Gluten Free Recipe// Lemon Poke Cake

I promised you the recipe, and here it is! Such a moist, lemony cake that's not too sweet. Plus, you don't have to worry about gluten intolerances. Believe me, even wheat-eaters will devour this cake!

For the cake, I was inspired by this recipe. Of course, I tweaked it a bit according to what I had on hand.

Lemon Poke Cake Recipe

6 eggs, room temperature
1/4 cup milk, almond milk, coconut milk or your choice of milk replacer
6 Tbls raw sugar or honey
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 cup coconut oil, melted
juice and zest of 1/2 lemon
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup coconut flour

1. Pre-heat oven to 350* and grease your pan.
2. Whisk together first four ingredients, making sure eggs are well incorporated.
3. Whisk in the coconut oil and lemon juice and zest.
4. In a separate bowl or measuring cup, sift together the last three ingredients.
5. Spoon batter into prepared pan, smooth top of batter if necessary.
6. Bake for 35-40 minutes.

While your cake is baking, you can prepare your lemon syrup and frosting.

Lemon Syrup
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 Tbls raw sugar or honey

1. Heat ingredients over low heat, just until sugar is dissolved. 
2. When cake is done baking, poke holes in it with a fork. 
3. Drizzle lemon syrup over and let cake cool.

Lemon Buttercream Frosting
1 1lb box Confectioner's Sugar
1/2 cup butter, softened
4 Tbls lemon juice
2 Tbls heavy cream, optional
lemon zest to garnish

1. Whip butter until fluffy.
2. Add sugar and lemon juice alternately.
3. Add in heavy cream if frosting is too thick for your liking.
4. Frost cake when cooled and garnish with zest if desired.

Viola! 
There you have a delicious cake for your next celebration! But heck, who says there has to be a special occasion for cake? Every day is a special occasion!
Love from,
Layla

GAPS Power Bars

These little bars of happiness put a smile on my face, and they will put one on yours, too! Here is a recipe and video, all in one. Enjoy!

What did you think of the video? We have been practicing with Hagen's camera for making better videos!

This recipe is pretty versatile, you can replace any of the dried fruit for whatever you have on hand.
Here is a list of  ingredients you can mix-and-match:
dried cherries
dried blueberries
shredded coconut
almond butter
almonds
oats
figs
prunes
chocolate chips
cocoa powder
cashews

The possibilities are endless. These quick and satisfying bars are sure to please your palate!

We'd love to here your combos,

Layla & Hagen

Recipe~ Soaked Oatmeal

Hello! 
I honestly have to admit that I don't particularly like to pose and have my pictures taken... So we won't be doing a fashion post today (because of the lack of pictures). How about a recipe instead? 

Here's a yummy and easy breakfast recipe that doesn't involve much prepping, and is great if you want a quick, healthy breakfast. It only takes about 10 minutes to cook!

What You Need:

2 cups oats

4 cups water

3 apples, peeled and chopped

3 tsp cinnamon, separated

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 tsp powdered ginger 

butter

honey

    

 What To Do:

1. The night before, pour 2 cups of oats in a large bowl and cover with water. Cover bowl with a towel and let sit over night. In the morning, drain and rinse your soaked oats.

2. Bring the 4 cups of water to a boil and add in the oats.

3. Bring oats down to a simmer, and let cook for about 7 minutes, or until they become the consistency you prefer. Mix in 2 tsp cinnamon.

4. While your oats are cooking, put your chopped apples in a small pan with a chunk of butter, remaining cinnamon, nutmeg and ginger. 

5. Put a lid over the apples and let them simmer for a few minutes, until they are soft and bubbly.

6. To serve, top the oatmeal with a chunk of butter, a scoop of apples, and a drizzle of honey.

Can you see all that melted butter and honey? Yum!
I love oatmeal, do you? Mom has a hard time getting it down, so I try to spice it up for her!

I hope you enjoy this recipe. I would love to know if you tried it, or what kind of variation you did! 

Have a good night!
 <3 Layla 

Recipe~ Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies

It has been a while since I've posted a recipe. Actually, it has been a while since I've been able to bake. I have been trying to get used to the tiny oven in our tiny house. I think these Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies are worthy to post!

Orange Chocolate Chip Cookies

1/2 cup coconut oil, melted

1/4 cup honey

1/2 cup orange juice

4 eggs, room temperature is best

1 teaspoon vanilla or orange extract

1/2 cup Enjoy Life chocolate chips

1 cup coconut flour

1/2 cup pecan (or almond) flour

1/2 teaspoon baking soda 

1. Pre-heat oven to 350* 

2. Foil cookie sheets and grease with coconut oil 

3. In a large bowl, mix together the first 6 ingredients 

4. In a small bowl, stir together the flours and baking soda 

5. Mix dry ingredients into the wet

6. Allow batter to sit for a few minutes, letting the coconut flour soak up the liquid

7. Drop cookies by tablespoon on the cookie sheets

8. Bake for 10- 15 minutes

9. Let cookies cool a bit before removing from pan

10. They taste even better when they have been refrigerated over night!

    

 

Since my oven is so small and doesn't radiate heat too well, I had to set the heat higher. You might want to try 325* first, depending on your oven.

