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Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Nutmeg Blondies

Continuing to learn about cooking by ratios...If you are new to cooking with ratios, check out my summary in this post. Each month, a group of GF bloggers join forces to create their own unique baked goods using the ratios of one ingredient to another--the collaboration of these forces in the blogsphere is known as the Gluten Free Ratio Rally.

This month's Gluten Free Ratio Rally's challenge was Brownies. Mary Fran at Franny Cakes is our host this month. Here is the whole list of brownie experimenters....Don't these all sound so good?? :)

Adina from Gluten Free Travelette made Chocolate Brownie Pie with Orange Zest
Angela from Angela's Kitchen made 
Gluten & Dairy Free Cream Egg Brownies
Brooke from B & the boy! made Triple Chocolate Brownies
Caitlin from {Gluten Free} Nom Nom Nom made Peppermint Brownie Bars
Caleigh from Gluten Free[k] made 
White chocolate and marshmallow brownies
Caneel from Mama Me Gluten Free made Triple chocolate brownies
Charissa Luke from Zest Bakery made 
Slutty gluten-free brownies
Claire from My Gluten Free Home 
PB&J Brownie Whoopee Pies
Claire from This Gluten-Free Life made St. Patty's Day Marshmallow Swirl Brownies
Erin from The Sensitive Epicure made Mexican Cocoa Brownies with an Almond & Pepitas Crust
Gretchen from kumquat made 
salted caramel brownies
Irvin from Eat the Love made 
Blueberry Citrus Marble Brownies
Jean from Gluten-Free Doctor Recipes made Blue Ribbon Brownies
Jenn Cuisine made Grain free brownies with no-bake ricotta cheesecake cream
Jonathan from The Canary Files made Vegan Marbled Banana Walnut Brownies
Karen from Cooking Gluten Free! made 
GF Chewy Crackled Top Brownies with Raspberry Puree
Mary Fran from FrannyCakes made 
Gluten-Free Hazelnut (Nutella) Brownies
Morri from Meals with Morri made Oaxacan Brownies & Mesquite Cacao Blondies
~Mrs. R from Honey From Flinty Rocks made Black Bean S'More Brownies
Pete and Kelli from No Gluten, No Problem made 
Caramel Mexican Chocolate Mesquite Brownies
Rachel from The Crispy Cook made 
Co-Co Nut-Nut Blondies
Shauna from Gluten-Free Girl made 
Gluten-Free Brownies
Tara from A Baking Life made Mint Chocolate Flourless Brownies
TR | No One Likes Crumbley Cookies Gluten Free Berry Fudge Brownies 

 ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Ruhlman's book does not have a ratio specifically for brownies, but according to these tips from Elements of Chocolate, the ratio for brownies is similar to cookie dough, except that the amount of flour is greatly reduced. The ratio for cookies is 1 part sugar: 2 parts fat: 3 parts flour.

For this project, I decided that I didn't want to do a chocolate dessert this time. So I started trying my hand at a blonde brownie--without chocolate chips. This may be "sacrilegious" of sorts, but here goes.

I added nutmeg to my brownies for something different, inspired by a favorite non-GF recipe for "white gingerbread" (which, incidentally, did not have any ginger in it). I made my brownies Paleo, using grapeseed oil, as well as almond and coconut flours. (I've also experimented with this ratio using my current all-purpose flour blend. My hunch is that the almond flour and grapeseed oil make this batter more moist. If you use the AP blend, you will probably need less flour.) I've tried them with and without nuts, and they're great either way! (my pictures were taken without them)

The ratio of ingredients that I ended up using was =
1 part sugar: 2 parts fat: 2.5 parts flour: 2 parts egg

4 oz. grapeseed oil (can also use melted coconut oil or butter)
2 oz. coconut palm sugar
1 t. vanilla
2 eggs
2 oz. almond flour
1 oz. coconut flour
1/2 t. baking powder
1/4 t. salt
1 t. nutmeg
1 oz. chopped walnuts (or to taste--optional)

With a fork, cream together oil & sugar, then add vanilla. Beat in the 2 eggs.
In a separate bowl, combine dry ingredients, except for the walnuts. Then add dry ingredients to wet ingredients, and whisk well until smooth.If you are using the walnuts, fold them in.
Pour batter into a greased round or square pan. Bake at 350 degrees F for 15 min, or till lightly brown on edges, and toothpick comes out clean.
Cool completely before cutting.

Makes about 12-16 brownies, depending on the size you cut them.

This post was also shared as part of Slightly Indulgent Tuesdays.

17 comments:

  1. I love nutmeg! I should try make blondies sometime!

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  2. Oh yummy! Once I finish my pan of blondies, I am so trying yours! Probably with grapeseed oil as the Monkey is not a fan of coconut. :P

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  3. These look so delicious!! Great post for the rally!
    Blessings, ~Mrs. R

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  4. The blondies look great! I've never made blondies before, I think I should now!

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  5. I love blondies and have never thought of adding nutmeg to them. Sounds delicious!

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    1. Thanks everyone!! I hope you all enjoy them! :)

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  6. I really need to use more coconut and almond flour, this is a good inspiration.

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  7. These sound delicious! I know just the girl to bake these for (she is the only person I know who doesn't care for chocolate in any form - LOL). I love that these are grain free also! Thanks so much for sharing them. :)

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    1. Angela, I'm glad I could help! I have a friend who is allergic to chocolate, and so I like being able to make her treats that she can have, too...it makes my heart happy! :)

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  8. oooo, nutmeg. One of my favorite spices in baked goods.

    Great job this month!

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  9. Nutmeg is such an awesome spice - a delight for all the senses. Thank you for sharing, Heather - these sound delicious!

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  10. i just bought some coconut sugar... fascinated to use it. i love that and your grain-free flours. very cool ingredient list!

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  11. Grain free AND refined sugar free blondies = a recipe I adore!

    Beautiful and delish!

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  12. Oh, I love nutmeg! I never use it enough. It sounds like the perfect spice to go with the almond and coconut flours. You did a great job making grain-, dairy- and refined-sugar-free blondies! Delicious!

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  13. These look amazing. I'd never even heard of blondies before, so I'm definitely going to try these out. I've never seen coconut flour in the shops before, but then again I've never actually looked for it so I'll have to keep my eye out!

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    1. Hi Suzanne, I hope you enjoy these! It depends on where you live, if you'll be able to find coconut flour at your grocery store or health food market. I live in a relatively small town, and so I usually order my coconut flour from amazon.com; here's the link for the one I get:
      http://www.amazon.com/Tropical-Traditions-Organic-Gluten-Coconut/dp/B000VZR1ZG/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1339988106&sr=8-3&keywords=coconut+flour
      This bag lasts me a while, because a little coconut flour goes a long way...Have fun experimenting, and let me know how it turns out! :)

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