Caramel - Coconut Heaven (Gluten Free)

This afternoon, in the frenzy of gearing up for Christmas, I busied myself in the kitchen making two incredibly delicious things: coconut macaroons and salted caramel sauce. The first is surprisingly easy. The second goodie is a bit more difficult, but SO worth it. The salted caramel sauce is that good. And I'm skipping dinner since I sampled WAY TOO MANY of my products. WAY TOO MUCH!!

 Salted caramel sauce in heatproof glass jars. Ready to be refrigerated for up to one month.

 Salted Caramel Sauce drizzled on top of a homemade coconut macaroon. Perfection.

Salted caramel macaroon on the left and (on the right) a macaroon topped with bittersweet chocolate and salted caramel. The test kitchen favored the cookie with only the caramel sauce. However, all interested parties loved the chocolate/caramel one as well.


THE RECIPES!

Coconut Macaroons (from Dec. issue of Food and Wine magazine)

One 14-oz. bag of Baker's sweetened coconut
One 14-oz. can of sweetened condensed milk
1 teaspoon of pure vanilla extract
2 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon of salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and line two baking sheets with two sheets of parchment paper. In a medium bowl, combine the coconut and the condensed milk with the vanilla. In the bowl for your stand mixer, beat the egg whites and salt on high until stiff peaks form. Fold egg whites into the coconut mixture.

Scoop tablespoon-sized mounds of the mixture onto the baking sheets, spreading cookies one inch apart. Bake sheets in the upper and lower one-third of the oven for 25 minutes, switching sheets from top to bottom and front to back halfway through the baking. When cooking time ends, place sheets on racks and let cookies cool completely. Macaroons can be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.

OPTIONAL: melt 4 oz. of bittersweet chocolate. Either dip cooled cookies into chocolate or drizzle over the top.

OPTIONAL: Make salted caramel sauce. Drizzle over the top of macaroons. This is my family's favorite choice. See recipe below.


Salted Caramel Sauce

3/4 heavy whipping cream
1/4 light corn syrup (Karo's)
1-1/4 cup of white sugar
4 tablespoons of unsalted butter
1/2 teaspoon of sea salt (the flaky fleur de sel found at gourmet shops)

In a microwave-safe cup (like Pyrex), pour the cream and corn syrup. In a wide, medium saucepan (I used my All-Clad copper core saute pan) spread the sugar in an even layer. Cook over medium heat WITHOUT STIRRING until it begins to turn light brown (caramelize). Swirl the pan (DO NOT STIR) to incorporate the caramelized sugar. At this point, microwave the cream/corn syrup mixture for 2 minutes on high power. Continue cooking the sugar until it turns a medium amber color (caramel will have formed, about four minutes). Remove from heat and CAREFULLY add the cream to the mixture, stirring with a long-handled spoon. Use a long-handled spoon as the hot caramel can jump up and burn your hand when the cream is added.

Return the caramel to low heat and add the butter and salt, stirring until any hard pieces of sugar are melted. Transfer the caramel to a heatproof glass and let cool. Can be refrigerated for one month. Reheat before using.

Gluten-Free Pantry Essentials

Jojo asked me to write about pantry essentials and kitchen equipment for eating gluten free! And I am happy to oblige because 1.) I am well educated on this topic and 2.) it will give me a break from Christmas preparations that make my head spin.

One key to eating healthy, gluten-free is: STAY AWAY from prepared foods. They are high in calories and are not the best for your health or your waist-line. The experienced gluten-free cook makes almost everything from scratch. I do buy Udi's Breads because they are superior in taste to the breadmaker gluten-free variety. They are also lighter and have less calories.

And Duke's Mayonnaise is great in a pinch ;)

I also buy prepared pie shells from Whole Foods. They have figured out the "science" behind a good crust. No other manufacturer can touch their quality. I've tried the boxed, gluten-free kinds at home, and they failed. So go with Whole Foods.

