S'mores

To me, S'mores are quintessential summer. They represent everything good about summer. Camping, bon fires, family, the innocence of childhood...ahhhhh. So when summer rolled around and a girlfriend of mine suggested we take a trip to the coast, of course S'mores were on the list of must-haves. As soon as she uttered the word S'mores, my heart sank. My little girls would have to forego this time-honored treat, or would they?

I had recently purchased Cybele Pascal's new cookbook The Allergen-Free Baker's Handbook and I remembered seeing a recipe for graham crackers. Her cookbook is AMAZING! She shows how one can bake without gluten, wheat, dairy, eggs, soy, peanuts, tree nuts, and sesame. All-in-all she has come up with 100 vegan recipes that are spot on. And her graham crackers, forget about it. They are worth dying for.

The next step was finding a vegan chocolate that doesn't use soy lecithin. This might sound easy, but unless you jump on the internet to source your chocolate, it can be rather difficult. My local grocery store happens to carry Enjoy Life vegan chocolate. I really like this company because they make products free of the 8 major allergens. My grocer only carries the chips and chunks, but they do make bars of chocolate. Obviously bars would be the easiest, but because I only have access to pieces, I melt them in a double boiler and then line a pan with parchment paper. I pour the melted chocolate into the pan and let it cool until hardened.

Next are the marshmallows. Now, most people can have marshmallows. They contain corn though, and that is a no-no for my kiddos. Even the gourmet marshmallows are rolled in cornstarch. I searched high and low and eventually I found a recipe online at www.thekitchen.com. The recipe on The Kitchen comes from Emma Christensen, who adopted the recipe from Eileen Talanian. These marshmallows are truly heaven. I highly doubt you will ever find a better, softer, better browner or melter, EVER. When roasted over a campfire (or in a toaster oven for that matter), these little gems brown to absolute perfection and once brown they are also melted and gooey. Yumm!

Enjoy the recipes and the summer ahead!



Graham Crackers:

1 1/4 cups Basic gluten-free flour mix (see below)
1/4 cup (sweet) sorghum flour
1/4 cup golden flaxseed
1/2 teaspoon xanthan gum
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup dairy-free, soy-free vegetable shortening*
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons firmly packed brown sugar
1 tablespoon light agave nectar (I use honey)

1. Whisk together the flours, flaxseed meal, xanthan gum, baking soda, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine shortening, light brown sugar, and agave nectar (or honey), mixing on medium speed for about 2 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary.

3. Add the flour mixture and beat on low speed until just combined, about 20 seconds.

4. Lay out two sheets of parchment paper. Divide the dough evenly between the two. The dough will be crumbly (If it is too crumbly, put it in the fridge for 10 minutes.). Starting with one mound of dough, pat together into a disk, pressing in any loose bits, them top with another sheet of parchment paper. Roll out into a rectangular shape, 9x6 inches and 1/8 inch thick. Remove the top sheet of parchment paper, and use your fingers to coax the rectangle into a more uniform shape (think making pinch pots). Top again with parchment paper, roll one more time until smooth, then remove the parchment paper and set it aside for later.

5. Using a fluted pastry wheel (or pizza cutter), divide the rectangle into three 6 by 3-inch rectangles.

6. Pressing lightly with the pastry wheel so as not to cut all the way through, score each rectangle in half lengthwise and crosswise, to form four 3 by 1 1/2-inch crackers.

7. Top again with the reserved sheet of parchment paper and place on the rack in the freezer to chill for 20 minutes, or until firm.

8. Repeat with the other half of dough. You can stack them in the freezer.

9.Preheat oven to 325 degrees fahrenheit.

10. Once the dough has chilled, remove from the freezer, remove the top sheets of parchment paper, and transfer the dough, still on the parchment paper, to a baking sheet. You can fit both on the same baking sheet, just trim off any extra parchment paper.

