Gluten-Free Wonder Buns

Since I've been gluten-free, I've missed having a burger or a sandwich on a bun.  Some purchased GF bread products are satisfactory, but nothing more than that - and they crumble.  I don't eat a lot of bread products, so I'd have to freeze what I didn't eat and hope it wouldn't be gross when thawed.

WONDER BUNS TO THE RESCUE!

These buns are made individually in the microwave.  Seriously.  They take less than 5 minutes to mix up and "cook" in 90 seconds.  Just use whatever bowl you have that is approximate bun diameter - I've used a small pyrex bowl and an ice cream sized bowl to make (the straighter the sides, the better).  I haven't determined how long these will keep, but I have one in the fridge and one in the freezer as testers.  So far I've only had one the same day I made it.  I took it to a party and plan to take these to restaurants when I want a burger too!

Wonder Buns
adapted from Kitchen Therapy

1 large egg (if you need dairy free, use your normal egg replacer)
1/2 teaspoon molasses
2 tablespoons all-purpose gluten-free flour*
1 tablespoon almond meal (or make your own with almonds in a grinder)
1 tablespoon ground flax seed
½ teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon cocoa powder (mostly for color, so it's optional)
a pinch of salt
sesame seeds, to make it look more appealing

In a small bowl, beat the egg and molasses with a fork, for about a minute.
In another small bowl, add the flour, almond meal, ground flax seed, baking powder, salt, and cocoa powder - stir well to break up any lumps. Add the eggs to the dry ingredients, stir until smooth.
Spray a glass bowl or cup with non-stick spray (or rub a little oil inside) and sprinkle sesame seeds on the bottom and sides. Pour the batter into the cup. Top with more sesame seeds. Microwave for 90 seconds.  Remove from bowl after a minute or two and set upside down on a plate or napkin to allow the bottom to "dry" a little (it's still a little steamy and would probably get soggy if left in the bowl).  ENJOY!

*the Kitchen Therapy recipe suggests sorghum flour and the comments from others indicate that most any flour would work - you could even make them with non-GF flour if not all family members needed gluten free.

Blueberry Zucchini Bread

I'm well overdue at posting this - like a year.  But I wanted to get it posted since it's zucchini season and everyone has zucchini.  Your mom has zucchini. 

This is by far, my favorite zucchini bread recipe (or really, any homemade bread). I'm not even sure how it turns out so well since no yeast is used, but it's delicious and moist.  This is not gluten-free and it was baked in the oven, but like I said, I didn't actually make it this month (or this year even).  I do like to shred and freeze zucchini so I can make stuff with it in the winter (and you can guarantee that I always have b-berries in the freezer).  When you thaw frozen, shredded zucchini, you have to kind of squeeze it dry because it gets really watery upon thaw. 

Blueberry Zucchini Bread
I got the recipe from this blog, but like my picture way better
2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
2 cups grated zucchini (about 3 small zucchinis)
2 eggs
1 cup low-fat Greek yogurt
1 3/4 cups sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 cup frozen blueberries - I probably used much more than 1 cup

Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan with baking spray and lightly dust with flour, tapping out any excess flour. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
In a large bowl combine the flours, salt, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and nutmeg.
In another large bowl combine the grated zucchini, eggs, yogurt, vanilla and sugar.
Gently toss the blueberries with 2 teaspoons of the flour mixture. This will help prevent them from sinking to the bottom of the loaf.
Add the flour mixture to the zucchini mixture, stirring until just combined. Fold in the blueberries.
Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 1 hour to 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until the loaf is golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean.
Allow the bread to cool in the pan for 20 minutes, then run a butter knife around the edges and turn it out onto a cooling rack. Let the bread cool completely before slicing it.


I have a blueberry problem - this was just one trip



Nutty Zucchini Bread

I just took this zucchini bread out of the oven several minutes ago and it is good! I used shredded zucchini that I had frozen, along with applesauce cubes that I froze in ice cube trays the last time that I opened a jar of applesauce for a recipe. I used half splenda and half sugar. I don't use really use splenda anymore but I just wanted to use up the rest of a box that I had. Do you use a sugar substitue in recipes? Are the recipe results similar?

Nutty Zucchini Bread

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (or 3/4 c. all purpose and 3/4 c. wheat)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 large eggs
1 1/4 cups SPLENDA(R), Granulated or sugar or similar sweetener
1/3 cup canola oil
1/2 cup unsweetened applesauce
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup shredded zucchini
1/2 cup chopped walnuts

Preheat to 350. Spray an 8- x 4-inch loaf pan with cooking spray. Combine flour, baking powder, soda, salt and cinnamon; set aside. Beat eggs and splenda on medium speed with an electric mixer for 5 minutes. Add oil, applesauce and vanilla; beat at medium speed 1 minute. Add flour mixture; beat at low speed just until blended. Stir in zucchini and walnuts. Spoon batter into prepared pan. Bake 40 minutes or until done. Cool in pan on a wire rack 10 minutes; remove from pan and cool on a wire rack. Serves 12.

Calories 160 Protein 4g Fat 10g Fiber 1g Sugar 2g