It has been fun experimenting in the RV. I hope to add more RV recipes in the future!

 Chocolate and orange are one of my favorite combinations! What's your favorite chocolate combo? 

Blessings,

Layla 

Allergen Free Thumbprint Cookies

Well, I did it again...
I was all out of butter and sugar, and haven't been using Bob's GF flour in quite a while.
But I think it was a good thing.

I started to evaluate the ingredients in the recipe I usually use, and found that there really wasn't any nutritional benefits, except maybe butter...

So, of course I ditched the old recipe, and made a new one. I used coconut oil instead of butter, honey instead of white sugar, and almond and coconut flour instead of starchy bean flour. I was pleasantly surprised with how they turned out. They have a bit of a different texture, and more enjoyable flavor. Who says that cookies can't taste good, and be good for you?

A tip on the coconut oil:
Make sure that it is not in liquid form. It works better if it is like the consistency of softened butter. That way you can actually cream it!  
 

So, despite all my ramblings, here is the new recipe.
     

Thumbprint Cookies- Gluten, Dairy, Soy and Sugar Free
1/2 cup coconut oil
1/2 cup honey
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 egg

1/2 cup almond flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup + 1 Tbls coconut flour
jam of your choice

1. Pre- heat oven to 350*

2. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.

3. Cream together the first 4 ingredients.

4. Mix in the next four ingredients.

5. Form dough into balls.
6. Make an indention using your thumb.
7. Fill thumbprint with your favorite jam.
8. Bake for 10 minutes, keeping an eye on the bottoms.
9. Cool on sheet before removing.
10. Enjoy!
Makes 2 dozen

       Keep calm, and eat on!


What is your favorite jam to use?
Blessings, Layla  

Chocolate Coconut Cookies

So...

Do you know that feeling when you want to bake something really yummy, but can't decide what to make? Well, I suffered from that yesterday. I wanted to make some sort of coconutty goodness, and Mom was begging for chocolate...

I hopped on the internet and searched for gluten- free cookie recipes... but nothing sounded quite right. 

Then I did something really bad...

I searched for normal, non gluten- free recipes. You know, the ones full of wheat, soy and sugar?

And I found a recipe on Food Network for crispy chocolate coconut cookies.

Well, as it always happens, I ditched that recipe, and made my own.

This is what I came up with...

         

Chocolate Coconut Cookies- Gluten Free
1 stick butter
1/4 cup raw sugar
1/2 cup honey
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup cocoa powder
1 1/2 cup coconut flakes
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 cup coconut flour

Pre- heat oven to 335*

Line cookie sheets with parchment paper.

Cream together butter, raw sugar, and honey until fluffy.

Add in eggs and vanilla.

Mix in the last four ingredients until smooth.

Drop on cookie sheet by tablespoon.

Bake for 10 minutes.

Let cookies cool for 1 minute before taking off sheet.

Pour a glass of milk and enjoy!

Makes 3 dozen

These cookies could be made GAPS approved if you omit the baking soda, but I'm not sure how they will turn out. I think they would be less cakie... I smell more baking soon!

Leftovers can be stored in the fridge, if there are any! They are even better cold!

     

What better way to start the New Year off with delicious-ness, right?

Blessings, Layla 

 

 

Recipe: Lentil Minestrone Soup

 It's winter time... and here is a little recipe that will warm your bones!

What you need:
3 cups lentils
6-8 cups broth (veggie, beef or chicken) 
3 carrots
  2-4 cups broccoli
1 onion
2 garlic cloves
4 Tbls butter or oil
 4-6 cups tomato sauce 
 (we used our own sauce that we canned)
1-2 green and red bell peppers
1-2 cups green beans 
1 lb hamburger meat 


What To Do:
1. In the bottom of your soup pot, saute onion, garlic, pepper and butter or oil.
2. Add hamburger meat, and brown.
3.Once meat is done, add lentils and half of the broth and simmer with the lid on while you prepare your other ingredients.

4.Prepare carrots, bell peppers, broccoli, green beans (I used organic frozen broccoli and green beans, which helped to cut down on prep. time)
5.  Throw in your veggies, tomato sauce, and the rest of the broth.
6. Simmer soup for 20 minutes, or until everything is nice and soft.
7. Top with some cheese, salt to taste and enjoy the warmth!

 This soup is Gluten- Free and Gaps diet approved. It's a very flexible soup, so if there are any vegetables you cannot tolerate, you can easily replace them. I think eggplant and yellow squash would be tasty, too. I know this soup is called a minestrone, so if you can tolerate pasta, feel free to add 2 cups of shell or bow pasta to yours.

I hope this recipe will help keep you warm and healthy during the cold weather. I would love some feed back if you try this soup.
Blessings, Layla