This Blueberry Quick Bread is a wonderful treat when fresh local highbush blueberries are in season. The addition of either orange or lemon zest and juice makes this a very flavorful quick bread. So, according to your taste preference, you can make this a Blueberry-Orange or Blueberry-Lemon bread. Continue reading Blueberry Quick Bread Recipe
These Bakery-style Raspberry Lemon Muffins are a treat any time of the year but especially so when the local raspberries are in season. Continue reading Bakery Style Raspberry Lemon Muffins
Chances are you have heard of Irish Soda Bread. Perhaps you have even made it yourself. Irish Soda Bread is a quick bread leavened with baking soda (bicarbonate of soda) that is activated by acidic buttermilk. Easy and quick to make because there is no yeast and no waiting for the dough to rise, this bread can be pulled together as easily as making tea biscuits or scones though the baking time will be longer. Continue reading Irish Soda Bread Recipe
Date lovers will love this Orange, Date, and Spice Loaf. Moist and delicious, this quick bread is made with Medjool dates, orange peel and zest, and warm spices. An old-fashioned flavorful tea loaf, it is delicious served perfectly plain or with a slather of butter. Continue reading Orange, Date, and Spice Loaf
These decadent Gourmet Deli-style Mincemeat Muffins with their lovely crumble topping are a fabulous way to enjoy mincemeat. Good any time of the year, they are an especially wonderful treat around the Christmas holiday period. Continue reading Gourmet Deli-style Mincemeat Muffins
These Deli-style Peach Pecan Muffins, with their tasty crumble topping, have a lightly spiced batter to complement the peaches and pecans. While they can be made with frozen peaches, these muffins are an extra-special treat to make when fresh peaches are on the market. Continue reading Deli-style Peach Pecan Muffins
Quick breads are easy to make and are lovely for tea or coffeebreaks. Today’s quick bread combines strawberry and rhubarb with some flavorful spices (nutmeg and cardamom) to make a delightful treat. While this Strawberry Rhubarb Quick Bread can certainly be made with frozen strawberries and rhubarb since they are cooked into a sauce before being added to the bread batter, it is an extra-special treat to make when both are in season locally. Continue reading Strawberry Rhubarb Quick Bread Recipe
Achieving a recipe for gluten-free muffins that closely replicates wheat-based muffins can be a challenge. The good news is, however, that it is indeed possible as demonstrated by these tasty deli-style gluten-free strawberry muffins.
A large part of the challenge surrounds the right blend of gluten-free flours and starches and then finding the right combination and amount of wet ingredients since, as you probably know if you bake gluten-free, each gluten-free flour reacts differently to liquid ingredients. So, while the list of ingredients in my gluten-free muffin recipes may appear long, each ingredient is necessary when a tasty muffin is desired. Of course, I am always aiming to achieve a nicely dome-shaped muffin and one that has a lovely muffin-like texture, much the same as you would expect a muffin to be like when made with wheat flour.
Today, fresh locally grown strawberries are my featured ingredients in muffins. The berries provide a lovely little burst of wonderful flavor in the muffins. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!
At the bottom of this posting, you will also find links to several other gluten-free muffin recipes I have developed.
[Printable recipe follows at end of post]
Ingredients:
¾ cup sorghum flour
1/3 cup gluten-free quick cooking rolled oats
¼ cup brown rice flour
¼ cup almond flour
¼ cup gluten-free oat flour
2½ tbsp potato starch
2 tbsp ground chia seeds
1 tbsp + ¾ tsp tapioca starch
1¾ tsp xanthan gum
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ tsp cardamom
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
½ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
2 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
¼ cup coconut oil
2 tbsp pure maple syrup (no artificial substitutions)
1½ tsp pure vanilla
½ cup Greek-style vanilla yogurt (or ¼ cup plain vanilla yogurt + ¼ cup sour cream)
2 tbsp whole milk mixed with ¼ tsp lemon juice (let sit 5 minutes before using)
1½ cups fresh strawberries, diced (apx. 8 oz)
3 – 4 tsp turbinado sugar (optional)
Method:
Set out the eggs, yogurt, and whole milk to bring them to room temperature. If using solid coconut oil, melt and cool it completely before proceeding with recipe.
Preheat oven to 475°F.
Prepare 12 muffin cups (each at least ½-cup capacity) by spraying each muffin cup with cooking spray or greasing individually.
Whisk the flours, rolled oats, starches, ground chia seeds, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices together in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
In separate medium-sized bowl, or large measuring cup, whisk together the brown sugar, eggs, coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla. Stir in the yogurt and milk.
Pour wet ingredients into well in dry ingredients. With large spoon, mix ingredients together just until dry ingredients are fully incorporated. Do not overmix. Gently fold in 1 cup of the diced strawberries. Batter will appear very thick, stiff, and somewhat dry at this point. This is normal for this recipe.
Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling each cup to the rim. Sprinkle remaining ½ cup of diced strawberries over the muffins and sprinkle each muffin with a few grains of turbinado sugar, if desired. Transfer muffins to pre-heated oven and immediately reduce oven temperature to 400°F. Bake for apx. 20 minutes, or until muffins are just firm to the touch and a cake tester inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean. Do not overbake or muffins will be dry. Remove from oven and let muffins rest in pan for 5 minutes then gently remove from pan and transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 12 standard-sized muffins
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Whisk the flours, rolled oats, starches, ground chia seeds, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and spices together in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
Yield: 12 standard-sized muffins
Gluten-free Carrot Zucchini Muffins
Gluten-free Banana Date Muffins
Gluten-free Rhubarb Granola Muffins
Ultimate Gluten-free Zucchini Date Muffins
Gluten-free Pumpkin Mincemeat Muffins
Deli-style Gluten-free Beet Muffins
Gluten-free Blueberry Muffins
Gluten-free Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
These Deli-style Strawberry Muffins are a must make when local strawberries are in season. Those lovely plump, juicy berries add wonderful flavor to a muffin batter that is lightly spiced with cardamom and nutmeg and has just a whisper of citrus notes.
