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Hello, foodies…

I hope you were able to join me this afternoon for The Dish with Rachael Ray! We had a terrific hour together—she’s got some great gift ideas for the holidays and we’ve got her entire collection on QVC.com. That was the second time this week I got to spend some time with Rachael. Yesterday, I joined her in New York City and made a few recipes from Back Around the Table on her show. It was such a fun day, foodies…Rachael is just awesome. I was honored to be there and would be honored if you watch The Rachael Ray Show on December 16. Check your local listings to see when the show airs in your area.

We’ve got more Holiday Sweets in store for you on In the Kitchen with David this Sunday. Our featured recipe is Peppermint Chocolate Chip Cookies. There are 5 whole ingredients in this recipe, foodies, 5! No matter how busy you are, you have time for this recipe.

Peppermint Chocolate Chip Cookies

This recipe is prepared with the KitchenAid 5-Quart 325-Watt Tilt-Head Stand Mixer with Glass Bowl (K41486).

Go to David's Recipe Item Page for the full list of items that David has used in his recipes.

Ingredients:

• 1 (15.25-oz) box yellow cake mix


• 1/3 cup vegetable oil


• 2 eggs


• 1/2 tsp peppermint extract


• 1 (9-oz) bag (1-1/2 cups) dark chocolate morsels with mint filling

Preparation:

1. Place an oven rack on the second lower level and preheat the oven to 350°F. Line 2 cookie sheets with parchment paper. Set aside.


2. Fit a stand mixer with the paddle attachment. Add the cake mix, oil, eggs, and peppermint extract to the mixing bowl and mix until creamy and lump-free.


3. Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the chocolate morsels with a spatula. Spoon 2 tablespoonfuls of dough onto the cookie sheets for each cookie. Bake for 8–9 minutes and then rotate the cookie sheet. Cook for another 8–9 minutes, or until light golden brown. Cool the cookies on a cooling rack before serving.

Foodies, everyone should be able to enjoy cookies at Christmastime. And because so many of you have been requesting and asking about gluten-free recipes, I asked my friend Cat Ruehle, Holistic Nutritionist, Wellness Foods Chef, and author of Let Us All Eat Cake: Gluten-Free Recipes for Everyone’s Favorite Cakes to give us her best gluten-free cookie-baking tips.

• Many people who are eating gluten-free are also avoiding dairy. You can substitute Earth Balance Vegan Buttery Sticks for the butter, and unsweetened coconut or almond milk for the milk.


• Save time and money by pre-making your own gluten-free flour blend. Purchase the sorghum flour, white rice flour, and potato starch and mix together in the proportions shown in the recipe. You can double, triple or even quadruple the amounts so you’ll have extra to keep on hand for when you want to bake some goodies. Store the blend in an airtight container in the pantry for 1 month or in the freezer for up to one year. Store-bought blends are more expensive than making your own, and they may contain ingredients that you don’t want in your blend like extra xanthan gum or leaveners such as baking soda.


• Always have your ingredients out at room temperature, measured, and ready to go before you start making a recipe. Room temperature ingredients are critical to baking success, and having everything ready insures you don’t have to make a mad dash to the market because you’re missing an ingredient.


• Use the highest quality ingredients you can find. When you remove gluten from a recipe (typically wheat flour) you also remove much of the flavor and are left with what I refer to as the “flavor void”. You have to compensate by using top notch, flavorful ingredients like good quality pure vanilla extract, fresh butter, and really yummy chocolate chips.


• Make your own freezer cookie dough! Portion out the dough onto baking sheets and freeze solid. Transfer frozen dough balls into an airtight container and store in the freezer. Bake at 375 for 13-15 minutes whenever the mood strikes! This is a great way to prepare for holiday parties or gift-giving. You’ll be able to get your dough made and into the freezer before the holidays get too hectic.


• Baking is a science so be sure to measure carefully and don’t substitute ingredients unless you have experience doing so. Spooning the flour into the measuring cup is much more accurate than pressing the cup down into the bag or bin and scooping the flour. It may seem like a little thing, but it can make a big difference in your baked goods!

As if that wasn’t enough valuable information, Cat also sent me her Best Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies recipe. I am indebted to her for her time and knowledge…be sure to check out her website for more valuable cooking advice—not only gluten-free.  

Best Gluten-Free Chocolate Chip Cookies
Yield: 4 dozen cookies

Ingredients:

• 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter


• 3 cups Cat’s Gluten-Free Flour Blend (see below)


• 1 teaspoon xanthan gum


• 1 teaspoon baking soda


• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt


• 1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar


• 1 1/2 cups packed brown sugar


• 1 whole egg


• 1 egg yolk


• 2 tablespoons whole milk


• 2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract


• 2 cups chocolate chips (or a mixture of chocolate chips and chopped nuts)

Cat’s Gluten-Free Flour Blend

• 1-1/2 cups sorghum flour


• 3/4 cup white rice flour


• 3/4 cup potato starch (NOT potato flour)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees and line your cookie sheet with parchment paper or a non-stick liner.


2. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan.


3. While butter melts, combine the flour blend, xanthan gum, baking soda, and salt in a medium mixing bowl and whisk together to combine well. Set aside.


4. Once butter has melted pour it into a mixing bowl. Add the two sugars and mix on medium with the paddle attachment for 1 minute.


5. Add the egg, egg yolk, milk and vanilla and mix on medium until well combined, about 1 minute.


6. Add the flour mixture in two batches and mix until just combined, don’t over beat.


7. Add chocolate chips and mix just to combine, don’t over beat.


8. Chill the cookie dough for 30 minutes.


9. Using two spoons or a small ice cream scoop, portion dough out onto the pan. Bake in the middle of the oven for 9-11 minutes or until lightly browned around the edges.


10. Remove pan to a cooling rack and allow to cool completely.


11. Store cookies in an airtight container for up to 4 days.

Thank you, Cat! Happy baking, everyone. I’ll see you Sunday at Noon ET.

Keep it flavorful!
—David

P.S. There’s a special blog coming tomorrow with some very special Le Creuset items…big savings this weekend…all I’m sayin!