Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe (Corn-free)

I've been wanting to come up with a creamy frosting for my Yellow Cake with Brown Sugar Glaze Recipe,  to use instead of the sugar glaze.  With the help of my husband and daughter, the three of us came up with a perfectly creamy, delicious cream cheese frosting that uses Caster sugar (super fine cane sugar) instead of powdered sugar (I found the Caster sugar at my local PCC Market).  I also use Singing Dog Organic Pure Vanilla Extract in this recipe (found at my local Metropolitan Market), which is corn-free.  So now we're good to go!

Cream Cheese Frosting Recipe

1 cup whipped cream cheese
2 tbsp unsalted butter
1/2 cup Caster sugar
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

In a medium-sized mixing bowl, combine all ingredients using an electric mixer and beat until smooth.  Add about 20 drops of food color to get a nice light color shade to the frosting.  This recipe will frost a 9x12 cake.  Refrigerate cake after frosting it.

Chocolate Pudding Recipe (Vegan)

I've been craving chocolate pudding lately, but with corn being out of our diet, I can't buy packaged pudding mix or pudding cups in the store.  So I came up with my own recipe for chocolate pudding that is thickened with arrowroot powder.  Using unsweetened coconut milk as the base, this is a really delicious, creamy vegan treat.

Chocolate Pudding Recipe

2 cups unsweetened coconut milk

1/2 cup sugar

1/4 cup Hershey's unsweetened cocoa powder

1/2 tsp pure vanilla extract

Pinch of salt

2 heaping tbsp of arrowroot powder mixed with 1/4 cup coconut milk (for a slurry to thicken)

In a medium sauce pan over Medium High heat, add 2 cups of coconut milk, sugar, cocoa, vanilla, and salt and bring it to a boil, stirring it constantly with a small whisk.  In a small bowl, add the arrowroot powder and the 1/4 cup of coconut milk and whisk it together until the powder is dissolved.  Pour the slurry in the sauce pan and whisk it with the rest of the ingredients.  Lower the heat to Low and whisk it until thickened, then turn the heat off and whisk it for a few more minutes to help it to cool down.  Pour the pudding into glass custard cups and let them cool for 20 minutes before covering them with plastic wrap and refrigerating.  Refrigerate for 2-3 hours before eating so the pudding can set. Makes 6 individual servings.

Chocolate Cookie Bars Recipe (Vegan)

We've been having some reactions lately and had to cut out cocoa butter, so I decided to come up with a chocolate cookie bar recipe.  Now Sam can still have that rich chocolate flavor, but without as much sugar as brownies have.  These cookie bars are very chocolate-y and moist and are a great addition to our dessert rotation.

Chocolate Cookie Bars Recipe

1 cup unbleached flour
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup Hershey's unsweetened cocoa powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp water
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix together dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly.  Spray an 8x8 square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.  Spread batter evenly into pan with a spatula. Bake for 20 minutes. Let cool completely before cutting into squares.

Toaster Pastry Recipe

These homemade toaster pastries (we call them "Toaster Pops" at home) are made with minimal wholesome ingredients, so you don't feel bad when your child wants one.  I've found that jam works better than jelly for the filling (it's less runny when heated).  These toaster pastries are flaky and delicious and are a good complement to any breakfast or afternoon snack.

Toaster Pastry Recipe

1/2 recipe of Flaky Pie Crust (I use 1 cup of just unbleached flour for it, not both types of flour)
Your favorite jam
Sugar in the Raw

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  Make the pie crust recipe.  Lay a piece of wax paper on your work surface, put a chunk of the dough in the middle, and lay another large piece of wax paper over the top. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out to a flat, thin piece.  Use a knife to cut out a long rectangle the width of a store-bought toaster pastry, but twice as long.  Spoon out some jam into the middle of one side of the rectangle.  Be sure to keep the jam about 1/4 inches away from the edges.  Fold the other half of the pastry over the jam side and use a fork to press the 4 edges together.  The dough should be enough to make 4 toaster pastries.

Lay the toaster pastries in a single layer on a cookie sheet sprayed with non-stick cooking spray.   Use a knife to cut a couple of slits in the tops of each pastry, and sprinkle Sugar in the Raw on them.  Bake them in the oven for 15 minutes.  Eat them right away, or let them cool completely before laying them in a single layer in a large Ziplock freezer bag.  When you want to have one, take it out of the freezer, microwave it for 20 seconds on High, then put it in the toaster.  I use two knives (one on either side of the pastry) like tongs to remove it from the toaster when done since they are so flaky.

