If you, a family member or friend has been diagnosed with coeliac disease, it might seem like all your favourite treats are off-limits. But a new Irish recipe book is set to banish the myth that gluten-free baking is boring.
When her father was diagnosed with coeliac disease, Denise O’Callaghan realised the gap in the market for gluten-free products and in 2007 the Delicious Gluten Free Bakery was established in Cork.
Now, in Delicious: Recipes From My Gluten-Free Bakery, Denise shares over 100 tried-and-tested recipes, from crepes to Christmas cake, with inspirational photographs and step-by-step instructions, so that you can still enjoy your favourite breads, biscuits, cakes, tarts and savoury snacks.
Delicious: Recipes From My Gluten-Free Bakery by Denise O’Callaghan is published by Mercier Press and retails at €24.99.
Black Forest Gateau
Black Forest gateau is a classic cake and there are many versions that don’t do it credit. I hope you agree with me that this one does.
5 large eggs
150g (6oz) of caster sugar
25g (1oz) of corn flour
25g (1oz) of potato flour
1/2 tsp of guar gum
1/2 tsp of GF baking powder
50g (2oz) of cocoa powder, sieved
75g (3oz) of butter/margarine, melted
For the filling:
5-6 tbsp of Kirsch
510ml (17 floz) of double cream
450g (1lb) of tinned black cherries, chopped
To decorate:
200g (8oz) of dark chocolate
15-20 fresh cherries, preferably with stems
Preheat the oven to gas mark five/190°C/375°F. Grease three deep 18cm/7in diameter round cake tins and line the bases with baking parchment.Place the eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat with a mixer for about 10 minutes, until the mixture is thick and pale.Separately, sieve together the flours, gum, baking powder and cocoa powder three times to ensure there are no lumps, then sieve again into the whisked mixture. Fold in very gently, then slowly trickle in the melted butter/margarine and continue to fold in gently.Divide the mixture between the tins and smooth the surfaces with a pallet knife. Bake in the centre of the oven for about 25 minutes, or until springy to the touch.Leave in the tins for about five minutes, then turn onto a wire rack, gently peel off the lining paper and leave to cool.Lay the sponges on an even work surface. Sprinkle the three layers with the Kirsch to moisten the sponge.In a large bowl, whip the cream until it forms soft peaks. Transfer two-thirds of the cream to another bowl and stir in the chopped cherries. Place a layer of cake on a serving plate and spread over half of the cherry cream. Top with another layer of cake and the rest of the cherry cream, finishing with a layer of cake. Use the remaining whipped cream to cover the top of the gateau, spreading it evenly with a knife.To decorate the gateau with chocolate shavings, melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water, then spread the chocolate out on a plastic chopping board and allow it to set. Using a long sharp knife, scrape along the surface of the chocolate to make thin shavings and use these to decorate the top. Finally, arrange the cherries on top of the gateau.Orange and almond cake
This recipe bakes one 23cm/9in cake. However, there is plenty mixture to make two 13cm/5in cakes, so you can make one to eat and pop the other one in the freezer.
200g (8oz) of butter/margarine, at room temperature
175g (7oz) of caster sugar
3 medium eggs, lightly beaten
200g (8oz) of ground almonds
Juice of 1 orange
100g (4oz) of polenta
1 tsp of GF baking powder
Pinch of salt
To serve:
Whipped cream
Summer fruit (raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, etc)
Preheat the oven to gas mark three/165°C/325°F. Brush a 23cm/9in round cake tin with a little melted butter/margarine and flour the tin with potato flour. Cut out a round of baking parchment the size of the base of the tin and line the base with it.In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter/margarine until pale and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat again until light and creamy. Add the eggs, a little at a time, beating well between each addition. Fold in the ground almonds, orange juice, polenta, baking powder and salt.Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake in the centre of the oven for about 50-60 minutes if cooking the large cake, or 40 minutes if cooking two smaller ones, until the top of the cake is a deep golden colour and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.When removed from the oven, leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack and removing the baking parchment.Decorate by generously covering the top of the cake with whipped cream and piling fresh berries in the centre.
If you, a family member or friend has been diagnosed with coeliac disease, it might seem like all your favourite treats are off-limits. But a new Irish recipe book is set to banish the myth that gluten-free baking is boring.
