Christmas Baby Booties

I have a cousin who has  central nervous system vasculitis and has had several strokes.  The disease has caused the nerves in her brain to tell her she cannot see, even though her eyes can function for sight.  She is transported to physical therapy every week.   She has done a remarkable job in her recovery process.

One of her daughters is expecting a child in June.  She requested that baby's booties be placed on her Christmas tree this year.  Great idea!  I thought I might give a hand with that and finished up the project last night.  They will be in the mail to her today and she will get the booties in a couple days

I wanted to do them in Christmas colors and wanted to use up some of the yarn from Mama's sewing closet that I cleaned out when she died. How did she get so much yarn?   She had a friend who sold her house so that she could live on a boat.  The friend was quite a knitter and crocheter and had big Sterilite storage bins of yarn.  Six of those containers found a home in Mama's sewing closet. (The closet was very big -- in fact, in a life before the Joyners moved in, it was small baby nursery).  


I was so glad to have all that yarn when Mama was sick (and she also had Alzheimers) because it was her task to wind the skeins into balls.  When one wants to use the balls now, they have to be rewound because Mama wound the balls loosely and in only one direction, so they collapse and the yard gets tangled.  But, it gave her something to do.  She had lost the ability to do any kind of needlework.  She remembered that she could do it, but couldn't remember how and couldn't focus. At first when her memory was slipping, I would write simple instructions on posty notes and she used those directions to knit or crochet.   But gradually that didn't work anymore. Making yarn balls was something she thought she could do. She eventually couldn't do that either.


Using up that yarn has been a task of mine.  I used much of it before the house was sold;  the remainder  was moved to my storage.  Two blankets for Project Linus were completed and another one started, which is still in progress).  I made a baby blanket for my grandson.  Then most of the hats made for Coats for the Children have been made from Mama's stash of yarn. 

These two blankets
were made in 2012 completely from Mama's yarn stash.  They were carried to a collection site for Project Linus.

Coats for the Children hats completed in 2012, using
yarn from Mama's stash. (There is no picture of ones
completed in 2011.  That was the year I began working
on using up her yarn.)

This blanket was made for my grandson using yarn
 from Mama's yarn stash.

For the last few years, I have made at least 12 hats for Coats for the children.  This year has been so eventful that time has not allowed for that.  It began with Mama dying in January.  Cleaning out Mama and Daddy's house in Belhaven, NC took a lot of time.  They had lived in that big house for 50 years and filled it with the things they cherished.  Then I helped my daughter and her family move to the farm in Rougemont.  So, I have not had the time to spend making the hats.  I did decide to make hats in memory of the children killed at Sandy Hooks and will continue that project if it takes several years.  I got four of the hats completed this year in their memory.  But most of the yarn for those Sandy Hooks hat had to be purchased because I needed specific colors and types of yarns, especially for the beading of the girl hats.  Some of the hats (below) were made to practice stitches and beading for the Sandy Hook hats.  The practice hats were made from Mama's yarn stash.

Seven hats for Coats for the Children completed in 2013,
some knitted and some crocheted

Now for the Christmas booties -- the most recent project completed using Mama's Stash.  For the red booties with the cable at the front, I used the free pattern on Judit Sogan’s blog.  She described the project as “A Small Baby Project for the Weekend”.  I was able to complete both shoes in two days, working only at nights on it.  I spent two weeks working on free patterns which had terrible directions.  I wanted to spend time rewriting directions but found I was running out of time to get the booties mailed before Christmas.  I was so delighted to find Judit's instructions. There must be a little teacher in Judit because her numbers and exact instructions were very easy to follow.

 Judit’s instructions stated to use baby yarn for the project.  Since these booties were to act also as a Christmas decoration, I decided to use the colors of white and red.  Mama’s yarn stash had some white sport yarn, which I could substitute for baby yarn but she had no red baby yarn.  I found that difficult to purchase without scouting out the yarn shops or searching online.  This was a rush project and time didn’t allow for that.  Besides, I needed to use yarn from Mama’s stash.  The worsted yarn caused the size of the bootie to increase but that is OK because the baby will not be wearing it until next Christmas anyway and will probably need the large size (6 months).

I made a couple of changes though.  I made a mistake on a row because I was careless in reading the directions.  In row 33, I didn't do a K2, so the holes for the ribbon were closer together than Judit's bootie.  (Had to figure where the mistake was so that I could repeat it on the second bootie).  I didn't make the 2 stitch i-cord.  I thought the cabled booties would look more like Christmas with 1/4-inch white ribbon.  

The white booties were made with the white sport yarn using a very easy free pattern from Lion Brand Yarns.  I attached a red ribbon to make it, again, more like Christmas.  I hope these booties cheer my cousin and are what she requested.  Making the booties helped put me in better Christmas spirits.  Love you cousin P.M. and all the Joyners.  I miss you all and wish you a Merry Christmas.

Next project, finish the blanket started before the booties and continue with the Sandy Hook hats.  I have found some perfect patterns and ideas to complete some more hats in honor & memory of the children.  Check back and see my ideas and finished projects.

So Sorry But The Wheat Has To Go

 Learning Gluten Free

My first introduction to gluten free bread was disappointing.  The first loaf of gluten free bread I bought in the grocery store was expensive.  The bread had no flavor and was so dry.  And everyday it got drier.  So I decided I to go without gluten free products.  That meant not eating anything that had any form of wheat (including kamut and spelt), barley, rye and triticale.  I did not anticipate that wheat would be in most all processed foods because the mentioned forms of gluten can be made into modified food starches in processed foods. Wheat is used to bind ingredients in hotdogs and sausage.  Wheat hides in many products.  Learning to read labels has become so important and will always be important.  The FDA has recently required labels to include wheat if it is in a product on made on a line with other wheat, nuts, soy, milk, and eggs. (Did I miss anything?)

I began reading and reading about why it was important to go gluten free.  Going gluten free gradually reduced the awful stomach pains until there was no pain -- unless, I ran into it accidentlly.  Being gluten free for awhile causes the body to react even worse and last longer when it comes in contact with gluten.  I went though my cabinets and pantry and removed all gluten products and donated it to the food bank. The donation included all the pasta and pasta mixes, canned soups, packaged cake mixes, rye and wheat flour, bread flour, whole wheat flour, pancake and waffle mixes, Bisquick and anything that had a label with wheat.  I had Bob's Red Mill soup and bean mixes that were so good but had some form of wheat in them. (Bob 's Red Mill also makes many gluten free products).  I am so glad that someone could enjoy them.  Whole Foods and Lowes Food has many gluten free flours and other gluten free products but some of the more tasty and exotic flours, such as amaranth and teff are hard to find; I order those on Amazon.

