Celebrate!! With the best dessert ever!

I've got many things to celebrate today! First of all, this is my 100th post! Wow! I remember starting this blog more than 4 years ago, and am amazed that I found so much to write about.

Even more exciting, when I logged on tonight, I discovered I had a new follower! I know 30+ people subscribing to my blog isn't an overwhelming milestone, but it makes me happy. I started writing here so that I could share my experience with others, hopefully making their lives easier. I hope I've been able to do that for all of you. I appreciate your comments and all of your awesome blogs as well! You know I'm more interested in reading than writing, though I do occasionally manage to find something worthwhile to share here. Thanks for sticking around as I've improved on my gluten/dairy-free cooking, blogging and photography skills!

The last thing I want to celebrate today really is the best dessert I think I've had since discovering all my food issues (if not the best dessert I've ever had in my life...). And let me be clear. I love my desserts. And I've made and eaten quite a few good ones. This one, however, takes the cake! Or rather, the cheesecake (I know, I know, groan-worthy. I'm sorry...I had to!)

Feast your eyes on this beauty:

Pumpkin cheesecake with a caramel dulce de leche topping. Yep, it's as good as it sounds. When I was debating what to make for my birthday at the beginning of the month, I just kept coming back to this gorgeous photo, and the recipe attached. I took a poll, and this one was the one everyone suggested. So glad I tried it, and so were my friends and family! Even my cheesecake snobs and cheesecake dislikers enjoyed it!

I know this is super late for the Thanksgiving feast. If you've already got something lined up for the big day, I would recommend making it in a couple days, once everyone's had a chance to digest. They will thank you for it.

Pumpkin Cheesecake with Dulce de Leche & Pecans

Gluten & Dairy Free

(Original recipe by the amazing Baking Beauties)

3/4 c crushed Cinnamon Chex (I used Rice Chex with a sprinkling of cinnamon)

1/2 c finely chopped/ground pecans

2 tbsp white sugar

2 tbsp brown sugar

1/4 c butter substitute, melted (I used Earth Balance spread)

3/4 c white sugar

3/4 c pureed pumpkin (Check out this great post on easy crockpot cooking of your pumpkin, or you can always use the stuff from a can)

3 egg yolks

1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

1/2 tsp ground ginger

1/4 tsp salt

3 (8 ounce) packages cream cheese substitute (Tofutti was a winner!)

1/4 c plus 2 tbsp white sugar

1 egg

1 egg yolk

2 tbsp sour cream sub (Tofutti again. Original recipe called for whipped cream)

1 tbsp cornstarch

1 tsp vanilla extract (recipe calls for 1/2 tsp vanilla, 1/2 tsp lemon extract, which I didn't have)

Dulce de Leche (for topping)**

Whole pecans (for topping)

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Combine first 5 ingredients in a small bowl and mix well. Sprinkle into a 9-inch springform pan, pressing lightly until bottom of pan is covered.

Mix together 3/4 c white sugar, pumpkin, 3 egg yolks, spices and salt in a meidum bowl. Set aside.

Dump the cream cheese into a larger bowl. Beat w/ an electric mixer until light and fluffy (ish. Mine never got that fluffy). Slowly add 1/4 c plus 2 tbsp white sugar, and beat. Add egg, egg yolk, and sour cream; beat well again. Add the corn starch and vanilla. Beat once more until mixture becomes smooth.

Add the pumpkin mixture to the cream cheese mixture and mix well. Pour into the springform pan. Place pan on a cookie sheet lined with foil in case you have any leakage.

Bake cheesecake in the preheated oven for 50-55 minutes. Don't overbake it. The center will firm up when chilled. Once it's done, turn the oven off, and crack open the door. Leave cheesecake in the cooling oven for 1 hour (this helps prevent the top from cracking).

Once cooled, remove from oven. Cover and refridgerate until ready to dig in. Remove the pan siding (I didn't risk taking the cake off the bottom of the springform pan, so not sure how that would work), and decorate cheesecake with dulce de leche and pecans. (Just FYI, the dulce de leche will stick to anything you try and cover the cheesecake with. You may want to keep the pan siding around to place around the cake if you're covering and refridgerating w/ the topping on).

Serve, and enjoy the praise you will be receiving from those you deem worthy to partake with you in this heavenly experience.

**Dulce de Leche done dairy free

I followed this recipe from allrecipes.com, quartering the original measurements. It worked beautifully! This recipe takes about an hour to make (10 min for processing your own almond milk, and about 45 minutes of stirring to get the dulce de leche to the right consistancy). Read the comments below the recipe on allrecipes if you need help w/ making this.

Dairy Free Dulce de Leche

4 cups homemade almond milk (recipe here)

Approx. 1 tsp vanilla extract, or 1/4 vanilla bean

1 c plus 2 tbsp white sugar

1/4 tsp baking soda

In a large saucepan (yes, you do need to use a large one, b/c this stuff foams), bring the milk to a boil over medium-high heat (original recipe calls to strain at this point, but I found this an unncessary step, as there was nothing to strain in here).