The muffins are perfect for brunch, coffeebreak, or the lunch bag. Dress them up by sprinkling a few grains of turbinado sugar on each muffin just before they go in the oven. It will add a bit of crunch to the muffin top.
[printable recipe follows at end of post]
Ingredients:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ tsp cardamom
⅛ tsp nutmeg
2 tsp finely grated orange rind
2 large eggs, room temperature, slightly beaten
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup Greek-style vanilla yogurt (or ¼ cup plain vanilla yogurt + ¼ cup sour cream), room temperature
¼ cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla
1½ tbsp milk
1½ cups fresh strawberries, diced (apx. 8 oz)
3 – 4 tsp turbinado sugar (optional)
Method:
Preheat oven to 475°F. Prepare muffin tins by greasing or spraying with cooking oil, ensuring the top edges of each muffin cup are also well-greased/sprayed.
In large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, cardamom, and nutmeg. Stir in grated orange rind. Set aside.
In medium-sized bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, yogurt, vegetable oil, vanilla, and milk.
Pour the wet ingredients into the dry and stir only until barely incorporated. Do not overmix. Gently fold in strawberries. Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins, filling each cup three-quarters full. Sprinkle a few grains of turbinado sugar on top of each muffin, if desired.
Transfer muffins to oven and immediately reduce the oven temperature to 375°F. Bake for 23-25 minutes or until muffins are just firm to the touch and a cake tester inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
Let muffins rest in muffin tins for about 5 minutes then transfer to wire rack to finish cooling.
Yield: 12 standard-sized muffins
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Yield: 12 standard-sized muffins
I call this quick bread the loaf with Christmas wrapped inside it! That’s because this Cranberry Orange Eggnog Loaf encompasses many of the flavors we typically associate with Christmas – the bright red cranberries, eggnog, warm spices of nutmeg, mace, and cardamom, citrus notes that come from orange marmalade, juice, and orange rind, mixed peel/citron, and pecans. It’s the perfect loaf for weekend brunch, coffee or tea break, or gift giving. Continue reading Cranberry Orange Eggnog Loaf Recipe
This Classic Banana Bread is super moist and tasty. Best of all, it’s really easy to make and, apart from the bananas, takes only standard pantry ingredients. It’s the perfect way to use up extra ripe bananas since Banana Bread is best made with overripe bananas. They have so much flavor and add the extra moisture for which banana bread is known. Continue reading Classic Banana Bread Recipe
I am not a fan of muffins that have a cake-type texture. I like the muffins, whether wheat-based or gluten-free, to be deli-or café-style, hearty, and generously sized. That’s exactly how I have created these tasty Gluten-free Blueberry Zucchini Muffins to be! Continue reading Gluten-free Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
These Carrot Zucchini Muffins are so packed full of flavor! Even though they are gluten free, that should not be construed that any one who is not celiac or gluten-sensitive cannot eat them. In fact, I would be very surprised if anyone could guess they are gluten free!
The muffins rise and dome beautifully into just the right contoured shape for a perfect muffin. Adding the streusel topping is such a treat on these muffins. It not only dresses them up and adds texture but it makes the muffins ever so tasty by adding additional flavor.
When I started developing gluten-free muffins, I soon discovered that, in order for them to closely replicate wheat-based muffins and have that deli quality I so desire in muffins, the gluten-free version takes a mixture of flours and starches. Simply using a gluten-free all-purpose flour or the cup-for-cup/1-to-1 flour will not substitute well for these muffins. The thing about gluten-free flours is that they each have their own unique properties and, for the most part, they cannot be substituted, cup-for-cup, for other flours. Nor, can an ingredient be left out without affecting the success of the baked good. Some flours, for example, absorb more liquid than others and that affects the amount of liquid ingredients required in a recipe.
From experience, I can say it takes several attempts at perfecting gluten-free baking with speciality flours. However, I have done that work for you, testing, and re-testing several times, each recipe I develop and publish to ensure it can be made with success in the kitchens of others, provided the baker follows my directions exactly, makes no ingredient substitutions, or leaves no ingredient out. Every ingredient (except maybe the spices) contributes to the batter consistency and texture of the finished product.
The Carrot Zucchini Muffins are a great way to add (hide!) vegetables into a muffin. Apart from their wonderful flavor, these two vegetables also add moisture to the batter.
The texture of these Carrot Zucchini Muffins is moist and tender and the interior of the muffins show a somewhat coarse yet uniform interior crumb with small irregular air holes, characteristic of a well-constructed muffin.
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Ingredients:
2/3 cup sorghum flour
½ cup gluten-free quick cooking rolled oats
¼ cup brown rice flour
¼ cup coconut flour
¼ cup + 2 tbsp oat flour
2½ tbsp potato starch
2 tbsp ground chia seeds
1 tbsp + ¾ tsp tapioca starch
1½ tsp xanthan gum
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp allspice
Pinch cloves
½ cup light brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
1/3 cup coconut oil
2 tbsp pure maple syrup
1½ tsp vanilla
½ cup Greek style vanilla yogurt
2 tbsp whole milk
¾ cup shredded zucchini
¾ cup grated carrot
¾ cup raisins
Streusel Topping:
¼ cup sorghum flour
¼ cup brown sugar, packed
3 tbsp quick-cooking rolled oats
1/8 tsp cinnamon
2 tbsp cold butter
Method:
Set out the eggs, yogurt, and milk to bring them to room temperature. If using solid coconut oil, melt and let it cool to room temperature before proceeding with recipe. Shred the zucchini and grate the carrot.
