{delightful} Gluten Free Chocolate Candy Bites

Today's recipe is a little something sweet. Who doesn't like a good chocolate candy recipe?



I know these will be gone at my house in less then 30 minutes. Enjoy! This is a great recipe to get your kids involved in. My kids love taking turns stirring...and sampling along the way of course.

Gluten Free Chocolate Candy Bites

by amy twomey

ingredients

3 packages of gluten free German Chocolate

6 c. big marshmallow's

2 c. crushed up pecans

1 T. cream

Using a double broiler melt the chocolate and marshmallow's until smooth. Add pecans and cream. Stir well. Remove from heat and begin dropping spoon size drops onto a sheet of wax paper.

Let cool and harden. I put mine in freezer to speed up process!

{delightful} red velvet cupcakes

It starts with a craving... a need to bake ... last week it was apple pie and this week the irresistible red velvet cupcake!

What is it about this cake that everyone seems to love? The childhood memory? The beautiful contrast of red and white? The rich buttermilk in the batter? The luscious icing?

all of the above friends all of the above!

red velvet cupcakes by ann west

2 1/4 cup sifted cake flour

4 tbls unsweetened cocoa powder

1 tsp baking powder

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup buttermilk

1/2 cup sour cream

2 tbls red food coloring

1 tsp distilled vinegar

2 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cup sugar

1 1/2 stick unsalted butter - room temp

2 large eggs

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Line your cupcake liners and set aside. Sift the dry ingredients together. Whisk buttermilk, food coloring, vinegar, and vanilla together. With a stand mixer - cream butter with sugar. (let this go awhile and your cupcakes will have fewer holes) Add the eggs one at a time - make sure to scrape the batter down off the sides of your bowl. Beat in the dry ingredients and alternate with the liquid ingredients. Divide the batter into the cups. I would fill a little shy of 3/4 full. Bake for 18 minutes and let cool.

Ice with cream cheese or a whipped cream icing. Here is a cream cheese recipe for you!

1 1/2 packages 8oz cream cheese

1 1/2 sticks butter

1 tbls vanilla

3 to 3 1/2 cups powdered sugar

enjoy!

{delightful} Gluten Free Apple Pie

There is nothing like my man strumming a little Elliot Smith to get me in the mood to bake an apple pie. So, while he strummed...

I peeled, cut and sliced my Macintosh and Empire apples in thin slices

And turned my oven to 450 degrees while adding the following ingredients to a mixing bowl:

1 egg white, whisked

3/4 white sugar

1/2 brown sugar

3 T. gluten free flour

1/2 lemon juice, squeezed fresh

1 T. lemon rind

1/4 t. salt

3/4 t. cinnamin

1/2 t. nutmeg

Mix all together and pour into your gluten free pie crust. I get mine at Whole Foods, frozen.

After pouring all into crust, use the second pie crust and ball it together crumbling the dough on top of the pie as a topping. I use about 3/4 of the dough and toss the remaining. Add a handful of brown sugar on top of pie and bake it on 450 for 20-25 minutes on pre-heated baking pan. Then reduce heat to 375 for about 30-40 minutes.

Must serve with vanilla ice cream. yummy. Then serve a plate for your loved ones.

Best to cool and serve at room temperature...

but I can never wait.

Smile.

{delightful} Whoopie Pie

Whoop it up for valentines Day!

I first had a whoopie pie when my husband and I lived in Pennsylvania. We would go to the best farmers market there. Unbelievable! They had all flavors of whoopies - traditional chocolate, red velvet, pumpkin. The traditional whoopie is made with a more cake type cookies. But the 10 year old's didn't seem to mind my switch.

There is nothing healthy about this. But a treat now and then is good for the soul I say. So butter, sugar and chocolate chips it is. These treats go right to a kids heart. Sweet fluff sandwiched between two yummy cookies. And we have a few extra cookies to boot.

soft and delicious chocolate chip cookies by ann west and sue whiteside

(this recipe is one that sue and i perfected when we had our catering business - sweet classics! I can't even guess how many chocolate chip cookies we made???? too many to count for sure!)

