Bake Gluten Free Desserts With the Cake Mix Doctor

I've become a bake-from-scratch kind of girl since our son was diagnosed with food allergies ten years ago. In those early years, I had to bake without wheat due to his wheat allergy (since outgrown). Back then, there were no commercially made gluten-free flours or ready-made baked goods without wheat. Baking was always a science experiment of mixing varying amounts of non-wheat flours together to come up with an acceptable end-product. I baked some awful cakes back then...and some terrible brownies...and inedible cookies. I couldn't seem to get the hang of it.

What a difference a decade makes. Now many gluten-free products are available from flours to cake mixes to pancake and baking mixes.

I had the opportunity to try out some recipes from The Cake Mix Doctor's latest book, "The Cake Mix Doctor Bakes Gluten-Free". From Cookies and Cream cake to lemon bars, brownies and even a cake fit for a bride, Anne Byrn did all the experimenting for us and developed great recipes using gluten-free cake mixes as a base. All the recipes include dairy-free options as well.

I also need to avoid eggs in my baking due to allergies. All the cake recipes in the book call for three eggs, and I knew from experience I would not have a good outcome substituting three eggs. So, I selected the recipe for Chocolate Cloud cookies, which called for one egg. I picked up a gluten-free cake mix, mixed in the four other ingredients (using ground flax seed for the egg) and minutes later, cookies fresh from the oven. Really good cookies. Chocolaty, moist, delicious cookies that tasted even better the next day. I was really impressed with this recipe.

I also tried the caramel frosting recipe. I only needed to substitute Silk for the milk and in two easy steps I made a yummy frosting that will now become a standard along with my chocolate and vanilla frostings.

Anne offers many tips throughout the book for those who must bake gluten-free. Many of the recipes also come with variations offering hundreds of options for gluten-free desserts.

I wasted many hours and many ingredients trying to bake for my wheat-allergic child. No more gummy cakes, rock hard brownies and awful cookies. Anne Byrn gives us easy wheat and gluten-free desserts everyone will enjoy. Let The Cake Mix Doctor be your baking guide. This book also would make a great gift for grandparents and others who want to make desserts for someone they love who has celiac or wheat allergy.

Bon appetit'!

Chocolate Cloud Cookies from The Cake Mix Doctor Bakes Gluten Free

ZEER: The Easy Way to Find Better Food

Have you heard about ZEER? Created in early 2008 by Mike Putnam, ZEER is a continually updated food information resource for people who want to know ingredient and nutrition information in the foods they eat. Perfect for those who deal with food allergies and/or intolerances.

This week, ZEER launched ZEER Select, a gluten free database full of information for those who need to avoid gluten. The company plans to offer a similar experience for other food allergies and intolerances in the future. In the meantime, with over 30,000 food items (and 500 products added or updated every week) it's easy to search for a wide variety of foods.

I had the opportunity to get a sneak peek into ZEER Select, which is offered by subscription at $14.95 per month. Users can search foods by name, category or UPC code. Detailed ingredient and nutrition information as well as a "gluten safety status" is given for each product.

I think one of the best features is that the site is constantly updated and reviewed by a medical advisory board of doctors and nutritionists. No worries about outdated or incorrect information. Another great feature of ZEER Select is the ability to maintain a grocery list and then share the list with family and friends. ZEER also has an iPhone application giving users the ability to get detailed product information when it's most needed- at the grocery store.

There are many parts to ZEER that are free for anybody to use. Join one of the Communities such as food allergies, diet, lifestyle (organic, vegan, vegetarian), health (diabetes, cancer, etc.) and religious/cultural. Users can sign up with a community to learn more about foods and participate in a discussion board to ask questions or give information. You can also see food product reviews or post one of your own.

Take a tour and see what ZEER and ZEER Select can offer you.

Let me know what you think.