DF NF SF Hot Chocolate... Kid Approved!

So, my first attempt at hot chocolate was not approved by my food-allergy kiddo (even though I liked it very much!). This time I changed the "milk" and combined two together.  I really like vanilla hemp milk; it has a nutty taste and is fairly thick.  Witt likes rice milk even though it's kinda bland and thin. So I combined the two.

Here's what I came up with and it was approved by ALL THREE of my boys!!! WOOO HOO!

1 cup rice milk, original
1 cup hemp milk, vanilla
4 tsp cocao powder
2 Tbsp sucanat
dash sea salt
1 tsp GF vanilla extract

Warm the milks over medium heat. Stir in cocao powder, sucanat, and salt until well combined.  Remove from heat. Add vanilla. Stir. Pour. Add marshmallows and enjoy!

Hot Cacao (DF SF NF GF)

Normally, I would make hot cocoa with almond milk, but until we evaluate almonds in Witt's diet again, they are out.  And I always try to avoid soy.  He's tried chocolate rice milk and doesn't like it. So that leads me to coconut milk.

This recipe is thick, rich and delicious... a real treat! Unfortunately only one of my three boys agreed, and it wasn't the food-allergy kid. :(

However, I really enjoyed it so I'm keeping the recipe for me. :)

*A few notes first:

• I would not recommend substituting 1:1 on the sugar. To me, sucanat has a completely different flavor and isn't as "sweet" as regular white sugar. If you are going to use plain, white sugar, add slowly and taste as you go. 
• Cacao powder and cocoa powder taste different to me as well.  Cacao has more of a dark chocolate taste. I don't know if a regular cocoa powder (like Hershey's) would substitute exactly.

Ingredients

1 can unsweetened coconut milk (I use Thai organic)
1 can water
3 Tbsp cacao powder (I use Navitas organic)
4 Tbsp sucanat
1/8 tsp sea salt (I use pink Himalayan)
1 tsp vanilla extract, gluten free


Directions

Combine entire can of coconut milk and can of water in a pot. Warm over medium heat.

Whisk in cacao powder, sucanat, and sea salt. (Remember to taste as you go with the sugar!)

Once well combined and warm, remove from heat and add vanilla extract.

Serve warm.  Makes approximately 3 1/3 cups.



Recipe linked on Allergy-Free Wednesday

Chocolate Chip Cookie (GF DF SF)

Cookies

This recipe is altered from a previous one (DF, EF) now that Witt cannot have wheat, but can have eggs.  The following recipe is gluten free, dairy free, and soy free.  I made about 24 cookies, 24 mini-muffins, and one 9" cookie cake to see how the recipe handled different forms.

These may not be the most perfect looking desserts, but everyone loved them! Even the non-allergy folks.  YUM!

Mini-Muffins

Ingredients:

2 1/4 c GF flour (I used Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Mix)
1/4 tsp Xanthan gum
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
3/4 c coconut oil
3/4 c white sugar
3/4 c brown sugar
1 tsp GF vanilla extract
2 eggs, room temperature

1 1/2 - 2 cups Enjoy Life mini chocolate chips


Directions:

Preheat oven to 375.

To get your eggs to room temperature more quickly, cover them with warm water.

In a bowl, combine flour and xanthan gum, baking soda and salt.

In a mixer, cream the coconut oil and sugars together.  Then add vanilla and eggs.  Mix well.

Slowly add flour blend to the oil blend. Stir until just combined. (Small chunks of coconut oil are fine.)

Fold in the chocolate chips.

Cookie Cake

For cookies:  

Drop SMALL amounts of dough onto cookie sheet. These spread and flatten. Bake 9 - 11 minutes.  Allow to cool on sheet before transferring to a cooling rack. Yield: approximately 60 cookies

(Note to self: Try refrigerating dough before cooking to see if it helps lesson spreading.)