Orange Creamsicle Cake Recipe (Vegan)

This is one of my favorite desserts.  Sam wants this cake for her birthday this year - she says it's better than chocolate cake!  The orange juice and vanilla really work well together adding lots of "orange creamsicle" flavor to this super moist cake. The best part is, no frosting required, however, chocolate or vanilla frosting would be fabulous with this.

Orange Creamsicle Cake Recipe

2 cups unbleached flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup pulp-free 100% orange juice
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1-1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Sugar in the Raw if  not using frosting

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix together dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix together thoroughly, but don't over mix. Spray an 8x8 square or 11x7 rectangular baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Pour the batter into the pan and top it with a sprinkling of Sugar in the Raw (as much or little as you like) if you don't want to frost it. Bake the cake for 25 to 30 minutes. When the time is up, insert a toothpick into the middle of the cake to make sure it's done. 

To make cupcakes instead, bake for 16 minutes.  Makes 18 cupcakes.

If using rice flour to make this cake use the following instead of the unbleached flour above:
1-1/4 cups brown rice flour
3/4 cup white rice flour
2 tbsp binder (potato starch, tapioca flour, arrowroot powder, etc.)
Plus 1/4 cup more orange juice

Instant Hot Cocoa Mix Recipe

Sam is sensitive to corn and I haven't been able to find an instant hot cocoa mix without corn syrup in the ingredients in my local grocery store.  So I decided to make my own.  It took a lot of attempts to combine the perfect mix, but it was well worth the effort.  This cocoa is really, really good.  The two kinds of cocoa powder and the two kinds of sugar work very well together.  It's great to have a jar of instant cocoa mix on hand because you can tailor the amount of cocoa mix in the cup depending on the size mug and how much water you are using.  We really love this hot cocoa! 

Instant Hot Cocoa Mix Recipe

2 cups instant dry nonfat milk powder
1/2 cup Hershey's unsweetened cocoa powder
2 tbsp Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder
2/3 cup white sugar
1/2 cup Sugar in the Raw
1/4 tsp salt

Mix all of the ingredients together and store it in an airtight container (I use a large peanut butter jar).  For best results, before storing in a jar, sift the mixture through a fine mesh collander (this will eliminate any dry milk lumps).  Makes over 3-1/2 cups of cocoa mix.  Shake the jar and/or stir the contents with a spoon before each use to make sure everything is well combined.  Use 3 or more heaping tbsp of instant cocoa mix per cup of boiling water.  

Banana Muffin Recipe (Vegan)

Sam can eat bananas on a limited basis now, so I've started making my banana muffins again.  These muffins are egg-free, dairy-free, and are very moist and delicious.  They are great for breakfast, snack, or any time of day.

Banana Muffin Recipe

2 cups unbleached flour
2/3 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp nutmeg

2 extra ripe bananas
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla

Sugar in the Raw

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Mix dry ingredients together in a medium mixing bowl.  Peel the bananas and put them in a separate bowl.  Use a fork and mash them until they become a puree, as smooth as you can get (some small chunks are OK).  Add the wet ingredients and mix throroughly. Spray a muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray and pour the batter in. Top with a sprinkling of Sugar in the Raw. Bake for 20 minutes.  Makes 12+ muffins. 

If you want to make Banana Bread instead of muffins, pour the batter into a loaf pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray, sprinkle on some Sugar in the Raw, and bake it at 375 degrees for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. Let cool thoroughly before slicing. This bread and these muffins freeze well. 

Apple Muffin Recipe (Vegan)

Our little apple tree gave us quite the harvest of apples this year.  I peeled, cored, and sliced the apples and froze them into three-cup servings to make pies and muffins with.  You can use fresh or frozen apples or unsweetened applesauce in this recipe.  The muffins pictured above were made with my frozen apples.  These  muffins are so delicious and moist!  They are perfect for breakfast, a snack, or even dessert with a scoop of vanilla ice cream.

