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Here are some Christmas recipes, which
are all gluten free (GF).
ROAST
TURKEY
NB : If frozen, take
out of freezer about 36 hours before cooking, and let defrost in
the fridge
Millet & Cranberry stuffing
(make the previous
day or earlier in the day)
- 1/3 cup millet
(quinoa or corn would probably work fine, but adjust the amounts
of water. See how
to cook whole grains)
- 1 1/3 cup water
(or, use ½ turkey or chicken stock for more flavour)
- 1 Tbs butter
- a little sea salt
- 2-3 Tbs dried cranberries
- 1 lemon
- 1 small onion
- 1 clove garlic
- 2 Tbs butter
- a few fresh sage leaves, finely
chopped
- some sprigs of thyme, finely chopped
- some sprigs of parsley, finely chopped
- 1 egg yolk
- a little sea salt
Cook up millet in
1 1/3 cup liquid. When most of liquid soaked in, stir in 1 Tbs butter
& a little sea salt and turn off the heat. Meanwhile, soak the
dried cranberries in boiling water. Squeeze the lemon & grate
the rind. Finely chop the onion & garlic & fry up in 2 Tbs
butter. Add to the millet, along with the cranberries, lemon juice
& rind, the fresh herbs, egg yolk and extra salt. Mix well,
then leave in fridge to set
Turkey
NB : These times
are for a 3.25kg turkey. Increase times as needed.
4 hours before serving:
Preheat the oven to 220C. Stuff the turkey from the neck end, pushing
as much stuffing up under the skin as possible. Fold the spare skin
underneath and fasten with a skewer. Take out the giblets and neck
from the inner cavity. Put any remaining stuffing in the neck of
the cavity. Put in roasting pan breast side up. Mix together some
melted butter with a little honey and about ½ cup orange juice.
Pour over the turkey. Sprinkle with sea salt. Put a little water
or turkey stock in the bottom of the pan. Cover with a lid, or with
a piece of tin foil, leaving an air pocket inside.
3 ½ hours before:
Put the turkey in at 220C
3 hours before: Turn
oven down to 170C, and baste the turkey. Baste every half hour.
1 hour before: Take
the lid off and turn the oven up to about 190C, so the turkey can
brown.
½ hour before: Take
the turkey out of the pan and leave to rest while making the gravy.
Pour off all the juices, strain off any excess fat, and simmer juices
till reduced. Thicken with a little arrowroot.
GLUTEN
FREE XMAS CAKE
(NB
: 50g = approx 2oz)
This was my first
GF Xmas cake recipe. I haven't made this version for a while now,
as I've been playing with other recipes. From memory, it's a moist,
heavy cake but with a light flavour. Below are recipes for a tropical
Xmas cake that is completely grain free, and a boiled dark
fruit cake.
Day
1 :
Chop up 750g dried
fruit, eg :
- 150g sultanas
- 150g raisins
- 150g (or 100g)
pineapple
- 150g (or 100g)
apricots
- 50g prunes
- 50g dates or
figs
- 50g (or 150g)
cherries
Mix together :
- Juice of 1 lemon
- 2 Tbs brandy
(optional)
- Enough unsweetened
pineapple juice to make total liquid = 1 cup (250ml)
Stir liquid through
the fruit thoroughly, and leave for 24 hours
Stir well several times throughout the day
All the liquid should have soaked into fruit by the next day
Day
2 :
Grate & stir into fruit
Grind up in the
FP :
- 175g almonds
(or buy already ground)
Add :
- 150g brown rice
flour
- 2 tsp pectin
(optional, but improves texture)
- 2 tsp allspice
- 1 tsp ginger
- 2 slightly heaped
tsp cream of tartar, sifted
- 1 heaped tsp
baking soda, sifted
Mix together well
& set aside in a large bowl.
Beat together in
food processor :
- 3 eggs
- 4 Tbs honey
(runny or softened) (or 2 Tbs honey and some stevia - amount will
depend on strength)
- 2 Tbs melted
butter (or coconut oil)
Mix in with the
dry ingredients in big bowl, along with the fruit mix.
