Crave Bakery- Gluten Free Blog

Winners of Crave Bakery Gluten Free Cookbook and Bob’s Red Mill Products

Crave Bakery — Mon, 17 Jun 2013 17:00:47 +0000

Thanks to everyone for participating in our gluten free cookbook giveaway last week! Crave Bakery and Bob’s Red Mill teamed up to give away three of our new cookbooks and three sets of gluten free ingredients that we recommend in the book. The winners are going to receive the following prizes:

Crave Bakery Gluten Free Cookbook: Over 60 Gluten and Dairy Free Recipes from San Francisco’s First Gluten Free Bakery
Bob’s Red Mill Tapioca Flour
Bob’s Red Mill Potato Starch
Bob’s Red Mill Brown Rice Flour
Bob’s Red Mill Sweet Rice Flour
Bob’s Red Mill Flaxseed Meal
Bob’s Red Mill Almond Meal
Bob’s Red Mill Xanthan Gum

Our winners are Jill Wilson, Lyn Ferreira and Mark Berger!

For the rest of you, we will be having more contests throughout the summer to win our e-book. No matter what device you have, you will be able to view Crave’s gluten and dairy free cookbook on your iPad, iPhone, Android, Kindle or desktop computer. Keep in touch to enter the next gluten free giveaway!

Thanks again to Bob’s Red Mill for making this contest such a great success!

For more info about Crave, visit our website.

Crave Bakery’s Recommended Gluten Free Flours and Starches

Crave Bakery — Wed, 12 Jun 2013 18:52:18 +0000

Following is a list of our recommended gluten free flours and starches (and their descriptions) from the recipes in our 10th Anniversary Crave Bakery Gluten Free Cookbook. We have chosen our favorite, high quality brands because these manufacturers have clearly stated Gluten-Free in their product descriptions or company info.* Hopefully, this list saves you a little work!

Tapioca Flour is a grain-free starch, native to Brazil, derived from cassava root. Our favorite is from Bob’s Red Mill.

Potato Starch is starch extracted from potatoes and used as a thickener. Our favorite is from Bob’s Red Mill.

Brown Rice Flour is a mild tasting flour that has been ground from unmilled rice grains. Our favorites are from Bob’s Red Mill and Authentic Foods.

Sweet Rice Flour (can be white-milled or brown- unmilled) is different than white or brown rice flour which cannot be substituted for Sweet Rice Flour. Sweet Rice Flour is used in Asian cooking and is also known as ‘sticky rice’ or ‘glutinous rice’. This ingredient is one of the keys to light, fluffy and smooth recipes. Sweet Rice Flour is finely milled and has a light texture. Both Bob’s Red Mill and Authentic Foods make great quality versions.

Flax Seeds or Flax Meal: You can either buy ground flax meal or whole flax seeds and grind them yourself in your coffee grinder, and you can get both from Bob’s Red Mill.

Almond Meal is ground almonds. Almond Flour comes from blanched, ground almonds and is finer than Almond Meal. But sometimes these names are used interchangeably (as Bob’s Red Mill does). For the recipes in this book, the less finely milled Almond Meal works the best. Our favorite is from Bob’s Red Mill.

For more info about Crave, visit our website.

*Disclaimer: We still recommend checking with the manufacturer first and reading ingredient labels to be sure that this information is up to date. At posting, this is the most current info. But manufacturers do periodically change ingredients to suit their needs.

Crave Bakery Gluten Free Cookbook Giveaway with Bob’s Red Mill prizes!

Crave Bakery — Mon, 03 Jun 2013 17:29:23 +0000

THREE winners are going to receive our new iPad cookbook and Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free ingredients! If you like the gluten-free and dairy-free recipes and baking tips you’ve seen on our blog, there’s a lot more where those came from! Our new cookbook was just published for the iPad- Crave Bakery Gluten Free Cookbook: Over 60 Gluten and Dairy Free Recipes from San Francisco’s First Gluten Free Bakery. There are over 60 recipes, 50 Photos and dozens of Tips for gluten-free baking and decorating.