Preheat oven to 475°F.
Prepare 12 muffin cups (each at least ½-cup capacity) by spraying each muffin cup with cooking spray or greasing individually.
Prepare streusel topping by combining the flour, brown sugar, rolled oats, and cinnamon together. Cut in the cold butter until mixture is crumbly. Set aside.
Combine flours, rolled oats, starches, ground chia seeds, xanthan gum, baking powder, soda, salt, and spices together in a large bowl. Whisk ingredients well to combine. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
In separate medium-sized bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the brown sugar, eggs, coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla. Stir in the yogurt, milk, zucchini, and carrots.
Pour wet ingredients into well in dry ingredients. With large spoon, mix ingredients together just until dry ingredients are fully incorporated. Do not overmix. Fold in raisins.
Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling almost to the rim of each cup. Sprinkle streusel mixture over tops of muffins. Transfer muffins to pre-heated oven and immediately reduce oven temperature to 400°F. Bake for apx. 20 minutes, or until muffins are just firm to the touch and a cake tester inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean. Do not overbake or muffins will be dry. Remove from oven and let muffins rest in pans for 5 minutes then gently remove from pan and transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 12 muffins
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Perfectly domed, packed full of flavor, and topped with a tasty streusel topping, these Gluten-free Carrot Zucchini Muffins are a special treat!
Set out the eggs, yogurt, and milk to bring them to room temperature. If using solid coconut oil, melt and let it cool to room temperature before proceeding with recipe. Shred the zucchini and grate the carrot.
Combine flours, rolled oats, starches, ground chia seeds, xanthan gum, baking powder, soda, salt, and spices together in a large bowl. Whisk ingredients well to combine. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
Yield: 12 muffins
Making gluten-free muffins can have its challenges! Getting the right blend of flours, enough rising power to achieve the perfect contoured muffin tops, and the right balance of liquid to dry ingredients, and that’s all before getting a great flavour and texture. Good news, though, I have perfected a great flour blend for these Banana Date Muffins and have worked out the necessary ratios of wet to dry ingredients to accommodate the properties of gluten-free flours!
I am not a big fan of all-purpose gluten-free flour as the sole flour in a baking product. I find it can leave an unpleasant aftertaste on the palate. For this reason, I most often create my own flour blends based on what product I am making. It takes a lot of experimentation and trial and error to find a pleasing flour combination when mixing different flours. Each gluten-free flour comes with its own properties.
Banana muffins, whether they be wheat-based or gluten-free, can sometimes be tough and have a somewhat dense texture. No one likes a tough muffin! Over the years, I have discovered that adding too much mashed banana can create a tough muffin texture and be too overpowering in banana flavour. Sometimes, less really is more.
These Banana Date Muffins are hearty, perfect for taking along to work or school or enjoying any time, especially with a great cup of coffee.
They are also a great addition to a breakfast tray, especially on weekend mornings!
These muffins can be served at room temperature or heated for mere seconds in the microwave. They are great with a slather of butter and/or your favorite jam or preserve.
[Printable recipe follows at end of post]
Ingredients:
½ cup gluten free all-purpose flour
2½ tbsp potato starch
¼ cup gluten free oat flour
¼ cup almond flour
½ cup sorghum flour
1¼ tsp xanthan gum
1 tbsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp ground flax seeds
½ cup gluten-free quick rolled oats
1/2 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
2 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
1/3 cup coconut oil, melted and cooled
2 tbsp maple syrup
1½ tsp vanilla
3/4 cup mashed banana
½ cup Greek style vanilla yogurt
2 tbsp whole milk
¾ cup chopped dates
Method:
Preheat oven to 475°F.
Prepare 12 muffin cups (each ½-cup capacity) by spraying each muffin cup with cooking spray or greasing individually.
Combine flours, xanthan gum, baking powder, soda, salt, ground flax seeds, and rolled oats together in a large bowl. Whisk ingredients well to combine. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
In separate medium-sized bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the brown sugar, eggs, coconut oil, maple syrup, and vanilla. Stir in the mashed banana, yogurt, and milk.
Pour wet ingredients into well in dry ingredients. With large spoon, mix ingredients together just until dry ingredients are fully incorporated. Do not overmix. Fold in chopped dates.
Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling almost to the rim of each cup. Transfer to pre-heated oven and immediately reduce oven temperature to 400°F. Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until muffins are just firm to the touch and a cake tester inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean. Do not overbake or muffins will be dry. Remove from oven and let muffins rest in pans for 5-7 minutes then gently remove from pan and transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 12 muffins
The perfect tender and moist Gluten-free Banana Date Muffins.
Combine flours, xanthan gum, baking powder, soda, salt, ground flax seeds, and rolled oats together in a large bowl. Whisk ingredients well to combine. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
Yield: 12 muffins
I love the produce our garden generates and its earliest treat is rhubarb. It is so versatile and I make lots of recipes using rhubarb. Today, a treat for my gluten-free diet followers — a new recipe for deli-style gluten-free Rhubarb Granola Muffins.
There are many recipes for rhubarb muffins but many of them call for chopped rhubarb. Rhubarb has a lot of water content and cooks fast when used in chopped form in baking goods. This extra water content can cause some baked goods to turn out soggy, particularly in the areas where the rhubarb chunks land. To combat this problem, for this recipe, I cook the rhubarb then mash, or purée, it with a hand-held immersion blender. I then use the mashed/puréed rhubarb as part of the liquid content in the muffin batter. So, I still get rhubarb muffins but without the wet soggy spots.