I found that milling the flours myself from seeds, groats, and rolled oats helps with the expense of the gluten free flours.  When I first decided to get a mill, I read on line and looked at review after review to decide the best mill to get for me.  I decided that the Blendtec mill was my best choice.  I read that most mills puffed flour in the milling process.  The first milling I completed did send a very thin coat of fine flour several feet around the mill.  So now, I plan the days to mill and mill on the deck.  It is a small mess to clean up, but well worth the time to me.  The mill will pay for itself in a few months.

Now it was time to get in touch with my baking skills and see if I could make my meals gluten free. There was no flour in the house.  I found a long list of flours that I could use.  The acceptable gluten free flours include sorghum flour, bean flour, millet flour, chai flour,  quinoa flour, soy flour, white rice flour, brown rice flour, corn starch, potato starch, arrowroot starch, corn flour (not the same as cornmeal), tapioca flour, amaranth flour, buckwheat (which is not wheat), and teff.  This is not the end of the list.  There are more, such as almond meal and flax meal.  These flours and meals have no gluten and that is a good thing but causes problems with baking.  The gluten holds the shape of the dough as it rises.  So the gluten free dough needs something to hold it together and help hold the carbon dioxide as it rises.  Wheat helps bind the ingredents in a dough.  The gluten free doughs need binders, substances that hold the ingredients together.  The substances that can be used to hold the dough as the yeast makes the dough rise is guam gum and xanthum gum.  Some bakers use just one of the gums while some bakers us a mixture of the two.  Eggs, egg replacers, plain gelatin, chai seeds, flax meal, and other substances are also used to help in binding the flours and starches together.  To help the the dough rise better, there are dough enhancers (which include an acid such as vinegar or ascorbic acid).

Because the textures of the doughs are listed as being gritty, very gritty, starchy, and fluffy, they are mixed together to help improve the texture.  Most flour mixtures used to bake yeast bread, quick breads, cakes, and pastries include a percentage mixture of the flours, meals, and starches to inprove the baking texture.  Some of the flours are inexpensive and some are expensive.  It is important when buying the ingredients that there is no cross-contamination with gluten and non-gluten in the milling process.  And of course, that makes the ingredients more expensive because the millers have to have special buildings for gluten free milling or there has to be special cleaning of equipment when milling gluten free products.  For example, to make sure that oats are gluten free, the oats are purchased from farmers that dedicate their fields only to oat; there is no contamination with wheat grains in the fields.  Then, the oats are processed in gluten free buildings.  This is what makes gluten free more expensive!

I do eat homemade gluten free bread products every day for three main reasons.  Most all flour products cause a rise in blood sugar for diabetics, especially those products made with rice flours.  Two, making gluten free products is not cheap.  The third reason is the time factor in making the gluten free products. Homemade gluten free products do not have a long shelf life because there are no preservatives, which can also be good for the body.  Completely going without, I found, is not necessary. It is disappointing to have to eat hamburgers all the time without a bun.  Sometimes, it is nice to have a warm blueberry muffin for breakfast and delightful to have cheese and crackers as a snack.  So, the expense, time and sugar/carb control causes me to be frugal in eating the gluten free products.  I try to remember the joy in in being frugal is that it is easier to control body weight.

I am learning everyday how to live gluten free.  It is not something I cherish but it has made me feel better.  Even though the gluten free products are certainly not the perfect specimens I learned to bake in home economics classes in college, I am learning to accept the difference -  gluten free will never look, nor taste the same as wheat products.  Gluten free has its own physical and chemical characteristics and properties.  One has to deal with that and move on, making the best product possible with those characteristics and properties.  That is my challenge!

Gluten Free Vanilla Wafers

Gluten Free Vanilla Wafers

The original recipe that I used for the Gluten Free Vanilla Wafers came from About.com Gluten Free Cooking.  It is among the many websites I use frequently.  Sometimes I can use the recipes on the site as is but I usually convert the recipes to use less sugar.  I find the website to be an excellent reference.

Some of the reviews on the website for the original recipe were not kind.  Some stated that the batter was runny and made a mess.  Another reviewer said that it was a wonderful recipe and liked it.  So I thought that it must have some merit.  When I made the batter, I didn't find the batter to be runny.  I think the reason for that was maybe I used a different flour blend. I used the exact wet ingredients. (The flour blend I used is noted below).

I agreed with one of the reviewers about making the wafers as Madeleines are made.  I tried the suggestion of using the mini muffin pan but the batter shaped like muffins as they baked, making a peak in the center.  The mini whoopie pie pan baked them perfectly, though I need to adjust the temperature and cooking time.  Some of the wafers baked too long. The wafers made in the mini pans are smaller than those of the original recipe.  (That problem is also an oven problem.  I really need to get a new one.  This one has no light switch to see in the oven; I have to open the oven door for the light to come on.)  The wafers would cook perfectly in my convection oven.  I was disappointed that the mini whoopee pie pan was too long to go in the convection oven.  The pan cannot be larger than 13x9-inches.

The Wilton Mini Whoopie Pie Pan can be found in Walmart, Bed, Bath & Beyond, Macys and I'm sure many other  places.  I found mine on a clearence shelf in Walmart.  I think that I might be able to make a smaller mini whoopie pan by using heavy duty aluminum foil, using the  mini whoopee pie pan as a mold.  Since the English muffin rings using the aluminum foil worked, I'll try making the pan next time.  Using the convection oven is great because one rarely can burn food because the oven timer cuts the oven off.

 I probably will  make only minor or no adjustments to the ingredients using this gluten flour blend for the wafers.  The wafer in this recipe has a wonderful taste.  One ingredient change I did make in the orginal recipe was in the sugar content.  I cut the amount of sugar to 1/3 cup and added, with the sugar,  2 tablespoon of Stevia in the Raw. If you have no problem with sugar, use the 2/3 cup in the original recipe.  You could substitute all the sugar with another sugar substitute but remember without honey or sugar, the cookies will be a little tough.  (Sugar is needed for tenderness.)  Also, I didn't use sugar to press the cookie down.  I used a wet measuring teaspoon to flatten the dough.  (The teaspoon was slightly rounded on the bottom, which made flattening the dough easier.