4 1/2 cup flour

2 tsp baking soda

1 tsp kosher salt

1 1/2 cups sweet butter - soft

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/2 cups brown sugar

2 tbls corn syrup

3 eggs

2 tbls vanilla

3 cups chocolate chips

cream your butter and sugars. Add your eggs. Mix your dry ingredients and add them. Fold in your chips. Bake at 375 degree oven on parchment paper for 11 - 15 minutes depending on the size of your cookie. let cool.

Whoop - cream filling - The All American Cookie Book, by Nancy Baggett

1/3 cup shortening

1/3 cup butter - soft

1 cup powder sugar

1 1/2 tbls corn syrup

2 tsp vanilla

2 pinch salt

1 7 oz jar of marshmallow creme

With a mixer beat the shortening, butter, sugar and corn syrup, vanilla and salt until fluffy. Add the marshmallow creme until blended. Fill your cooled cookies.

note: This isn't my favorite whoop. I think I would prefer a traditional butter cream. But this one is easy and the kids LOVED it!

happy valentines day!

{delightful} rustic blackberry almond pie

by now you know I am a pie fan and I adore blackberries. Is it that darn color again (like eggplant?) I don't know. When blackberries are fresh I just love the way they pop in your mouth. Like each individual bubble bursts. They are sweet and luscious. I love the hints of blackberry in wine, the sweetness in jam, and the color ooooh - all the time. They are just beautiful!

This rustic pie is a fun way to wrap up your favorite fruit. Here I combined the blackberries with some almond paste just to see what happened. It was great! Enjoy some pie this weekend!

rustic blackberry almond pie by ann west

1 round flaky pie dough (from dollop here).

1 tube almond paste

3 cups fresh blackberries

1/2 cup sugar

squeeze of lemon

2 tbls butter - melted

Toss your berries, sugar, lemon and butter and set aside. Roll your almond paste between two sheets of wax paper into a thin round.

Roll your pie dough out into a large circle. Place the almond paste in the center. ( you may need to cut it down a bit). Mound the berries in the center of the almond paste (which is on top of the dough). Fold the edges one by one until your pie is partially covered. Sprinkle with sugar. Bake in a 375 degree over for 35- 45 minutes.

enjoy!

{delightful} classic apple pie

Pie!

It is my all time favorite. Nothing comes close to a good classic pie. Peach, apple, pumpkin, chocolate cream, lemon meregne, ruhbarb, cherry, dutch .... all of them, fabulous, warm and comforting.

I have often thought about not only why I like to eat pie ... but also why I enjoy making pie so much. It is an experience everytime. I think it goes back to the deep routes of pie making. I can only imagine all of the women in the past that have made pie: grandmothers, mothers, town bakers, cooks for families, so many talented and generous women. These endless generations of women taking time to create something with their hands, with love. It's a common thread, a instinct, a female right so to speak. Having that link to the past is a wonderful feeling! There is also something about the simplicity of the ingredients and the amazing satisfaction of the results. Endless fillings and endless possibilities.

Here is a classic apple pie recipe. It is one of the first pies I ever made. So tap into your past, your mother, grandmother or just the feel of all the women that have come before us rolling, stirring and creating this food of splendor and enjoy!

classic apple pie by ann west

for the crust see flaky pie crust here at dollop!

filling:

8 tart apples, cored, peeled and sliced. (I like a variety of slices widths. Some will stay

crunchy and some will get soft. I think it is a key to the perfect pie)

1/2 stick of butter melted

3/4 to 1 cup sugar

3 tbls corn starch

1/2 tsp cinnamon

zest of 1/2 lemon or a squeeze of fresh lemon juice

2 tsp vanilla

pinch of salt

Mix the ingredients together and let sit for 10 minutes. Fill your pie. Sprinkle a little sugar on top and cook at 350 degree oven for about an hour. Let cool.

ps. If you have never seen the movie "Waitress" rent it and get ready to be inspired. She makes a pie for every emotion of life. It is a cute movie!

