Gluten Free Bismarck Holes (aka custard-filled donuts or Bavarian Creams)

When i was a little kid, I used to rate the different donut shops around our small, hick, CA farming town, based on one specific item:

Was there enough pudding in the middle of the Bismarcks for every bite in the donut.

And to my 4 year-old-mind, there was only one donut shop that accomplished this crucial task. I don't remember what it was called, but it was Pepto-Bismal pink, with blue lettering and it was a drive in (yes, where you pull up, and order at this little glass window and see everyone working in the back- pretty much reminding me of a clown car, come to think of it). And for those who want to know, I think Gemco was the worst (this was the late 70's version of the SuperTarget...but it did't survive).

But, ah, those Bismarcks were the BEST! The pudding wasn't too sweet. It was the right temperature...and there was enough of it for every bite of the donut (and I would know because I used to make sure that I ate all of the non-pudding donut and save the filling for last.

Oh, and the chocolate topping...this had to be just the right type of chocolate, because if it was too hard, then it flaked all over when you ate it (and the code word in our family was "neat". No kidding).

So, whilst reliving these pleasant childhood memories, I have searched and searched for a good filled donut recipe, that I could consume in mass quantities and remain faithful to my GF diet. I have developed many other donut and bagel recipes that are great, but, those are different stories. The most interesting facts about donuts, Bismarcks, in particular. Every culture has fried dumplings that they call donuts. It's AMAZING. Bismarcks, aka Bavarian Creams, were named after Otto von Bismarck, chancellor of Germany in the late 1800's. The donut, itself, when filled with raspberry jam or chocolate is called a Berliner, named for the Saxony region of Germany where this goodie was first invented. (For a laugh, if you don't know, think of the speach by JFK where he says that he's a Berliner...and in the context he used, it means, he was a jelly donut. For those of you in Germany, or who speak German, let me have my moment here).

Ok, ok, enough history. Here's the recipe ;)

Gluten free Bismark/gluten free custard filled donut

2 pound powdered sweet rice flour
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 1/2 cups dark brown sugar
2 1/2 cups boiling water
1 batch of vanilla pudding, prepared, and frozen
1/2 bag of chocolate chips, melted in the microwave
Peanut, Vegetable, or Canola oil

1. In a 4 quart sauce pan, bring the water to a boil.
2. Dissolve the brown sugar in the boiling water and remove from heat. (or boil the water in the microwave in a microwavable bowl and add sugar). Let cool, or it will cook the eggs.
3. Place the flour in a separate bowl, making a divot, or well, in the middle. (this will help prevent uneven mixing in the next step).
4. Gradually mix in the sugar/water with the flour.
5. Mix in the eggs. The mixture will become very thick, like the play dough.
7. Make this dough into 2-3" balls (think golf ball). I recommend putting some rice flour on your hands.
8. With each ball, press one side into the ball, so that the dough makes a cup for the pudding.
9. Fill with custard and pinch the dough shut around it. (Be careful not to overfill with custard, or you'll have a big mess. Also, be careful to have enough dough on every "side"- if the dough is too thin, then it will burst when cooking).
10. In a Fry-Daddy or large chef's pan, heat the oil to about 350* (medium heat).
11. Place the balls at the bottom of the pan. Do not over crowd the the pan.
12. Constantly rotate the balls in the oil as they cook. Press them gently against the side of the pan as they cook, so that they grow.
13. Cook until golden brown.
14. remove from the oil and place on a wire cooling rack, with paper towels beneath (to catch the oil).
15. In a microwave safe bowl, melt the chocolate chips. Use immediately after melting.
16. After the donuts are cool (and still on the wire rack), pour/drizzle the melted chocolate.
17. Cool and eat!

Store these away from each other (not touching) in an open-air container.

Whipped Cream Variation:
If you don't want to make the custard, then use RediWhip or some other still whipping cream!

Jam-Filled Variation:
For jam-filled, fill the donuts with jam instead and after cooking, roll in powdered sugar!