A new product I used when making this recipe was the glass mixing bowl for the Kitchenaid mixer.  Being vertically challenged has gotten worse in the past couple of years. (I guess I'll continue to get shorter). I have never been able to see the bottom of the metal bowl of the mixer and even recently,  I have to use a small step stool to reach the second shelf in the kitchen cabinets.  Oh, with the glass mixing bowl,  I no longer need to stop the mixer and tip the bowl.

Hope the wafers are successful for you.  I can imagine these wafers in a gluten free banana pudding.  I'll try using them in a gluten free trifle, also.  I'm not sure whether they can be processed as crumbs and used in a pie crust but I'll give it the try and let you know.  I might experment with some chocolate in the batter. In the mean time, I need to perfect the shape and baking temperature of these wafers because the recipe is a keeper.  Thank you, Terri Lee Gruss for inspiring me.

One last comment -- there are several recipes for vanilla wafers on the web.  Some of the wafers appear more uniform than mine, but most are made from rice flour.  Because rice flour has a high glycemic index, I do not use it.  If you use rice flour, give some of those recipes a try.  Some of them look exactly like "Nilla Wafers".

Here is the converted Gluten Free Vanilla Wafer I used.

Gluten Free Vanilla Wafers  

• 2 large eggs
• 1/3 cup granulated sugar + 2 tablespoons Stevia in the Raw
• 1 ½ teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon grated fresh lemon peel (optional)
• Pinch salt
• 1 cup gluten-free all purpose flour mix (with xanthan or guar gum  in the mix --  See rule below for    using gum and the recipe for the gluten-free flour blend I used)
• 10 tablespoons melted, cool unsalted butter OR a dairy-free butter substitute
• 2 tablespoons granulated sugar to dip glass in to press cookies (optional

1.  Preheat oven to 375℉ or 190°C.

2.  Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper, silicone pads or lightly grease.  Mini whoopie pie  pans or mini muffin pans can also be used.  Lightly grease only the bottoms, not the sides if using the mini pans.  Gluten free batter needs the sides to help the wafer rise.  ( Remember that the batter baked

     in a mini muffin pan may look like mini muffins, not cookies or wafers.) 

3.  In the bowl of a mixer, combine eggs, sugar, and sugar substitute, if using sugar substitute.  Beat on high until creamy, about 3 minutes.

4.  Add vanilla, lemon peel and salt and combine with egg mixture.

5.  Lower the speed of the mixer and combine the gluten-free flour, 1/4 cup at a time, with the egg/sugar mixture.

6.  Add the melted butter slowly to the batter and beat until combined.

7.  Place heaping rounded teaspoons of dough on the parchment paper approximately 1 1/2 inches apart or  place that same amount in the mini whoopee pie pan or in mini muffin pan.

 

8.  If using a stiffer dough, like mine, the dough needs to be smoothed down with a wet teaspoon.  The  dough can also be pressed down with a small glass coated in sugar.

   

Smoothing batter with wet measuring teaspoon

9.  Bake in oven for about 12-15 minutes or until the cookies are golden brown and crispie.  Immediately and carefully place the wafers on a cooling rack.  Store in a airtight container.  (If using a mini pan, the baking time may be slightly less than 12 minutes.)

 

Notice the muffin shaped cookies in the back.  They were baked in a mini muffin pan.

If using a mini pan, the yield will be approximately 50 wafers.  The original recipe stated the yield was approximately 36 wafers.


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Linda's All Purpose Gluten Free Flour Blend

• 3 cups Oat Flour
• 2 cups Sorghum flour
• 3 cups Tapioca starch
• 1 cup Corn flour (Masa Harina)

       

          Whisk the flours together. Place in an airtight container.

          Potato starch and corn starch can be substituted for tapioca starch. I have used a combination of the three when       

            there wasn't enough tapioca in the pantry. Guar gum or xanthan gum will be needed for most baking.  The rule ,   
            provided my Cooking Gluten Free!, for using the gums is as follows:

     

     1 teaspoon per cup of flour mix for sandwich bread or pizza crust

     1/2 teaspoon per cup of flour mix for cakes, muffins, and quick bread

     1/4 teaspoon per cup of flour mix for cookies

           

Gluten Free Baking Master Mix

Gluten Free Baking Master Mix

Listening to NPR, I heard an interview of a "proper" woman talking about topics one should never talk about to anyone, especially in public.  One of the topics was being on a diet.  She especially noted people should not talk about being on a gluten free diet.  She said the topic was boring and no one cared whether you had to be on a gluten free diet or any type of diet.  I'm sure she never has read all the blogging about food and dieting and I hope that the woman never becomes gluten intolerant.

With Thanksgiving and Christmas coming, I decided it was past time to get with the gluten free recipes and cooking if I was going to celebrate the holidays.  It isn't the responsibility of anyone else to take care of my eating habits.  So, I have gotten recipes together, milled the flours, and am experimenting with the ingredients.  One of the products I wanted to make was a gluten free master mix that I could use to make certain foods more quickly.

I certainly have missed using Bisquick - the Impossible Pies, biscuits, pancakes, waffles, meat and fruit hand pies, cheese balls, Oven-Baked Chicken and many other things I made quickly with Bisquick.  Of course Betty Crocker developed a gluten free Bisquick.  I'm glad that some people have the convenience of the product.  The cost of the small box, the main ingredient being rice flour, and no shortening in the mix are the reasons I do not choose to use it.  ( A diabetic and rice flour are not a good combination.  Rice flour has a very high glycemic index.  I try not to use rice flour.)  Yes, an inconvenience but I am learning to work around it.  One blogger added shortening to the Gluten Free Bisquick so that she could use the regular Biscuit recipes. She then stored it.  Good idea if you can use the rice flour.

I wanted a more healthy version of the commercial product.  I studied all the ingredients in many of the master mixes on the web and other cookbooks and came up with my own version.  The following is the recipe I chose for my Master Mix -- for now at least.  I may get tired of it and change the ingredients another day.  Even the flours are not completely low glycemic, they are a better choice than rice, for my purpose. (Don't want to insult those using rice flours.  Rice flours are easier to use and less expensive, especially if you mill your own.)  The larger amounts of flour I use in the mixture are flours that I can mill myself.  I use less of the more expensive flours.  Some may consider using so many flours a pain but I think doing this gives the mix an excellent taste.  The flax seed meal and almond flour are healthy ingredients.  I will be adding successful recipes attempts using the Master Mix.  It's going to take a little time.  I am trying to make small conversions to the recipes, using my Bisquick Cookbooks.  When they work, I will post.

