I am so excited to be a stop on Cara’s blog tour for her new book Decadent Gluten-Free Vegan Baking. For those of you who don’t know Cara, she is the woman behind the uber popular Fork and Beans blog. Cara bakes up all kinds of amazing treats on her site, but she recreates them in a healthier way.
There are a number of cookbooks that are coming out this Fall that I know will be my go-to cookbooks, and this book is definitely one of them. Decadent Gluten-Free Vegan Baking is filled to the rim with classic American-style desserts of our childhood, from Girl Scout cookies to scones, breads, pastries, cinnamon rolls, cheesecakes, cupcakes, cakes, to Cheez Its Crackers, cinnamon buns, coffee cakes, brownies, churros, cookies, bars and more! She even has a recipe for making your own sprinkles! I seriously have so many recipes marked to try, it’s crazy. And did I mention that all of the recipes are gluten-free and vegan? They are!
There are two flour blend recipes in the book, and all of the recipes call for one of the two. The blends are great, and the end result are nice and tender baked goods. The only flour you might have to search out would be superfine flours for the blend. But if you already bake gluten-free, there’s a good chance you already have Authentic Food’s super-fine flours in your kitchen. When I made Cara’s blend, I had the super-fine brown rice flour but not super-fine sorghum flour. I subbed the Sweet White Sorghum flour from Bob’s Red Mill, and it worked great! Sometimes you have to roll with what you’ve got.
I chose to bake up a batch of Cara’s Cranberry Scones, and they were unbelievably delicious! My husband, daughter and I gobbled them right up, because they are that good. Seriously, I don’t think anyone would know that they were gluten-free. Amazing! I am already planning to bake up more this week.
Lucky for you Cara and her publishers have not only let me share the scone recipe with you, but are also letting me give away a copy of her book! All you have to do is enter your name in the comments section below, and tell me what your favorite childhood dessert is. This is seriously a book that you won’t want to miss! I will also add that Cara’s publishers provided me with a PDF copy of her book to review, but my thoughts and opinions are completely my own. I seriously love this book!
Now, if I were you I would plan to make a batch of these scones as soon as you can!
Cranberry Orange Scones
My very talented friend Celine of Have Cake Will Travel gave me the title of Scone Queen. Coming from someone who knows her baked goods, this is one of the nicest compliments anyone could give me. But don’t take her word for it—test it out for yourself and see what all the gossip is about!
Makes 6 scones
DRY
2 c/330 g Cara’s All-Purpose Blend (see below)*
¾ tsp xanthan gum
1 Tbsp/16 g baking powder
½ tsp salt
¼ c/50 g granulated sugar
WET
5 Tbsp/70 g vegan butter, cold and cubed
1 c/240 ml light coconut milk, canned
2 tsp/4 g orange zest
1 c/120 g dried cranberries
FOR “EGG” WASH
1 Tbsp/15 ml water
2 tsp/6.5 g cornstarch
FOR SUGAR GLAZE
1 c/120 g powdered sugar
1–2 tsp/5-10 ml orange juice
1 tsp orange zest
Preheat oven to 425°F/220°C.
Whisk the flour, xanthan, baking powder, salt and sugar together. With a pastry blender, add the butter into the flour mix until crumbly. Stir in milk. Before you completely combine the dough together, add the zest and cranberries. Mix until flour is completely combined.
Gently pat dough into a circle (approximately 8–inch/20-cm diameter). Slice the scones into 6 pieces and place on a greased baking sheet and coat a thin layer of the “egg” wash by whisking the water and cornstarch together, and then gliding onto the dough with a brush. Bake 15 to 20 minutes or until light browned. Allow to cool on a baking rack for 10 minutes. Coat the tops of the scones with the sugar glaze.
To make the glaze
Combine all ingredients to make a paste thick enough to stir but not too runny.
*Cara’s All-Purpose Blend
This is the all-purpose blend I use for practically everything. It is perfect for substituting regular flour on a one-to-one basis.
Makes 9 cups/1498 g flour blend total
3 c/480 g superfine brown rice flour
3 c/538 g superfine sorghum flour
1 1⁄2 c/288 g potato starch, not flour
1 1⁄2 c/288 g arrowroot powder
With a spoon, scoop the flours into a measuring cup. Level with a knife and throw everything into a gallon-sized plastic baggie, seal tightly and shake vigorously until well combined. Keep stored in an airtight container.
Printed with permission from Decadent Gluten-Free Vegan Baking by Cara Reed. Page Street Publishing (Aug 5, 2014)
Disclaimer: I was given a PDF of this book to review, but all of the thoughts and opinions expressed are completely my own.
Thanks for this wonderful giveaway 🙂 I really want this cookbook since I mostly eat a gluten-free diet. It would be a great addition to my library 🙂
My favorite childhood dessert was carrot cake with lots of frosting 🙂
I remember my grandmother’s pumpkin bread. It was moist, dense, and chock full of raisins.
Those scones are gorgeous!! My favorite childhood dessert would definitely be homemade peanut butter cookies (my mom always let me make the criss-crosses on top :)). YUM!!!
Awesome giveaway. Such a high recommendation from you really means a lot! I love Cara’s blog too.
As for a favorite childhood dessert… We NEVER got dessert when I was little and yet I was born with a sweet tooth. I think I was completely unchoosy. I remember that I always requested a lemon cake on my birthday.
Those scones look scrumptious! My grandma used to make pecan pie at Christmas when I was growing up and it was always my favorite.
Fave childhood dessert. Butterscotch Fudge or Divinity. My grandma used to make them for me.
Sounds like an awesome book! My favorite childhood dessert was pumpkin pie!
Hands down, my favorite childhood dessert would have to be the butterscotch-pb porcupines my Grandma Millie used to bring up from Florida every summer.
xo
kittee
I remember strawberry shortcake with fond memories. I even wrote the recipe up in my kindergarten cookbook.
Thanks for the great recipe and chance for the give away. I am not gluten free or vegan but my sister is. She has so many food sensitives that it is hard for her to buy things to eat. She is disabled so I cook for her. Good gluten free vegan recipes are a God send to me. My favorite childhood dessert was my mother’s pumpkin bread or her pistachio bread.
What a wonderful cookbook! My favorite dessert was brownies 🙂
Same as now, cake with lots of frosting!
I always loved ice-cream, then and now! But now it’s always vegan.
The Amount Of BakingPowder Says 1 Tablespoon. Is That Correct? Not A Teaspoon?
It’s correct Christie!
These look so yummy!
My favorite childhood dessert was chocolate pudding.
My favorite childhood dessert, growing up in New York, was Napoleons! My mother didn’t bake but there was a bakery on every street corner. Crispy, creamy and glazed. Yum. Good luck, Lisa.
I loved some dutch ‘poffertjes’: very little fluffy pancakes with lots of icing sugar and butter!
pumpkin pie!
My grandmother’s cheesecake. It was a simple recipe but had that sour cream layer that made extra delicious. And since my grandmother and I had a very close relationship, it made it all the more special.
My mother rarely baked….. if she did, she made pie crust (yummy) and filled it with applesauce to make an apple pie! Her signature dessert was sherry trifle, but I wasn’t fond of it as a child. I think ANY dessert I had as a child was my favourite, because I didn’t get it often.
Chocolate peanut butter silken pie!
So many of them but top of the lists are pancakes and French toasts!
I used to looove palmiers from a french bakery in San Diego, but I think equally loved Snickers ice cream bars.
Can’t wait to try this recipe, sounds and looks amazing! My favourite dessert as a child would have to be semolina and it’s still a favourite now
I would have to say that it was and still is strawberry shortcake