If the mixture is too runny, add a little more flour
If the mixture is too dry, add more juice or brandy
Cook in large ring tin at 180C for 2-2.5 hrs
(Other shaped tins can be used, but it cooks
more evenly in the ring tin. You'll get an even better result if
you line the tin with 2 layers of brown paper, making sure it comes
up higher than the sides of the tin, then a double layer of baking
paper. If you use a square or rectangular tin this is especially
important)
GRAIN
FREE TROPICAL XMAS CAKE
This cake
is also heavy, moist but lightly flavoured. It's completely grain
free, for those who are avoiding all grains. But it's still very
high in fruit, so NOT low carb. Keep it for Christmas or other special
occasions and serve with whipped cream, brandy butter or some other
form of fat.
[Click
here for printable version.]
Day 1:
Mix these together thoroughly. Marinate in the fridge for about
24 hours. Stir well several times throughout the day. All the liquid
should soak into the fruit.
- Juice of 1 lemon (save the skins for Day 2)
- 2 Tbs brandy (optional)
- a 440gm tin of crushed pineapple in unsweetened juice
- 600g (21 oz) dried fruit, eg : 150g sultanas, 150g raisins,
100g chopped dried apricots, 100g chopped prunes, 100g chopped
figs
Day 2:
Mix together in a separate bowl:
- 1 ½ cups crispy almonds or macadamias, ground as finely
as possible
- 1 cup fine coconut, ground even finer
- 8 Tbs arrowroot
Beat together:
- 2 oz melted butter (or use coconut or palm oil to be dairy
free)
- 2 eggs
- 4 Tbs rapadura or maple syrup (Gradually reduce this &
aim to get down to none)
- 2 tsp mixed spice
- 1 tsp ginger
- 2 slightly heaped tsp cream of tartar, sifted
- 1 heaped tsp baking soda, sifted
- grated rind of the lemon
Stir the wet mixture into the fruit, and mix well. Then add the
nut mix about a third at a time, stirring well. You will probably
need to add some extra arrowroot (about 4 Tbs or so). The exact
amount of arrowroot will depend on how much juice was in the tinned
pineapple, whether you added the brandy or not, how finely ground
the nuts are and how big your eggs were. The consistency should
be very thick and starting to get hard to stir. Keep adding arrowroot,
till the consistency’s right.
Line a 8” x 8” (20cm x 20cm) square tin or a ring tin
with a double layer of baking paper. (If you also line with a double
layer of brown paper first, coming up twice as high as the mixture,
it will cook more evenly.)
Spoon mixture into tin. Bake at 165C (325F) for about 1.5 to 2
hrs. To tell if it’s ready, take out of the oven and listen
to it. If it’s sizzling, it’s not ready. When the sizzling
stops, it’s done. (Or the usual skewer test will work). Leave
it in the tin till it cools.
Optional extra: Pour a couple more Tbs brandy over the top while
still hot.
Icing: This cake is already very rich without
adding the traditional almond and white icing. But for presentation
you might want to decorate with:
- Whole crispy almonds pressed into the top in a decorative pattern,
before baking
- A butter icing like we used for ginger crunch, but flavoured
with brandy or almond essence
Variations:
- Mini Christmas cakes: These are decorative, and don’t
take as long to cook – approx 45 to 60 minutes, depending
on size. Bake in std or large muffin pans, or star shaped tins.
- Xmas puddings – Serve mini cakes as puddings, while still
hot, with custard or whipped cream (or both).
Troubleshooting: If the cake is starting to get
very dark on top, but is still sizzling, test with a skewer. If
a lot is still sticking to the skewer, move the cake lower down
the oven, and cover loosely with some tin foil. Check again after
another 10 minutes. If the skewer only has a bit sticking, take
it out. The final consistency will be more like a pudding than cake,
but it will still be good. Next time, add more arrowroot.
DARK
GLUTEN FREE XMAS CAKE
This cake
is a dark cake, for those who like the more traditional taste. But
because it's a boiled cake, you don't need to mature it for a month.
It will improve with maturing, but can be eaten the same day, and
still be delicious. Again, it's very high in suagr, so it's best
served with some kind of good fat. Or you can decorate the top with
a layer of nuts.