Update:
I slightly changed the Master Mix recipe.  There have been changes in how many gluten free bakers now use the gums. In fact, I rarely use the gums any more.  I use psyllium fibers and seed dust.  The psyllium fiber and the seed dust not only helps as a binder but is also has much more nutritional value. I also made other small changes to the recipe. I left the old recipe, just in case someone likes it better. I also included the weight (mass) of the flours. 

Linda's Gluten Free Baking Master Mix

3 cups (360 g) oat flour
1 cup (123 g) sorghum flour
1 cup (125 g)millet flour
1 1/2 cups ( 188g) tapioca starch (can use arrowroot starch or a mixture of the two)
1/2 cup (83 g) potato starch (not potato flour)
1/4 cup (28 g)almond flour
1/4 cup flax seed meal
1/2 tablespoon + 1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 tablespoon + 1/2 teaspoon guam gum   ( can use all one kind of gum if preferred)
2 teaspoons salt
3 tablespoons baking powder
1/2 cup coconut oil

Updated Linda's Gluten Free Master Mix 

3 cups (360 g) oat flour
1 cup (123 g) sorghum flour
1 cup (125 g) millet flour
1 1/2 cups (188 g) tapioca starch (can substitute for arrowroot starch or a mixture of the two)
1/2 cup (83 g) potato starch (not potato flour)
1/4 cup (28 g) almond flour
4 tablespoons seed dust or 4 tablespoons of gluten-free psyllium fiber
3 tablespoons baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 cup coconut oil or your choice of a shortening
4 tablespoon vegetable oil
1/2 cup powdered milk, soy milk powder, coconut milk powder, almond milk powder, or rice milk
     powder


1.  Whisk all dry ingredients together thoroughly.

2.  Cut in the shortening and vegetable oil, until it is thorougly mixed into the dry ingredients and looks like tiny peas.  (This coconut oil is not a soft shortening in the winter and using a pastry blender didn't work all the shortening into the flours.  I eventually had to work the coconut oil into the flours with my fingers.

3.  Store in a tightly-sealed container in refrigerator or pantry.

Makes about 8 cups

Update:  Since I began using seed dust rather than gums (for nutrition reasons), I exchanged 4 tablespoons of seed dust for the gums in the recipe.  Because there is flaxseed in the seed dust, I leave out the flaxseed. Another acceptable adaption is using 4 tablespoons of gluten free unflavored psyllium fiber for the gums)  I also found that 1 cup of powdered milk is good in this recipe.  But if you can't use the milk,  don't include it.

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Recipes using Linda's Gluten Free Master Mix

This recipe for Spinach-Cheese Balls was found in a Bisquick Recipe Cards Cookbook.  The only changes I made was adding an extra egg and spraying hands when forming balls.  Out of the oven, they are crispy on the outside and soft on the inside and the taste is incredible!  To complete this recipe, I found that I had no garlic salt.  Made it using this recipe.

Spinach-Cheese Balls

1 box 10oz frozen spinach, thawed, drained by squeezing
1 cup Gluten Free Baking Master Mix
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese or Cheddar cheese
1 cup Italian five cheese or your choice
2 eggs, beaten
2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon garlic salt
Nonstick cooking spray

1.  Heat oven to 400℉.  Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.

2.  In a large bowl, mix all ingredients.  Shape mixture into 1-inch balls, compacting firmly;  place on parchment lined cookie sheet.  (The dough is sticky and is easier to shape if spraying hands with nonstick cooking spray. I used a silicon cookie scoop so that they were about the same size.)

3.  Bake 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.  Remove from pan to cool on rack.  Serve with pasta or piza sauce if desired.

Yield:  about 24 Sausage-Spinach Balls

(For even more flavor, 1/2 pound uncooked bulk sausage could be added with the spinach.)

The uncooked balls can be put in the freezer in an airtight container for up to 1 month.  To bake, place frozen balls on a parchement lined cookie sheet.  Cook in a 350℉ oven  25-30 minutes until brown.

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This recipe for Blueberry Muffins was found in Betty Crockers Bisquick Cookbook 2000.  I did not have to alter this recipe for the gluten free flours.  It might need a little more salt but since I am suppose to be on low salt diet, I don't need anymore.  You might need a tad more, but only a tad.  I did make a sugar substitution.  Since sugar's job is to sweeten the muffins and tenderize the muffins, I included half sugar and half sugar substitute.  (I rarely use all sugar or all sugar substitute.) I used Stevia in the Raw as the substitute in this recipe.  I don't think there are any fantastic sugar substitutes.  I've changed my use through the years as sugar substitutes have been developed, from saccarine to Splendar and now Stevia.   My next try is going to be erythritol.  Now for the muffins.  They were as easy to make as I had hoped.

Blueberry Muffins

2 cups Gluten Free Baking Master Mix

1/3 cup sugar (I substituted half of that for Stevia in the Raw)

2/3 cup milk of choice

2 tablespoons oil of choice (I used olive oil)

1 egg

3/4 cup fresh or frozen blueberries

1.  Heat oven to 400℉.  Grease bottoms only of 12 medium muffin cups, or spray paper baking cups with nonstick cooking spray or use aluminum muffin cups.

2.  Whisk the dry ingredients together.  In a small bowl combine the wet ingredients.  Stir liquid ingredients into dry ingredients just until moistened.  Fold in blueberries. (Don't thaw the frozen berries. They stay together better frozen when mixing and don't turn the batter blue.)  Divide batter evenly among cups with a batter scoop.

3.  Bake 13-18 minutes or until golden brown.  Test for doneness with a toothpick.  Cool slightly;  remove from pan to wire rack.

Note: Several times, I have added a banana to the batter and the muffin is great! The banana and blueberries together are fantastic.  I have also added 3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger and 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg with 1/2 cup raisins.  I must confess that I have put raisins, banana, and blueberries together in a muffin and they were delicious!

