Gluten Free Twinkies
As soon as I saw Elana’s post on Gluten Free Twinkies I knew my son and I would be making these. This month I’ve adopted Elana’s from Elana’s Pantry for Book of Yum’s monthy event, Adopt a Gluten Free Blogger. This is a fun event where you can get a lot of great gluten free ideas. I was honored to be adopted this month by Sea. I suggest you see how she created one of my recipes with a vegetarian twist.
Elana of Elana’s Pantry, offers great recipes using whole food ingredients that are gluten free. She also has a big heart for the environment and saving money at the same time. Love that!
Brad's Gluten Free Twinkies
So I emailed the Gluten Free Twinkie post to Brad and he immediately ordered the Twinkie pan. As soon as it arrived we got busy making sure we had all of the ingredients on hand. Brad is the baker in the house so he took the lead. While I was out, he and a friend got busy making the first batch of Gluten Free Twinkies which made 4. By the time I got home there was one left that I got to sample. Verdict- delicious!
Last night it was my turn to bake both the Gluten Free Twinkies and the Homemade Starbucks Orange Cake. As I whined that I don’t like to measure, Brad took care of that. He had everything ready for the Gluten Free Twinkies as I boiled the oranges for the cake. Then he left me alone to mix and bake. Well that’s where things took a turn. I didn’t realize I started on the second page of the directions so I missed the first step of whipping the egg whites so they were ready when I finished the rest of the batter. Oh, and the rest of the batter got the real egg treatment instead of egg replacer like Brad used because he’s not supposed to eat egg yolks. Can you see where this is going. The batter had to sit a few minutes while I whipped the eggs and it got a little thick. I mixed everything together and filled the Twinkie pan half way. I got 7 Gluten Free Twinkies so real eggs must make a difference in volume compared to egg replacer. Into the oven they went with my fingers crossed.
Homemade Starbucks Orange Cake
Now time to work on the cake. This one was so easy with only a few ingredients, that I didn’t need any help, so I thought. I processed all of the ingredients and started pouring the batter into the 9 inch cake pan. Of course I had to get a little help from Andy, my son who happened to be home from college. He wanted an orange Twinkie with Mango Cream. So I saved a little cake batter and baked him an orange Twinkie. Both went into the oven.
Back to the Gluten Free Twinkies. Again, not reading the directions but just looking at the ingredients I did it backwards. I beat the egg whites and agave together instead of starting with the egg whites. I kept beating it and wondering why my cream didnt’ look as good as Brad’s had from the day before. Hmm, better read those directions. So now I had an extra bowl of sweetness which I gave to Andy for his Mango Cream. He put a mango and the cream into the blender. It tasted great but it would not thicken like he wanted.
So after I made the gluten free, dairy free Twinkie filling the right way, we started playing with filling them. The filling really does not fill very much so I took a cue from Elana and added it after cutting and took a picture.
Orange Twinkie & Mango Sauce
The really do taste great! I can’t remember what a chemical Twinkie tastes like but I’m guessing not as good as this. I handed the plate to the boys and asked them to take a bite for the camera. I really only wanted one photo but what I got was a funny stream of silliness. We had a great time making Gluten Free Twinkies. Even the orange Twinkie was great. We ate it with the Mango Sauce that Andy made.
The Homemade Starbucks Orange Cake was in my over achieving oven, which cooked it faster than the directions noted. Yes, I checked the directions many times. My cake was a little darker than Elana’s, but it tasted great. The only hard part was waiting 2 hours for the cake to cool in the pan before I could taste it. By the time all this was done and I had used every bowl, measuring device, mixer and every inch of the counter top and sink, the boys disappeared. I only wish I had taken a photo of my kitchen. It would be good for a laugh.
These were great recipes to make and I had a lot of fun baking with my boys. They are both at home in the kitchen. Andy can cook anything and Brad can bake anything. Life is good!
Boys more interested in Mac
Make it look like you're interested in tasting them
Please look at the camera
Please, just smile for the camera
I give up, enjoy the Gluten Free Twinkies!
Well, for someone who claims to not enjoy measuring and baking, I think you took on a great challenge. And it looks to me that despite the changes, it all turned out great.
Heather- It was a lot of fun. The Homemade Starbucks Orange Cake was the easiest cake I've ever made. The Gluten Free Twinkies had a few more steps. I'm not afraid of a challenge, just bugs.
Heather- Thank you. It just goes to show it must be a good recipe. Not even my mistakes could mess it up. Love the orange cake too!
You are amazing! Those look gorgeous and delicious, and you really make it look easy. Now I want to try it… if only I had a twinkie pan!
-Sea
Sea- You're very kind. It really wasn't that hard. If I can do it, anyone can do it. I found my Twinkie pan from the link in Elana's post. They sell them on Amazon. I'd lend you mine but it would take me longer to get to your house. Now I'm thinking of what else I can make in that pan. Cool shape.
What fun!! You really were busy and creative … mango cream–wow! Love the captions for the pics … how true is that? They were a great help though, right? 🙂
Shirley
Yes, I wish I had a twinkie pan. Those look amazing and delicious! Thanks for sharing!
Emily- These were so much fun to make and especially to eat. I think when Brad's friend is back this week they'll be baking more. Grab yourself one of those pans!
Another great kid staple, is pizza of course! My co-author Julie (jensglutenfreeblog.com) just wrote about her first experiences after finding out her family was going to lead a gluten-free lifestyle, thinking she had to give up Pizza.
We'd love it if you and your readers could share some kid friendly pizza recipes with us to make with our kids.