Gluten Free doesn't have to be.....

Those that know us, also likely know that we are a gluten free family. Not because it seemed like a cool trend, and not because I was bored and looking for a fun new culinary adventure, but because, at 3 years old, our 3rd boys was diagnosed with Celiacs Disease.  Shortly after that we discovered that our oldest also struggled with Celiacs. (I'll post that journey some other day!)
This left a little problem in my kitchen.  I was raised by a Mom and a Grandma that baked...maybe not bread...but muffins, and brownies, and cookies, and pies...oh my! And then there's me....with 4 little boys and an OVERWHELMING desire to have the house smell like fresh cookies when they come home from school...and stupid gluten free flour that does everything regular flour doesn't, and messes EVERYTHING up!!  I cried...for a few weeks....it felt like mourning...mourning the mom I wanted to be. I heard everyone saying "be gentle with yourself...you'll get it...it just takes time."....and I genuinely understood that...I PROMISE I did...but in that little dark cloud, I was faced with healing my child by depriving him of the childhood that I had envisioned. It sucked.
Flash forward to now....
I'm going to take a moment to brag on myself a little....we are KILLING IT over here with the whole gluten free thing...most days! (I earned that gold star sticker!)  So now...let me pass on my learning and hopefully pull you out of your dark cloud a little faster!
Gluten Free doesn't have to be....tasteless, gritty, dry, dense, crumbly, gloppy, difficult, expensive!!  It can and will be all the wonderful things you know and love about "regular" food!!  You just have to stretch your kitchen wings a little! You are going to learn how to make ingredients WORK for you instead of just being there and you not really knowing why! You are going to embrace spices and your flavors are going to soar! You are going to find the magic in using whole ingredients....expensive, unhealthy, prepackaged stuff is out...raw, whole, and wholesome is IN!  You are going to find creative and fun alternatives to those things that just really can't make the GF switch (hamburger buns when you eat out! My nemesis!)  And all of that is going to make you a better cook!!
Give yourself grace, and some time in the kitchen....if I can do it, so can you!  I'll even get you started! 

This is a recipe from my Grandma...her kitchen always made us happy.  Obviously when this was written, GF was not even a glimmer on our horizon....so...let's tweak it and make it work!!  Bob's Red Mill Cup for Cup flour is AMAZING...so is King Arthur GF replacement flour!  I have used both for this and it works great!  One major thing to keep in mind with GF baking, the grains used for the flour will absorb more moisture than wheat....so when switching over a regular recipe it would not be uncommon to add more moisture.  For this one, I used 8Tbsp of butter (in place of 6Tbsp shortening) and likely had to use a little extra milk when making the dough soft.  Then, another key thing to note, the GF dough is always stickier than regular...so to pat it out flat; grab some parchment paper and use butter or oil all over then dust with a bit of GF flour....pat out the dough onto the paper and use it to help you roll. Works like a charm! Everything else stayed the same!

Here's where the creative fun comes back into your kitchen....instead of using raspberries, spread pumpkin pie filling on the dough and sprinkle with pumpkin pie spice and a few chocolate chips or raisins (or both!).  Put some melted butter and brown sugar in the bottom of the baking pan (instead of the raspberry mix) and add the cut dough/pumpkin rolls. Bake the same or just a touch longer. We topped it with raspberry jelly (because why not!) and a drizzle of powder sugar glaze. FALL in a pan!! I'd invite you over to try some...but the boys got there first!!