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 Waffles (using Gluten Free Master Mix)

2 cups Gluten Free Master Mix
1 1/3 cup milk of choice
2 tablespoons oil of choice

1 egg

1.  Combine the milk, oil and egg. Incorporate the wet and dry ingredients together.
2.  The batter will be runny because it takes more time for gluten-free flours to absorb liquids. Let the batter rest for 15-30 minutes.
3.  Heat the waffle iron; grease with cooking spray, vegetable oil or shortening. Following directions of waffle iron, pour the correct amount in each waffle well. (Some wafle irons take 1 cup, some 1/2 cup and some take 1/4 cup)
5.  Depending on size, cook 3-5 minutes.  Remove when steaming has stopped.  Carefully remove from the waffle iron.  
6.  Keep warm in oven or reheat in toaster.
7.  Freeze leftover waffles in plastic freezer zipper bag, separated with parchment paper.  Warm waffles for 10 minutes  in 350℉ oven or warm them in a toaster. 

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Chicken Pot Pie on Waffles 

Some people might call this a deconstructed Chicken Pot Pie. Since the waffle is not a traditional pie crust, I refrained from calling it deconstructed. I also tried this recipe making biscuits from the Master Mix but I thought it was better tasting with the waffles.


1 cup rotisserie chicken, or leftover chicken, cut in chunks
2 tablespoons butter or oil of choice
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried basil 
1/8 teaspoon onion powder
1/8 teaspoon garlic powder
3/4 cup chicken broth + 1/4 cup
1 tablespoon cornstarch
2 cups Gluten Free Baking Master Mix
1 1/3 milk of choice
2 tablespoons oil of choice
1 egg, or egg substitute

1.  Cook the frozen vegetables in desired method until crisp. I steamed them in the microwave for 4 minutes.
2.  Heat the 2 tablespoons butter or oil in skillet. Add chicken and heat.  Add  3/4 cup chicken broth, thyme, basil, onion powder, and garlic powder.
3.  Add the vegetables and heat until bubbling.  Mix the 1/4 cup broth with the cornstarch.  Add the cornstarch mixture while stirring.  When the sauce or gravy forms, let cook another minute or two and then turn down heat to just keep warm. ( If not enough sauce forms for personal liking, add another 2 tablespoons of broth and 1/2 tablespoon cornstarch mixture and cook another minute or two).
4. Using the ingredients for waffles using GF Master Mix, make the waffles as in recipe above.
5.  Top waffles with the Pot Pie filling for a great meal!

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Biscuits (using Gluten Free Baking Master Mix)

These biscuits are not white, light and fluffy like white wheat gluten biscuits. Rice flour makes beautiful biscuits but I do not and cannot use rice flour. These biscuits from the master mix do have a wonderful taste, though.  The flours in the master mix are nutritious and the seed dust is much more nutritious than the gums. I would say that these biscuits are much like biscuits made with whole wheat gluten flour.

The dough for these biscuits will be very sticky.  Since gluten-free flours do not accept oils and liquids as well as a gluten flours, it needs resting time to hydrate the flours. The resting time helps with the stickiness.  These biscuits can be drop biscuits or rolled and cut biscuits. At one time in my life, my oven went out and I found that biscuits will cook nicely in a covered skillet. I haven't cooked these in a skillet but I am sure that they can be cooked using that method.  These biscuits can also be cooked in a waffle iron.

I did a lot of reading to find how to make a gluten free, riceless flour biscuit lighter and more fluffy. The American Test Kitchen states that an egg helps improve moisture, elasticity and provides additional structure in gluten-free biscuits. The oil is also needed to give the biscuits richness. They can be made without the egg.

2 cups Gluten Free Baking Master Mis
1 1/3 cups milk of choice
2 tablespoons cooking oil of choice (I use either olive oil or canola oil)
1 egg

1.  Blend together the milk, oil and egg.
2.  Combine the dry ingredients with the wet ingredients to make a sticky dough. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest 30 minutes to improve the texture.
3.  For drop biscuits, place 1/3 cup of dough on pan lined with parchment. The dough should be about
2 1/2 inches wide and 1 1/2 inches high.
4.  For rolled dough, handle it the least amount possible. On very lightly floured parchment, knead the dough a couple times. Roll and fold several times to incorporate layers, rolling about 1 1/2 inches high.  Cut, using a biscuit cutter the size you like.
5.  Bake the biscuits at 450℉ about 15 minutes.  If there is time, rotate the pan half way through.  Place the biscuits on a cooling rack and let cool 5 minutes before serving.

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Cornmeal Muffins (using the Gluten Free Baking Master Mix)

The first time I made these muffins, I was somewhat dissapointed. They were quite edible, had a good taste but were some what dense and heavy.  I decided to lighted the recipe up by using a tad more sugar, substitute buttermilk for the milk and add a little baking soda.

I used an extra tablespoon of sugar to lighten up the batter, give more tenderness and help the muffin brown. Some bakers don't like to use the sugar in cornbread and can leave it out of the recipe. Remember, though, gluten free batters need lots of help for tenderness, rising, taste and browning.

I added a rounded tablespoon of powdered buttermilk to the combined master mix, sugar and cornmeal. Another choice could be to add 1/4 teaspoon of vinegar to the 1/3 cup milk. ( This "trick" would also work for soy, almond and coconut milk.) The acidic buttermilk reacts with the baking soda to give the cornmeal and baking mix an extra lift. It also help improve the texture and color.

To the recipe,  an addition leavening agent was added, baking soda. The buttermilk adds flavor and reacts with the baking soda. It did just what I wanted -- lightened up the batter and helped it rise more.

 Gluten Free Cornmeal Muffins    (makes 5-6 muffins)

2/3 cup Linda's Glutetn Free Baking Master Mix (recipe above)
1/2 cup gluten free yellow cornmeal (mass depends on brand and grind)
1-2 tablespoon granulated sugar
1 rounded tablespoon powdered buttermilk (or 1/3 cup buttermilk)
1/3 cup water (omit if using liquid buttermilk)
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 egg, beaten

1.  Preheat oven to 400℉. Brease bottoms only 12 medium muffin cups, or spray paper baking cups with nonstick cooking spray or use aluminum muffin cups.

2.  Whisk the dry ingredients together.  In a small bowl combine the wet ingredients.  Stir liquid ingredients into dry ingredients just until moistened. Divide batter evenly among cups with a batter scoop.

