One of my favorite foods is a good muffin.   Finding a good gluten free muffin can sometimes be difficult, but today I ran across what looks like a good recipe for gluten free banana nut muffins.   Check it out!

Whole Grain Gluten Free Banana Nut Muffins

Dry Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup millet flour
• 1/2 cup sorghum flour
• 1/2 cup tapioca flour
• 2 teaspoons chia seed meal -or- 1 tablespoon ground flax seeds
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/4 teaspoon xanthan gum (optional)
• *1/2 cup walnuts, broken into small pieces

Wet Ingredients:

• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup non-fat yogurt
• 3 tablespoons heart healthy oil -or- melted butter
• 2 ripe bananas (about 1 - 1 1/2 cups mashed)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 2/3 granulated sugar -or- agave nectar

Baking instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line muffin tins with paper liners or non-stick cooking spray.
3. In a medium sized bowl whisk together all dry ingredients, EXCEPT walnuts. Set walnuts aside.
4. In another bowl mash bananas with a fork, cream in sugar or agave nectar.
5. Add eggs, vanilla, yogurt, and oil or butter. Mix together thoroughly.
6. Add banana/egg mixture to dry ingredients.
7. Stir together just until incorporated.
8. Fold in walnuts.
9. Pour batter 2/3 full into prepared muffin tins.
10. Bake 20-25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of a muffin comes out mostly clean with just a few crumbs.
11. Makes 12 nice sized muffins.

[Recipe Courtesy of Ginger Lemon Girl]

When it comes to gluten free cakes, one of the most popular ones is the gluten free orange cake.   Here is the information you’ll need to make a gluten free orange-almond cake at home.  Enjoy!

Gluten Free Orange Cake Ingredients

• 2 navel oranges
• 1 lemon, large
• 6 eggs
• 2 ¼ cups baker’s sugar (this is an especially fine sugar, made specifically for baking)
• 4 ½ cups almonds, ground fine and sifted through a fine-mesh sieve
• 1 cup hazelnuts, ground fine and sifted through a fine-mesh sieve
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• unsalted butter and rice flour for greasing the pans

Baking Instructions

1. Preparing the oranges and lemon: Wash the oranges and lemon well. Put them in a large saucepan and cover with water. Bring the water to a boil, and then reduce the heat to a small simmer. Allow them to simmer for one hour. When the oranges and lemon have become soft and easy to pierce with a knife, take them out of the simmering water. Transfer them to a food processor and pulse them until they have become a purée. Set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour the pan(s) you have chosen to use.
3. For the batter, beat the eggs and sugar together until they are just combined. (This is easier in your KitchenAid, but make sure you do not over-cream them if you are using a machine.) Fold in the orange and lemon purée and combine together.
4. Combine the almond meal, hazelnut meal, and the baking powder. Fold one-third of that mixture, slowly, into the rest of the dough. If you are doing this by hand, it will take awhile to incorporate the nut flours into the liquid mixture. Repeat this with the rest of the nut flours, slowly.
5. Pour the liquid into the prepared loaf pans (or whatever other pans you have chosen). Slide them into the oven. Bake for about 35 minutes, and then check the cakes. You might have to go longer, if your oven is actually emitting less heat than you imagine. Check one of the cakes with a toothpick inserted into the middle. When it comes out clean, and the tops of the cakes feel firm, pull the cakes from the oven.
6. Allow the cakes to cool in their pans for at least 15 minutes before you attempt to move them. Carefully, transfer them to a wire rack. Allow the cakes to cool completely before you slice them with a serrated knife.

It is recommend to make this a day before you plan to eat it for optimal taste.

[Recipe Courtesy of Gluten Free Girl]

There are a lot of great gluten free corn muffin mixes out there, but nothing beats homemade. Here is a great recipe for gluten free corn muffins:

Gluten Free Corn Muffin Ingredients

• 1 1/4 cups Pamela’s Ultimate Baking and Pancake mix
• 1 cup yellow cornmeal
• 1/3 cup sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1cup milk
• 2 tablespoons butter, melted

Baking Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Grease a 12-cup muffin tin.
3. Mix all ingredients together.
4. Fill muffin tins 3/4 full.
5. Bake for 15-20 minutes.
6. For cornbread: Follow directions above.Pour into a greased 8-inch square pan and bake for 20-25 minutes.Makes 9 servings.

As a reminder, you can easily purchase both the Pamela’s Ultimate Baking and Pancake mix at GlutenFree.com.

[Recipe Courtesy of Day Recipe]

More news today surrounding Celiac Disease and living gluten free. Here are a few you might have an interest in:

• The Baltimore Sun recommends trying flatbreads if you can’t find a good gluten free pizza crust.
• The Chronic Health Blog investigates the cause of Celiac Disease.
• WSLS talks about how gluten free options are increasing.

Got some Celiac related news?  Let us know!

Here is a popular recipe that I ran across for gluten free Tomato Soup.   It sure looks good.

Try it out and let us know if you like it!

Gluten Free Tomato Soup Ingredients

• 3 (16 ounce) cans whole peeled tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 zucchini, cubed
• 2 large onions, chopped
• 2 cups sliced fresh mushrooms
• 1/2 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• 3 bay leaves
• 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
• 2 teaspoons dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon ground white pepper

Baking Instructions

1. In a blender or food processor, puree whole tomatoes until smooth.
2. In a large pot over medium heat, cook zucchini, onions and mushrooms in oil until tender. Pour in pureed tomatoes. Season with salt, bay leaves, thyme, basil and white pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 15 minutes. Remove bay leaves before serving.