When I make muffins, I like them to be deli- or café-style which is to say I’m looking for muffins that are a reasonable size, are hearty, have a lovely texture with a coarse crumb (not cake-like), and are filled with flavour.
Muffins are, for lack of a better way of putting it, little individual quick breads. We all know that, appearance-wise, the perfect muffin should bear a slightly domed top that has a bit of firmness to it. There are a combination of factors that will contribute to that desired result — the right amount of leavening, the consistency of the batter, and the oven temperature.
Rhubarb is, by nature, tart. However, it is important not to over-do the sugar content in the muffins because too much sugar will create a cake-like texture and the moist, open tender crumb, which is a hallmark feature of muffins, will be lost and you will end up with a product that more closely resembles a cupcake. A batter that is too runny will pose the risk of muffins that will rise to form stiff mountain peaks. Adding some Greek yogurt to the batter is one way to thicken it up and reduce this risk. Of course, the addition of the right proportions of leavening (baking powder and baking soda) are key. Having the muffins go into a really hot oven to start them baking is also key to getting a lovely gentle dome on the muffin tops. Using the high temperature allows the outside of the muffin to quickly set while still allowing the inside to continue to rise.
Since I have been developing gluten-free muffins, one thing I have discovered is that I end up with better quality, deli-style muffins when I use a blend of gluten-free flours versus, say, one all-purpose flour or only the one-to-one gluten free flour. Each gluten-free flour has its own unique qualities and properties and the right blend will provide structure, texture, and flavour to the muffins. The addition of granola to these muffins adds texture, flavour, and bulk to the muffins, making them more hearty and filling.
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Ingredients:
3½ oz rhubarb, chopped into ½ inch pieces
1½ tbsp orange juice
1 cup one-to-one gluten-free flour
2 tbsp potato starch
¼ cup gluten-free oat flour
¼ cup almond flour
¼ cup coconut flour
¾ tsp xanthan gum
¼ cup gluten-free quick oats
5½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
1½ tbsp ground chia seeds
1¾ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp cloves
½ tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ginger
¼ tsp allspice
2 tsp finely grated orange rind
2/3 cup granola
2/3 cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
2 extra-large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
¼ cup coconut oil, melted and cooled
1½ tsp vanilla
1½ tbsp orange juice
½ cup whole milk
2 tbsp pure maple syrup
1/3 cup cooled rhubarb purée
2 tbsp Greek style coconut yogurt or sour cream
1½ tsp rose water (optional)
Method:
In small sauce pan, combine the rhubarb and orange juice. Cook over medium-low heat until rhubarb is softened. Cool slightly then, using the back of a large spoon, mash up the rhubarb or, alternatively, use a handheld immersion blender to purée the rhubarb. Set aside to cool completely.
Preheat oven to 450°F.
Prepare 12 muffin cups (each ½-cup capacity) by spraying each muffin cup with cooking spray or greasing individually.
Combine flours, xanthan gum, quick oats, baking powder, soda, salt, ground chia seeds, spices, and grated orange rind together in a large bowl. Whisk ingredients well to combine. Stir in granola. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
In separate medium-sized bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the brown sugar, eggs, coconut oil, vanilla, orange juice, milk, maple syrup, Greek yogurt or sour cream, and rose water (if using). Whisk ingredients well. Stir in cooled rhubarb purée.
Pour wet ingredients into well in dry ingredients. With large spoon, mix ingredients together just until dry ingredients are fully incorporated. Do not overmix.
Spoon batter into prepared muffin cups, filling almost to the rim of each cup. Transfer to pre-heated oven and immediately reduce oven temperature to 400°F. Bake for 20-22 minutes, or until muffins are just firm to the touch and a cake tester inserted into center of a muffin comes out clean. Do not overbake or muffins will be dry. Remove from oven and let muffins rest in pans for 5-7 minutes then gently remove from pan and transfer to wire rack to cool completely. Muffins freeze well.
Yield: 12 muffins
Tangy rhubarb purée joins granola, spices, orange juice, and Greek yogurt to make these deli-style gluten-free Rhubarb Granola Muffins
Combine flours, xanthan gum, quick oats, baking powder, soda, salt, ground chia seeds, spices, and grated orange rind together in a large bowl. Whisk ingredients well to combine. Stir in granola. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
Link to granola recipe: https://myislandbistrokitchen.com/2016/03/08/the-bistros-great-nut-free-granola/
For other gluten-free muffin recipes from My Island Bistro Kitchen, click on the links below:
The Ultimate Gluten-free Zucchini Date Muffins
Gluten-Free Pumpkin-Mincemeat Muffins
Deli-Style Gluten-Free Beet Muffins
Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins
This Cherry Loaf recipe is as pretty as it is tasty, speckled with maraschino cherries that, themselves, lend great flavour to the loaf.
Quick breads, leavened with baking powder, and sometimes soda, are an easy alternative to muffins – but, they’re born of the same family! They are quick to make (because there is no yeast involved) and are great additions to breakfast, brunch, and coffeebreaks.
There are two methods for making quick breads.
Creaming Method – This method calls for the solid fat product (shortening, butter, or margarine) to be softened at room temperature for 25-30 minutes (not microwaved which can change its properties and can cause it to quickly become liquefied). The fat is then beaten/creamed, either by hand if you are prepared to devote some elbow grease to the process, or by electric mixer on low speed. The sugar is then added and creamed with the fat product until the mixture is a pale or light colour and the texture is airy or fluffy. This “creaming’ process whips air into the batter which allows air pockets (or bubbles) to form (and expand during baking) that, in addition to leavening agents such as baking powder and soda, help the cake or loaf to rise.
