Christmas Archives - A Calculated Whisk

No-Bake Gingerbread Buche de Noel

December 19, 2016 By Becky 4 Comments

This gluten-free, no-bake gingerbread buche de noel is an icebox cake yule log that’s beyond easy to make and tastes amazing. No one will guess you didn’t even turn on your oven!

A few years ago when I spent my first Christmas with Ben’s family in Chattanooga, we started a tradition of making a yule log cake. These cakes are the modern-day version of an actual yule log, a giant piece of wood that for centuries was placed on the hearth and burned for all of the 12 days of Christmas in many European households. Since we don’t have a hearth or even a fireplace and since I really like cake, I’m glad this tradition went the way it did.

Every year for the past three years we’ve made this Chocolate Peppermint Roll from Joy the Baker, but this year I laid eyes on her Chocolate Peppermint Icebox Yule Log Cake. My ears perked up, because “icebox cake” means no baking is involved. I like to make Christmas cakes with my three nieces and while they all love baking, it’s a lot of work to bake both the cake and the meringue mushrooms while making sure everyone gets a turn to do everything at each stage of the process. I wanted to roll with the icebox idea but change up the flavor profile, so I created this no-bake gingerbread buche de noel.

Persimmon Bacon Bites with Rosemary Goat Cheese

December 16, 2016 By Becky 32 Comments

These persimmon bacon bites with rosemary goat cheese are the perfect festive appetizer and only require four ingredients! This post is sponsored by Cavit in partnership with Honest Cooking.

If you’re looking for a craveworthy appetizer to keep your family happy while you finish cooking Christmas dinner or to pass around at a New Year’s Eve party, I have totally got you covered. These persimmon bacon bites are the best app I’ve eaten in recent memory, and are super cute to boot. They pair perfectly with a chilled glass of Cavit’s crisp Pinot Grigio, and the combination is pretty much guaranteed to put even the grinchiest of grinches in the holiday spirit. When you’re snacking on fruit with bacon and herbed goat cheese and sipping on tasty Italian wine, there’s just no way not to feel festive.

I just discovered persimmons this year and they’ve quickly become my new favorite fruit. They taste kind of like a delicious mashup between a mango and a papaya, and I find them incredibly addictive. I used fuyu persimmons here and haven’t had a chance to try other varieties yet, so I recommend finding fuyus for this recipe. They’re the ones that are kind of squat like little pumpkins and are not pointed at the bottom.

When I’m eating a persimmon plain, I like to let it get nice and soft so the insides are custardy and smooth. However, when you’re making persimmon bacon bites, you want to choose persimmons that are still a bit firm so the slices will hold together well. Once roasted, they’ll have that smooth texture of a perfectly ripe raw persimmon with an even deeper sweet flavor. The hint of rosemary in the goat cheese makes these bites taste fresh and seasonal, and the bacon ties everything together both literally and figuratively.

Pomegranate Roasted Jerk Chicken

December 7, 2016 By Becky 29 Comments

This paleo pomegranate roasted jerk chicken is ideal for those who want a festive holiday main with a bit of a kick. Served with baby potatoes, it’s a complete, one-pot meal. This post is sponsored by Frontier Co-op.

I especially enjoy spicy foods in the winter–I’ll take all the warmth I can get when it’s cold outside. This pomegranate roast chicken is perfect for warming up both your kitchen as it roasts and you when you eat it. If you’re spice-averse, though, don’t worry. You can customize the heat level by adding fewer habanero peppers.

The peppers aren’t the only thing bringing heat to this chicken. Spices like cinnamon, allspice, and smoked paprika also have a warming effect. Peppers and spices are combined with a hint of tart sweetness from pomegranate juice, grassy freshness from the scallions, and the savory fragrance of fresh thyme. All of those flavors come together to create a perfect Jamaican jerk paste that’s equally delicious on chicken and potatoes. Roasting the chicken at high heat for the first few minutes and then reducing the heat for the remainder of the cooking time ensures crispy skin and juicy meat.