Add vanilla, then stir in the sugar. Stir constantly until the sugar is dissolved. Just before the mixture begins to boil, stir in the baking soda.

Turn heat down to medium. Continue to stir constantly for the next 40-50 minutes, until the midxture thickens (grab a good book and a stool so you can sit by the stovetop). I figured mine was done when it resembled a caramel sauce that you would use on ice cream. Not too runny, but not too thick. Takes a minute to come back together when you divide it by running a spoon through it.

Remove from heat, and pour into glass or other heat-proof dish to cool. Once it's cooled a bit on the counter, cover and stick in the fridge to chill before using. Don't use on the cheesecake until the dulce de leche is totally cold.

Makes about 1 1/2 cups (8 servings, supposedly, and just enough to top the cheesecake!).

P.S. Before you dunk that empty, caramely, sticky pan in some water to wash it out, put it back on the stove, add some almond milk, and warm it over med-low heat for a few minutes. Pour into your favorite coffee mug, and enjoy! Makes cleanup that much sweeter :D

P.P.S. This recipe is linked up to Linda @ The Gluten Free Homemaker's Gluten Free Wednesdays event! Check it out!

P.P.P.S. This recipe is also linked up to Amy @ Simply Sugar & Gluten Free's Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays, Diane @ The WHOLE Gang's Holiday Party, where she is giving away some great cookbooks, as well as Alex's The 12 Days of Bloggie-mas @ A Moderate Life.

Embracing Autumn and Pumpkin Soup

Yes, it is that time of year again. I had quite an abundance of tomatoes this season, and have loved them all. Unfortunately I couldn't let them all grow up to be as plump and red as these ones. These are my German Queens, and I am enamored by this heirloom. I gutted a few of the late bloomers, and have dried the seeds to use again next year. If that doesn't pan out, I suppose I can find them again at Lowe's.

This is the most amazing mulligatawny soup! I've been meaning to try a recipe I have marked in one of my books for ages, but never got around to it, as I was hesitant of the combination of flavors. Mulligatawny is a soup most commonly comprised of apples, curry, coconut milk, and chicken. When I saw this dish at Fresh Thyme Soup Co in Beaverton, OR, my new favorite restaurant out there (as they have a great GF menu), I knew I had to try it. Even though it does have coconut milk, which I don't agree with so well. It rocked my world! I had it for lunch at the Cafe w/ some GF cornbread, and again for dinner w/ my own GF bread (see picture). I love it! I'm so excited to try my hand at this recipe, so stay tuned :)

I have been branching out in my cooking lately, and discovered I have quite a fondness for lemongrass. I also have a great fondness for photographing things, which has been magnified by my brand new rockin' camera! I wanted to capture the great purple color of the rings as I was chopping the stalks. I will post our new favorite lemongrass-infused recipe soon as well (just don't pay any attention to my posting track record of late...).

I am finally accepting the fact that summer is gone. I hate to see summer go, as it is my favorite season. However, I always seem to forget how much I enjoy autumn, until it is upon me. This year fall has been rather sporadic, with lots of early snow on the mountains and eerily-Oregon-like rain storms. We've taken a couple trips up the canyons, and I have had my breath stolen by the beauty of this great season. After one such trip, I decided to celebrate the arrival of fall by making this recipe. I dug around for a can of pumpkin, and whipped it up in no time. It was quite good, although next time I will use chicken broth rather than the turkey broth I had in the freezer (it tasted a little too much like turkey gravy, lol).
This recipe comes from the great ladies at Eating Gluten Free, and as usual, is amazing! Very much a fall favorite!
P.S. For the pumpkin-leery readers, seriously, you can hardly taste the pumpkin. This is like a creamy chicken soup. Try it! For real!

Gluten Free/Dairy Free Pumpkin Soup

2 chicken breasts, cubed
1 Tbs. oil
½ sweet onion, chopped (I used onion powder, and a dash of garlic powder as well)
4 c. chicken broth (I used turkey stock b/c it's what I had in the freezer, but would recommend chicken in the future)
2 c. pureed pumpkin
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
Salt and pepper to taste
2 cups milk (almond milk worked fine for me)

In a large pot, heat the oil.
Sauté the chicken w/ the onion and garlic powder until chicken is cooked.
Add chicken broth, pumpkin, and nutmeg and cook uncovered for 15 minutes.
Reduce heat, add milk and continue to cook for 5 more minutes. Watch it so it doesn't boil. Add salt and pepper to taste.
Serve.

I thought the soup was great by itself, very creamy, but the recipe calls for swiss cheese as a garnish. It's been so long, I can't even remember what swiss tastes like (just the smell...).

I also added some cooked white rice to the leftovers, and really enjoyed it. There wasn't enough soup for me to compare whether I liked it more w/ or without the rice. Give it a try.