The room temperature eggs are then added, one at a time. Adding the eggs, with this technique, allows them time to, individually and slowly, mix in well with the creamed fat and sugar mixture and limit the possibility of them curdling. The watery eggs and the fat product don’t naturally mix well, or bind, together (same principle as trying to mix water and oil together). If all the eggs called for in the recipe are added all at once, they become more than what the fat-sugar mixture can handle at the same time and the ingredients separate and look curdled or scrambled. Adding the eggs slowly allows them to be better incorporated with the fat-sugar mixture.
With the creamed method, the liquid ingredients are combined together in one bowl or measuring cup and the dry ingredients are whisked together in a separate bowl. The dry ingredients are added to the creamed mixture alternately with the wet ingredients, beginning and ending with the dry ingredients (three additions of dry to two additions of wet ingredients). While the stand mixer should be fitted with the paddle attachment for the creaming method, it’s important not to over-beat the batter once the flour and liquid ingredients have been added because that will cause gluten to form and a loaf with a tough crumb is likely to result. Beat only until all the ingredients are incorporated and the batter is smooth.
This method will yield a moist texture loaf with a fine crumb (lots of tiny holes of fairly uniform size), reminiscent of a dense cake texture.
Muffin Method – This method calls for the dry ingredients to be whisked together well in one bowl. All the liquid ingredients are mixed in a separate bowl with oil or a fat that has been liquefied (and, often, the sugar is mixed in with the liquid ingredients). The liquid ingredients are then simply added to the dry ingredients and stirred together just until the ingredients are barely combined.
Because no creaming of butter and sugar is involved in this method, the loaf will not have the added advantage of the air pockets being formed by this process to help the loaf to rise. In this method, the loaf will rely solely on leavening agents (baking powder, soda) to rise. The batter will often be lumpy which is okay (it will even out on its own during baking) and it’s important not to overmix the batter trying to get it smooth as this will activate the development of gluten that will result in a tough crumb.
For this method, stir the mixture by hand because an electric mixer will overmix the batter. This method will often yield a slightly drier texture (than the creaming method does) with a larger, coarser crumb in the loaf, closely resembling the texture of muffins, hence the name “muffin method”.
The muffin method is commonly used to mix up waffles and pancakes as well.
My recipe for Cherry Loaf uses the creamed method because I want a delicate, refined texture in this particular loaf.
All ingredients should be at room temperature for about 25-30 minutes before mixing the batter. The ingredients blend better if they are at room temperature. If you think of nice soft butter or shortening being hit with cold eggs or milk, it’s obvious that the ingredients will simply clump together rather than blend in well. The result will be a loaf that does not have the best texture possible.
There is a choice of fat product in this loaf – either shortening, butter, or margarine will yield a good loaf. Butter, however, will obviously give the most flavor 😉
This loaf calls for maraschino cherries. These are the best option for this loaf because they are soft and beautifully bright colored. Dried cherries are too chewy and coarse and will not create the lovely red-dotted speckles throughout the loaf. Maraschino cherries, however, are wet and if they are not blotted dry, they will add too much excess moisture to the loaf. I recommend blotting the cherries with a paper towel, cutting them, and blotting them again. The idea is not to dry them out but, rather, to remove the excess moisture.
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Cherry Loaf
Ingredients:
1/3 cup shortening, butter, or margarine
¾ cup granulated sugar
¼ cup brown sugar, lightly packed
2 large eggs, room temperature
2/3 cup milk, room temperature
1½ tbsp orange juice, room temperature
2½ tbsp maraschino cherry juice, room temperature
1 tsp vanilla
¼ tsp almond flavouring
2¼ cups all-purpose flour
2 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
¾ cup maraschino cherries, well-drained, blotted dry, and coarsely chopped
Method:
Bring shortening, butter, or margarine, eggs, milk, and orange and maraschino cherry juices to room temperature approximately 25-30 minutes before preparing batter.
Remove cherries from their juice and, using paper towel, blot them dry. Cut up cherries and blot again on paper towel to remove the excess moisture. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease 9”x5”x3” loaf pan.
In 1-cup measuring cup, or small bowl, combine the milk, orange juice, cherry juice, vanilla, and almond flavouring. Stir to mix.
In medium-sized bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Whisk together well.
In bowl of stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment and on low speed, cream the shortening, butter, or margarine well. Gradually add the granulated sugar, then the brown sugar. Increase mixer speed to medium and beat until ingredients are pale-colored and mixture has an airy/fluffy texture. Stop mixer, as necessary, to scrape bowl with rubber spatula to ensure the ingredients are evenly incorporated.
Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and using the spatula, as necessary, to scrape sides of bowl.
Add the flour mixture alternately with the milk mixture, starting and ending with the dry ingredients (three additions of dry ingredients with two additions of wet ingredients). Periodically scrape sides of bowl with spatula to ensure all ingredients are combined. Do not overmix.
Remove bowl from mixer stand and stir in the cherries by hand, just until they are blended in.
Transfer batter to prepared pan and, using a knife, smooth the top of the loaf. Bake for approximately 1 hour or until cake tester inserted into center of loaf comes out clean. If loaf starts to brown, it may be loosely tented with tin foil after about 45 minutes of baking; ensure loaf top is completely set before allowing the tin foil to touch it as it will peel off the top of the loaf. Let loaf rest in pan for 10 minutes then turn out on to wire rack to cool completely before cutting.
Yield: One loaf, 14 slices (sliced approximately ½” thick)
Notes: Loaf is best made the day before it is needed. Let cool completely on wire rack then place in airtight plastic bag and store in refrigerator overnight to allow the flavours time to blend and the loaf to soften. Loaf freezes well.
This flavourful cherry loaf is an easy-to-make moist quick bread that is speckled with colorful maraschino cherries
Notes: Loaf is best made the day before it is needed. Let cool completely on wire rack then place in airtight plastic bag and store in refrigerator overnight to allow the flavours time to blend and the loaf to soften. Loaf freezes well.
