepes

Another not-really-a-recipe one-serving dish, to give an example of things to do with crepes.
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. In small bowl, combine first 3 ingredients. Spoon mixture down the center of crepes. Roll crepes up and place, seam side down, on baking sheet.
2. Bake for 9-10 minutes, until heated through.

Robyn's notes: I checked the crepes every 2 minutes, starting at 6 minutes, by touching the top of each crepe at the center. After 10 minutes, even though they were only warm to the touch at that spot, I took them out of the oven because the edges were getting pretty crispy and I didn't want them to burn. Turns out they were hot all the way through, even though I couldn't feel it from the outside.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Turkey Crepes Two Ways

This is not really a recipe, as there aren't any measurements. Still, I enjoyed how these came out and thought I'd share them as examples of ways to use crepes. This is a single serving.
  • 2 cooked crepes, cooled
  • deli-sliced oven-roasted turkey breast
  • thinly sliced cheddar cheese
  • cream cheese
1. Preheat oven to 350°F. Place turkey breast in single layer over each crepe, covering as much of crepe as possible.
2. On one crepe, place slices of cheddar cheese in single layer over turkey breast. On the other, spread or drop dollops of cream cheese over turkey breast.
3. Roll up and place, seam side down, on baking sheet. Bake for 5-6 minutes, or until cheddar cheese in first crepe is melted.

Robyn's notes: I made one of each of these at the same time because I wasn't sure if either or both would come out well, and didn't want to have to re-heat the oven and start again if the first one I tried wasn't good. They both came out well and I ended up alternating bites, so that I'd have a cream cheese bite then a cheddar bite. This is good for a quick lunch, and was filling. Don't roll the crepes too tightly, or the centers will still be cold when the edges appear ready.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Monday, October 10, 2011

Quick Chicken and Broccoli Crepes

  • 5oz frozen chopped broccoli (fresh ok, too)
  • 1/2 of a 10.75oz can condensed cream of chicken soup
  • 1/4 tsp Worcestershire sauce
  • 3 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
  • 1 C cooked slivered chicken or turkey
  • 7-8 cooked crepes (see notes, below)
  • 3 Tbsp mayonnaise (see notes, below)
  • 1/2 Tbsp milk
  • 2 Tbsp additional grated Parmesan cheese
1. Cook broccoli according to package directions, drain thoroughly. Combine with soup, Worcestershire sauce, 3 Tbsp cheese, and chicken. Fill crepes with chicken mixture; roll up and place in shallow baking pan. Combine mayo with milk; spread over crepes. Sprinkle with 2 Tbsp cheese. Broil until bubbly.

Yield: 7-8 crepes (see notes, below)

Robyn's notes: lots of changes and notes for this recipe. First, I can't eat broccoli, so the rest of the sauce was made separately while the broccoli was cooking, and then after filling my crepes, the broccoli was added to the remaining sauce and the other crepes were filled. Secondly, this in no way filled 7-8 crepes. The broccoli filled out the crepes a lot more than the sauce that didn't have broccoli, but in total we got about 4 crepes out of this recipe, two each. It was plenty for us with a side of fruit. Third, my stomach doesn't generally react well to mayonnaise, so while I cook with it sometimes, I don't when I'm already feeling somewhat unwell. So in place of the mayonnaise and milk, this is what I used for a sauce on top of the crepes:
approx 2 Tbsp of remaining condensed cream of chicken soup from can
approx 1 Tbsp sour cream
approx 1 Tbsp milk

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Sunday, October 9, 2011

All-Purpose Crepes

I don't usually share recipes that have large yields, or recipes for freezing. I'm not someone who enjoys leftovers or thawing Tuesday's frozen food for Friday's dinner. Crepes, however, are different. When I was a small child, around 6 years old, I fell in love with crepes, and I've been filling them both sweet and savory ever since. This recipe has a large yield, and the finished crepes take up very little space in the fridge or freezer.
  • 4 eggs
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 2 C flour
  • 2 C milk
  • 1/2 C melted butter
1. Combine ingredients in blender, blend for about 1 minute. Scrape down sides with rubber spatula and blend for another 15 seconds or until smooth.
2. Refrigerate batter at least 1 hour.
3. Brush pan with butter and heat over medium-high heat. Pour 2 to 3 Tablespoons of batter into pan (using a ladle makes this easier), and tilt pan in all directions to swirl the batter so that it covers the bottom of the pan in a very thin layer. Cook crepe until bottom is lightly browned, 1-2 minutes. Turn carefully with spatula and brown the other side for a few seconds until set. Remove from pan with spatula; stack between layers of waxed paper.