I created this recipe in partnership with Frontier Co-op, my favorite source for spices and seasonings. Frontier is encouraging everyone to #CookWithPurpose this holiday season and all year long. I care a lot about where my food comes from and how it’s grown, which is why I get most of my produce and meat from local farms that use sustainable practices. It’s important to me to think just as carefully about where our ingredients come from as we do about which delicious dishes to cook up for our families. With spices, though, it can be trickier to know what goes on to get these essential flavorings from farm to table. It’s impossible for me to source things like cinnamon and allspice locally, so I love being able to turn to Frontier Co-op to be assured that I’m getting spices that were grown sustainably and sourced with fair trade practices.

Chocolate Peppermint Sandwich Cookies

December 5, 2016 By Becky 8 Comments

These festive, grain-free chocolate peppermint sandwich cookies are just the thing for gifting, cookie swapping, and plain old snacking from now until the new year.

Looking for an adorable, two-bite cookie to enjoy and share this holiday season? I got you covered. I took a look at the cutest cookies from my archives, 2013’s sparkling sandwich cookies, and gave them a chocolate peppermint upgrade. The resulting chocolate peppermint sandwich cookies pack a lot of joy and holiday cheer into one tiny, almost-spherical package.

The cookie base here is super simple, made with just almond flour, Rodelle‘s baking cocoa and vanilla extract, butter, honey, and a touch of salt and baking soda. Rodelle’s cocoa has a rich aroma and great depth of flavor that makes it my very favorite cocoa for baking (and for turning the occasional morning coffee into a makeshift mocha). I also like to add a tiny bit of espresso powder to further deepen the chocolate flavor, but you can leave that out if you prefer.

There are no eggs in sight and of course no grains either, which make these cookies ideal for sharing with friends and family with food allergies and sensitivities. (Interested in a dairy-free version? The cookies should work with coconut oil instead of butter, and you could try sustainably-sourced palm shortening or vegan butter in the frosting.)

Grain-free Spiced Chocolate Torte

November 30, 2016 By Becky 40 Comments

This grain-free spiced chocolate torte is a great to end a festive dinner. It will satisfy any chocolate lover, but also has a delectable hint of spice.

Thanksgiving is over, and I’m planning to top everything with pomegranate arils from now until the end of the year. This grain-free spiced chocolate torte, of course, is no exception.

I love using warming spices like cinnamon and cardamom to make desserts smell and taste extra festive during the holiday season. However, I’m also a huge lover of chocolate. I didn’t want to choose between my love of chocolate and my love of a little seasonal spice, so I decided to combine the two into a spiced chocolate torte.

This torte has a perfect texture and crumb thanks to a combination of almond flour and tapioca flour from Bob’s Red Mill. Those two flours are my go-to for grain-free baking year round. The almond flour, which is made of whole, blanched sweet almonds, provides the tenderness and richness that every torte needs. And since Bob’s Red Mill almond flour is super finely ground, there’s no need to sift it before using! As an extra bonus, almonds are packed with healthy monounsaturated fats and protein, but are low in carbohydrates (and are naturally gluten free).

Grain-free Cranberry Galette

October 10, 2016 By Becky 6 Comments

Why not end Thanksgiving dinner with a nut-free, grain-free cranberry galette? The cassava flour pie crust is so flaky and buttery, no one will guess it’s gluten free.

My obsession with cassava flour pie crust is still going strong. It all started with this gluten-free quiche lorraine with leeks, and I stayed in the savory realm with this heirloom tomato galette. Now it’s finally time for something on the sweet side: this grain-free cranberry galette with creme fraiche. Cassava flour is remarkably similar to wheat flour in how it behaves in crusts, so making this dough is a lot like making regular pie dough. Don’t worry, though, it’s really easy–it comes together in just a few minutes in the food processor.

Cranberries are often mixed with other fruits in desserts, or only make it to the table in the form of cranberry sauce. I wanted to create a treat that would highlight cranberries on their own in all their ruby-hued glory. Here their tartness is tempered with honey and a sprinkling of raw sugar, and a bit of creme fraiche adds richness and depth to the filling. I like to serve this with even more creme fraiche on top, but it’s also fabulous with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Grain-free Spiced Shortbread

December 23, 2015 By Becky 9 Comments

This grain-free shortbread is easy to make in just one bowl without getting out the mixer. The cookies are addictively crunchy around the edges and chewy in the middle, and their subtly spiced flavor is perfect for the holidays.