Apple Muffin Recipe

2 cups unbleached flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp nutmeg

1-1/2 cups of apple puree or unsweetened applesauce
2/3 cup water (if using applesauce, put in 1/2 cup water instead)
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp vanilla

Sugar in the Raw

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

If using frozen apples, you'll need about 3 cups of frozen, peeled, apple slices.  Let them thaw out in the fridge, then add them to a food processor or blender and "Liquify" them into puree.  If using fresh apples, it will take about 4 to 6 apples to get the 1-1/2 cups of puree.  Peel the slices, then run the apple slices over a grater and grate the apples.  Then add the grated apples to a food processor or blender and "Liquify" them.  In the end, you want 1-1/2 cups of apple puree. 

Mix the dry ingredients together in a medium mixing bowl. Add the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly. Spray your muffin tins with non-stick cooking spray and pour the batter in. Top with a sprinkling of Sugar in the Raw. Bake for 20 minutes. Makes 16 muffins. 

If you want to make Apple Bread instead of muffins, pour the batter into a loaf pan sprayed with non-stick cooking spray, sprinkle on some Sugar in the Raw, and bake it at 375 degrees for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.  Let cool thoroughly before slicing.  This bread and these muffins freeze well. 

Pineapple Sorbet Recipe (Vegan)

I was given a beautifully ripe pineapple the other day from my friend Laura.  When I asked her earlier how to tell if a pineapple is ripe, she said that it's ripe if the bottom of the pineapple is yellowish and if you can easily pull a couple of the spiky leaves out of the middle of the top.  I decided to make pineapple sorbet out of the pineapple she gave me.  I am so glad I did!  It's fantastic to say the least, and currently my favorite sorbet.  The light yellow color of the sorbet is beautiful, and it is so fresh tasting.  If you can get a pineapple on sale, it's a really affordable sorbet your family will love.

Pineapple Sorbet Recipe

1 ripe pineapple
1 cup water
1/2 cup sugar

Cut away the outer shell from the pineapple, and discard all of the woody parts. Cube the pineapple core into small squares and add them to a medium-sized pot. Add the water and sugar and heat to boiling over High heat. Reduce heat and simmer for 3 minutes. Let the mixture cool in the refrigerator for a couple of hours and then pour it into a blender and "liquify" it.  Pour the pineapple puree through a mesh strainer to strain out any pulp and fibers.  Add the strained pineapple puree to an automatic ice cream maker to make the sorbet (I run the ice cream maker for 16 minutes).  Makes 1 pint (2 cups) of sorbet.

Pumpkin Bread Recipe (Vegan)

Fall always reminds me that I need to start baking with pumpkin again.  I created a fantastic pumpkin bread recipe a few years ago that is a favorite in our house, and somehow I neglected to publish it here until now.  This recipe doesn't use cinnamon, just allspice and nutmeg to spice it and bring out the great pumpkin flavor.  This bread is moist and delicious, and it is also egg-free, which means you can lick the batter from the spoon and mixing bowl (Sam's favorite thing to do).  Enjoy!

Pumpkin Bread Recipe

2 cups unbleached flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp allspice
1/4 tsp nutmeg

1 can pumpkin puree (15 oz. can)
2/3 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil

Sugar in the Raw

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Mix dry ingredients together in a medium mixing bowl.  Add the wet ingredients and mix throroughly.  Spray a loaf pan with non-stick cooking spray and pour the batter in.  Top with a sprinkling of Sugar in the Raw.  Bake for 1 hour, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean.  Let cool thoroughly before slicing.  Makes 1 loaf.

If you want to make muffins instead, bake the muffins for 20 minutes at 400 degrees.  Makes 16 muffins. This bread and these muffins freeze well.

 

Egg-free Pumpkin Pie Recipe (Vegan)

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, I decided this year I would come up with a vegan pumpkin pie recipe (no dairy, no eggs) so Sam can enjoy it more than one time. I thought that adding flour to the pumpkin mixture in lieu of eggs would stick it together and give it the right texture. The hard part was figuring out exactly how much flour to use. I'm happy to say I have it just right in this recipe and the texture is spot-on. Also, the spice blend I came up with works perfectly with the pumpkin. This pie is super easy to make, and it smells heavenly while baking. I'm thrilled with how this pie turned out, and am looking foward to making it again for Thanksgiving.

