Pumpkin Spice Whoopie Pie

Y'all, these little whoopie pies are so delicious. With all the sugar, how could they not taste good? I adapted this recipe to make it gluten free. When fall rolls around, I am in the mood for pumpkin everything! I absolutely love pumpkin recipes, and this is my first pumpkin recipe of the season. It makes a lot of small whoopie pies and trust me, you want small ones! They cook better when they are small and they are too sweet to eat a large one. Bite-size whoopie pies are just right for this recipe. :)

Whoopie ingredients:
1 cup brown sugar
1 cup white sugar
15 oz canned pumpkin
2 eggs
1 cup vegetable oil
1tsp. vanilla extract
3 cups gluten free all-purpose flour
1 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg

Icing ingredients:
1 stick butter, softened
1 box of cream cheese, softened
2 cups powdered sugar
sprinkles of some cinnamon
a few drops of vanilla extract

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 
2. In a mixing bowl, mix brown sugar, white sugar, vegetable oil, pumpkin, and eggs together. Mix in vanilla. 
3. In another bowl, mix the rest of your whoopie dry ingredients. Once mixed, add these ingredients into the wet ingredients. 
4. Once it is all blended, put the mix into a gallon size bag. Cut a small hole at the bottom tip. This allows you to pour the mix into bite size whoopies. 
5. Using a cookie sheet, lay a piece of parchment paper on top and start making small whoopies. 
6. Bake for about 12-14 minutes. (Time may vary depending on your oven, so watch it as it cooks.)
7. When they are done, transfer them to a cooling rack. 
8. Repeat steps 5-7 until all of the mix is gone. 
9. While the whoopies are cooling, start making the icing for the inside. 
10. Start by mixing the butter and cream cheese. 
11. Once it is blended, add the rest of the ingredients and blend. 
12. Using a gallon size bag, pour icing into it. Cut a small hole at the bottom tip to pour the icing.
13. When whoopies are cooled, ice the inside of one and top it with another whoopie to make the pie. Repeat until all whoopie pies are made.
14. Keep in refrigerator. Enjoy! 

xoxo

Jade

Gluten Away Virtual Expo

Go check out the Gluten Away Expo that is currently going on right now! There are so many great products. Most, if not all, companies are doing giveaways of their products. Many of these companies also include coupons on the site. There are sample kits that are already created for only $5.00 plus tax that include a good variation of products. Also, you can buy a sample pass for $5.00, $7.00, or $10.00 and choose which samples you'd like to try. The sample kits and sample passes are definitely worth the money you are paying for.

There are also a ton of giveaways that you can easily sign up for by clicking on the booth pages. 

Check out the creators blog at Gluten Away. Taylor Miller is a high school students who is living with Celiac Disease, POTS, and an adrenal disorder. He is one of the first blogs that I started following when I transitioned to gluten free living. His blog includes great recipes and helpful information! 

xoxo,

Jade

Cran-Apple Raisin Bread Pudding

I have to admit, I have always been a huge fan of bread pudding; however, I have a weird texture issue so I was quite worried about creating a gluten free recipe. OH MY GOSH. It was so delicious. Filled with fresh apples, craisins, raisins, and cinnamon, it was a hit. The texture was great, so I am glad it turned out well on the first try. (NOTE: Every time I try a new brand of bread and don't like it, I freeze it in cubes. I don't like to waste them, so I use them for stuffings, breadcrumbs, etc. It also included the "butts" of the bread because I don't eat those.)

• 5 cups of gluten free bread (cut in 1/2 inch cubes)
• 1/2 stick butter (melted)
• 4 eggs
• 2 cups of milk
• 3/4 cup of sugar
• 3 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/3 cup craisins
• 1/3 cup raisins
• 1/3 cup fresh apple (diced into 1/2 inch cubes)

1. Pour bread cubes into a 9-inch square baking dish. 
2. Pour butter over the bread and slowly toss to coat the bread. 
3. In a mixing bowl, whisk the eggs, milk, sugar, cinnamon, and vanilla. Once mixed, stir in the remaining ingredients. 
4. Pour over the bread cubes. 
5. Cover with foil and refrigerate for two hours. 
6. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and bake covered for 50-60 minutes. The center should be set and the top of the bread pudding should be golden brown. 
7. Let it cool for at least 10 minutes before serving. 
8. Enjoy! 

xoxo,

Jade 

Half Way

So I am half way through my first semester as a transfer student at Texas A&M University. I love everything about my school. The campus is gorgeous. The people are amazing, and my courses are exciting and enjoyable! I haven't enjoyed school this much in so many years.

On another note, I am going on week three of having a daily headache. I was glutened about three weeks ago (from Papa Murphy's new Gluten Free Pizza) and I am not sure if it's from then or if I have been glutened since. I have been extremely busy since school started, so I am trying to be much more careful  in hopes this headache will end soon.

About Papa Murphy's... The pizza was delicious! My gluten free pizza was loaded with artichokes, olives, spinach, alfredo sauce, chicken, and bacon, but I regretted it later... Although I really enjoyed eating their gluten free pizza, it was definitely contaminated with gluten. I will stick to making my own homemade pizzas, rather than eating from Papa Murphy's or Domino's Pizza.

I am working on my Pumpkin Spice Cake recipe and will post it soon!

Have a fantastic week,
xoxo
Jade