We are going to pick three winners who will receive a Crave Bakery Gluten-Free Cookbook AND a set of Bob’s Red Mill gluten-free ingredients that we recommend in our book. This ingredient prize pack will allow you to make almost any recipe in our cookbook. You get all seven ingredients below if you win- shipped directly to you! All you have to do is sign up by June 13, 2013 at the Facebook link. Easy! Winners will be announced the third week of June.

Tapioca Flour
Potato Starch
Brown Rice Flour
Sweet Rice Flour
Flaxseed Meal
Almond Meal
Xanthan Gum

Enter the contest by midnight on June 13 to win a free iPad cookbook and Bob’s Red Mill ingredients here:

Facebook Contest to Win a Free Cookbook

For more info about Crave Bakery, visit our website.

Gluten Free Baking Tip of the Day – Rotate During Baking

Crave Bakery — Wed, 29 May 2013 20:46:53 +0000

Daily tips for your gluten free baking adventure!

Today’s Tip:

Make it a habit of rotating your baked goods halfway through your bake time. Many ovens, including even those in professional kitchens, bake slightly hotter on one side. Rotate your item half way through to get an even bake on your gluten-free cakes, cookies, muffins, cupcakes, pies and tarts!

For more info about Crave, visit our website.

Crave Bakery Gluten Free Cookbook Photography

Crave Bakery — Tue, 21 May 2013 17:00:30 +0000

Photos of Crave’s gluten free desserts have long been a source of pride for us and a signature of our brand. Now that we just published our brand new Crave Bakery Gluten Free Cookbook, we want to let you know who did that lovely photography throughout the book. Our new cookbook has some gorgeous pics that make your baking process that much more fun. Here is some beautiful and delicious looking photography that New Image Studio shot not only for the book but also Crave’s gluten-free products on our website.

New Image Studio and Focus Media in Raleigh, NC filmed, edited and produced the introduction video to our Gluten-Free Cookbook. These are some seriously talented teams of people. The video pops right open at the beginning of the e-book and looks pretty darn slick. New Image Studio has done quite a bit of bakery and food photography. You can see more of their work here.

Win a Free Crave Bakery Gluten Free Cookbook for your iPad!

Crave Bakery — Mon, 20 May 2013 17:14:27 +0000

We are giving away our cookbook! If you like the gluten-free and dairy-free recipes and gluten-free baking tips you’ve seen on our blog, there’s a lot more where those came from! Our NEW Crave Bakery gluten-free cookbook was just published for iPad last week. There are over 60 recipes, 50 Photos and dozens of tips for baking and decorating.

We are having a contest to give away several free copies of our cookbook. All you have to do is sign up by May 31, 2013 at the link below. Easy! Winners will be announced the first week of June.

Enter the contest by midnight on May 31 to win a free iPad cookbook here:

Facebook Contest to Win a Free Cookbook

For more info about Crave, visit our website.

Crave Bakery Publishes 10th Anniversary Cookbook!

Crave Bakery — Thu, 16 May 2013 21:33:01 +0000

We are so excited to announce that, on our 10th Anniversary, we have published our Gluten-Free Cookbook for your iPad now available in iTunes! Crave Bakery Gluten Free Cookbook: Over 60 Gluten and Dairy Free Recipes from San Francisco’s First Gluten Free Bakery.

In honor of Celiac Awareness Month, we are giving a 40% discount through May 31, 2013. The book will be just $2.99 in iTunes.

Read what industry experts are saying about our cookbook:

Cameo’s products are hands-down the best gluten-free baked goods I have ever tasted. It is an absolute pleasure to let you know we really do have Cameo’s personal legacy, which comprises Crave’s ever popular gluten-free recipes, at OUR finger tips here in this very book. We can all create any Crave gluten-free baked goods, right now in our very own kitchen. This is unbelievable!

