Gluten Free Sweet Strawberry Bread

I may or may not have purchased two boxes of strawberries the other day at the grocery store. ‘Why?’, you ask. To be honest, I’m not too sure. Could it have been the woman standing next to me, praising the bright, red color of strawberries that looked ‘shockingly good for a New York winter’? Perhaps. Might it have been the creepy grocer staring me down the aisle, willing me to place something in my basket? Quizás. Or maybe it was the low, inviting price of two boxes for $5.

Yes, that sounds more like it.

But then I arrived home…with two boxes of strawberries…and the reality hit me. What was I going to do with all those berries? I started flipping through my recipe books for gluten free baked goods with strawberries and found nothing. Nada. Zilch. How could that be? All I had to go off of were directions for making a banana bread. So I did what I do when I have no recipe: I made up my own. And because I really love sweet breads, I added extra berries to the batter. Yum.

Within minutes of entering the oven, the house was filled with the smells of strawberries and sugar. Amazing. And it tasted delicious too! I ate this cake tonight for dessert, but I would eat it for breakfast as french toast as well! Enjoy!

Sweet Strawberry Bread

Ingredients:
½ cup granulated sugar
½ cup turbinado sugar
2 ¼ cups chopped fresh strawberries
1 cup white rice flour
2/3 cup sweet rice flour
1/3 cup cornstarch
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp xanthan gum
1/2 cup or 1 stick softened butter
2 large eggs
¾ cup milk

Preheat oven to 350 and grease a 9×5 loaf pan.

Mix sugars and strawberries in a bowl and set aside.  In a separate bowl, mix dry ingredients and set aside. In a third bowl, cream butter and then add eggs. Add dry mix slowly and blend until smooth. Blend in milk. Lastly, fold in the strawberry mixture carefully.

Pour mixture into loaf pan. Bake 50-60 minutes or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. Cool for five minutes and serve warm, with butter.

Strawberry Seltzer Waffles

I’ve written and re-written this post a number of times, trying to find an interesting story to pair with this dish.

But there isn’t one. It’s just a simple, everyday eat.

Last week, I made these Strawberry Seltzer Waffles for dinner with my dad. We had both had long weeks and were too tired and lazy to think of anything else to make. My week was so long, in fact, that I went out for dinner four times in seven days. I’d like to say that is a record for me but, sadly, it is not. For this, I blame the allure of New York City restaurants.

Making breakfast for dinner really helped me to relax and re-energize after my busy week. In the mornings, it usually takes me forever to make breakfast. If I have the time, I like to wake up slowly, cook something special and read a magazine while I eat. I rarely have enough time to make waffles so having them for dinner was a big treat. Using Pamela’s Pancake Mix, my dad and I had dinner ready in less than twenty minutes and, while the waffles were baking, we used the downtime to catch up. Now that’s what I call a relaxing night!

Note: I used seltzer instead of water in this recipe to make the waffles extra light, but you can always use water if you prefer.

Strawberry Seltzer Waffles

Adapted from a recipe by Pamela’s Products

Ingredients:

2 large eggs, separated
1 1/2 cups Pamelas Baking & Pancake Mix
2/3 cup seltzer (or water if you prefer)
1 tablespoon oil
1/2 cup strawberries, washed and thinly sliced
1 1/2 teaspoons cinnamon

1. Whip egg whites until stiff.

2. In a separate bowl combine Pamela’s Baking & Pancake Mix, egg yolks, seltzer, oil and cinnamon until the batter is smooth.

3. Fold in stiff egg whites and strawberries and transfer batter to a liquid measuring cup with a wide spout.

4. Pour the batter evenly into a preheated, greased waffle iron. Bake until crispy. Serve warm with a dollop of butter. Enjoy!