When her father was diagnosed with coeliac disease, Denise O’Callaghan realised the gap in the market for gluten-free products and in 2007 the Delicious Gluten Free Bakery was established in Cork.
Now, in Delicious: Recipes From My Gluten-Free Bakery, Denise shares over 100 tried-and-tested recipes, from crepes to Christmas cake, with inspirational photographs and step-by-step instructions, so that you can still enjoy your favourite breads, biscuits, cakes, tarts and savoury snacks.
Delicious: Recipes From My Gluten-Free Bakery by Denise O’Callaghan is published by Mercier Press and retails at €24.99.
Black Forest Gateau
Black Forest gateau is a classic cake and there are many versions that don’t do it credit. I hope you agree with me that this one does.
5 large eggs
150g (6oz) of caster sugar
25g (1oz) of corn flour
25g (1oz) of potato flour
1/2 tsp of guar gum
1/2 tsp of GF baking powder
50g (2oz) of cocoa powder, sieved
75g (3oz) of butter/margarine, melted
For the filling:
5-6 tbsp of Kirsch
510ml (17 floz) of double cream
450g (1lb) of tinned black cherries, chopped
To decorate:
200g (8oz) of dark chocolate
15-20 fresh cherries, preferably with stems
Preheat the oven to gas mark five/190°C/375°F. Grease three deep 18cm/7in diameter round cake tins and line the bases with baking parchment.Place the eggs and sugar in a large mixing bowl and beat with a mixer for about 10 minutes, until the mixture is thick and pale.Separately, sieve together the flours, gum, baking powder and cocoa powder three times to ensure there are no lumps, then sieve again into the whisked mixture. Fold in very gently, then slowly trickle in the melted butter/margarine and continue to fold in gently.Divide the mixture between the tins and smooth the surfaces with a pallet knife. Bake in the centre of the oven for about 25 minutes, or until springy to the touch.Leave in the tins for about five minutes, then turn onto a wire rack, gently peel off the lining paper and leave to cool.Lay the sponges on an even work surface. Sprinkle the three layers with the Kirsch to moisten the sponge.In a large bowl, whip the cream until it forms soft peaks. Transfer two-thirds of the cream to another bowl and stir in the chopped cherries. Place a layer of cake on a serving plate and spread over half of the cherry cream. Top with another layer of cake and the rest of the cherry cream, finishing with a layer of cake. Use the remaining whipped cream to cover the top of the gateau, spreading it evenly with a knife.To decorate the gateau with chocolate shavings, melt the chocolate in a bowl over a pan of hot water, then spread the chocolate out on a plastic chopping board and allow it to set. Using a long sharp knife, scrape along the surface of the chocolate to make thin shavings and use these to decorate the top. Finally, arrange the cherries on top of the gateau.Orange and almond cake
This recipe bakes one 23cm/9in cake. However, there is plenty mixture to make two 13cm/5in cakes, so you can make one to eat and pop the other one in the freezer.
200g (8oz) of butter/margarine, at room temperature
175g (7oz) of caster sugar
3 medium eggs, lightly beaten
200g (8oz) of ground almonds
Juice of 1 orange
100g (4oz) of polenta
1 tsp of GF baking powder
Pinch of salt
To serve:
Whipped cream
Summer fruit (raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, etc)
Preheat the oven to gas mark three/165°C/325°F. Brush a 23cm/9in round cake tin with a little melted butter/margarine and flour the tin with potato flour. Cut out a round of baking parchment the size of the base of the tin and line the base with it.In a large mixing bowl, beat the butter/margarine until pale and fluffy. Add the sugar and beat again until light and creamy. Add the eggs, a little at a time, beating well between each addition. Fold in the ground almonds, orange juice, polenta, baking powder and salt.Pour the mixture into the prepared tin and bake in the centre of the oven for about 50-60 minutes if cooking the large cake, or 40 minutes if cooking two smaller ones, until the top of the cake is a deep golden colour and a skewer inserted into the centre comes out clean.When removed from the oven, leave to cool in the tin for 10 minutes before turning out onto a wire rack and removing the baking parchment.Decorate by generously covering the top of the cake with whipped cream and piling fresh berries in the centre. 
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