Gluten Free Pepita-Powered Bread

Recipe by Kate, over at GF Gobsmacked.
I've been meaning to try this recipe for awhile now. I've read lots of rave reviews from people who have tried it. I'll admit, I liked it, but didn't LOVE it. I might have to play around with the ingredients a bit more.
It did have a very "whole-grainy" feel to it, and it smelled very good. The texture was great. The bottom of the loaf stuck to my pan, and so it doesn't look very pretty. I liked it best toasted w/ some sort of sandwich topping (made an open-faced club sandwich, and a tuna sandwich w/ pickles). I'd give it a 4 out of 5 though. A very filling, hearty bread, a bit sweet-tasting. And quite pretty too! Best enjoyed when watching your husband play you yet another "really good" song from the latest Guitar Hero game :)

Gluten Free Pepita-powered Bread
Makes one loaf

1/2 cup raw pumpkin seeds
1/2 cup flax seed meal
3/4 cup millet flour
1/2 cup quinoa flakes
1/2 cup tapioca flour (I used cornstarch as I was out of tapioca)
1 1/2 cups water, divided
1 1/2 tbsp agave nectar
1 1/2 tbsp yeast
2 eggs
2 tsp xanthan gum
2 tbsp brown sugar
3 tbsp melted butter or butter sub (I used Earth Balance). I also halved the amount of butter and used half applesauce to reduce the fat.
Extra handful of pumpkin seeds to sprinkle on top

Warm 1/2 cup of the water to proof your yeast. Add agave and yeast. Stir. Set aside to proof for 10 minutes.
Process pumpkin seeds in food processor until evenly ground. Add flaxseed meal, millet flour, tapioca flour and quinoa flakes. Process until quinoa flakes have been mostly ground down.
Pour flour mixture into mixer. Pour proofed yeast over the top. Add the eggs, xanthan gum, brown sugar, and melted butter. Pour in 1/2 cup of the reserved water.
Mix together on low until the batter is even. Add the remaining 1/2 cup of water. Mix again on low well mixed. Beat on high for 5 more minutes.
Prepare bread pan by spritzing the bottom and sides/corners with olive oil (by the way, this is what I did, and why my bread stuck to it...)
Pour batter into the prepared pan and smooth out with wet hands. Sprinkle remaining pumpkin seeds over the top of the loaf.
Place pan in a warm place and let rise about 20-30 minutes (until batter rises to the top of the pan).
Preheat oven to 350F. Bake bread for 30-45 minutes. Check bread after 15 minutes. If the top is getting too brown, cover loosely with a piece of foil). My bread took an hour to bake. Just keep checking it.
Remove from the oven and let sit in pan for 5 minutes. Remove from pan and let cool for at least half an hour on a wire rack.
Enjoy :)

Gluten/Dairy/Soy Free Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

These were absolutely scrumptious!

So, last week was Valerie's b-day, and of course the privilege of providing the office with a refreshment was bestowed upon me (since no one else really wants to touch that with a ten-foot pole). So, the night before, I came home from work, frantic about finding an amazing recipe...and worrying because I didn't have any fave recipes coming to mind that I could recreate and share. So I was stuck starting from scratch.

Can I just say how much I love Collette! Seriously! You rock! And saved my butt! We at the office had been talking a few days prior to this event, and Valerie had mentioned how she loved pumpkin cookies.

So I did a search of the gluten free forum recipes for pumpkin, and found quite a few recipes. Except then I got to thinking about the fact that most cookies call for butter, no exceptions, and I wasn't really in the mood to be creative, and hope that butterless cookies would turn out perfect.

Enter Collette! I stumbled across her recipe for a pumpkin cake with a rum/maple glaze. Perfect, right? Except for the fact that I had no rum or maple...nor did I think the rum part would go down with the folks at work.

So I improvised a little. Omit the glaze, and add a bunch of delectable Enjoy Life chocolate chips! Definitely perfect! They all asked for seconds!

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cupcakes

adapted from recipe here.

2 c gluten free flour (I used 1 c white rice, 1/2 c tapioca, and 1/2 c sorghum)

1 tsp xanthan gum

1 tsp baking soda

3 tsp baking powder

pinch salt

1 c sugar

1/2 cup olive oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 c pumpkin pie puree (I used the kind with spices already in it)

3 eggs

2/3 c chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350F. Line cupcake tins.

In a medium bowl, mix together flour, xanthan gum, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, mix together sugar, oil, vanilla, pumpkin, and eggs. Add dry ingredients to wet ones, mix well. Add chocolate chips.

Pour batter into cupcake tins (I filled them about 2/3 full), and bake for about 20 minutes. In my oven, this was perfect timing. Cupcakes do have a little spring in them when pushed on.

Let cool, then serve.

These totally rock when fresh from the oven as well! If you don't want to wait to enjoy them!