Yield: 30 to 35 crepes

Robyn's notes: do not feel that your crepes need to be perfectly uniform in size or an exact circle. Basically you are making an exceptionally thin pancake. Whereas when making pancakes, you're watching for bubbles to form, when making crepes you're watching for the surface sheen to disappear. When the surface of the crepe batter appears dull, that's when it's time to turn the crepe over. Once the crepes have been made and stacked on the waxed paper, they can be stored in the fridge or freezer in a ziploc bag. Fridge for about a week, freezer for up to 4 months. This batter can be used for any manner of fillings, both sweet and savory. Be creative, or search "crepes" in the sidebar for my recipes using this base.

**** 4 Stars: Very Good. Enjoyed by us both, I will make this frequently

Sunday, September 4, 2011

Gluten-Free Vanilla Cupcake Pair


This is an adaptation of this recipe by How Sweet It Is.
  • 1 egg white
  • 2 Tbsp sugar
  • 2 Tbsp butter, melted
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • 1/4 C brown rice flour mix
  • pinch xanthan gum
  • 1/4 heaping tsp baking powder
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 1/2 Tbsp milk
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin pan with 2 liners.
2. In medium bowl, add egg white and sugar and beat until combined. Add vanilla and melted butter and stir until mixed. Add brown rice flour mix, xanthan gum, baking powder and salt and stir until smooth. Stir in milk. Divide batter equally between the 2 cupcake liners.
3. Bake at 350 for 15-17 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Let cool completely, then frost as desired.

Robyn's notes: This is not a fabulous version of the recipe. The cupcakes seemed very dense and slightly rubbery to me, and weren't good on their own, they must be frosted to taste good. However, with a good frosting and with the understanding that I found the original recipe to be more of a muffin than a cupcake, they're reasonable.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Chocolate Chocolate-Chip Muffin Pair


After I made my Chocolate Cupcake Duo, an adaptation of this recipe by How Sweet It Is, I realized that the cupcakes were very similar to the chocolate chocolate chip muffins that we used to get when we had a Costco membership. This recipe is almost exactly the same as my earlier one, just a couple minor changes.
  • 1 egg white
  • 2 Tbsp sugar
  • 2 Tbsp butter, melted
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 Tbsp flour
  • 2 Tbsp cocoa
  • 1/4 heaping tsp baking powder
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 Tbsp milk
  • 2 Tbsp chocolate chips
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin pan with 2 liners.
2. In medium bowl, add egg white and sugar and beat until combined. Add vanilla and melted butter and stir until mixed. Add flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt and stir until smooth. Stir in milk, then chocolate chips. Divide batter equally between the 2 cupcake liners.
3. Bake at 350 for 16-18, or until cake is set. Let cool completely.

Robyn's notes: I didn't even check the muffins until they'd baked for 18 minutes.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Sunday, August 28, 2011

Peanut Butter Frosting


As soon as I decided to make the vanilla cupcakes mentioned here, I knew I wanted to make a chocolate version, but not with chocolate frosting. I'm a big fan of chocolate and peanut butter, so decided to create a small-batch peanut butter frosting.

2 tsp peanut butter
1/2 Tbsp shortening
1/4 C powdered sugar
1/2 Tbsp milk

In a small bowl, cream the peanut butter, shortening and powdered sugar until well combined. Gradually beat in enough milk to achieve spreading consistency.