My mom sent our Christmas presents down early and told us we didn’t have to wait until the big day to open them. Mine was a copy of Ruth Reichl’s newest book, My Kitchen Year: 136 Recipes that Saved My Life, which centers around what Reichl cooked after the sudden closure of Gourmet magazine.

I was only about 3 pages in when I felt tears welling up in my eyes. When Ben asked what was wrong, at the time I had to admit that I was crying over the end of a magazine that I had subscribed to for just under 12 months, during its very last year in 2009.

In retrospect, it probably wasn’t just that. There’s something about the holidays that brings my natural tendency toward nostalgia right to the surface. I think I was really crying because change is hard, and the book reminded me of that fact in a sudden and poignant way. I love being here in Chattanooga, but wish I could simultaneously be in Massachusetts and see my family for the holidays.

Reichl says in her book that “when you pay attention, cooking becomes a kind of meditation.” That’s definitely how it feels for me whenever I can manage not to rush.

Chewy Molasses Cookies

December 25, 2014 By Becky 5 Comments

Is it too late for a Christmas cookie?

If it is, I understand. I hope you’ll consider this as you’re choosing a Boxing Day, New Year’s Eve, or random January afternoon cookie. Chewy grain-free molasses cookies work anytime.

Normally I don’t love cookies unless there’s chocolate or caramel involved, but I’ve made an exception here. There’s something about the rich flavor of molasses in a chewy cookie with a hint of crunch from a coating of sparkling sugar that I can really get into.

5 Last-Minute Christmas Treats (Gluten-free)

December 24, 2013 By Becky Leave a Comment

Did you suddenly realize you were in need of a quick but impressive dessert for Christmas day? I have five ideas for you. You probably have most of the necessary ingredients in your pantry already, but if not, stores should be open for a few more hours! Make your day merrier by whipping up one or more of these last-minute delicacies.

Chocolate Bark with infinite variations (10 minutes to make, 30 minutes to set): If you have some chocolate on hand (milk, semisweet, white–pick your favorite!), melt it, spread it on a parchment-lined sheet, and swirl in toppings of your choice. This recipe calls for pepitas and sea salt, but here are three more ideas: dried cranberries, chopped pecans, and sea salt; crushed candy canes; chopped almonds and toffee bits. After about half an hour in the freezer, just break the chocolate up into pieces and you’re done!

Mexican Brownies (15 minutes to make, 20 minutes to bake): These are a snap to make if you have paleo flour blend on hand. If not, you can measure out almond flour, tapioca starch, and coconut flour individually. If your family enjoys desserts with a little kick, they will absolutely love these!

Mexican Brownies (Gluten-free, Paleo)

December 20, 2013 By Becky 2 Comments

These brownies are SO good! Rich and fudgy in the middle and irresistibly crunchy around the edges–I can’t stop thinking about them. Their flavor is enhanced by a dose of a cinnamon and a hint of cayenne pepper, but you can totally leave those out if you want a more classic brownie.

I made a big pan of these (doubled the below recipe) for the first meeting of my school’s Spanish Club, and they were a huge hit! The meeting was at ten am, but nobody complained about being served brownies for breakfast. I made them again day before yesterday in these Christmas molds, and I was going to give them as gifts . . . but we ate them all. Restraint is futile when faced with Mexican brownies, especially if they are shaped like Christmas trees.

These brownies don’t taste gluten-free to me at all! The original recipe called for a relatively small amount of flour, so I knew it would be a great candidate for using my paleo flour blend. If you don’t have the flour blend on hand, I’ve also provided measurements for each individual type of flour. The ratio is slightly different from that of the flour blend for ease of measurement, but I have made the brownies both ways and did not notice a difference in taste or texture.

If you’re looking for a last-minute edible gift, why not whip up a batch of these Mexican brownies? Just make sure to give them away quickly before you break down and eat them all. Or, go ahead and make them for yourself for breakfast! ¡Feliz navidad a todos!