Egg-Free Pumpkin Pie Recipe

1 small can of 100% pure pumpkin (15 oz.)
1 cup of Hemp milk or vegan milk
2/3 cup sugar
2/3 cup unbleached flour
1/2 tsp allspice
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 recipe of Flaky Pie Crust (I use 1 cup of just unbleached flour for it, not both types of flour)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Combine the sugar, flour, spices, and salt in a medium sized mixing bowl. Add the pumpkin and milk and stir it all together until well-combined.

Make the pie crust dough. Lay a large piece of wax paper on your work surface, put the ball of dough in the middle, and lay another large piece of wax paper over the top. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a thin circle larger than the pie pan. Spray the pie pan with non-stick cooking spray. Peel the top piece of wax paper off, and invert the crust, centered, into the pie pan and remove the other piece of wax paper. Press the dough into place in the pie pan. Fold the edges of the dough that is hanging over back under itself along the edges of the pie pan and press the dough to the sides of the pie pan to make a nice crust.

Pour the pumpkin pie filling in the middle of the pie crust and use a spoon or spatula to move the filling to the sides of the crust.

Bake the pie for 1 hour. Let the pie cool for 2 hours before serving. Store the pie in the refrigerator.

Ice Cream Pie Cupcake Recipe

Happy Birthday, Sam! I made these wonderful "Ice Cream Pie Cupcakes" for Sam's birthday today. The idea to make these frozen cupcakes just came to me out of the blue, and I am very happy with how they turned out. The combination of the shortbread crust with vanilla ice cream and blackberry sorbet is so tasty. I've posted my recipes for the crust and sorbet previously, this is just a new way to put them together for a fun dessert.

Ice Cream Pie Cupcake Recipe

1 recipe of Vegan Shortbread (pie crust)
1 recipe of Blackberry Sorbet
1/2 pint of vanilla ice cream of your choice (I used Coconut Bliss vegan ice cream)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Make the Vegan Shortbread pie crust recipe. Instead of pressing the dough into a pie pan, spray 8 sections of a muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray, divide the dough into 8 pieces, and press the dough into each of the muffin sections to yield 8 mini crusts. Spray the mini crusts with more non-stick cooking spray and bake them in the oven for 15 minutes. Let them fully cool before adding the ice cream.

Let the ice cream sit out for 30 minutes or so to soften up before scooping and spreading the ice cream into the pie crust. Fill each pie crust to the top with ice cream. Put the muffin tray in the freezer to set while you make the sorbet.

Make the Blackberry Sorbet recipe. As soon as it is done, while it is still soft, scoop out a heaping tablespoon of sorbet and top the Ice Cream Pie Cupcakes with the sorbet like it is frosting. After "frosting" all of the cupcakes, put the muffin tray back in the freezer for a couple of hours before serving.

When you're ready to serve them, slide a knife down into the side of a cupcake and it will pop right out of the muffin tin. You can serve the cupcakes on a plate and just pick them up like a regular cupcake to eat, or you can put them in small custard cups and eat them with a fork. Makes 8 Ice Cream Pie Cupcakes.

Sunflower Butter Crispy Bars Recipe (Vegan)

Sam is sensitive to corn, so I can't make Rice Krispie Bars for her since the marshmallows are made from corn syrup. I've wondered how to get around this for a long time (years, actually) and recently I figured it out. I decided to try using agave sweetened Sunflower Seed Butter as the binder for the Rice Krispies. Sure enough, it worked! The bars set firm in the fridge, and when I cut them and take them out of the pan, they leave behind just a few crumbles. They are really good! And perfect for a child with a corn sensitivity or allergy.

Sunflower Butter Crispy Bars Recipe

1/3 cup Sunflower Seed Butter (MaraNatha brand - it's not sweetened)
1/4 cup light agave nectar
2 cups Rice Krispies cereal

In a medium pot over Medium Low heat, add the sunflower seed butter and agave nectar and stir it constantly, mixing thoroughly, for about 2 minutes (don't let it burn or boil). Turn off the heat and add the Rice Krispies cereal, gently mixing it all together. Pour it into an 8x8 square baking pan and use a spatula to press the mixture evenly into the pan. Put it in the refrigerator for 2 hours to set before cutting and serving. Store bars in the refrigerator or freezer (they freeze well).

Sugar Cookie Recipe (Vegan)

Sam rarely gets cookies with brown sugar in them anymore due to her sensitivity to it, so I reworked my Basic Cookie Recipe to use just white sugar, and the cookies turned out great. I didn't realize at the time I created my Basic Cookie Recipe that it would be sugar cookie dough without the brown sugar. These are perfectly sweet, crispy, and chewy Sugar Cookies by themselves, or you can frost them or decorate them how you wish.