Robyn's notes: the peanut butter flavour in this frosting is light, not overwhelming. I had exactly enough frosting for two of my chocolate cupcakes.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Chocolate Cupcake Duo


This is my adaptation of this recipe by How Sweet It Is.
  • 1 egg white
  • 2 Tbsp sugar
  • 2 Tbsp butter, melted
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla
  • 2 Tbsp flour
  • 2 Tbsp cocoa
  • 1/4 heaping tsp baking powder
  • pinch of salt
  • 1 Tbsp milk
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a muffin pan with 2 liners.
2. In medium bowl, add egg white and sugar and beat until combined. Add vanilla and melted butter and stir until mixed. Add flour, cocoa, baking powder and salt and stir until smooth. Stir in milk. Divide batter equally between the 2 cupcake liners.
3. Bake at 350 for 15-17 minutes, or until cake is set. Let cool completely, then frost as desired.

Robyn's notes: this version of the recipe still seems very much like muffins to me, but still yummy. I frosted these with my peanut butter frosting.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Chocolate Frosting for Cupcake Pairs



I wanted to try this recipe for Vanilla Cupcakes by How Sweet It Is, but I don't keep frosting in the house and I didn't want to have a bunch of frosting left over. So I looked at what was in the cupboard, and wrote this recipe for small-batch chocolate frosting. I have also included notes below on my experience with the cupcake recipe.
  • 2 Tbsp butter
  • 1/2 C + 2 Tbsp powdered sugar
  • 1/4 tsp vanilla
  • 1oz bittersweet chocolate, melted
  • 1/2 Tbsp milk
1. Cream butter in an electric mixer until fluffy, add vanilla. Slowly add powdered sugar with the mixer on low speed. Pour in melted chocolate and beat until incorporated. Add milk 1 teaspoon at a time with mixer on low speed, until desired consistency is reached.

Robyn's notes on the frosting: I used 62% cacao bittersweet chocolate. Note, bittersweet chocolate and unsweetened chocolate are not the same. Be sure you have the right ingredient. I ended up not using the entire 1/2 Tbsp of milk, but you may want the frosting thinner, so use as much of the milk as you need. If it gets too thin by mistake, add additional powdered sugar. The recipe made a bit more than needed, probably enough to frost three cupcakes, but definitely better than having an entire canister of frosting in the fridge.

*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Robyn's notes on the cupcakes: I find these cupcakes more like muffins, they're denser than I usually consider cupcakes to be, and several people in the comments on the linked blog post complained that their cupcakes were very "eggy". After 12 minutes of baking, my cupcakes were still liquid inside, I had to cook them for 17 minutes, and many comments over there mentioned cooking for up to 20 minutes. Be sure to fill the empty muffin tin cups with water, to keep your tin from warping. GF: cupcakes are not gluten-free! My gluten-free version will be posted soon. The frosting recipe is gluten-free.

Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Quick Angelic Dessert



This recipe takes advantage of some pre-prepared items, and so can be thrown together very quickly.
  • 1 Angel Food cupcake (from 4-count package*)
  • 2 Tbsp Sugar 'n Spice Fruit Dip
  • approximately 15 raspberries
  • 2 tsp powdered sugar OR whipped cream (optional)
1. Cut cupcake in half horizontally:



2. Spread 1 Tbsp of dip on cut side of each half. Arrange raspberries on top of dip. If desired, dust with powdered sugar or top with spoonful of whipped cream.

Robyn's notes: *Angel Food cupcakes are available in the bakery section of my grocery store. Each cupcake is approximately 4 inches in diameter.
This is a nice way to have a sweet dessert without going overboard if you're counting calories. I can't do an exact nutritional analysis, because there were no nutrition facts on the angel food cake packaging, but each half of this should be somewhere in the neighborhood of 100 calories.


*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Chocolate Chip Cookies, Gluten-Free


  • 1/4 C vegetable shortening (not butter or margarine)
  • 1/4 C granulated sugar
  • 2 Tbsp brown sugar
  • 2 Tbsp egg substitute OR 2 Tbsp of beaten egg
  • 3/4 tsp pure vanilla extract
  • 1/2 C + 1 1/2 tsp Brown Rice Flour Mix
  • 3/8 tsp baking soda
  • 1/4 tsp xanthan gum
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/2 C chocolate chips (about 3oz)
1. Preheat oven to 375°F.
2. Combine shortening and both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla, beat until fluffy.
3. Add flour, baking soda, xanthan gum, and salt; mix until well blended. Mix in chocolate chips.
4. Drop heaping teaspoons of dough onto cookie sheet 2 inches apart. Bake in center of oven for 8-10 minutes until light golden brown. Transfer to a wire rack and cool.

