Almond Cake with Fruit Compote (gluten-free)

Nov 21, 2015

I’ve amassed a fairly impressive arsenal of gluten-free dessert recipes over the past few years, since my friends John & Bridgette went GF.  And one of the biggest things I usually look for in these recipes is that they’re naturally free of gluten, rather than using weird ingredients to try and approximate the texture and taste of wheat recipes.

That’s why I’ve developed quite an affinity for almond meal.  It’s super yummy, plus it has an awesome grainy texture—not perfect for every type of recipe, but helps provide a “crumb” to certain cakes and pastries.  It’s also pretty easy to work with and really forgiving.  I’ve kind of been on an almond cake kick lately for myself, because the flavor is perfect for this summer-to-fall transition time we’ve been in.

Which brings us to the uber-moist flavor bomb we’re talking about today…

This recipe is from Cookie + Kate, and as soon as she posted it, I was dying to give it a try.  The almond cake is the star, and is taken up a level by the combination of orange zest and cinnamon in the batter, and the maple syrup makes it super moist.  It’s also literally the easiest batter to throw together.  Then the slightly-sticky cake is stopped with a roasted fruit compote, which provides additional juice dripping down into the cake.  I went with pears and raspberries, which in hindsight was way too much juice to deal with.  But you can use whatever strikes your fancy.  This is awesome as leftovers, particularly for breakfast.

Don’t judge.

Oat Brown Sugar Strawberry Shortcake…and Happy Birthday ‘Merica!

Jul 4, 2013

Happy 4th of July! Here in Atlanta, everyone will be swimming…and by swimming, I mean trying to avoid floating away in a flash flood, not hanging out poolside. I will hopefully be avoiding the worst of the rain down on the Gulf Coast, but we’ll see how that goes.

Oh, yeah, back to ‘Merica. You know, apple pie tends to get all the glory when it comes to “American desserts”. But for my money, nothing is more American than strawberry shortcake.

First of all, it’s got the colors working in its favor. I mean, just look at it. And it’s got the sweet/cold/creamy combination that apple pie just can’t match. There’s no question that my go-to summer dessert is strawberry shortcake. This one’s a little different, though.

And what makes it different is the oat flour. I happened across this recipe on A Cozy Kitchen and was immediately intrigued. The oat and brown sugar combo definitely sounded up my alley. I’d also never used oat flour, so I was curious about how it differed. It was kind of amazing actually, because it added this whole new, cool texture to the shortcakes. They were moist and fluffy when they shouldn’t have been (I mean, look how thin I accidentally cut them). They were moist and fluffy the next day, which everyone knows is death to biscuits. So I totally recommend going the extra mile and making the oat flour. It’s so easy, it’s not even an extra mile, really. Not even an extra kilometer. Extra few feet…?

Citrus Cake with Citrus Marmalade Filling & Orange-Lemon Icing

Mar 24, 2013

“Life is uncertain.  Eat dessert first.”  

~ Ernestine Ulmer

This was only my second foray into layer cakes. My first (a lemon poppyseed cake, my very first post) was…well, delicious but quite tilty and misshapen. I’ve been picking up tips and bits of advice since then and finally decided to try and put them into practice.

I had pinned this amazing-sounding (and amazing-looking, but my hopes aren’t as high!) citrus cake a very long time ago, and while I was perusing all the layer cakes I’d pinned, this was the one that kept standing out. I’ll usually choose a fruity dessert over chocolate or something rich.

I loved the combination of flavors, and it turned out so much better looks-wise than my last attempt!

Sweet & Savory Chicken Quinoa

Feb 23, 2013

I know, I know. You’re thinking, “Jessica, it’s the middle of winter, we just got hit by a cold spell/blizzard/snowpocalypse and you want me to eat healthy quinoa instead of the comfort food I was craving??? Girl, you are nuts.”

I get that. It’s cold and I want a blue cheese burger, fries, and a few glasses of wine. But in a weird way I’ve also been craving something healthier, to get a tiny bit of that summer feeling. And this quinoa dish is also incredibly hearty and filling.

The flavors are so light and summery, a bright spot in the chilly, rainy winter we’re having. This recipe was also very easy to throw together, and great as leftovers as well. I used a mixture of both red and white quinoa since I had them both on-hand, but you could use either separately as well.

Orange-Almond Biscotti

Dec 7, 2012

So, Smitten Kitchen claims that this is the best biscotti ever. And she may not be wrong.

This biscotti has a lovely light citrus flavor, a great crunch from the almonds, and crisped up to the perfect consistency—something that’s been missing with the other biscotti I’d made.

I couldn’t stop eating them, and even brought a bunch home for Thanksgiving in a ziploc bag and they traveled quite impressively.

These were a great breakfast, awesome with coffee and even with tea (I had them with a mandarin orange herbal tea and it was amazing!). These would make a great gift, hostess gift, or something to have on hand for company.

Best summer dessert ever (Taste of Home’s Fresh Berry Shortcake)

May 20, 2012

When I was in Dallas a few weeks ago and we were making our giant, from-scratch dinner, Kristine submitted this recipe as our dessert. I immediately agreed. I looooove strawberry shortcake! It is my go-to dessert for any summer cookout, get-together, bridal shower, etc. It is light and sweet and decently healthy, and just says SUMMER.

Normally, I just buy strawberries, cut them up, toss in a tiny bit of sugar and water, then let them sit in the fridge for awhile (developing a slight syrup). Then I serve with angel food cake and whipped cream. But we were doing everything from scratch, and this is a fancier (though not too much harder) take on strawberry (or any berry) shortcake. It’s from Taste of Home magazine, I’d link to it but they require registration and other nonsense to visit the page.

We got lucky and found some great berries!

Staving Off Scurvy (Orange Cupcakes with Lemon Cream Cheese Icing)

Apr 24, 2012

I adore sweets, but actually don’t like things that are TOO sweet or rich. That’s why fruity or citrusy desserts are perfect for me. And when I ran across this recipe on Pinterest, I was intrigued because orange is less common from a baking standpoint.

Plus, I had (the most delicious) lemon cream cheese frosting left over from my lemon poppyseed layer cake experiment, so that seemed a perfect fit. I’d also been wanting to try out the new frosting squeezy bag (yes, I realize it has a name—Jorge, duh—but I’m going with this one). So onward and upward!