For mini-muffins: 

Fill muffin tin with cup holders. Do not grease. Fill cup 3/4 full.  Bake 9 - 11 minutes.  These sunk in the middle which made a perfect place for frosting! Turned out great! Yield: approximately 60 mini-muffins


For cookie cake:

Use a non-greased 9" round pan. Use 1/4 - 1/5 of the dough per 9" round pan. Bake 10-13 minutes. Yield: 4-5 9" cookie cakes.  Allow to cool in pan.  Recommend serving from the round pan; do not transfer.

(Note to self: I was very pleased with the cookie cake. The sides of the pan helped contain the spreading.  Will try with a pizza pan to see if the recipe can handle a larger size.)

Rice Treats

This is an oldie from back in 2008, but I've updated the ingredients a bit to fit our new needs. These  treats were individually wrapped and labeled for my boys' Fall Festival at school. Now the allergy kids can have a treat, too! :)

 

I made a batch with Earth Balance and another with coconut oil. I, personally, like the coconut oil batch better. Enjoy!

 

Ingredients
10.5 oz GF miniature marshmallows (eg. Kraft)
1/4 cup coconut oil (preferred) or DF/SF margarine (eg. Earth Balance buttery spread)
5-6 cups GF crispy rice cereal (eg. GF Rice Krispies)

Directions
Line a 13x9 pan with wax paper and grease with coconut oil.

Melt coconut oil in a large bowl in the microwave (If you have time, you really should do this over low heat on the stove top to preserve the benefits of coconut oil. But... I was in a hurry and this is what I did.)

Add marshmallows to melted oil and mix to coat.

Microwave marshmallows and coconut oil until melted, stirring after each 1 minute. (Or if using the stove, just stir continuously until everything is melted and well combined.)

Add cereal to melted marshmallows slowly, stirring to combine well. Pour mixture into pan and press down with greased fingers.

Cool in the refrigerator. Cut into squares.

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Side note: I didn't realize until after I had stuck my labels on that I forgot to add soy-free. And to make these Top 8-Free, these are of course fish and shellfish-free, too. ;)

GF DF SF Baked Oatmeal

I tweaked this recipe from Urban Nester who tweaked it from someone else. :) After reading the many, many comments on Urban Nester's post, I realized this is a great adaptable recipe because so many people have made it to fit their own dietary needs and it worked! So, I tweaked it a bit for us and this is what 2 out of 3 of my boys ate and ate and ate. And then asked that I make again next week. (One boy doesn't like oatmeal...period. Even with chocolate.)


Ingredients

Dry:
2 cups gluten-free rolled oats
1/3 cup sucanat
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup walnut (or pecan, flax, etc), ground (optional)

Wet:
1 cup strawberries (any berries work)
2 cups rice milk, original (or other DF milk alternative)
1 large egg (or egg replacement. We can do eggs now.)
3 tablespoons coconut oil, melted
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
1 ripe banana, peeled

 Fold in:
1/3 - 1/2 cup EnjoyLife chocolate chips

Side Note: If you have time, let the milk, egg, and fruit come to room temperature first so that the coconut oil doesn't clump too much when you mix them all together.

Another Side Note: My kids don't like crunchy stuff in their oatmeal, so I ground the walnuts first, but you can leave them in pieces if you prefer... or leave them out all together.  Easy peasy. :)

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DIRECTIONS


Lightly grease 11x7 pan with coconut oil.

In a bowl combine oats, sucanat, baking powder, cinnamon, sea salt, and walnuts (if using).

In a food processor, combine strawberries, rice milk, egg, coconut oil, vanilla, and banana until well combined. The coconut oil may clump back up into solid form a little, but that should be ok.

Combine wet and dry ingredients and pour into greased pan.


To bake immediately:
Fold in chocolate chips. Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes.

To bake later (Preferred method for a thicker oatmeal):
Cover the dish and place in the refrigerator overnight.

(Mine was in a glass baking dish, so I removed it from the fridge about 30 minutes before baking. I placed it on the counter to allow it to come closer to room temperature first.)

Fold in chocolate chips. Bake at 375 for 30-40 minutes.


Store covered in the refrigerator. Reheated nicely in the microwave. Serves at least 6.


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Notes to self for next time:

• Reduce to 1/3 chocolate chips (we preferred it this way)
• Compare reheat in microwave vs. toaster oven.