Now let's start with pantry essentials:

Canned Diced or Whole Tomatoes -- The only canned vegetable/fruit I have in the pantry is canned tomatoes. These can be used to cook spaghetti sauce, okra and zucchini dishes, beans, soups, etc. Tomatoes are the basis of a number of good family dishes, and I find myself reaching for them time and time again. My favorite brands are Muir Glen and Pomi; both are gluten-free and organic. Along these lines, I also have plenty of tomato paste and tomato sauce on hand. I use these primarily as a base for my Dr. Pepper barbecue sauce and to top/bind together meatloaf.

Fresh Fruits and Fresh Vegetables -- As many of you know, I have farm-fresh fruit, veggies and meats delivered weekly from a local consortium of farmers and ranchers. I base my weekly meals on the goodies that are in my bin every Friday. I don't ever buy canned fruits or veggies -- eating whole foods is KEY to living gluten free. And it's a whole lot healthier (and much, much lower in sodium) than canned counterparts. I always have onions (love the sweet 1015s), broccoli, squash (winter and summer), green beans, asparagus (in season), carrots, celery, romaine or green leaf lettuce, green onions (use the green ends for chives), strawberries, blueberries, pineapple, raspberries, pears, apples, lemons, oranges, limes and sometimes kiwis. This is just a sampling -- I usually go with what's in season.

Fresh Potatoes -- I would rather die than eat potatoes out of a box. Always, always, always have a few russets, yukons or new potatoes on hand for oven-fried or mashed potatoes. I also have delicious organic garnet yams from Central Market. I am a southerner and I love my sweet potatoes (yams). I use them for baking, mashing or incorporating into a pie.

Pam's Other Essentials:

• Lowfat milk (1% or 2%)
• Whipping cream
• Sour Cream
• Lowfat Greek Yogurt
• Buttermilk
• Butter (Salted and Unsalted -- the latter is best used when using for cooking)
• Cream Cheese (spreadable and in the blocks)
• Cheddar Cheese (Extra Sharp) in a block -- I like to freshly grate it
• Bleu Cheese crumbled
• Feta Cheese crumbled
• Mozzarella string cheese
• About 7 different kinds of mustard
• High-Fructose-Free Ketchup (made by H-E-B)
• Duke's Mayonnaise (the only mayo to use if not making homemade)
• Assorted Fruit Preserves
• Pacific Free Range Organic Chicken Broth
• Udi's GF Bagels
• Udi's GF White Bread
• Udi's GF Multi-Grain Bread
• Minute Maid Orange Juice
• Gluten-Free Spaghetti or Linguine (Dried)
• Imperial Pure Cane Sugar 
• Brown Sugar
• Domino Confectioner Sugar
• Pecans (Texas is famous for its pecans!)
• Coconut milk (I make a lot of Indian dishes and coconut cakes!)
• Bob's Red Mill Quick Cooking Oatmeal (GF)
• Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• Expeller Pressed Canola Oil
• Joe T. Garcia's salsa mild and medium
• Milagro Corn Tortillas (available at HEB, Central Market)
• Pamela's Baking and Pancake Mix (the best)
• Bob's Red Mill All-Purpose Gluten-Free Flour
• White Jasmine Rice
• Brown Basmati Rice & Brown Short-Grain Rice
• Mango Chutney
• Baker's Sweetened Coconut
• Maple Syrup
• Karo Light Corn Syrup (for candy-making)
• Karo Dark Corn Syrup (for pecan pies)
• Milagro Tortilla Chips (all God's children gotta have a snack!)
• Baking Soda
• Baking Powder
• Xanthan Gum (essential to GF baking)
• Guar Gum (" " ")
• Authentic Foods Superfine Brown Rice Flour
• " " Tapioca Starch
• " " Potato Starch
• Arrowhead Mills Organic Yellow Corn Grits
• Bob's Red Mill GF Stone Ground Cornmeal
• Sea Salk Coarse and Finely Ground
• Black Pepper in Grinder
• Cayenne Pepper 
• Pimentos
• Horseradish in a jar
• Apple Cider Vinegar
• Lea & Perrins Worcestershire sauce
• Tabasco Sauce
• Cajun Pepper Sauce

This is a good start. And I'll be sure to include recipes in the future that include these pantry essentials. I didn't include spices in this list. I will in an upcoming post.

Because I love to make cakes for my family, I always have my flour mixture on hand. I'll write about this in a future installment and include my amazing recipe for coconut cake!

Happy cooking!