17. Bake for 18 minutes, or until golden brown, rotating the baking sheet halfway through. Transfer the baking sheet to a cooling rack, and let the crackers cool while sill on the baking sheet. Let cool completely before breaking the crackers along the perforated lines. Store in an airtight container.

I typically make a double batch because these suckers go quickly! And a truly delicious variation is to sprinkle a cinnamon and sugar mixture over the top of the dough before you put it in the freezer and press it in by hand (that way it sort of keep the sugar on after it is baked). Your family will beg for these day and night!

* I use Spectrum Organic vegetable shortening. It is sourced from palm. It isn't a nutritious as coconut oil, but because coconut oil becomes liquid at such a low temperature, it just isn't ideal for this application.


Fluffy Vanilla Marshmallows:


Gratefully adapted from Marshmallows by Eileen Talanian
Makes roughly 100 marshmallows, depending on size

Tools:
9x13 baking pan or other flat container
4-quart sauce pan (slightly larger or smaller is ok)
candy thermometer - one that can clip to the side of the sauce pan
standing mixer with a wire whisk attachment - hand mixers just aren’t strong enough, unfortunately
stiff spatula or spoon (as opposed to a rubbery, flexible one)
Optional: Pastry brush

Ingredients:
3 tablespoons (usually 3 packets) unflavored gelatin powder
1/2 cup + 2 tablespoons cold water
1 1/2 tablespoons vanilla extract
3/4 cup water
1 1/4 cup sugar cane syrup
pinch salt
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar

Grease your baking pan with shortening. Use a paper towel to wipe the pan and make sure there’s a thin film on every surface, corner, and side. Make sure the rest of your equipment ready to go.

To bloom the gelatin, measure the gelatin powder into your mixer bowl. Combine the water and vanilla in a measuring cup and pour this over the gelatin while whisking gently with a fork. Continuing stirring until the gelatin reaches the consistency of apple sauce and there are no more large lumps. Set the bowl back in your standing mixer.

Combine the water, cane syrup, salt, and sugar in a 4-quart sauce pan. Place this over medium-high heat and bring it to a boil. As it’s coming to a boil, occasionally dip your pastry brush in water and brush down the sides of the pot. This prevents sugar crystals from falling into the liquid, which can cause the syrup to crystallize. If you don’t have a pastry brush, cover the pan for 2 minutes once the mixture is at a boil so the steam can wash the sides.

Do not stir the sugar once it has come to a boil or it may crystallize.

Clip a candy thermometer to the side of the sauce pan and continue boiling until the sugar mixture reaches 250°F. Take the pan off the heat and remove the thermometer.

With the mixer on medium speed, gently and carefully pour the hot sugar syrup down the side of the bowl into the gelatin. The mixture may foam up - just go slowly and carefully. When all the syrup has been added, cover the bowl with a cloth and increase the speed to high (the cloth protects from splatters). Whip for 10-12 minutes, until it looks like glossy meringue.

When you’re finished mixing, lower the speed to medium and lift the whisk partway out of the bowl so it spins off as much marshmallow mix as possible. Using your stiff spatula, scrape the marshmallow mixture into the pan. This stuff is very thick and sticky, so don’t worry about getting every last bit out of the bowl. Just get as much as you can.

Wet your fingers and smooth the top so it’s even. Let the mixture sit out uncovered for 12-15 hours to set and cure.

Marshmallow Coating
1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1/2 cup tapioca starch (my change)

Combine the powdered sugar and tapioca starch (my change) in a bowl.

Sprinkle the top of the cured marshmallows with powdered sugar mix and turn them out onto your work surface. Use a spatula to pry them out of the pan if necessary. Sprinkle more powdered sugar mixture over the top.

Using a sharp knife or pizza wheel, cut the marshmallows into squares. It helps to dip your knife in water every few cuts. Toss each square in the powdered sugar mix so all the sides are evenly coated.

Marshmallows will keep in an airtight container at room temperature for several weeks. Leftover marshmallow coating can be stored in a sealed container indefinitely.