Brown Rice Bread Recipe

Kayleigh here. So, after many, many, MANY crumbly and dense loaves of bread, I think we've finally found a recipe for the perfect gluten free sandwich bread. The recipe? It came from my Great Grandmother.

Well, mostly. She had no concerns about using non-gluten flours, so I did have to modify it a bit to match our needs. But fortunately for us, nearly every baked good she wrote down the recipe for included 2, 3, or even 4 different sorts of flours. So instead of guessing at what would match what quantities of the All-Purpose flour, I just plugged in direct substitutes I knew would match the taste!

Another addition to this particular recipe came from the previous post, actually! After making a wonderfully light and fluffy Angel Food Cake, Jason wondered 'Why can't we just make sandwiches out of this?' Although a sandwich made out of cake sounds a bit tempting, we realized it was probably not the best idea, but there was nothing saying we could not take a couple pointers from the cake-making process.

For those of you who have made gluten-free bread before, you know how hard it is to make anything close to the light, springy wonder breads of yesteryears. Certainly, the right flour blend can help with this, but most of the success actually comes in the process. Sift the dry ingredients at least once or twice to introduce more air to the loaf. Make sure all the refrigerated ingredients are taken out well beforehand, so they are at room temperature. Before adding the egg, beat it with Cream of Tartar until it forms a stiff foam. And make sure to proof your yeast beforehand!

What is proofing? Well, just take your liquid (water or milk, depending on the recipe) and heat it until just slightly warm. Add a tablespoon or two of sugar, then pour in the yeast, stirring well. After ten minutes or so, the surface should be very foamy looking, which means the mixture is ready to use. If you give it a fair amount of time, and it still does bot foam, then either the liquid was too cold, or the yeast is no longer active. Either way, it is no good, and your bread would not have risen with it!

If you are using a breadmaker, like we are, then you do need take an extra step beyond pressing the 'start' button. Pay attention to the first stirring cycle. As soon as it ends, reach in and remove the stirring paddle. That way, the first rise can happen uninterrupted, and the second stirring cycle will not undo all of that. Really, this will make or break the final rise and texture of the loaf, so do not forget this step! Gluten-free loaves do not have enough elasticity or strength to rise a second time.

Well, suppose I should stop rambling. Onto the recipe!

Brown Rice Bread

Ingredients:

1 Cup Brown Rice Flour
1 Cup Tapioca Flour
1 Cup Tapioca Starch
2 ts Guar Gum
1 ts Baking Soda
1 1/2 ts Baking Powder
1/2 ts Salt
1 Packet Active Dry Yeast (or 2 1/2 TBS)
1 Cup Milk
2 TBS Sugar
2 ts Apple Cider Vinegar
1/4 Cup Mollasses OR Corn Syrup
1 Egg
1/2 ts Cream of Tartar

Directions:

1) Heat the milk until just barely warm, then stir in sugar and yeast until dissolved. Let this sit for at least 10 minutes, or until proofed.
2) Sift all three flours, guar gum, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a bowl. If you're feeling ambitious, sift it two or three times!
3) Break the egg into another bowl, add the cream of tartar, and beat with an electric mixture until very foamy, and you can form stiff peaks.
4) Add the milk mixture to the breadmaker, followed by the molasses/corn syrup, vinegar, flour mixture, and egg.
5) Set the bread machine for a 1 1/2 lb loaf, and press start. We recommend checking a couple of times early on, and scraping off the sides if they are not getting combined properly. Remove the stirring paddle after the first mixing cycle, them just let the rest of the process run its course as normal.

By the end, you should have a beautiful, airy loaf with an earthy brown color. And we promise, it tastes even better than it looks!

Jason here. I’ll be brief, I promise.

Finally a decent home cooked bread I could enjoy. All of the previous breads turned to bland tasteless mush. This holds its texture fairly well, while having a distinct bread taste. The bread itself is harder than a regular bread, but not in a dense sort of way. It is more like how bread feels after you lightly toast it, just now all the way through.

It is missing the elasticity that gluten brings to regular bread. This can make it crumbly at times, so I have taken to occasionally eating my sandwich with a fork and knife. I don’t really mind, it just makes it a little messier. 