For other quick bread recipes from My Island Bistro Kitchen, click on the links below:
Cinnamon Sweet Bread
Glazed Lemon Pecan Sweet Bread
These Gluten-Free Zucchini Date Muffins will rival any traditional wheat-based muffins! They sport a lovely gently domed top that is the hallmark of a perfect muffin shape, they are packed full of flavor, and they have a lovely tender, moist crumb. Continue reading The Ultimate Gluten-Free Zucchini Date Muffins
This recipe for Glazed Lemon Pecan Sweet Bread is an adaptation of my great grandmother’s lemon sweet bread. Back in her day, this sweet bread would have been considered quite a luxurious treat, perhaps one reserved for company. She lived in a small village in rural Prince Edward Island where there was, yes, a small general corner store but I doubt that lemons would have been altogether common all the time. I don’t know from where or when she got the recipe for Lemon Sweet Bread, but I am guessing it is probably one she clipped from the newspaper. This great grandmother was known particularly for three foods – apple pie, peach marmalade, and lemon sweet bread. I don’t personally remember her apple pie but, I do have memories that go as far back as the 1960s and I do remember her peach marmalade and lemon sweet bread, both of which were lovingly and carefully made.
Some glaze their sweet breads with lemon juice mixed with confectioner’s sugar (aka icing sugar or powdered sugar). I just use regular granulated sugar as I find the confectioner’s sugar can cause the glaze to be a bit “chippy” and it breaks off the sweet bread whereas the glaze made with granulated sugar is more clear or translucent and is more absorbed into the loaf for added flavor and moistness. Whichever glaze is used, however, is a matter of personal preference.
This sweet bread freezes well. In fact, I often make it, slice it, and individually wrap the slices in plastic wrap before freezing them in a freezer bag or airtight container. They are ready for quick lunch bag preparation on weekday mornings.
This loaf also goes particularly well with a lovely cup of tea. To butter or not to butter slices of sweet breads is a matter of preference.
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Ingredients:
½ cup butter, softened at room temperature
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1 tbsp freshly squeezed and strained lemon juice
2½ tsp grated lemon rind
1 2/3 cups all-purpose flour
1½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
2/3 cup chopped pecans
2/3 cup milk
2 tbsp freshly squeezed and strained lemon juice
¼ cup granulated sugar
Method:
Preheat oven to 350°F. Lightly grease or spray a 9”x5” loaf pan with cooking spray. Line pan with parchment paper, leaving some excess paper overhang that can be used as handles to lift loaf out of pan.
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter then gradually beat in the sugar. Beat, at medium speed, until the butter-sugar mixture is light coloured and fluffy, about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, if needed. Add the vanilla, lemon juice, and lemon rind. Mix well.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt, and pecans. With the mixer speed set to low or “stir” mode, add the dry ingredients to creamed mixture, alternately with the milk, starting and ending with dry ingredients. Scrape down the sides of the bowl with a spatula, if necessary, to ensure all ingredients are incorporated. Beat at medium-high speed an additional 20-30 seconds or so to ensure the dry ingredients have been completely incorporated. Transfer batter to prepared loaf pan, spreading batter evenly with knife.
Bake loaf for approximately 1 hour or until cake tester inserted into center of loaf comes out clean.
Glaze: About 3-4 minutes before bread is due to come out of the oven, combine lemon juice and sugar in small bowl. Slowly drizzle pourable glaze over hot loaf as soon as it comes out of the oven. Cool loaf in pan for about 15 minutes then carefully turn loaf out on to wire rack to finish cooling. Cool sweet bread completely before slicing and serving.
Yield: 1 – 9”x5” loaf
An easy-to-make sweet bread that is flavored with lemon and studded with pecans and topped with a lemon-sugar glaze
About 3-4 minutes before bread is due to come out of the oven, combine lemon juice and sugar in small bowl. Slowly drizzle pourable glaze over hot loaf as soon as it comes out of the oven. Cool loaf in pan for about 15 minutes then carefully turn loaf out on to wire rack to finish cooling. Cool sweet bread completely before slicing and serving.
Yield: 1 – 9”x5” loaf
Cinnamon Sweet Bread
Cherry Loaf
These mini loaves/muffins are super tasty and it’s hard to tell they are gluten-free! I believe this is so because I use a mix of gluten-free flours that include almond and coconut flours which lend exceptional texture and flavour to baked goods. After several testings, I have fixed on a blend of flavorful spices for these loaves/muffins – cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, allspice, and cloves. The spices, combined with pumpkin purée and mincemeat, results in a very flavorful mini loaf/muffin.
I find gluten-free baked goods take more leavening than do gluten products so this recipe calls for a substantial amount of baking powder along with some soda. I like muffins that are perfectly domed and this recipe delivers well on that front.
Because there are several different flours in this recipe, make sure the dry ingredients are mixed really well to ensure the xanthan gum, flours, spices, and leavening agents are well mixed. I use a whisk and do a count of 50 while briskly whisking the ingredients every which way in the bowl. You can, of course, put the ingredients through a flour sifter or fine wire mesh sieve and then give them a good stir. Either method works.
There is a small amount of buttermilk or soured milk called for in this recipe. While it’s only 2 1/2 tablespoons, it is nonetheless an important ingredient. The acidity of buttermilk combined with the soda called for in the recipe helps to make muffins that have a tender crumb. If you don’t have buttermilk, don’t go buy it for just 2 1/2 tablespoons. Instead, take regular milk and add about 1/2 teaspoon of vinegar to it. Let it stand for 5-10 minutes and it will be duly soured. For those using non-dairy milk substitutes, use soy or almond milk in this recipe.
