Hush Puppies
MAKES 30 HUSH PUPPIES
Hush puppies are savory Southern dumplings made by deep-frying small portions of cornmeal dough. This version replaces the typical cornmeal and wheat flour with flaxseed meal and sesame seed flour for a sugar-free, gluten free treat. They are a terrific accompaniment to any fish or chicken dish, and leftovers make a great snack; just reheat them in a hot oven for a few minutes to bring back the crispness. To make them, you’ll need a deep fryer or a heavy stainless steel pot that’s at least 6 inches deep. We call for soybean oil for frying because it’s safe to cook with at high temperatures and doesn’t boil over easily. When cooking with hot oil, safety is the priority at all times. Lower the hush puppies into the oil carefully, and keep kids and others at a safe distance to avoid burns. Also, be sure to grind the sesame seeds into a fine flour, as any residual whole seeds may pop during frying.
1 cup (4 oz / 113 g) golden flaxseed meal
1 cup (4 oz / 113 g) sesame seed flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon Splenda or Stevia Extract in the Raw, or ½ teaspoon New Roots Stevia Sugar
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon dried parsley
3 eggs (5.25 oz / 149 g)
1 tablespoon salted butter or margarine, melted
½ to ¾ cup (3.25 oz / 92 g to 5.25 oz / 149 g) finely chopped fresh onion
Soybean oil, for deep-frying
In a medium bowl, combine the flaxseed meal, sesame seed flour, baking powder, sweetener, salt, and parsley and whisk until well mixed. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs and butter together until thoroughly blended. Stir in the onion. Add the flour mixture and stir with a large spoon for 1 minute to make a smooth batter, then mix vigorously for another minute to aerate the batter; if using an electric mixer, mix at medium-high speed with the paddle attachment for 2 minutes altogether, to make a very thick, sticky batter (see
Using Texture as a Guide
).
Pour soybean oil into the deep fryer or pot to a depth of 2½ to 3 inches. Heat the oil to 340°F (177°C). Keep a candy or frying thermometer in the oil at all times and don’t let the temperature exceed 360°F (182°C) or drop below 320°F (160°C). Cover a plate with 2 layers of paper towels or place a paper towel on top of or under a wire rack.
Using a standard soup spoon, scoop up 1 spoonful of dough and use your finger to carefully slide it into the hot oil to test the oil temperature and cooking time. Fry this first hush puppy for 2 minutes, then turn it over with a slotted spoon, skimmer, or tongs and fry for about 2 more minutes, until rich golden brown and crispy looking. If the total cooking time is longer, check the temperature of the oil; if it’s under 340°F (171°C), increase the heat slightly.
Begin frying additional hush puppies, using the soup spoon to scoop up 1 heaping spoonful of batter for each and adding as many as fit comfortably without crowding them. Most deep fryers will accommodate about 6 to 8 hush puppies. When the hush puppies are rich golden brown and crispy looking, transfer them to the lined plate or wire rack to cool slightly and drain. Repeat this process until all of the dough is fried. Serve the hush puppies while still hot and crisp.
VARIATION
Spicy Hush Puppies:
For a zippier flavor, add up to ½ teaspoon of ground black pepper when mixing the dry ingredients.
Chapter Two
PIZZAS AND FOCACCIAS
Everyone loves pizza, so mastering the recipes in this chapter is a must! For us, pizza, and its northern Italian cousin focaccia, is about the crust first and the toppings second. This chapter includes three recipes for pizza dough, followed by a section with some topping suggestions, and then a number of variations on focaccia. Use them to get started, then explore and create your own variations. Let us know what you come up with via our website,
www.thejoyofgluten-freesugar-freebaking.com
. We’ll try your variations and post some of the success stories on the website.
Here are a few tips that apply to all of the pizza and focaccia recipes:
•
People tend to think of pizzas as round and focaccias as rectangles or squares, but focaccias can be round and pizzas can be square or rectangular.
• For square or rectangular pizzas, you can shape the crust in a 12-inch square pan or on a 13 by 18-inch baking sheet. Note that it should only cover about half of the larger pan. If you’d like to make a larger pizza, simply double the recipe.
• For round focaccias, use 2 pie pans or round cake pans, anywhere from 8 to 10 inches across and either 1 or 2 inches deep.
• All of the focaccia doughs call for egg whites beaten until soft peaks form. They’ll foam up much more quickly if you bring the egg whites to room temperature first.
• We’ve suggested specific toppings for the various focaccias, but feel free to mix and match toppings and crusts. Cheese is optional, but if you do use it, try
experimenting with other melting cheeses beyond mozzarella, such as provolone, fontina, or even Monterey Jack. Of course, sliced tomatoes and pesto are always delicious toppings.
• All of the pizza crusts must be baked prior to topping so they’ll firm up and support the toppings. Also note that they bake at a much lower temperature than conventional crusts in order to crisp the crust without browning it too quickly.
• Once the crusts are baked, making pizzas is a snap. So after you’ve mastered a given recipe, consider doubling or tripling the batch and baking up the extra crusts for later. Wrap them well and store them in the refrigerator, where they’ll keep for up to 3 days, or in the freezer, where they’ll keep for at least 3 months.
• A fun shaping option is to make personal-size crusts in small pie or tart pans. Then everyone can choose his or her own toppings. These smaller crusts are also especially easy to store in the freezer.
• If the pizza has toppings on it, you can store it in the refrigerator the same way you would any leftover pizza. When ready to serve, pop into a microwave for about 30 to 60 seconds or place in a 400°F (204°C) oven for about 5 minutes. The oven method will add some crunch back into the edges of the leftover pizza.
Basic Pizza Crust
MAKES ONE 12-INCH PIZZA CRUST
2¼ teaspoons (1 package) instant or active dry yeast
¼ cup (2 oz / 57 g) warm water (about 95°F, or 35°C)
2 cups (8 oz / 227 g) almond flour
½ cup (2 oz / 57 g) sesame seed flour
2 teaspoons Splenda or Stevia Extract in the Raw, or 1 teaspoon New Roots Stevia Sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
1 egg (1.75 oz / 50 g)
Preheat the oven to 300°F (163°C). Mist a 12-inch round pizza pan or, for a thinner crust, a 12-inch square baking pan with spray oil.
In a small bowl, stir the yeast and water together until the yeast dissolves. In a medium bowl, combine the almond flour, sesame seed flour, sweetener, baking powder, and salt and whisk until well mixed. Whisk the egg, then add it and the yeast mixture to the flour mixture and stir with a large spoon for 1 to 2 minutes to make a thick, sticky batter (see
Using Texture as a Guide
).
Transfer the dough to the center of the prepared pan. Using oiled fingers, press it out to evenly fill the pan, making the edges slightly thicker if you like.
Prick the surface with a fork every 1 to 2 inches to help prevent bubbles and air pockets during baking. Bake for 15 minutes, then rotate and bake for 10 minutes, just until the dough firms up and starts to brown.
You can immediately top the crust with your favorite toppings or top it later. To bake the topped pizza, preheat the oven to 325°F (204°C). Bake for 6 to 10 minutes, until any cheese has melted or until the toppings are heated through and cooked to your liking. Slice and serve immediately.
