Christmas Baking Questions

[finlayson]

I would like to begin my Christmas baking (my first gluten free Christmas). I have three questions and I wondered if anyone could help me with them.

1. I've always made chocolate toffee shortbread (a layer of shortbread, a toffee layer on top, finished off with a layer of chocolate). I need a recipe for gluten free shortbread which will hold up to being sliced into squares without crumbling after the squares have been assembled.

2. I have many recipes which I used to make with phyllo pastry. I do not want to make my own gluten free version (seems like a LOT of work). What are good subsitutes for phyllo pastry?

3. I want to make a cheesecake which uses a graham cracker crumb base. I have gluten free graham crackers and I wondered if these would behave in the same way as gluten ones when crumbled and mixed with butter (and whatever else I need to add).

I should add that we also have a peanut/nut allergic family member so I cannot substitute anything with ground nuts.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[annielala]

On the shortbread, I use superfine rice flour(no grit). Just substitute a scant cup for one cup of wheat flour in your recipe and add some xanthum gum to the recipe. Check on the xanthum gum package to see how much to add. Here is the link to the superfine brown rice flour:

Open Original Shared Link

On the graham cracker crust what you have should work just fine. You can add a tablespoon or 2 to the crust if you want. You can also substitute either sunflower or pumpkin seeds ground in the food processor or coffee grinder.

Maybe someone else can answer the phyllo dough question. Hope this helps. Here is a link to a pumpkin seed flour spice cookie recipe and there is a link to a good snickerdoodle recipe.

Open Original Shared Link

[Ahorsesoul]

1. I've always made chocolate toffee shortbread (a layer of shortbread, a toffee layer on top, finished off with a layer of chocolate). I need a recipe for gluten free shortbread which will hold up to being sliced into squares without crumbling after the squares have been assembled.

I'd love your chocolate toffee shortbread recipe. It sounds really good. I'll try it with Pamela's Baking/Pancake mix.

I'm waiting for someone to invent frozen gluten free phyllo dough. I'm to lazy to try it from a recipe.

[celiac-mommy]

I'd love your chocolate toffee shortbread recipe. It sounds really good. I'll try it with Pamela's Baking/Pancake mix.

Just remember to decrease your fat content if using a regular recipe. Made that mistake once and it puffed up and spread out up and over the sides of my cookie sheet!!

My recipe is:

1c pamela's

1/4c melted butter (usually it's 1/2c butter)

1/4c sugar

[finlayson]

Thank you to everyone who has helped answer my questions.

I can give the caramel toffee squares recipe but I will have to give the original gluten-containing recipe as I have yet to substitute this for gluten free, hence my original post.

BOTTOM LAYER

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/2 cup butter or hard marg, softened

2 tsp more butter or marg, softened

SECOND LAYER

1/2 cup butter or hard marg

1/2 cup brown sugar, packed

2 tbsp corn syrup, light or dark

1/2 cup sweetened condensed milk

TOP LAYER

2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

Botton layer: crumble all 4 ingredients well. Pack in ungreased 9 x 9 (22 x 22 cm) pan. Bake in 350F (175C) oven for 20 minutes.

Second layer: Combine all 4 ingredients in heavy saucepan. Bring to boil over medium heat. Boil 5 minutes, stirring constantly, as it will burn easily. Remove from heat. Beat with spoon slowly until it shows signs of thickening. Pour over bottom layer.

Top layer: Melt chocolate chips in saucepan over low heat or over hot water, stirring often. Spread over second layer. Chill. Cuts into 36 squares.

Please remember I have not yet tried the bottom layer with a gluten-free flour yet.

[NewGFMom]

Try this for the shortbread:

Open Original Shared Link

This is a lemon square recipe that my whole family loves. I think you could use the bottom part for what you're describing.

The flour is 3 parts Authentic Foods Brown Rice Flour, 1 part potato starch and 1/2 part tapioca starch.

It's very, very good.

-Margaret

[finlayson]

Thanks NewGFMom, that lemon square base looks to be exactly what i need. My kids thank you too because this caramel square recipe is their favorite Christmas treat.

[MagpieWrites]

Oh.... dear heavens. I can feel my waistband expanding as I read that - but heck. It's the holidays! That looks just yummy. Off to the kitchen to experiment!

(Its moments like this that I need to make myself a apron that looks like a lab coat - Something with "Come Igor! To the lab!" embroidered on it perhaps? )

[Ahorsesoul]

Thanks Rachelle! I'll give it a try.

[bbuster]

If you make the crust layer with Pamela's Baking Mix (which I plan to try) don't bake for 20 minutes - more like 10.

[finlayson]

Thanks, Margaret (newGFmom). I just made the squares using the recipe you suggested from the Food Philosopher website. It worked perfectly. That website looks really interesting - some good looking recipes. Thanks.

[Dylan]

Wouldn't the all purpose flour have gluten? Just inquiring!