In 1994 I was diagnosed with celiac disease, which led me to create Celiac.com in 1995. I created this site for a single purpose: To help as many people as possible with celiac disease get diagnosed so they can begin to live happy, healthy gluten-free lives. Celiac.com was the first site on the Internet dedicated solely to celiac disease, and since then it has become an invaluable resource to people worldwide who seek information about celiac disease and the gluten-free diet.
In 1998 I created The Gluten-Free Mall, Your Special Diet Superstore! which was also another Internet first—it was the first gluten-free food site to offer a shopping cart-style interface, and the ability for people to order gluten-free products manufactured by many different companies at a single Web site.
I am also co-author of the book Cereal Killers, and founder and publisher of Journal of Gluten Sensitivity.
This recipe comes to us from Michele Rice.
Ingredients:
1 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon grated lemon rind or orange rind
2 cups (½ pound) almonds with skins, finely ground. I either
process the nuts in small batches in my food processor, or buy almond
meal at a health food store (refrigerated section)
7 eggs, separated
¼ teaspoon cinnamon
Chipped or slivered almonds for garnish
Powdered sugar and/or whipped cream for garnish
Directions:
Cream sugar, lemon rind and egg yolks until the mixture is light and
fluffy. Stir in the almonds and cinnamon. This mixture will be very
dense. I do all of this in my food processor. With a mixer, beat the
egg whites until they are stiff, but not dry. Stir a few tablespoons
of the egg white into the almond mixture, and then fold in the rest
of the egg whites.
Pour into 2 greased 8 inch layer pans and bake @ 350F for 45 minutes or until the cake is well browned (Actually I use a large Corning ware type quiche pan and just use one layer).
You can remove the cakes from the pans and frost with a ½ pint of whipping cream, ¼ teaspoon sugar, whipped until stiff OR just serve it the traditional way with a sprinkling of powdered sugar on top. In Santiago, a cut-out of a medieval cross (The Cross of Santiago) is placed on the cake, and then the cake is sprinkled with powdered sugar. The cross template is then removed so that you have a brown cross on a field of powdered sugar. Any type of template works well for the design. You can use doilies, or quilting templates found in craft stores.