Donuts!

 DONUTS

This post is a SHOUT OUT to Better Batter Flour for not only having AWESOME recipes that are FREE on their blog but also providing an AWESOME gluten free flour blend that is really easy to work with. Can't thank them enough for everything that they do. This company was started by Naomi and the causes that she supports social and charitable causes. She continues to AMAZE me with what she does.

Here is the recipe from Better Batter Flour  it is AWESOME and I modified it so that it can be a regular donut with a hole in the middle instead of a filled donut. Our kids are not big on filled donuts they would rather have them sugar coated or plain without anything on them.


 We have used Rum Chatta and Peppermint Schnapps so far for the alcohol in the donuts and BOTH taste really good at the end. The other modification I did to this recipe is that I OMIT the salt as salt keeps yeast from producing too much of a rise in the mixture. I found it was better to omit the salt and the rise is fantastic in these.

For the first rise I let the mixture rise in the mixing bowl on top of my dryer that is running for a min of 2hrs. 

I HIGHLY recommend using a 4 inch round cutter for the outside and for the inside we used 1.5 inch cutter. After the donuts are cut I let them rise for 30min on top of my dryer that was going.

I am just simply AMAZED at how these donuts turn out they are light and fluffy and our kids LOVE them. They beat any store bought donut that is Gluten Free out there.

Don't forget to visit Better Batter Flour for this AWESOME recipe!

Cinnamon and Sugar Plantain Banana Chips

I made a batch of protein pancakes using plantain bananas and it was pretty gross. I still have 2 left over and wasn't quite sure what to do with them. Our kids wanted a snack and I had oil in a pot that I had used the night before for donuts and figured why not. Our boys enjoy cinnamon and sugar and figured I would give it a whirl.


Ingredients: 

2 plantain banana's
1 pan filled with oil for frying at medium high temperature
1/4 - 1/2 cup sugar
1-2tsp or more of cinnamon
2-3 paper towels
1 plate
1 strainer to scoop out banana chips from hot oil


Directions:

1) Heat your oil so that it is ready to fry your banana's. Take a plate and place 2-3 paper towels on it to place your banana chips on once they are done frying.

1) Peel your plantain banana's and in order to do this I took a knife and cut off the ends and then used the knife to remove the peel.

2) Cut the banana's into chip size to slice thin but not too thin.

3) Mix together the cinnamon and sugar into a plastic zip lock bag so that you can insert cooled banana's and SHAKE them.

4) Once your oil is hot be VERY VERY careful when placing your banana's in there as they sink to the bottom and will rise to the top of the oil and finish cooking.

5) Remove banana chips carefully and put on a plate that is lined with paper towels. Allow the banana's to cool for a few minutes BEFORE placing in the zip lock bag and shaking the cinnamon and sugar mixture on them. If you do not allow the banana's to cool the bag will MELT!

6) Serve immediately after the cinnamon and sugar is on them for everyone to enjoy.

Light and Fluffy Pancakes

Our family ENJOYS pancakes and with being gluten free it sometimes makes it hard to find the right texture to fit everyone's taste in our house.  After quite a bit of experimentation I have finally came up with a great recipe that is LIGHT and FLUFFY. Best part NO OIL is being used and no buttermilk. This recipe makes a large amount of pancakes about 8 medium to large pancakes depending on the thickness of each pancake.


Ingredients:

10oz Better Batter Flour
2tsp baking powder
2 1/2 cups Almond Milk
6 whole eggs
2tsp vanilla
1 half gallon of vanilla ice cream ( you will not need the entire package)



Directions:

1) Pre-heat your pan or griddle so that it is nice and hot and ready to cook your pancakes. Make sure that the heat isn't too hot or the pancakes will not cook in the middle. I use ceramic non-stick pans and use medium heat.

2) In a large bowl mix together your flour and baking powder together using a whisk and set aside.

3) In another small bowl mix together eggs, almond milk and vanilla together using a whisk making sure that the eggs are all broken up and mixed really well in your almond milk.

4)Pour your wet mixture on top of your dry mixture and whisk it together. You will have some lumps in your mixture this is completely fine.

5) Let your mixture sit for a couple of minutes as it will thicken. This will take about 2-3 minutes to thicken unless it thickened while you were whisking the mixture.

6) Pour your desired amount of batter onto your griddle or your pan. You can decide how thick or how thin you would like your pancakes. for thinner pancakes pour a small amount of batter and use a spoon or spatula to spread it out into a circular shape. For thicker pancakes pour more batter and use a spoon or spatula to get into a circular shape.

7) Watch your pancake to tell when it is ready to flip you will watch the outside edge and see if it has firmed up. The middle should have some bubbles in it as well. Flip your pancake and continue to cook from 1-3 minutes again this time depends on how thick or thin your pancake is.

8) Remove pancake from the pan and stack them on top of each other. This will help keep the pancakes warm while you continue to make the rest of your batter.

9) Take an ice cream scoop and place one scoop in the middle of the pancake and watch it slowly melt. ENJOY!

**you can make this a dessert or a breakfast treat for the kids, spouses or any loved one in your family. You can add fruit on top of the ice cream, melted peanut butter, chocolate, etc let your imagination run wild.**

Vanilla Protein Pancakes with Vanilla Ice Cream on Top

I have fallen head over heals for protein pancakes as they are LIGHT and FLUFFY and the best part NO OIL and no buttermilk to get this to a light and fluffy texture. The recipe is for 1 serving and you can make it into however many pancakes you want. If you prefer a thicker pancakes make two with the batter. If you like thinner pancakes like I do you can make three the same size and the fourth is a little smaller.


Serving size: 1 person



Ingredients:

2 scoops Ultra Protein Powder (30g)

2 eggs (whole eggs)

1 cup almond milk ( I used Silk Milk Original Almond)

1tsp baking powder

1tsp vanilla

1/2 cup Better Batter Flour

1/2 cup vanilla ice cream 



Directions:

1) Pre-heat your skillet, pan or iron griddle you plan on cooking your pancakes on.

2) Mix all the dry ingredients into a container that has a lid and shake them really well. Or you can put all dry ingredients into a bowl and mix together using a whisk.

3) Combine all wet ingredients into a small bowl and whisk the eggs, milk and vanilla together.

4) Now pour your wet ingredients on top of your dry and use a whisk and mix together. The batter doesn't need to be lump free. There might be a few lumps in the batter that is fine. If you over mix the pancakes might not turn out.

5) Let the batter sit a little bit until it thickens up a bit about 2-3 minutes.

6) Now pour desired amount on the pan and you can use the back of a spoon or a spatula to spread the mix into a circular shape on your pan.

7) You can tell when the pancake is ready to flip once the edges look firm. There should also be some bubbles in the middle of the pancake. Flip and cook for an additional 1-3 minutes on the opposite side again this time depends on how thick or how thin you are making your pancakes.

8) Once ALL of your pancakes are cooked and stacked. Take 1/2 cup of vanilla ice cream and place it on top and ENJOY!


***if you want you can top the ice cream with a frozen fruit mixture that is thawed. Or you can drizzle with honey, sprinkle some chocolate, etc as the possibilities are endless with this recipe***