I'm Back!!! :D

So today is the first of May! I'm so excited for May...maybe it's just because it hopefully won't be as rainy. :)

Today is also my first day being corn free. (Little does anyone know that I've been eating corn...kinda...it's complicated)


I have tons to say but I have to stop now. I'm going to head upstairs and see if I can use Samantha's computer and finish this post. If not, it shall be done (hopefully) tomorrow! :)

-Emily

First, I want to tell you about my latest baking adventure. (Which happened tonight, along with picture taking, both of which were long over due.) Awhile ago Samantha saw a recipe for gluten free oreos  that used avacado in the filling...yes, avacado! Tonight I decided to try making them. I have a cold, so I can only taste a little bit of stuff, and I can't really smell either. My mom said the cookie parts smelled like brownies when they were baking though!

Dark Chocolate Sandwich Cookies (dairy, gluten, and corn free)
Adapted from this recipe.

This is for a 1/4 batch, as we had 1/4 leftover avacado from supper. Also, I'm not one to try a new recipe, making a large batch, when I don't know how good it will taste. ;)

2 Tablespoons brown rice flour (I used 1 T. white rice flour and 1 T. millet flour, because we don't have brown rice flour)
2 Tablespoons unsweetened baking cocoa
1/2 Tablespoon sugar (you can use a natural sweetener if you like, or brown sugar, if you use brown sugar make sure it doesn't have caramel color if your avoiding corn)
1/16 teaspoon sea salt (Iodized salt has corn or is processed with corn, sea salt is not.)
1/16 teaspoon baking powder (make sure you buy b. powder without corn, or substitute with 1/4 t. b. soda and 1/2 t. cream of tarter for every teaspoon of b. powder needed. I didn't feel up to the math, and couldn't find the cream of tarter, so I just sprinkled a tiny amount of b. soda in my cookies. :))
2 Tablespoons water
1 Tablespoon oil (make sure it's not vegtable oil if you're avoiding corn)

Filling:
1/4 ripe avacado
1/2 tablespoon non-dairy butter replacement, softened (I used earth balance natural buttery spread, which has something in it that is derived from corn. I wasn't thinking, and I didn't have anything else to use. :P)
1/2 Tablespoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon (or to taste) peanut butter, optional (make sure it has no salt, and you can put a little sea salt in to bring out the flavor if you'd like. Also, I used about 1/2 teaspoon, but that's probably because I can't really taste anything ;)


Mix dry ingredients. Add water and oil.
Measure rounded teaspoons of dough...try to roll into a ball, place on greased cookies sheet and smash with your finger until it looks like a round, flat little cookie! My batter was like thick brownie batter, so the balls didn't go so well...
Bake at 375 degrees for 8 minutes, flip cookies and bake for 2 more minutes. Let cool for 3 minutes before putting filling in. (I wasn't sure about the 8 minutes, so I tried 4, but they seemed like they were going to fall apart if I flipped them, so I kept cooking until 8 minutes, and they flipped fine, and didn't burn. :))
For the filling, mash avacado in a bowl, with a fork. Add softened butter replacement and mash well. Add sugar, and if you want, peanut butter. Enjoy! :D

I didn't try these yet, I didn't even put any together, but hopefully I'll try them in the next few days (and have my tastebuds back!) and be able to tell you how they were. :)

I'm also going to try to add pictures, because pictures are half the post!

Friday was the royal wedding, I didn't watch it, but I kinda saw parts of it later on tv as the kiddos were watching whatever it was that was on. :)

Also, please pray for all those people whose homes/businesses were ruined in the tornadoes down south, and for all the families suffering from injuries, lost family members and friends, and all the ruins.

On a lighter note, we are all excited for camp, which is in 5 days! We always look forward to the work weekends, and this year is no exception! Hopefully we will all be over our colds by then. :)

-Emily