All in all, this makes for very decent sandwich bread, if you can spare a little mess.

Long Provincial Vietnamese Restaurant Review

Jason here. Last weekend we went to an awesome Vietnamese restaurant named Long. It is conveniently located right around the corner from Pike Place Market, so if you are in the area we highly recommend you check this place out.

The atmosphere was great. Unlike the last few places we went to which were loud, this place had a much quieter atmosphere, making this a great place for a date. The wait staff was very friendly, and attentive.

We read online somewhere that essentially everything in Long was gluten free except a few choice drinks which obviously contained gluten, and a few very specific menu items. You may be thinking, “How can that possibly be? Vietnamese cuisine typically uses soy sauce”. Well you would be correct, except that Long makes all their soy sauce in house and is gluten free. This is wonderful news for people that love Eastern cuisine, but feared they would never again be able to eat out for fear of gluten soy sauce being used. Just to be sure I asked the waitress when I order my meal if it was gluten free, and without skipping a beat she said yes. 

  The next thing is their menu. Long stays true to its name by having a very long menu. The amount of specialty drinks alone is impressive. I can’t wait to go back when kumquats are in season, and try the Kumquat crush. Curse my luck discovering Long shortly after they go out of season. The menu is also very friendly for those of us who do not speak Vietnamese, with very clear descriptions of the food, and even English translations for the food. You would think this would be the norm, but I often find myself perplexed as to what a dish actually is as I stare at a poorly designed menu.

I ordered an absolutely delicious Pomegranate martini. It was fruity and sweet with a hint of vodka, which is exactly what I look for in a martini. I can certainly add they did not skimp on the vodka either.

For an appetizer we ordered the grilled tender squid, which can be found in the Satay section of their menu. We had about 6 skewers of absolutely delicious squid. They came with a sprinkling of nuts, and were seasoned with what tasted to me like a smoky soy sauce. They also came with some pickled carrots on the side which were tasty themselves.

For my main course, I ordered a specialty dish of Co Ngu crispy shrimp. It came with a heaping salad including the standard green of lettuce, but also some very large minty greens, which I can only assume were full mint leaves. While the salad was impressive, and unique, I unfortunately did not enjoy the mint leaves which dominated the salad. Next time I will simply ask for some sort of caesar salad instead. On the other side was deep fried sweet potato. This was not simply sweet potato French fries. Oh no, the sweet potato was in long almost noodle like strands and sort of woven like a birds nest. The taste was heavenly, like the most delicious crispy noodle you will ever eat. I don’t know how I have gone this long without discovering this magnificent treat. On top of the fried sweet potato were some excellently cooked shrimp, which when dipped in the sauce was delicious. The sauce was very sweet, with just a hint of salt.

Kayleigh here. For my meal, I could not help but opt for the fried tofu pho. Having only been introduced to this lovely soup a few months ago, I have fallen in love with the idea. Deliciously simple broth absorbed by the simple rice noodles and bite-sized bits of tofu, with a bountiful plate of condiments set in front of you to further flavor the bowl. I mean, this pho was good enough to eat plain, but I still gave it a kick with the hot sauce and peppers. Plus, the fragrance of the fresh basil was mouth-watering on its own as I ripped up the leaves to float on top. And to wash it down, I was delighted to spot and order the peanut butter martini. Smooth and creamy, with a strong vodka kick- it really hit on everything I could ask for in a PB drink!

At the end of the meal, after ordering two alcoholic drinks, an appetizer, and two main dishes, I naturally expected the bill to be on the higher side. I was stunned to find it about half of what I’d usually expect. Seriously, for that food, and the prompt service- kudos!

For such excellent service, a diverse menu, stunningly delicious food, great atmosphere, gluten freeness, and a low price, I cannot help but full heartedly recommend Long Provincial Vietnamese Restaurant. It’s a couple blocks away from the Pikes Place stretch, but well worth the extra few steps.

Eden B Bakery Review - Revisited!

EDIT- We are very sad to say, but Eden B. Bakery had to close its doors in October 2013. We have high hopes for the owner, Brooke, to continue helping out the gluten intolerant community in some way or another, so we can update this post again with some good news! 