3.  Bake 12-18 minutes or until golden brown. Test for doneness with a toothpick.  Remove the muffins from the oven and immediately gently place on a cooling rack so the muffins don't sweat.
Serve warm with butter, jam, honey or choice of topping.

To make mini muffins, divide batter into 10-12 mini muffin cups.  Bake about 10 minutes.  Watch and check for doneness with a toothpick.

To make cornbread in a skillet, double the recipe or use a small skillet. Preheat a 9"-10" iron skillet in the oven. Melt 1 tablespoon in skillet, coating bottom and sides. Pour batter into skillet and place in center of oven. Bake 20-25 minutes. Test for doneness with toothpick.

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Another update:

Have It All Gluten Free Cookies (using the Gluten Free Master Mix)

A quick cookie can be made using the Baking Master Mix.  Any reasonable addition you can think can be added to the cookie batter. In this recipe I put chocolate chips, peanut butter chips, coconut, pecans, rolled oats, shredded coconut and chocolate toffee candy left over from Christmas. I didn't make the candy.  I'm not a great candy maker, and being diabetic, I don't eat it very often. But, this was great candy made by my daughter. I smashed about 2 tablespoons into bits and combined it in the dough with the other additions.

Other additions could be any type of nut, raisins or currents, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, flaxseeds, sunflower seeds, or any kind of seed you like. How about adding lemon flavoring with poppy seeds to the dough rather than chips? Make sure the seeds are not processed on a wheat line.

Rather than chocolate chips, use white vanilla chips, peanut butter chips, butterscotch chips or cinnamon chips. Be careful with the butterscotch chips, though, because they may not be gluten free. Most all of Hershey chips are gluten free. Read, read, read labels. Some of the packaged chips are not gluten free. Note that Hershey states that Heath toffee bits are gluten free, also.

Additions to cookie dough will be chocolate chips, peanut butter chips,
gluten free rolled oats, chopped pecans, crushed chocolate toffee and shredded coconut.

These cookies probably wouldn't be called gourmet cookies but they are very good.  They make up quickly and use minimal utensils in mixing and baking. A 1 1/2-inch cookie scoop was used to drop the dough on to the parchment lined pan . The cookies can be made into balls or flattened with a small drinking glass. Since the dough is gluten free, it is sticky.  Lightly spraying the bottom of the glass with cooking spray helps the glass from sticking to the dough.  The cookies do not rise alot but enough to make them light. 

The recipe calls for unsalted butter because there is salt in the Gluten Free Baking Master Mix.  Also, it calls for 1/4 cup granulated sugar and 1/4 cup brown sugar. I used 2 tablespoons granulated sugar and 1 1/2 tablespoon of Stevia in the Raw. I used a brown sugar blend of brown sugar and Splenda. Sugar free brown sugar can be made using directions from this site.

The recipe makes about 2 dozen small cookies if several additions are made to the batter. If more cookies are needed, double the recipe. Remember, though, gluten free cookies stay fresh only a few days because there are no preservatives.

Have It All Gluten Free Cookies

Ingredients:

1/4 cup unsalted butter, softened and at room temperature

1/4 cup granulated sugar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 egg, lightly beaten

1 1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons Gluten Free Baking Master Mix

1/2 cup chocolate chips of choice

1/2 cup peanut butter chips

1/3 cup nuts of choice

1/3 cup gluten free rolled oats

1/2 cup shredded coconut

2 tablespoons toffee chips

1 teaspoon vanilla

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 375℉.  Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or grease lightly.

2.  Cream butter with sugars. Beat in egg.  (This step can be done with electric mixer).

3.  Gradually add Baking Master Mix.

4.  By hand, stir in additions of choice into batter.

5.  Using a tablespoon scoop, drop cookie batter about 1-2 inches apart on the prepared pan. Bake about 8 minutes. Place on a cooling rack.  

6.  When cool, place in an airtight container.

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Resources:

"Gluten-Free Recipes." The How Can It Be Gluten Free Cookbook. N.p., 03 Jan. 2014. Web. 10 Jan. 2015.<http://howcanitbeglutenfree.com/gluten-free-recipes/#biscuits>

"Make Your Own (almost) Sugar-free Brown Sugar." Your Lighter Side. N.p., 05 Sept. 2012. Web. 23 Jan. 2015.<http://yourlighterside.com/2012/09/make-your-own-almost-sugar-free-brown-sugar/>

"Muffin Tips." Muffin Tips Baking Making Hints. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2015.http://www.almanac.com/content/muffin-tips

"Pixie Dust Xanthan Gum Replacer." GlutenFree Doctor. N.p., 17 Nov. 2012. Web. 09 Jan. 2015.<http://glutenfreedoctor.com/pixie-dust-xanthan-gum-replacer/>

"Sausage Cheese Balls." Bettycrocker.com. N.p., n.d. Web. 09 Jan. 2015.

<http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/sausage-cheese-balls/6a2a7890-c685-4991-b699-

743fd880486f>

"Sugar in Bakery Foods - The Sugar Association." The Sugar Association Sugar in Bakery Foods Comments. N.p., n.d. Web. 18 Jan. 2015.<http://www.sugar.org/all-about-sugar/sugar-in-bakery-foods/>

"The Effects of Baking With Buttermilk." LIVESTRONG.COM. LIVESTRONG.COM, 16 Aug. 2013. Web. 18 Jan. 2015.http://www.livestrong.com/article/509461-the-effects-of-baking-with-buttermilk/

"Vegan Substitutes for Powdered Milk." LIVESTRONG.COM. LIVESTRONG.COM, 29 Jan. 2014. Web. 11 Jan. 2015.<http://www.livestrong.com/article/208885-vegan-substitutes-for-powdered-milk/>

Disclosure Statement:
I have not received compensation for any products mentioned or used in this post.

A Gluten Free Soft Wrap

I've tried so many different recipes for gluten free wraps.  Some tasted good but I didn't find the texture pleasing to me.  Some had a good texture, but not for very long.  As they cooled, the texture changed.  I know that I could make beautiful wraps if I used rice flour but for me, rice flour is out.  I'm not exactly happy about the high levels of arsenic in rice flour but it also has a high glycemic index.  Besides the gluten intolerance, I am diabetic also and able to control the amount of meds I take through a low glycemic index diet.  I need to limit the amount of rice intake so rice flour is out for me.  When a gluten free recipe calls for rice flour, I substitute oat flour, sorgham flour or almond flour/meal or sometimes a combination. These don't give the smooth texture as rice flour but they work.  I find that oat and sorghum gluten free flours have a neutral flavor.