It’s important to use pure pumpkin purée, not pumpkin pie filling, in this recipe. The purée has a different texture and no spices added to it. This allows the baker to add his or her own combination of spices appropriate to the recipe. Pumpkin purée freezes well so I open a can for the recipe I am making then freeze the remainder in one-half cup portions in freezer containers for use in other recipes.
If you have an 8-cavity mini loaf pan (each loaf cavity apx 2” x 3” x 1” deep that holds about 2/3-cup batter), this recipe makes cute little mini loaves. Otherwise, use 10 standard muffin cups (each having apx ½-cup capacity).
The loaves/muffins have a lovely texture and a tender crumb.
These mini loaves/muffins freeze really well so are great to have on hand for school or work lunches.
Make a batch of the mini loaves at Christmas and tie each with a ribbon and they make a perfect little remembrance gift for the foodies on your list. They’re perfect little hostess gifts, too!
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Gluten-Free Pumpkin-Mincemeat Muffins
Ingredients:
1 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour
2 tbsp potato starch
¼ cup gluten-free oat flour
¼ cup almond flour
¼ cup coconut flour
1¼ tsp xanthan gum
5½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp soda
½ tsp salt
1 tbsp ground chia seeds
2½ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp nutmeg
¼ tsp ginger
¼ tsp allspice
1/8 tsp cloves
¾ cup light brown sugar, lightly packed
2 large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1½ tsp vanilla
2½ tbsp buttermilk or sour milk*
½ cup canned pure pumpkin purée (not pumpkin pie filling)
½ cup mincemeat
Method:
Preheat oven to 450°F.
Prepare 8-cavity mini loaf pan (each loaf cavity apx 2” x 3” x 1” deep – about 2/3-cup capacity) or 10 standard muffin cups (each apx ½-cup capacity) by spraying each cavity or muffin cup with cooking spray or greasing individually.
Combine flours, xanthan gum, baking powder, soda, salt, chia seeds, and spices together in a large bowl. Whisk ingredients well to combine. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
In separate medium-sized bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together the brown sugar, eggs, oil, vanilla, milk*, pumpkin, and mincemeat. Whisk ingredients well. (To sour milk, add scant ½ tsp vinegar to the 2½ tbsp milk. Let stand for 5-10 minutes before using.)
Pour wet ingredients into well in dry ingredients. With large spoon, mix ingredients together just until dry ingredients are fully incorporated. Do not overmix.
Spoon batter into prepared mini loaf cavities or muffin cups, filling almost to the rim. Let sit for 3 –4 minutes before transferring to pre-heated oven. Immediately reduce oven temperature to 400°F. Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until loaves/muffins are just firm to the touch and a cake tester inserted into center of muffin or loaf comes out clean. Remove from oven and let loaves/muffins rest in pans for 5-7 minutes then gently remove from pan and transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 8 mini loaves or 10 standard-sized muffins
Combine flours, xanthan gum, baking powder, soda, salt, chia seeds, and spices together in a large bowl. Whisk ingredients well to combine. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Set aside.
Pour wet ingredients into well in dry ingredients. With large spoon, mix ingredients together just until dry ingredients are fully incorporated. Do not overmix.
Spoon batter into prepared mini loaf cavities or muffin cups, filling almost to the rim. Let sit for 3 –4 minutes before transferring to pre-heated oven. Immediately reduce oven temperature to 400°F.
Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until loaves/muffins are just firm to the touch and a cake tester inserted into center of muffin or loaf comes out clean. Remove from oven and let loaves/muffins rest in pans for 5-7 minutes then gently remove from pan and transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 8 mini loaves or 10 standard-sized muffins
Copyright My Island Bistro Kitchen
For other great gluten-free muffins from My Island Bistro Kitchen, click on the links below:
Gluten-free Blueberry Muffins
Deli-Style Gluten-Free Beet Muffins
Deli-style Gluten-free Rhubarb Granola Muffins
The Ultimate Gluten-free Zucchini Date Muffins
Gluten-free Strawberry Muffins
Gluten-free Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
Gluten-free Carrot Zucchini Muffins
Gluten-free Banana Date Muffins
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We have all heard of carrot muffins and don’t think twice about including the carrot vegetable into baked goods. What is less commonly heard of is the use of beets for the same purpose. Today, I am sharing my newly-created and tested recipe for deli-style gluten-free beet muffins which are moist and packed full of wonderful flavor. This is definitely in the category of “don’t knock it till you’ve tried it“!
Our garden did extremely well this year and our beets, in particular, grew very well….to the point that we had way more than what we could eat fresh or pickled. I am always looking to add new gluten-free muffins to my recipe repertoire so, with an abundance of beets available, I figured this was a good time to experiment with them and I am very pleased with the results. These deli-style gluten-free beet muffins have undergone several testings, in different ovens, and have produced consistently good results to the point that I am ready to publish my recipe here on my website.
For those of you who follow a gluten-free diet, you are likely aware that it is often difficult to get good quality baked goods that reasonably replicate gluten baked goods and that are appetizing and tasty. I have been doing a lot of experimenting with gluten-free recipe creation over the past while and am having very good results, particularly with muffins. I love a muffin for coffeebreak at work every day and I absolutely detest any muffin with a flat top! I expect my muffins to resemble deli-style muffins – those that are beautifully raised, with the dome top, and are a reasonably good sized muffin.