UPDATE- The menu has changed, and changed again since this revisit! Their seasonal rotation provides a wonderful opportunity for us gluten-free lunch-seekers to enjoy sandwiches and sweet treats that really match the mood of the weather outside, and leave us with a better, brighter mood.

Jason here. Last weekend we had the great opportunity to have a sneak peek at Eden B. Bakery’s new fall menu. When our schedules match up, Kayleigh and I like to meet up for a bite to eat at lunch. Since I work nearby, Eden B. Bakery is our favorite place to go. So now that we have frequented the establishment on a fairly frequent basis, and they are unveiling a completely new fall menu, we thought it would be fun do a new review. The staff is still as wonderful as ever, and the shop itself hasn’t changed so we won’t go into detail there. What we will talk about is the delicious new menu.

Let’s jump right in.

I have a new favorite go to item. Out goes the oven roasted turkey. It comes the grilled pepper steak. Those who read the blog may already know that I love food with hot sauce. From the moment they announced the new steak sandwich was going to have franks hot sauce, I couldn’t stop smiling. I knew I had a found a new favorite and it did not disappoint. The grilled pepper steak is fantastic. It has fresh house-made onion rings, arugula, roasted red peppers, and franks red hot aioli. It tastes fantastic. It is slightly reminiscent of buffalo chicken cheese steaks I used to get when I lived near Philadelphia. I can’t wait to get back and enjoy my favorite buffalo taste again.

Kayleigh here. I admit, I might be a bit biased, since fall flavors are my favorite out of the year. But when I heard pumpkin and squash not once, but multiple times, I could not help but get excited! Ranging from the rich, flavorful Butternut Squash Soup, to the little chunks of squash and pumpkin seeds in the Cornucopia salad, to ending with the creamy, decadent Pumpkin Cream Cheese Cupcake, I don't think it will be hard to form new favorites. The standout to me, though, was the Roasted Autumn Veggie Sandwich. Eden B. Bakery has really outdone themselves, innovating on the classic Eggplant Parmesan tastes with the addition of roasted parsnips, butternut squash, leeks, and spinach. When is the last time you got to have parsnip in your sandwich? Well? It's about time- it just melded so beautifully with the provolone cheese, creating an amazing earthy contrast!

If you are interested, here is a link to our first review.

Dragon Cake Recipe

Kayleigh here. So, this is going to be more of a technique post than a recipe. Why? Well, because we didn't invent the cake, but Jason DID discover his hidden talents as a decorator.

Jason here. This post is going to be a bit different. Usually our comments are kept completely separate. This time however, I just went ahead and added my tips and tricks right along Kayleigh's.

Dragon cake! And actually, it's real easy to do! Don't let those crazy competition shows fool you- you can make pretty darn neat cakes with the items you already have in your cupboard. In this case, a single bundt pan of cake can be cut into a winding, serpentine monster.

Now, down to instructions. First, make an Angel Food Cake in a bundt pan. Pretty much any recipe you find should be safe, since most have a consistent flour-egg white-sugar ratio. Once that's out of the oven, either whip up a batch of vanilla buttercream icing, or set a storebought container out, making sure it is room temperature and easily spreadable- this is a delicate cake!

Now, for the sculpting. Make sure you've got a cookie sheet on hand, or an equally large surface to sculpt and store on. Then, cut the cake in half and place it to where the halves are sideways, forming two humps. At this point, use a smaller or more slender knife to begin smoothing out the humps. You want to use a serrated knife and saw the pieces of the cake off. Otherwise, you will end up just breaking the cake apart in ways you did not intend. Don’t worry to much about making the cake “round”, slicing off a bit of the edges to make it rounder will do. You will be surprised how much the icing and scales cover to make the cake look cylindrical. Make sure to cut the pieces out in fairly long strips, so they can be used more easily later.

Once the humps have been carved and placed to your satisfaction, you can start working with all those shavings! Use a longer, tapered piece for the trailing tail, then moosh and meld the rest into a Draconian head and neck, making sure to add bumps for the eye ridge areas. Tip: it will be easier to attach the soft insides of the cake to each other than the tougher, drier outsides. This will help the head hold itself together in the long run.