Sugar Cookie Recipe

1-1/4 cup unbleached flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup sugar

1/3 cup + 1 tbsp vegetable oil
1/4 cup + 1 tbsp water
1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix together the dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly.

Lightly flour your work surface, your hands, and your rolling pin. Roll out part of the dough at a time to 1/8" thick and use a 2" cookie cutter to cut out the cookies. Use a spatula to move the cookies to the cookie sheet. Recipe will yield 25 cookies. Bake for 12 minutes.

If using rice flour to make these cookies use the following in place of the unbleached flour above:
3/4 cup brown rice flour
1/3 cup + 1 tbsp white rice flour
2 tbsp binder (potato starch, tapioca flour, arrowroot powder, etc.)

Vanilla Brownies Recipe (Vegan)

We love these vanilla brownies! They are rich and moist and go great with a scoop of Blackberry Sorbet. I based this recipe off of my Carob Brownies Recipe (Vegan) when we wanted a dessert that didn't have chocolate or carob in it.

Vanilla Brownies Recipe

2-1/2 cups unbleached flour
2 cups sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt

1 cup water
1 cup vegetable oil
2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix together dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix thoroughly. Batter will be thick. Spray a 9x12 pan with non-stick spray. Spread batter evenly into pan with a spatula. Bake for 25-30 minutes. Let cool completely before cutting into squares.

If using rice flour to make these brownies use the following instead of the unbleached flour above:
1-1/2 cups + 2 tbsp brown rice flour
3/4 cup white rice flour
2 tbsp binder (potato starch, tapioca flour, arrowroot powder, etc.)

Carob Sorbet Recipe (Vegan)

We eat sorbets instead of ice cream in our house, and I wanted to create a sorbet not made from fruit for a change. We love carob, so I came up with this recipe using carob powder and light agave nectar (carob and agave go *great* together). The sorbet is rich and sweet, just the way it should be. We really enjoy this dessert.

Carob Sorbet Recipe

2 cups water
1/2 cup light agave nectar
1/2 cup toasted carob powder (Bob's Red Mill brand)
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1/4 tsp salt

In a small saucepan over Med. High heat, whisk together all of the ingredients until well combined. When it starts to boil, remove it from the heat and let it sit out for a while to cool off. When it's cooled for the most part, move the saucepan to the fridge. Let the mixture cool in the refrigerator for a couple of hours, and pour it into to an automatic ice cream maker to make the sorbet (I run the ice cream maker for 16 minutes). Makes 1 pint (2 cups) of sorbet.

Agave Tea Cookies Recipe (Vegan)

I've recently been re-stocking my freezer with baked goods and sorbets that Sam can eat that don't have granulated sugar in them. I really like this tea cookie recipe I came up with that uses light agave nectar for the sweetener. The cookies are thin and crisp. They start out slightly sweet tasting and end with a hint of salt for a nice balance of flavors. Sam loves these cookies, too, which makes all of my efforts worth it. Richard was instrumental in this recipe's success. The dough comes together really nice, but it's sticky and I was having a hard time getting the cut shapes off my work surface and onto the cookie sheet. I was so frustrated I almost threw this recipe out. Richard noticed my frustration and suggested I flour my surface first before rolling out the cookies. Duh! My other cookie recipes aren't sticky like this one and I don't have to flour my surface for them, so I just didn't think to do it. It worked like a charm. Richard also named these cookies. They do go really nice with a cup of tea.

Agave Tea Cookies Recipe

2 cups unbleached flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup light agave nectar
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 tsp pure vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together dry ingredients. Add the wet ingredients and mix thoroughly. The dough will come together nicely, but will be sticky.

Spray 2 cookie sheets with non-stick cooking spray. Lightly flour your work surface, your hands, and your rolling pin. Roll out part of the dough at a time to 1/8" thick and use a 2" cookie cutter to cut out the cookies. Use a spatula to move the cookies to the cookie sheet. Recipe will yield 36 cookies. Bake for 12 minutes.

Honey Cake Recipe

I recently realized that Sam is sensitive to brown sugar, and refined sugar in general if she gets too much. So I created a honey cake recipe that we all can enjoy. This cake is moist and dense, and the flavored honey (I used blackberry honey) drizzled over it really makes it a great dessert.