Tina Turbin, Author, Blogger and Gluten Free Advocate

Considering how many people with gluten issues also have dairy issues, it has always surprised me that most gluten-free baked goods contain a lot of dairy. Crave Bakery was one of the first gluten-free bakeries to offer dairy-free baked goods that tasted like they were full of butter!

Kelly Courson, Creator and Writer at Celiac Chicks

With this cookbook, Cameo has done us a tremendous service. She’s taken a decade’s worth of trial and error with gluten-free baking and presented us with incredible, easy to follow, ‘crave-worthy’ desserts.

Dr. Vikki Petersen, DC, CCN, Founder of HealthNOW Medical Center

Cameo is amazing for putting so much goodness into one place! So many bakeries guard their “secret” ingredients, but she has made every amazing recipe from Crave Bakery accessible in this deliciously tempting book. I knew this cookbook would be love at first bite when it started with the legendary Mama Z’s Chocolate Cake.

Alisa Fleming, Founder and Chief Editor at Go Dairy Free

Cameo had created these delicious treats that made me feel as though I wasn’t being deprived one bit! She was one of the first to recognize the need for dairy-free in addition to gluten-free, and she cared about the ingredients she put into her recipes. I can’t say how many times I grabbed a Monster Cookie (my favorite), but I can say that I didn’t share them with anyone!

Alison St. Sure, Founder and Blogger at Sure Foods Living

Following a gluten-free diet can be difficult, but Crave Bakery makes it a little bit easier by creating some childhood favorites that won’t make you feel like you are settling. Their brownies and cookies are sure to please even the pickiest palates. The brownies are dense and fudgy with no telltale sign of the product being gluten-free.

Kimberly Bouldin, Owner and Blogger at Gluten Free Is Life

What’s in the Book?

This book is a collection of over 60 Recipes all made in Crave Bakery for our line of grocery products or our decadent wedding and party cakes in the Bay Area since opening in 2003. This book includes 50 photos and step-by-step instructions for Cakes, Cupcakes, Frostings, Fillings, Brownies, Cookies, Tarts and Muffins.

A casual baker or a full-fledged bakery can easily reproduce these recipes. Because they were designed for efficient production, many of the recipes are simple enough for beginners. For bakeries that have been wanting to add gluten-free products to their line but don’t have time to devote to all that experimentation- this book has done the work for you. These are recipes ready for production. They’re precise and tested over years in Crave’s own bakery.

Beyond recipes, this book also includes helpful information such as:

- Recipes organized by difficulty

- Clear allergen statements for each recipe

- Recommended Baking Tools

- Recommended Gluten Free Ingredients

- Gluten Free Baking Tips

- Decorating Tips

For you Kindle people, Kindle version is coming soon!

For more info on Crave products and our company, visit our website.

Gluten Free Baking Tip of the Day – Cakes Rising Too Fast?

Crave Bakery — Tue, 14 May 2013 17:30:33 +0000

Daily tips for your gluten free baking adventure!

Today’s Tip:

If your cake ends up with a raised mound in the center instead of a flat surface, you will have to slice off the top of your cake to be able to frost and make a layer cake that fits together well. To avoid losing valuable cake and spending your time shaving off the top, this problem can probably be corrected with bake temperature. A domed shape can come from the temperature being too hot. Try decreasing your temperature by 15 degrees the next time you bake and see if that corrects the problem. This will usually mean that you will also have to increase your bake time slightly.

For more info about Crave, visit our website.

Crave’s Favorite Tool for Gluten Free Decorating

Crave Bakery — Mon, 13 May 2013 16:00:01 +0000

The last phase of your gluten free baking is decorating. You have measured, mixed and baked so let’s talk about our favorite gluten-free decorating tools! The following suggestions are our favorite tools, brands and sizes to make your gluten free baking experience easier.