Enjoy your goodies!
The Irish Lass

A Philadephia Story

And welcome to spring! In the old Irish calendar, Groundhog Day (aka Brigid's Day) was the day where the goddess of spring came back to the earth (yes, it DOES sound a like the story of Persephone!) And to celebrate, my family always watches Groundhog Day. It's not just about loving the comedy antics of Bill Murry, which are generally great, but it's about getting in the right mindset for spring. If you've seen it, you'll remember that weatherman is stuck in Punxsutawney, PA to cover the groundhog story. There are several scenes in the little coffee shop, one involving angel food cake and sticky buns (Andie McDowell: "Oh, these sticky buns are heaven"). So, I will share my recipe for GF Sticky Buns, which use...Philadephia Cream cheese ;) (Nice how things work out, isn't it?)



Gluten Free Sticky Buns

4 eggs
1/2 C white, granulated sugar
1 package cream cheese, or neufchatel
1 stick margarine
1 package rapid rise yeast
2 packages instant yeast (non-rapid)
1/2 C cold water
2 tsp Baking Powder
1 tsp Baking Soda
3 tsp Xanthan Gum
1 package (~2C) glutinous rice flour

1. Preheat oven to 350*F and place a 9"x13" pyrex pan on the bottom rack. Fill this pan full of water. DO NOT ADD COLD WATER TO THIS PAN AFTER IT IS HOT, or it might explode.
2. With an electric mixer, beat the eggs and the sugar together on high for 8 to 10 minutes, or until you have a mix that looks like meringue (hard, white peaks).
3. Add softened cream cheese and beat throughly.
4. Add margarine and beat throughly.
5. Add all three packets of yeast and mix throughly.
6. Add the cold water, and mix throughly.
7. Add the baking soda, baking powder, and xanthan gum, while mixing throughly.
8. Add the glutinous rice flour and mix throughly. The you should end up with a really thick, fairly sticky dough. If you you can't pick up the dough with a tablespoon to make a rounded lump, add 1 more tsp xanthan gum.
9. Set aside.




Caramel sauce:
1 1/2 sticks butter ( you can use margarine, but it will water down the caramel)
1 1/2 C packed brown sugar (dark has more molasses in it, so it tastes EVEN BETTER)
3 tsp Ceylon cinnamon
4-8oz walnuts, coarsely chopped (or pecans. DO NOT use almonds or cashews)

1. Melt the butter over medium heat
2. Add the brown sugar.
3. Stir in cinnamon.
4. Bring to a boil for 1 minute.
5. Remove from heat.




Assembly:
1. Grease a bunt pan with Crisco (I hear Pam works, too)
2. Sprinkle 1/3 of your chopped nuts into the bunt pan.
3. Pour enough of the caramel sauce into the bunt to cover the bottom, about 1/3 of the mix.
4. Drop tablespoons of dough onto the caramel sauce in the bunt pan. When you're dropping them in, don't move them after they're in. Try to drop them so that there is some space (about 1/2") between the balls. This should take about 1/3 to 1/2 of your dough.
5. After making one layer of dough in the pan, sprinkle with 1/2 of the nuts and 1/2 of the caramel sauce left.
6. Repeat dough dropping, using all the rest of the dough.
7. Top with the CARAMEL SAUCE, THEN the remaining nuts.
8. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the rolls are set to touch (if you gently "thump" them with your finger, if sounds like a drum) and the caramel is boiling up in the middle.

IMPORTANT:
When you remove the bunt pan from the oven, put a plate over the top of the pan and flip the pan. LEAVE THIS SIT FOR 5 to 10 MINUTES. Then, remove the bunt pan.























Enjoy the goodies!
The Irish Lass

ma t'uan, zeen duy, deep fried mochi, and gluten free donuts

And it was my first time at dim som today. Amazing, huh? with the near scandalous joy with which I talk about Asian food. I was, well, very pleasantly surprised.

My friend recommended Mandarin Kitchen, which in in Bloomington, MN. Now, I know that all of you might not want to fly to Minneapolis every weekend, but if you're here, or if you do fly here, check out this restaurant.