Honey Cake Recipe

2 cups unbleached flour
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 tsp salt

2/3 cup clover honey
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/3 cup water
1 tsp vanilla

Flavored honey (to drizzle over top of cake)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix together dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix together thoroughly, but don't over mix. Spray an 8x8 square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Pour the batter into the pan and bake it for 30 minutes. When the time is up, insert a toothpick into the middle of the cake to make sure it's done.

Before serving, drizzle flavored honey over the piece of cake. Blackberry honey is especially good.

Yellow Cake with Sugar Glaze Recipe (Vegan)

I love my yellow cake recipe. This is a wonderfully moist, flavorful cake that can be frosted any way you choose. We like this cake with sugar glaze on it in lieu of frosting. The combination of the cake and the glaze is fantastic.   The picture above has brown sugar glaze on the cake.

Yellow Cake with Sugar Glaze Recipe

For the cake:

2 cups unbleached flour
1 cup sugar
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt

1 cup water
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1-1/2 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Mix together dry ingredients. Add wet ingredients and mix together thoroughly, but don't over mix. Spray an 8x8 square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray. Pour the batter into the pan and bake it for 30 minutes. When the time is up, insert a toothpick into the middle of the cake to make sure it's done.

If using rice flour to make this cake use the following instead of the unbleached flour above:
1-1/4 cups brown rice flour
3/4 cup white rice flour
2 tbsp binder (potato starch, tapioca flour, arrowroot powder, etc.)
Plus 1/4 cup more water

When the cake comes out of the oven, start making the glaze.

For the glaze:

2/3 cup brown sugar or white sugar
1/4 cup water
Optional: 1/2 tsp flavoring extract

Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan over Med. High heat. Stir constantly until the sugar melts and it starts to boil. The liquid will be transparent. Remove it from the heat (do not boil it) and pour the glaze evenly over the warm cake. Use a butter knife to gently pull the sides of the cake away from the pan so the glaze can go down the sides. Let the cake cool before cutting it.

Fabulous Mixed Berry Pie Recipe (Vegan)

Many years ago I created this pie recipe when I needed a dessert for a holiday meal. The addition of Allspice to the pie filling really adds great flavor. I always use frozen berries to make this pie, and the consistency of the filling comes out perfect every time. The picture above is a mixed berry pie with strawberries, blackberries, blueberries, and raspberries in it.

Fabulous Mixed Berry Pie Recipe

2 - 12 oz. bags of frozen unsweetened mixed berries (24 oz. or 1-1/2 lbs)
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup flour
1/2 tsp Allspice
1/2 tsp salt

1 recipe of Flaky Pie Crust (I use 2 cups of just unbleached flour for it, not both types of flour)

Top with Sugar in the Raw

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Lay a piece of aluminum foil on the oven rack where you are going to bake the pie just in case any of the filling runs over.

In a medium sauce pan add the frozen berries, sprinkle the sugar and the flour evenly over the berries, and add the Allspice and the salt. Turn the heat onto Medium and gently stir everything together. Continue to stir the berries over Medium heat constantly for about 5 minutes until it is well mixed and the filling has a nice consistency.

Make the pie crust dough and divide it in half. Lay a large piece of wax paper on your work surface, form half of the dough into a ball and set it in the middle of the wax paper. Take another large piece of wax paper and cover the ball and roll it out into a large circle between the wax paper pieces that is bigger than your pie pan.

Spray a 9" pie pan with non-stick cooking spray. Remove the top piece of wax paper, and invert the rolled out pie crust over the pie pan and peel the wax paper off it. Use your fingers to gently press the crust into the pie pan and let the edges hang over the sides. Pour the pie filling into the crust.

Form the second half of the dough into a ball and set it on the wax paper again, cover it with the other piece of wax paper, and roll it into a circle large enough to cover the top of the pie with edges hanging over. Remove the top piece of wax paper and make a few slits into the pie crust. Once again, invert the pie crust over the pie to cover it evenly and peel away the wax paper. Press the two crust edges together and roll them under and just inside the edge of the pie pan. After you've done that around the whole pie, use a fork to gently press the crust to the edges of the pie pan all around the pie. Top the pie with a sprinkling of Sugar in the Raw.

Bake the pie for 1 hour. Let it cool before serving it.