Yield: 18 cookies

Robyn's notes: this recipe has been reduced heavily, the original recipe made 70 cookies. The original recipe said to grease the cookie sheet with cooking spray, which I did for the first batch that went into the oven. The cookies came out with a strange spreading:


and though they tasted ok, they were very greasy and the scallopy edge was sharp, crunchy, and not pleasant. I pulled out a fresh cookie sheet for the last few cookies, and did not spray it with cooking spray. The cookies came out without that spread (see photo at top of recipe), but they were very difficult to get off the pan and were still quite greasy (I had to wash my hands after picking one up). Next time I attempt this recipe, I'll try using parchment paper, see if that helps. This recipe does not keep you from ever baking any cookies because you've eaten the raw dough too fast, but the dough is ok. I ate a spoonful of it and it was similar to standard cookie dough, just a little less developed, likely due to the lack of butter. The cookies did not seem at all grainy to me, so in this instance, the use of Bob's Red Mill brand brown rice flour in the flour mix was acceptable.


*** 3 Stars: Good. At least one of us liked this enough for me to make it again, but not often

Friday, August 5, 2011

Gluten-Free Brown Rice Flour Mix


Ratio:
In measurements:
  • 2 C brown rice flour (extra finely ground)
  • 2/3 C potato starch (not potato flour)
  • 1/3 C tapioca flour
For a larger batch:
  • 6 C brown rice flour (extra finely ground)
  • 2 C potato starch (not potato flour)
  • 1 C tapioca flour
1. Combine all ingredients, based on the measurements for the batch size you're making. Store in airtight container in a cool, dry place.

Robyn's notes: this recipe comes from a book by the Food Philosopher. She stresses that it's very important to use an extra finely ground brown rice flour (not just any grind), or the baked goods will be gritty, heavy, and/or crumbly. She recommends Authentic Foods brand, and mentions that they now make this entire recipe already prepared under the name of GF Classical Blend. It can be purchased online, and the price looks reasonable, but part of my focus here was to make and test the recipe based on what was available at my local chain grocery store (I didn't even go to the Trader Joe's in town or the nearest Whole Foods, because I know they're not available to everybody). So I'm using Bob's Red Mill brown rice flour, which I bought for just over $3 at Nob Hill (Raley's). It's true that I can feel a bit of grittiness between my fingers, but that may be partly because I was forewarned. Once I've cooked with it, I'll add my notes to this entry and give this flour a star rating.

Remember that when measuring flour, especially gluten-free flours, not to dip the measuring cup directly into the flour. Spoon the flour into the measuring cup, shake it gently, and use the flat part of a table knife to level it off.

Xanthan Gum


A white powdery flour, produced from the fermentation of corn sugar, which is used as a thickener or binding agent for dressings, gravies, and sauces. It's an ideal substitute for gluten in gluten-free baking.

Unlike other gums, it is stable under a wide range of temperatures. Most recipes call for very small amounts, which allows a small bag of xanthan gum to go a long way.

Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.

Tapioca Flour


Derived from the root of the cassava plant, this flour is very light, powdery, smooth, and tasteless. It can be used as a thickening agent, as well as combined with other gluten-free flours to make delicious baked goods. It thickens quickly and at a relatively low temperature, which makes it a good choice for correcting a sauce just before serving it.

Tapioca flour and tapioca starch are two names for the same product.

Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.

Potato Starch


A flour derived from cooked potatoes that are crushed and washed until just the starch remains. The starch is then dried to a powder.

Potato Starch is used as a thickener for sauces, soups, and stews. Potato starch tolerates higher temperatures than cornstarch when used as a thickener. It's a natural way to add moistness to many baked goods.

Unlike cornstarch or other grain-based foods, it is permitted for use during Passover.

Potato starch and potato flour are not interchangeable.

Store in an airtight container in a cool, dry place.