This wrap recipe is very easy to make, has protein, and is pliable.  It is more like a crepe rather than a flour wrap.  Until I find a recipe that is more like a flour wrap or tortilla, I'll stick with this one.  But note, I'm not through experimenting.  This recipe is a combination of a recipe by Gluten Free Recipe Box and Healthy Indulgences.  I changed Carla's recipe with substitutions of other flours, less milk, and rotating pan while cooking.  I liked the taste and the flax seed meal in Lauren's wrap but I found it more complicated to make and in time, the wraps I made from her recipe got tough and chewy when reheating.

This converted recipe has a neutral taste which will not interfer with the taste of ingredients in the wrap but  can be changed by adding spices or herbs to the batter.  If it needs to be sweeter, when used in desserts like crepes, 1/4 to 1 teaspooon of sugar, honey, or molasses can be used in the batter.  Also, note that I used 3 different flours in the batter.  One gluten free flour type could be used or the batter could be made from gluten free oat flour or almond flour.  I like the bean, millet and quinoa because with the eggs, the wrap has plenty of protein.  Also note, this batter does not require the use of xanthan or guar gum.

Linda's Interpretation of a Soft Wrap  (makes 6-8 wraps, depending on size of pan)

1/2 cup potato starch (or arrowroot starch or cornstarch)

1/4 cup bean flour

1/4 cup millet flour

1/4 cup quinoa flour

1 tablespoon flax seed meal 

1/2-3/4 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs, beaten

1 cup milk of choice

1.  In a medium bowl, whisk the dry ingredients together.  (Note that you can see the different colors of the flours and meals)

The dark substance is flax meal

2.  Whisk the eggs and milk together until frothy.  Combine the milk mixture to the flours, constantly whisking.  Let the batter rest for at least 15 minutes.

Frothy eggs and milk whisked

Egg mixture and flours whisked

3.  Preheat the skillet over medium heat.  (Spray the skillet lightly with olive oil and then wipe the pan out with a paper towel.  This seems to help move the wrap more easily.  I only did this for the first wrap).  Pour 1/4 cup of batter into a 9-in skillet and rotate the pan away from heat so that the batter is distributed around the edges of the pan and does not accumulate in the center.  This keeps the wrap from being thick in the center. Put the pan back on the heat and brown for 1-2 minutes on each side until browned. Place the cooked wrap on parchment lined wire rack to cool.

Ready to eat wrap

Cooking  wrap

                                                                                                       

4.  Repeat with the remaining batter, whisking batter again before measuring batter into pan.


The batter can be stored in the refrigerator, to use within a couple days.  Wraps whould be store in the refrigerator between parchment paper, wax paper, or foil.  They can also be frozen.

The wraps need to be warmed before using.  To warm the wraps, reheat in a skillet.  Reheating in the microwave may make them tough.

To save time, I have put the dry ingredients in a ziplock bag and then only need to add milk and eggs to make the wraps.  I could even take them  on the road this way.

Again, I'm still working on a wrap which will be more like a flour tortilla wrap without using rice flour and as few calories as possible.

I found a 9 1/2 inch non-stick skillet in Home Goods for a very reasonable price.  Find it also on Amazon.com.

Surprisenly Good Gluten Free English Muffins

These muffins were a second try at making English Muffins.  I wanted to try English muffins because I missed that egg and cheese muffin (Egg McMuffin) and I could use the English muffins for sandwiches, also.

I have  purchased gluten free bread and didn't like the texture and dryness of most of the products.  Another reason for not wanting the purchased products is most or many of them are made from rice flour because it is a cheaper flour.  Rice flour contains arsenic.  I have enough problems so decided not to deal with the arsenic.  Brown rice is suppose to be much better for you to eat but it has higher levels of arsenic than white rice.

The next solution was to learn to make gluten free breads and pastas, which meant buying gluten free flour.  I found that it is important to buy reliable products that are not coss-contaminated with gluten flours.  The easiest flours to find in my area are Bob's Red Mill products and King Arthur products.  Bob's Red Mill has a wonderful selection of gluten and gluten free products and many kinds of gluten free flour, flour mixes, grains and seeds.  Varieties of flour, grains and seeds that I cannnot find in the local grocery stores, I order on line from Bob's Red Mill.  Several kinds of gluten flours are needed to make a good gluten free flour blend that you like.  Using several kinds of flour will make a better product because some of the flours are gritty and some are starchy.  Mixing the two types gives a better product.

When I decided to lower the expense of the flours, grains, and seeds, I purchased a grain mill.  Yes, the mill was expensive but I feel that it will pay for itself in the long-run.  I read many reviews and there are several good grain mills.  I choose the Blendtec mill and so far I have had excellent results.  In the reviews of most of the grain mills, people complained that the mills puff flour, which the Blendtec does.  Haven't solved that problem yet.  I don't usually mill on the same day that I bake.  I felt overwelmed with too many processes.  It is easier to mill, then mix the flours for the appropriate desired product.  

I really like the flavor of bean flour, oat flour, quinoa flour and millet flour.  To save money, I grind these flours myself.  I am sure as I learn there will be others I like as well.  Most all gluten free bread has entirely different textures and flavors than regular flour.  When baking,  it takes different methods when making and baking the doughs.  I am learning and will continue learning so that my flavors and textures improve.  The main problem I find with gluten free is that since few preservatives are used, the bread dries out or molds very quickly.  Using gelatin and pectin helps with tenderness and moisture.

 I read that trying different methods, doughs, and ingredients is the only way to find what one likes.  When experimenting, it is important to measure very accurately with gluten free and to record any changes made in a recipe.

The first gluten free English muffins I made had a great taste but were heavy and had few nooks and crannies.  The problem was that I kept adding flour because I thought it was suppose to look similar to wheat English muffin bread dough.  Not so; after more reading about it,  the dough should look like and have the texture like regular muffin dough and not bread dough.