With the cake base all set and sculpted, it is now time to apply the icing. Do not be afraid to slather it on fairly thickly- you will actually be using it as a glue for the 'scales' And what are those? Well, you can either buy the nonpareils chocolates from the grocery store, or check a local crafting store for the melting decorators chocolate. The nonpareils give a 'glittery' sort of look and a fun crunch, but the melting chocolate is great if you want a unique flavor or color, since there is a huge variety out there.

Starting from the back and bottom, lay a layer of chocolates across, smooshing them lightly into the frosting to cement it. Put the next layer above, slightly overlapping, and offset so they are covering the larger gap areas (like real scales!). Make sure you push these into the frosting even more, since they do not have as much support. Once an entire section of cake is covered, use your hands to gently smoosh the whole cake inwards, which will further secure the chocolate pieces from falling off. The picture should help with an idea of how to layer the scales.

Once you get to the head, you have quite a few options. You could keep tiling the head with the chocolate pieces or switch things up with regular chocolate chips, nuts, sprinkles, or whatever you have on hand. We also used a tube of red gel to make a couple of slit pupils for the eyes and a gout of ferocious flame right onto the baking sheet. Basically, go crazy here! Make it YOUR dragon!

Now, you have a kick-butt cake, that you can be proud of and how off to all your friends! It is a great project to involve kids in, too, since it brings out their creative side.

Cheesecake Factory Review

Jason here. One of the restaurants I used to go to was The Cheesecake Factory. One of the things I love to order at restaurants is appetizers. In fact, most of the time I eat out, I order an appetizer as my main meal. The Cheesecake Factory has one of the most expansive menus at any restaurant I have been to, let alone the diverse appetizer menu. A great part about the Cheesecake Factory, is you get as fancy a meal as you would like, all for what I would consider a low cost.

I also thought that since they are a large chain, they would also be very gluten friendly. Unfortunately that was not entirely true. When I arrived I asked if they had an allergen menu, or a specific gluten free menu. At least at the Bellevue Square location, they did not have either. So I thought, alright maybe the regular menu calls out allergens. Again no such luck. When we sat at our table, there was an additional nutritional information menu/information pamphlet. No a single piece of allergen information in there. In fact, not a single piece of allergen information anywhere. I check online and found some sources which claim to have received allergen information after contacting their headquarters, and another source, that claimed to have pictures of the allergen menu which they uploaded. Maybe those were old, or maybe my store just did not have them, either way it was frustrating.

Luckily, the rest of the experience was very pleasant. Our waiter was very nice, and understanding when I asked her about a couple items if they were gluten free. With such an expansive menu, I certainly would never expect anyone to remember if any of the items were gluten free, so I completely understood when she said she would have to go back and ask. She quickly came back and told us my second choice of the New Orleans Shrimp was gluten free. As a side note, the waiter also constantly on top of things, refilling my drink as soon as I finished it, clearly my plate when I finished, etc.

The food was very good. It had shrimp, tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, Andouille sausage, and served in a light sauce. I opted for the white rice side. The whole meal was filled with flavor, the sauce coating the entire dish, making it almost like a shallow soup. As a drink I highly recommend the strawberry lemonade. I must have had 3 or 4 refills that night. They are so sweet and refreshing.

Kayleigh here. It was rather relieving to find a good experience here, considering the memories we have of several Valentines Day double-dates through our college years. With hundreds of items on their menu, there are really even more entree options to finagle than most other GF-friendly restaurants can offer! And although they currently do not have an option to finish off the experience with a slice of gluten-free cheesecake, Jason and I remain optimistic about it. Really, it creates an excuse to go and seek dessert somewhere quieter, such as a Frozen Yogurt joint. But that is for another post, now isn't it?

The only other comment on the Cheesecake Factory would be that is was loud. This has little to do with the restaurant itself, as they do everything they possibly could to keep the volume low. It is simply a very busy restaurant, with a lot of people, so be aware If you plan on have a quiet talker with you. Other than that, the moral of this story is to give chains like this a chance- even if they don't have a menu on hand, the chef on shift should be knowledgeable enough to provide you a delicious and poison-free experience.