Decorating

9” Metal Spatula - This is a nice sized spatula for frosting an 8 ” – 10 ” cake. But it’s still small enough that you can easily handle it for smearing frosting on cupcakes.

14″ Pastry Bag - 14” is a manageable bag size for decorating. It’s large enough to hold frosting or filling for a larger cake. But small enough that it’s still easy to handle.

Couplers - Couplers are used to attach tips to pastry bags. These are standard sizes and the well known Ateco brand.

Tip Set - Contains two plain tubes, one star, one French star, one closed star and one basket weave tube. Three of the tips are larger and don’t need couplers at all. These give you lots of visual options for piping and frosting cupcakes.

Full Decorating Set: Includes six tips, decorating triangle, spatula, two couplers, decorating bags, icing colors and instruction booklet. The icing colors are gluten-free. This is a great set for beginners.

Bismarck Metal Tip - These are used for filling pastries, cupcakes and eclairs. Don’t you love that cream filled center?! Check out our Gluten-Free Cherub DreamCups to get this look.

Visit us on our website for more Crave info.

Gluten Free Blueberry Muffin Recipe for Mother’s Day Breakfast!

Crave Bakery — Sat, 11 May 2013 18:05:43 +0000

How about making Mom some Gluten-Free Blueberry Muffins for Sunday morning? There’s almost nothing better than a warm blueberry muffin made with fresh blueberries. Our version is also dairy-free. Slap a little dairy-free spread on there and it’s heaven!

Blueberry Muffins

Gluten-Free, Dairy-Free, Soy-Free, Nut-Free, Corn-Free

Prep Time: 15 min
Bake Time: 20 min
Makes: 801 g, Enough for 12 Muffins

Note: This recipe is corn-free as long as your Xanthan Gum and Baking Powder is corn-free.

Tools
✓Mixer or Beaters

✓Paddle Attachment

✓Two Bowls
✓Rubber Spatula

✓Whisk
✓Dry Measuring Cups

✓Liquid Measuring Cup

✓Measuring Spoons

✓Muffin Pans

✓Muffin Papers or Gluten Free Baking Spray

✓Scale if you have one (for measuring by weight)

Ingredients
✓1/2 cup Palm Shortening (113 g)
✓1 cup Sugar (210 g)
✓2 Eggs (99 g)
✓2 tsp. Vanilla (8 g)
✓3 Tbsp. Tapioca Flour (20 g)
✓3/4 cup Sweet Rice Flour (119 g)
✓1/2 cup + 1 Tbsp. Potato Starch (102 g)

✓2 tsp. Baking Powder (5.4 g)
✓1/2 tsp. Baking Soda (2.7 g)
✓3/4 tsp. Xanthan Gum (1.5 g)
✓1/4 tsp. Salt (1.3 g)

✓1/2 cup Rice Milk (119 g) [We recommend Original flavor. Vanilla changes the taste of the batter.]

✓3/4 cup Fresh Blueberries (not frozen)

Let’s Get Baking

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
Beat Shortening and Sugar for three minutes on high with paddle attachment until fluffy.
Scrape bowl, add Egg and Vanilla, and beat another two minutes on high.
Whisk together the dry ingredients- Tapioca Flour, Sweet Rice Flour, Potato Starch, Baking Powder, Baking Soda, Xanthan Gum and Salt. Whisk until lumps disappear.
Alternate adding the whisked dry ingredients with Rice Milk into the mixer, half of each at a time.
Add the Blueberries into the batter. Mix gently one last time so you don’t crush the Blueberries. The Blueberries should be evenly distributed.
Beat until smooth and fully combined. About 2 minutes.
Spray your muffin pans or use muffin papers.

Fill each muffin cup or paper nearly full with batter (or 66 g). This makes about 12 muffins.
Bake for 10 minutes, rotate and bake for another 10 minutes. Remove from oven when tester comes out clean.

10. Let cool and remove from pan.

For more info about Crave, visit our website.