As a young, savvy, 30something, I, of course, googled the reviews for this place (mostly in search for pictures, or better yet, a coupon). I saw mixed reviews- oh the food is good, but the tip is added into the price, get there early, etc, etc.

so, I get there at 9:45 and join the other 10 cars in the parking lot. They open at 10. Since it's a balmy 25 degrees out, I decide to queue up outside the door. Glad I did. By the time the door opened, there must have been 30 people in line. And some of them Asian. (It is my belief that when you go to an Ethnic restaurant of your choice, it is a good sign that people of that ethnicity are eating there as well- like, this is a non-verbal stamp of approval).

My first impression of the restaurant- busy. good. must be good.

Next: man, it's clean. very clean. And I got tea within 60 seconds of sitting down.

This is a good sign.

I then, embarrassingly, asked one of the numerous waiters "so, this is my first time to dim som; is it buffet or... ? ". He kindly told me that the food is brought past the table and you get to see what you order...right off the plate! it's like you're freakin' royalty or something!

So, I got to inspect the food before ordering. And since I'm looking for ingredients like flour, barley, oats, rye, I avoid the painful "uhm, could you ask the chef is there's gluten in this dish" scenario. The servers know exactly what's in it. And the best part is...it's mostly rice!

YESSSSSSSSSSSSS
"noodles" are rice paper wrapped around a meat or vegetable stir fry. it's like cannaloni!

"dumplings" are rice paper with the meat inside. (meat being lobster, shrimp, crab...and the standard chicken, beef, or pork, as well).

"moon cakes" are slab rectangles of what looks like opaque sparkling jello, but tastes like a mix between Turkish Delight (yes, I've read C. S. Lewis) and Angel food cake. AND it's gluten-free.

"Zhijong", or sticky rice wraps, are bamboo or taro leaves surrounding rice and a variety of gluten-free ingredients. They refrigerate, they freeze, they are easy to heat up, they are filling, they are a different post ;)

"Deep Fried Taro Balls", or jah wu tao, are poi (taro) dumplings filled with a variety of savory and sweet goodies, and are also a different post ;)
YYEEEESSSS..

But that's not the best part. The best part was I found, yet another, source for deep-fried mochi. I also find out that they are called "ma t'uan" in Mandarin Chinese ("zeen duy" in Cantonese Chinese). Only here they put in lemon curd.

Needless to say, heaven.
Here's my recipe:

Deep Fried Mochi/Ma T'uan


























1 pound powdered sweet rice flour
1 1/4 cups dark brown sugar
1 1/4 cups boiling water
1 cup sweet red bean paste, lemon curd, or seedless raspberry jam
1/4 cup white or black sesame seeds (optional)
Peanut, Vegetable, or Canola oil

1. Open the can of jelly of your choice. Place into a freezer-safe bowl and place in the freezer for two hours until firm. This is not necessary if your paste if stiff enough to roll into a ball.
2. After the paste is firm, roll into 1" balls and place back into the freezer on a cookie sheet or plate.
3. In a 2 quart sauce pan, bring the water to a boil.
4. Dissolve the brown sugar in the boiling water and remove from heat. (or boil the water in the microwave in a microwavable bowl and add sugar).
5. Place the flour in a separate bowl, making a divot, or well, in the middle. (this will help prevent uneven mixing in the next step).
6. Gradually mix in the sugar/water with the flour. Remember, it is hot! The mixture will become very thick, like the play dough.
7. Make this dough into 2-3" balls (think golf ball). I recommend putting some rice flour on your hands.
8. With each ball, press one side into the ball, so that the dough makes a cup for the jelly or jam.
9. Place your jelly or paste of choice into the center of the dough "cups".
10. Gently pinch the opening closed and re-roll GENTLY in your hands to make completely round.
11. If you like sesame seeds, roll the balls in the seeds. These are optional.
12. Put about 3-4" of oil in the bottom of your wok, omelet pan, or chef's pan. (or, if you have a Fry Daddy, bring 'er out!). Heat on medium heat to 330 degrees.
13. Place balls into the oil and fry for 2 minutes (the sesame seeds will become golden).
14. Gently press the ball against the side of your pan- this will the "dough" inside to expand up to 3 times it size! Continue until golden brown.
15. Place on paper towels laid over a cooling rack (to drain excess oil away).
16. As soon as the balls are cool, transfer to waxed paper or Tupperware.


Happy Eatings!
The gluten free, irish lass, gourmand, and eater of dim som