Easy Gluten-Free Banana BreadBaking with Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Mixes

The information and prize pack have been provided by General Mills through MyBlogSpark.

On our journey toward eating completely gluten-free, we have tried many different food alternatives to our gluten-ful favorites, some with mild success, others with epic failure!  Today, I'm really excited to share one of our new favorites, Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Baking Mixes.  

We do a lot of cooking from scratch in our home, but sometimes busy life and our hectic schedules do not permit the luxury of a 4 hour baking session.  Sometimes we are in the mood for an easy recipe that isn't going to upset our tummies, and will still be just as flavorful as the traditional version, maybe even more flavorful!

I've been searching for a gluten-free banana bread recipe for a while now, and when I was led to this recipe on the Betty Crocker website, I couldn't wait to try it.  The thing that made me most excited were the reviews - people who have tried this recipe are stunned by how delicious this banana bread is - and the fact that it is gluten-free!

This recipe took me only minutes to mix together the ingredients and pop in the oven!  The recipe only calls for 4 ingredients!!  Betty Crocker Gluten-Free Yellow Cake Mix, bananas, eggs & butter!  It doesn't get any easier than that!  Of course, you could always mix it up by adding your favorite nuts, raisins, cranberries, cacao nibs or even dried coconut!  Just make sure you check labels to avoid adding hidden gluten back into it.

Betty Crocker Best Ever Gluten-Free Banana Bread

INGREDIENTS:

1 box Betty Crocker® Gluten Free yellow cake mix

1 cup mashed very ripe bananas (2 medium)

1/2 cup butter, softened

3 eggs

1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

INSTRUCTIONS:

1 Heat oven to 350°F. Grease bottom only of 9x5-inch or 8x4-inch loaf pan with shortening.

2 In large bowl, beat cake mix, mashed bananas, butter and eggs with electric mixer on low speed 30 seconds, then on medium speed 2 minutes, scraping bowl occasionally. Pour into pan.

3 Bake 9-inch loaf 55 to 60 minutes, 8-inch loaf 1 hour 5 minutes to 1 hour 15 minutes, or until toothpick inserted in center comes out clean. (Place sheet of foil over loaf to prevent overbrowning.) Cool 10 minutes. Loosen sides of loaf from pan; remove from pan to cooling rack. Cool about 1 hour before slicing.

I really wanted to add cacao nibs to this recipe as I feel just a touch of chocolate is always necessary in baking, but at the daughter's request I stuck to just banana bread.  It turned out amazing!  Both the husband and daughter couldn't stop raving over the delicious banana bread and it didn't last more than a day and a half!  I of course couldn't resist adding a good helping of chocolate frosting to a slice of mine - though it really is a great recipe with or without.

The best part of this recipe is that it can be enjoyed without the worry of being exposed to gluten!  And now that we've tried this gluten-free baking mix I'm excited to check out the other mixes and recipes available by Betty Crocker.  I specifically have my eyes on the chocolate chip cookie mix!  

As a thank-you for trying Betty Crocker's new gluten-free mixes, General Mills has provided this sweet baking tools gift-set as a giveaway to one of you lovelies!!

It contains a silicone spatula and pastry brush, adjustable rolling pin and kitchen timer by Joseph Joseph, as well as a square baking pan, a $60 value!  The giveaway is open to all subscribers/readers of BaxtronLife.com, simply enter via the rafflecopter widget below!  Giveaway ends 6/30/2013.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

What are your favorite gluten-free baking recipes??  Which of these new baking mixes are you most interested in trying?

       

Dish & Serve: Paleo Carrot Cake Cupcakes Recipe

Our little family loves to spend time cooking and baking together in the kitchen.  When, DeAnn from the S.I.P. Project asked me to share a recipe for her Dish & Serve series on her blog, I was delighted.  Now, since we've been away on an extended business trip in Alaska, it wasn't a matter of finding a great recipe to share, it was figuring out who to give the treats to once they were made.  Luckily we've become friends with two other business travelers who work for my husband's company.  Since one of them isn't big on sweets, we decided to find out what kind of things the other one would like --- carrot cake was her choice, and Zion loves cooking cupcakes, so it was easy to decide on making mini carrot cakes!

After we got our cupcakes cooking in the oven, it was time to make a delicious cream cheese frosting.  Now, anyone who makes frosting from scratch will tell you that it is no easy task to do by hand.  Since we don't have a hand mixer up here where we are staying, I used the next best thing --- my strong husband!  After much elbow grease and a slight variation on the ingredients to make it easier, we finished our delicious frosting.

We taste tested a few of the cupcakes to make sure we weren't going to be sending over any disasters to our friend, and then packed up several to bring to her.  We knew she'd love them and couldn't wait to see her reaction!

She was thrilled to receive some home made goodies, especially since she has been away from home much longer than we have been!  I loved seeing Zion proudly hand over the cupcakes she had made.

Paleo / Grain-Free Carrot Cake Cupcakes (Adapted rom PaleoOMG)

Ingredients:

• 1.5 cups shredded carrots
• 1 cup almond flour
• 2 eggs, whisked
• ¼ cup virgin coconut oil, melted
• 1 tablespoon raw honey
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon ground nutmeg
• ½ teaspoon ground ginger
• ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
• ½ teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• pinch of salt
• ¼ cup chopped walnuts (optional)
• ¼ cup raisins (optional)

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.
2. Put your shredded carrots in a bowl, mix in almond flour, follow with remaining dry ingredients except for raisins and walnuts.
3. Whisk your eggs in a small bowl, add honey and vanilla and stir until mixed.
4. Add egg mixture to other ingredients and mix together.
5. Fold in raisins & walnuts if using.
6. Place cupcake ingredients into a muffin tin lined with paper liners . Should fill 10-12 muffins depending on size.
7. Bake for 18-20 minutes.

Easy Mixer-Free Cream Cheese Frosting: (Adapted from SpinachTiger)

Ingredients:

• 12 ounces whipped cream cheese (1 1/2 containers)
• 5 tablespoons pastured butter, softened
• 5 1/2 - 6 cups confectioner’s sugar
• 3 tablespoons of heavy cream  
• 2 teaspoons real vanilla extract

Instructions:

1. Cream butter and cream cheese together. 
2. Add in confectioners’ sugar, one cup at a time until about 5 cups have been added. 
3. Add in heavy cream and vanilla. 
4. Add an additional 1/2 to 1 cup of confectioners' sugar.
5. Beat until fluffy.

       

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This recipe, while high in good fat is totally rich and filling!

It is a great recipe for the carb-conscious dieter.

Enjoy!