* also check out amy's recipe for pumpkin pie - it is fabulous!

{delightful} two pumpkin pies

photo by amy twomey

Every single time I make a pie I want two. One to bring a neighbor or a dinner host. Tonight we are going to a friends house for dinner, and what better way then to arrive with a pumpkin pie in hand. I found the best gluten free pie crust pre-made in Whole Food's gf freezer section. It is amazing and they sell the pie crusts as a pair. So this recipe is for two pumpkin pies, one for you and one for a friend. Something to get us all in the Halloween spirit.

two pumpkin pies by amy twomey

ingredients

2 15 oz cans of pumpkin(I like the organic one)

1 1/2 t. ground cinnamon

1 t. sea salt

1 t. ground nutmeg

1/2 t. ground ginger

1/2 t. ground cloves

2 14 oz cans sweetened condensed milk

3 eggs

1/2 c. brown sugar give or take

mix all of the above well and pour evenly into two pie crusts. Put in a pre-heated over at 450 for 15 min and then 350 for an additional 35 and the last 5-10 min add crumbles of sprinkled brown sugar. Remove and let cool and serve.

{delightful} 13 year old's birthday cake

photo by ann west

It is my daughters 13 birthday this weekend. Do I want to cry or cheer??? Ok I am a little torn about her reaching this milestone. Our relationship is changing ... sad to see my young little girl grow but I soooo love the depth of our relationship now. A teenager. She deserves a wonderful cake at the very least. I am looking forward to spending some time making this cake. I hope I can let the memories flood in and the anticipation of what comes next excite me. She is an awesome girl... fun, creative, sensitive, loving. I love her dearly and I hope it shows. This one is for you my dear daughter of 13.

yellow cake with chocolate icing by ann west

yellow cake -

cream together :

2 1/2 sticks unsalted butter soft

2 cups sugar

add & mix well:

4 large eggs

2 large egg yolks

sift together:

1 1/2 cups cake flour

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbls baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

1 cup buttermilk ( I like to bake with whole buttermilk) add in 2 tsp vanilla

Alternate mixing into the butter mixture the dry ingredients and the buttermilk mixture and mix well. Pour into prepared cake pans. (Let the Birthday girl lick the bowl). Bake at 350 degrees for 30 - 35 minutes. Don't over cook.

chocolate ganache frosting...

12 oz semi-sweet chocolate

1 cup heavy cream

2 tbls sugar

2 tbls light corn syrup

1/2 stick unsalted butter

1 tsp vanilla

I based this recipe on one that I got from epicurious. I think they said it was Chef, Ed Kasky's. I decreased the amount of chocolate for cost and added vanilla because (chocolate and vanilla make the ultimate pair). If you have never frosted a cake with a ganache... its time. It is lovely to spread - it goes on like silk. This recipe makes just enough for a 9 in double layer cake. I hope you enjoy!

{delightful} peanut butter cookies

photo by amy twomey

Homemade cookies never stay in our house long! And it always helps when I can make a batch of cookies that are gluten free. Everyone loves peanut butter cookies, but that extra touch of chocolate is what makes these peanut butter cookies special. I love the smell of cookies baking in a house on a lazy Sunday afternoon. I remember that smell growing up. I hope my kids do too.

peanut butter cookies by amy twomey

ingredients

2 cups creamy peanut butter
3 cups sugar
4 eggs, lightly beaten
chocolate chip bag

preheat oven to 350.
lightly grease a large baking sheet.

mix all ingredients well except for the chocolate chips. Spoon the dough in a heaping Tbs onto the cookie sheet allowing 2 inches between each cookie. Bake 12-15 min, checking until lightly browned. let cool for 5 min and add 5 or 6 little chocolate chips to the center of each cookie pressing them lightly down.