Get Your Gluten-Free Valentine's Day On

 It's February in Kansas City and you know what that means... line drying your laundry outside!  Wait..what?  This weather is weirding me out in a completely fabulous way.  But it hardly feels like Valentine's Day is approaching because well, it's warm.  So instead of it feeling all wintery and lovey-dovey, you can give yourself a sugar high from heart-shaped goodies.  Have fun with that.

Holidays are kind of a trip when you have a kiddo on a more limited diet.  Pretty much all store-bought holiday-themed treats are out due to cross-contamination for us.

So hear you have it - pink marshmallows and a giant heart-shaped fruit cookie.

First up, marshmallows.  Evelyn has been asking for these for.ev.er.  I'm not sure where she got the idea in her head, probably from Calliou.  All crazy ideas she gets in her head I blame on Calliou. 

Most recipes I found contained corn syrup, and I'm morally opposed to buying it (or something like that), so I found a recipe that I could use organic sugar/evaporated cane juice for.  You can use whatever your little heart desires.  The recipe I found was vague on times and such, so here's a more detailed version that I worked up.

Marshmallows

Ingredients

• 2 small packets Knox gelatin
• 1 cup water (divided)
• 2 cups evaporated cane juice
• dash salt
• 1 T vanilla
• food coloring

 Dissolve the gelatin in 1/2 cup water and set aside.  In a small saucepan, heat cane juice and 1/2 cup water until dissolved.

Add in your gelatin/water mixture.  Heat to a rolling boil then remove from heat.

Pour into a standing mixer and let cool for 10 minutes.

 Add salt and vanilla.  Beat on high for 10-15 minutes until light and fluffy and doubled in quantity.  If you would like colored mallows, add about 10 drops of color about half way through the whipping process.

Pour into a lightly greased and powdered sugared 9 x 13 pan or two smaller pans, whatever you've got.  This is not an exact science.

Give them a few hours to set.  They will be super, super sticky.  If it leaves an indent when you touch the top like this, they need longer to set.

 
To cut them, coat a sharp knife in a little oil or butter and it should slide through.  Remove them and coat them in powdered sugar or else you will have one giant mass marshmallow of doom.

You can cut them with cookie cutters too if you'd like to.  How cute would these be melting in a mug of hot chocolate on Valentine's Day???

Yum...

Fruit Pizza

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup butter, softened
• 1/2 cup white rice flour
• 1/2 tsp xanthan gum
• 1/2 tsp gelatin
• 1 egg
• 1/3 cup white sugar
• 1/2 T milk
• 1 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp vanilla
• pinch salt
• 1/4 cup tapioca starch
• 1/4 cup potato starch
• 8 oz. cream cheese
• 1 cup powdered sugar 
• 1 tsp vanilla
• fruit of your choosing

In a bowl, beat butter until creamy.  Add rice flour, xanthan gum, gelatin, egg, sugar, milk, baking powder, vanilla, and salt.  Beat well.  Add tapioca and potato startch.  Beat until well combined. 

Lightly grease a stone baking pan.  I haven't tried this with other types of bake wear because I've found a baking stone to be the perfect pan for gluten-free goodies.  

Using wet fingers, spread the dough out into whatever shape you choose.  I've done this both as one large cookie, a few medium sized, or bite sized.  Anything works here.  Just keep rewetting your fingers if the dough starts to stick to them.  This can take a little while, be patient.

Bake for 12-14 minutes at 350 degrees.

When it's done, slide it off carefully onto a cooling rack.  Be sure to cover the rack with something because gluten-free cookies fall apart easily until they cool.  I used a silicone baking pan liner, but a paper sack or wax paper would work too.

With a mixer, combine your cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until smooth.  I added a little red food coloring to be festive.  Spread onto your cookie once it is cool.

Make yourself some glaze to coat your fruit in.  I used strawberries and bananas cut into bite sized pieces.

• 1/4 cup sugar
• pinch salt
• 1 T corn starch
• 1/4 cup orange juice
• 1 T lemon juice
• 2 T water

Combine these in a small pot and heat until boiling.  Allow to boil for 2 minutes, until thickened.  Let it cool slightly, but only for a few minutes because it will set when completely cooled.  Stir into your fruit and then spread over your cookie.

I've also done this recipe without the glaze and it's still yummy.  The glaze just helps keep the fruit fresh longer.

We had some friends over for dinner one evening and I had the cookies and cream cheese icing all made up.  I divided it into little bowls for the kids and let them frost their own little pizza and decorate with whatever fruit they wanted.  Made for a fun activity that kept them busy so the adults could chat.

Enjoy!