The full recipe fills a 8” x 8” (20cm x 20cm) square
tin, or you can make a half-mix and bake it in a loaf tin.
Take a large pan, and melt together:
- 1/2 cup water
- 1/4 cup brandy, rum (or extra water)
- Juice of one orange
- Rind of the orange, plus a lemon, finely grated
- 170g butter
- 1 cup shakkar, muscavado or other unrefined sugar
- 2 tsp mixed spice
- 1 tsp ginger
- (or other spices of your choice)
Finely chop:
- 900g-1kg of your favourite dried fruits. You can use a packeted
mix, or choose your own mix. I like:
- 250g raisins
- 250g sultanas (light raisins)
- 100g prunes
- 100g figs
- 100g dates
- 100g apricots
- 100g pineapple or cherries
Add to the pan and simmer for 5-10 mins, stirring frequently, till
the fruit has soaked up all the liquid. Leave to stand for 30 minutes,
while you prep the rest of the ingredients.
Line your chosen tin with a double layer of brown paper, which
comes up higher than the tin, to about double the height of the
mixture. Then line with a double layer of baking paper.
Beat up:
Sift together in a large bowl, and mix well:
- 1 cup ground almonds
- 1/2 cup white rice flour
- 1/2 cup arrowroot
- 2 tsp pectin, guar gum or xanthan gum
- 1 tsp baking soda
- (or you can replace the first 4 ingredients with Gluten
Free Goodies Cake and Biscuit mix, if you're in NZ)
When the fruit mix has cooled to luke warm, stir through the beaten
egg. Then stir through the dry ingredients (or if your pan isn't
big enough, add the fruit to the flour). The mixture should be a
thick batter and quite hard to stir. If it's too runny, add a little
more rice flour or arrowroot.
Spoon the mixture into the pan, and bake at 150C for 1.75 - 2 hours
for the full recipe, or 1.5 - 1.75 for the half recipe. Use the
usual skewer test, or listen - when it stops sizzling, it's ready.
Optional: Before cooling, pierce small holes in the top of the
cake with a skewer, then carefully pour over the top:
Remove from the tin and cool completely before storing, or cutting
and sampling. It can be a bit crumbly, so you may need to use a
serrated knife to cut it. To store it, wrap in some baking or greaseproof
paper, then in a teatowel and store in the bottom of the fridge.
CHEWY
ALMOND MACAROONS
(Makes about a dozen)
This has been adapted from a Jewish Passover recipe to use
a non-refined sugar.
Use a large food processor to break into chunks:
- 2 cakes (100g) palm sugar (available from ethnic food stores)
Add & process till finely ground together (but don't overprocess,
the mixture should be moist):
- 1 1/2 cups whole, blanched almonds (preferably "crispy"
ones)
Add:
- 2 egg whites
- 1/2 tsp vanilla or almond essence
Pulse till just combined. The mixture should be able to be shaped
into balls, but still moist.
Line a baking tray with baking paper. Form the mixture into 12
slightly flattened balls.
Bake at 175C for 15-20 mins, till the outsides are gently browned.
Cool before eating. The macaroons should be crunchy on the outside,
but moist and chewy inside.
SPICY
ALMOND COOKIES
(Makes about 2 dozen)
These are almond
cookies for a low carb diet.
Beat together :
- 1 egg
- 50gm melted butter
- Pinch ground
sea salt
- About 1/8 tsp
stevia extract (depends on type)
- 1/2 tsp baking
soda (sifted)
- 1/2 tsp allspice
or mixed spice
- 1/4 tsp ground
ginger
Add & mix well
:
- 2 small cups
finely ground almonds (best if you grind fresh almonds - or "crispy"
soaked and slow dried almonds - yourself in a food processor)
- Optional extras
:Sultanas, glace cherries, choc or carob chips can be added
Put spoonfuls onto
a lined baking tray. If you want them like cookies, flatten them,
otherwise they're more like scones. Bake for 15-20 mins at 165C
These cookies (without
the optional extras) are wheat & gluten free, sugar free and
almost totally carb free, and can be eaten on a whole food diet.
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