And that being the case, English muffin rings have to be used to contain the dough as it rises.
Because I wasn't sure if I would like making gluten free English muffins, I didn't want to order the muffin rings until I was sure I was going to use them on a regular basis.  So I made them from
heavy duty aluminum foil using the following directions:

1.  Cut a piece of foil 6 inches deep, using the entire length of box.
2.  Fold the piece in half with shiny side out (because it is more slick).
3.  Fold again in thirds so that the strip is at least one inch wide.  Find a can that is between 3 3/4 - 4 inches in diameter and wrap the foil on the can to form the circle.  (Or, you can form a circle without the can if you don't have one.
4.  Secure the ends of the strips with small paperclips.
5.  The rings can be used several times, so don't throw them away or recycle just yet.

Gluten Free Whole Grain English Muffins

I used an electric skillet to make the English muffins.  Though I haven't tried it yet, I would think that they could be made in a regular skillet.  They also can be cooked in the oven.  The reason I like to make them in a skillet is that the muffins will have flat tops and bottoms.  If you cook them in the oven first, they will have muffin tops.  If you don't mind that, go for the oven.


Wet ingredients:

1 1/3 cups milk or your choice of liquid
1 tablespoon honey (or other sweetener to make the yeast grow
2 tablespoons oil (your choice)
2 tablespoons chia meal or flax meal
2 1/4 teaspoons yeast (or 1 package)  Not rapid rise yeast

Dry ingredients:

1 cup any mix of sorghum flour, brown rice,  almond flour or oat flour.
1/2 cup millet flour
1/2 cup tapioca flour or potato starch  (not potato flour)
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon xantham gum or guar gum or 1/2 teaspoon of each
1 teaspoon plain gelatin
1 teaspoon dough enhancer  (see recipe below) (or add 1 teaspoon of vinegar to wet ingredients)
2 teaspoons egg replacer or use 1 egg ( see recipe below)

Directions:

1.  Prepare the muffin rings and skillet by spraying with cooking spray.  Sprinkle inside of the rings       with corn meal.

2.  Whisk together the dry ingredients
3.  Heat milk to 110-115℉.  Mix in the honey and sprinkle yeast on the top.  It should get foamy on the top in 10 minutes.
4.  Add oil and chia or flax meal to the yeast mixture.  (add vinegar and egg if not using dough enhancer and egg replacer)
5.  Mix the wet and dry ingredients until it is soft and looks like muffin dough.
6.  Fill the rings about 2/3 full of batter.  Wet fingers with water and smooth the dough to the sides of the rings.  Sprinkle the tops each muffin with corn meal.
                                                                                                                                                                         

Dough has been smoothed to edges of rings

Dough placed in rings on top of corn meal

7.  Cover the skillet and set the temperature on warm.  Let rise until they just start reaching the top edge.  This only takes about 10-20 minutes.

In these I let the dough rise too high on front muffin but it baked OK

8.  Bake in the skillet at 375℉ for about 7-9 minutes on each side.  When gently flipping the muffins with a spatula, the rings may fall off and that is fine.

9.  To make sure that the insides are done, put them in a 350℉ oven for 5-8 minutes.  Take them out of the oven and transfer them to a wire rack. If the rings are still on, gently remove them.  It is important for gluten free English muffins to rest and cool at least for 30 minutes before eating them.  When cool, fork split, toast and use as you would any English muffin.  They can be toasted like regular English muffins.

10.  When the muffins are cool, suggestions for storage can be found at Gluten Free on a Shoestring.


NO SKILLET?  DO THIS

1.  Preheat the oven to 200℉  and turn off.
2.  Place the rings on parchment paper on baking sheet.  Fill as with directions #6.
3.  Place in warm oven until they are risen as in direction #7.  Take out of oven.
4.  Preheat oven to 350℉.  When oven has reached 350℉, bake the English muffins in the center of the oven for about 20-25 minutes, until form and slightly golden.
5.  They will not brown very much so to touch for doneness.  Place on wire rack and let rest and cool for 30 minutes.  Best when toasted.


Remember that these muffins do not have preservatives as commerical muffins and therefore, do not have a long shelf life.  If you want to keep them longer than a few days, freeze them in freeer bags as directed above. Bean, grain, and seed flours do not have the shelf life that wheat flour has.  Keep the flours in the fridge or freezer.

A few explanations:

Binders are important in any baking.  Wheat flour has its binder -  gluten.  Gluten is the substance that makes some people sick.  Eggs are also a binder.  Egg replacers are used for vegans but it has found to help the shelf life of bean, grain (other than wheat), and seed flours.
There are commercial egg replacers such as Ener-G gluten free and Bob's Red Mill egg replacers. Then there is an egg replacer like this which I use:

2 1/2 cups potato starch (not potato flour!)
1 1/2 cups tapioca starch (or corn starch or arrowroot)
2/3 cup baking powder
1/3 cup baking soda

Place all ingredients in a bowl.  Combine well.  Store in an air tight container.


Dough enhancers are used to help the yeast react better.  They can be used with wheat doughs also.  Since gluten free breads need help rising, the dough enhancers are great.  They also help as a preservative.  There are also commerical dough enhancers.  I use this dough enhancer but I made about 1/2 cup of it and keep it in a small air tight container.

1/8 teaspoon ascorbic acid
1 teaspoon pectin
1/4 teaspoon ginger

Add a rounded teaspoon to the dry ingredients.

This is where I ordered the English muffin rings.  I've notice that some reviews are fussing about the rings rusting.  They are made out of the same material as metal cookie cutters.  I found them to be acceptable. One technique I found to keep cookie cutters from rusting is to dry them in a warm oven.  A suggestion for another blogger was to actually use cookie cutters rather than order the rings.  Many of my cookie cutters are not high enough to hold the dough and rise, but it seemed to work for some cooks. Going to try it at Christmas.

Now, does all this sound complicated?  Not at all.  Mix up the flour and keep in a container in fridge or freezer.  That part would save time.  The flours I use in this recipe that I thought were so good were 1/3 cup sorghum flour, 1/3 cup oat flour, 1/3 cup almond meal, and 1/2 cup millet flour.  I found that the flax meal gave the muffins wonderful texture and taste.  Another flour that can be used is brown rice but I explained why I use it only on rare occasions.

I will continue experimenting with the flours.  The first English muffins I made were part quinoa flour and they had a wonderful taste but I need to try again to improve the texture.  Again, I won't find what I truely like unless I experiment.  Now I am experimenting with tortillas.  The bought corn tortillas are great but small.   Larger corn tortillas tend to crack.  Will have the recipe worked out soon, hopefully,  because I miss my wraps.