In order to get that deli-style muffin, I have learned that gluten-free muffins take more leavening. This is probably due to the properties in the gluten-free flours and they obviously must take more leavening. I find some gluten-free flours produce baked goods that have a “gritty” texture to them while others will result in a “gummy” textured product, and still others can have an offputting taste that is just not very appetizing. I have come up with a flour mixture blend that alleviates these issues and I attribute a lot of that to my use of small amounts of almond and coconut flours in my baked products. These flours cannot be used cup-for-cup substitutions for all-purpose flours because they react to liquid differently and, hence, the use of them in any quantity requires modifications to the liquid content in a recipe. However, small amounts of them can be used and I find they do enhance both the texture and certainly the flavor of baked goods like cookies and muffins.
The other thing I have learned about gluten-free baking is that the addition of several flavor enhancers greatly improves the flavor of the baked product. This is where the use of yogurt, vegetables (such as beets), maple syrup, cocoa, and so forth come in. For this beet muffin recipe, I use a thick Mediterranean-style/Greek yogurt. Many recipes will call for the use of plain yogurt and that certainly works in this muffin recipe. However, I have also tested it with coconut and lavender (yes, lavender!) flavored yogurts and both are very good in these muffins. Don’t substitute regular yogurt for the thick Mediterranean-style yogurt in this recipe as the regular yogurt will be too watery and will change the ratio of wet-to-dry ingredients in the muffins.
For this recipe, I incorporate beets in two ways – as a purée and in shredded form. The purée should be of the consistency of applesauce or baby food and should look like this.
A small food processor or blender works well for the purée but I often use my immersion blender. If the beets are soft enough, the immersion blender will work. I use my tall 2-cup measuring cup when using the immersion blender to purée these beets as it contains any splatters – you really do see how red beets can be if you find splatters on the wall!
To shred the remaining beet(s) required for the recipe, I use a simple shredder like the one shown in the photo below. As you can see, the beets are shredded rather coarsely.
Some recipes call for shredded uncooked beets to be used in muffins; however, these muffins only take about 20 minutes to bake and, since beets are firm and take a while to cook I find, to ensure the beets are cooked in the muffins, I have better success using cooked beets in this recipe. Both the beet purée and shredded beets give these muffins flavor and moisture.
I love chocolate so have incorporated some cocoa and chocolate chips into the muffins as both add lovely flavor to the baked product.
While I cook the beets especially for these muffins, if you happen to have cooked too many beets for another purpose, these muffins would be a good way to use the left-over beets. Three-quarters of a pound of beets (weighed after leaves removed) are required for this recipe. The ones in the photo below are from our garden so, as you can see, they are of varying sizes! Just know that the bigger beet is going to take longer to cook to fork-tender state. Don’t split the beets before they are cooked as they will bleed and their goodness will be poured down the drain.
As always, make sure that all the ingredients called for in the recipe are gluten free.
These are great muffins to make in the summer and fall when you have fresh beets in the garden or can access them at local farmers markets or roadside farm market stands. These muffins freeze well.
[Printable recipe follows at end of posting]
Ingredients:
¾ lb beets
1 cup gluten-free all-purpose flour (or gluten-free one-to-one flour)
1/3 cup gluten-free oat flour
¼ cup almond flour
¼ cup coconut flour
2 tbsp arrowroot starch
1¼ tsp xanthan gum
¼ cup gluten-free small flake rolled oats
5½ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp ground chia seeds
1/3 cup cocoa
Scant 2/3 cup brown sugar, lightly packed
¾ tsp cinnamon
2 extra-large eggs, room temperature, lightly beaten
½ cup almond milk or whole milk
¼ cup coconut oil, melted and cooled
1/3 cup Mediterranean-style/Greek yogurt (plain, coconut, or lavender flavor)
4 oz beet purée (see method below)
2 tbsp maple syrup
1½ tsp vanilla
½ cup shredded cooked beets
½ cup chocolate chips (optional)
Method:
Remove leaves, leaving about 1½“ stems along with the roots on the beets. Wash beets. Cook beets in boiling salted water until fork tender. Let beets cool enough to handle, then peel. Loosely chop 4 oz beets into a small food processor or a blender and purée until smooth (an immersion blender may also be used). Consistency of puréed beets should be similar to apple sauce or baby food. Shred remaining beets to fill ½ cup measuring cup.
Preheat oven to 450°F.
Use muffin tins with cups that have ½-cup holding capacity. Prepare muffin tins by greasing or spraying each muffin cup with cooking oil, ensuring the top of the muffin tin is also well greased. Alternatively, line with parchment paper cups.
In large bowl, combine the dry ingredients by whisking very well. Make a well in the middle of the dry ingredients and set aside.
In separate bowl, or large measuring cup, whisk together the lightly beaten eggs, almond or whole milk, coconut oil, yogurt, beet purée, maple syrup, vanilla, and shredded beet.
Pour wet ingredients into well in the dry ingredients. Combine just until dry ingredients are barely incorporated. Do not overmix. Gently stir in the chocolate chips, if using.
Spoon batter into prepared muffin tins, filling almost to the muffin cup rim. Let batter sit for 5 minutes before baking.
Transfer muffins to oven and immediately reduce heat to 400°F. Bake 20-22 minutes or until muffins are just firm to the touch and a cake tester inserted into the center of a muffin comes out clean.
Let muffins rest in muffin cups for 5-7 minutes then gently remove from pan and transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Yield: 15 muffins
A deli-style gluten free muffin that combines beets with chocolate to create a moist, tasty muffin
Ingredients
Instructions
For other great gluten-free muffin recipes from My Island Bistro Kitchen, click on the links below:
Deli-style Gluten-free Rhubarb Granola Muffins
Blueberry Muffin recipe
Deli-style Gluten-fre Rhubarb Granola Muffins
Gluten-Free Pumpkin-Mincemeat Muffins
Gluten-free Blueberry Zucchini Muffins
Gluten-free Carrot Zucchini Muffins
Gluten-free Banana Date Muffins
