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| Naturally Sweet and Gluten-Free by Ricki Heller |
When people find out that both of my daughters have celiac disease and one of them also has a dairy intolerance, they give me such a sad look. And then they ask, “What CAN they EAT?!” I assure them that we eat just fine over here but I have to admit that baked goods and desserts can get a little bit tricky.
A few months ago, I saw that a new dessert cookbook would be coming out from Ricki Heller and every recipe would be gluten free, sugar free and vegan. What!? This could be life changing for so many families. I sent Ricki a note and told her I would love to test out some of her recipes and write about her new cookbook on my blog. I didn’t even have to twist her arm at all. She eagerly agreed.
Just to make things interesting, I also sent her a few interview questions to ponder. I love connecting with other people who have spent years looking closely at their ingredients and thinking creatively about how to keep making amazing food – even without some of the historic kitchen standbys – sugar, wheat flour, eggs, milk… After talking with Rikki and making a couple of recipes from this cookbook, my perspective on allergy-free baking has surely changed!
A few questions for Ricki …
–>What advice would you offer to someone new to sugar-free baking (like me!)? Any tips or tricks?
–>What inspires you to develop new recipes?
–>Do you have a favorite, quick, go-to dessert recipe from Naturally Sweet & Gluten-Free?
–>I love how you describe cooking vegan as being a very inclusive way of cooking. Can you explain what you mean by that?
Now for the recipe … Butterscotch Blondies With Chocolate Chips and Goji Berries
Ricki Heller, an amazing and thoughtful baker, recipe developer, and holistic chef, has created a truly beautiful collection of desserts using a wide array of ingredients that will absolutely wow your friends and family. As I first looked through the recipes, I was a little concerned that I might not have all the ingredients on hand but, as Ricki advised, test out a few new ingredients and decide what is going to work best for you.
I initially planned to make Coconut Macaroons but when my sous-chefs caught sight of the Butterscotch Blondies recipe, they declared they just had to make those. After reviewing the recipe, I knew I needed to pick up a few new ingredients at Whole Foods. I easily found almost everything I needed and headed home to try my hand at sugar free, casein free, gluten-free butterscotch blondies.
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| The littlest sous-chef. Clearly we have no regard for kitchen safety … |
I made a few slight adjustments to the recipe (Ricki, don’t get mad!) – but I did not change anything substantial, I promise! I was missing an ingredient – lucuma powder – a sweetener, and I did not blend my oats finely enough so it changed the texture of the bars but WOW did final product come out amazing!!! Perhaps just not as pretty as Ricki’s amazing photo in her book …
BUTTERSCOTCH BLONDIES WITH CHOCOLATE CHIPS AND GOJI BERRIES
Ingredients:
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| A few new ingredients for my pantry … |
1 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour mix
3/4 cup oat flour
3 Tablespoons lucuma powder
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 tsp xantham gum
1/3 cup coconut sugar
1 Tablespoon water
1/2 cup coconut nectar
1/2 teaspoon pure stevia powder or 1/4 teaspoon pure stevia liquid
1/3 cup sunflower oil (or other light tasting oil)
1 Tablespoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon rum, butterscotch or brandy flavoring (optional)
1/2 cup unsweetened carob chips or dark chocolate chips
1/3 cup goji berries or other dried fruit of your choice
Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees. (I accidentally cooked my bars at 350… oops!). Spray an 8×8 or 9×9 pan with nonstick spray or line with parchment paper.
2. In a medium bowl, sift together the flours, lucuma powder (I skipped this ingredient), baking powder, baking soda, salt, and xantham gum.
3. In a large bowl, mix the coconut sugar and water until the sugar begins to dissolve. Ass the coconut nectar, stevia, oil, vanilla, and flavoring, if using, until well blended. Gently stir in the goji berries and chips.
4. Pour the dry mixture over the wet ingredients and stir to blend. You will have a thick and sticky batter. Turn the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top.
5. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, rotating the pan about halfway through baking, until a tester comes out barely clean. Take care not to overbake, as these will dry out! The top may fall a little as it cools; this is fine. Allow to cool completely in pan before cutting into squares. May be frozen.
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| Amazing Vegan GF Butterscotch Blondies! |
Final thoughts … As soon as you can, definitely pick up a copy of Ricki’s new cookbook, Naturally Sweet and Gluten-Free. I can’t wait to try out more recipes from this beautiful book. I truly appreciate the opportunity to get a sneak peek at these beautiful recipes before the book was launched and I thank Sellers Publishing for sending me a new copy hot off the presses! If you, or someone in your life is in need of allergy-free or vegan desserts, this is the book for you.
Erin, thanks so much for this lovely review! And it was great fun being interviewed by you. One of the things I was hoping for with the recipes was flexibility (that's why I included that huge list of substitutions in the opening chapter), so I'm glad to know they worked for you with the minor changes, too! And you are so lucky to have such a sweet little sous-chef. 🙂
Rikki – Thank you! This was so much fun! I really learned A LOT reading through your book. I can't wait to try more recipes!
Erin those blondies look delicious!! I love, love coconut sugar. I have been using it in all my baking lately! Great substitution for sugar. I used it in your banana bread recipe and it was so good!
Tish – Thank you! I don't know how you kept coconut sugar a secret from me! I can't wait to use it in more recipes!
Spinningly delicious! Thanks for sharing the interview and recipe! 🙂
So glad you liked it!