Caramel Slices

Updated recipe

** Dairy free and gluten free caramel slices **
These are also soya free and egg free

These taste great.

* Shortbread Base *
125g/1 cup gluten free plain flour
125g/1 cup cornflour
15ml/1 tbsp warm water
160g/¾ cup dairy free butter
90g/¾ cup icing sugar/powdered sugar

* Caramel layer *
A can of condensed milk or Homemade condensed milk made with 1 can of coconut milk (400g)
90g/¾ cup caster sugar
1 tbsp maple syrup/golden syrup
125g/½ cup dairy free butter

* Chocolate layer *
150g/¾ cup dairy free and soya chocolate
1 tbsp coconut oil (optional) – this makes it easier to spread on top

*Shortbread*

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius
Mix the butter and sugar together
Sieve in the flour and mix well into butter and sugar mix.
Add water and bring mix together. Don’t over mix.
Press into lined tin (8cm Square tin) and bake for 25/30 minutes.
Remove from oven, put aside to cool.

*Caramel*

Put the condensed milk, caster sugar, syrup and butter into a saucepan.
Stir constantly over a low heat until sugar melt. Stir constantly to prevent burning. this will take approximately 15 minutes.
The mixture will thicken as the sugar and syrup melts.
Continue stirring over heat until colour changes to a ‘caramel’. watch carefully as it can easily burn.
Leave a side to cool. Make sure it’s fully cool before putting on the shortbread. Spread across shortbread.

*Chocolate*

Melt chocolate (and coconut oil)
Ensure caramel is completely cold before spreading across it.

Leave to cool and harder before cutting.

The Caramel layer can be made without condensed milk but is more temperature sensitive

* Caramel layer *
400g can of coconut milk
250g/2 cups caster sugar
30ml/2 tbsp water
125g/½ cup dairy free butter

Place tin of coconut milk in fridge over. This will allow the cream to rise to the top of tin.
Add sugar to saucepan and water.
Mix until sugar is wet.
Heat over medium heat and boil to a caramel colour.
Do not mix as it will crystallise but shake saucepan to ensure that all the sugar melts.
Be careful not to burn but you need to bring it to a high temperature, otherwise it won’t set.
Take off heat and mix in coconut cream (you will be left with water in tin).
Stir quickly as you don’t want it to thicken too quickly.
Continue to stir until milk dissolves.
Stir in butter while still hot. Make sure butter melts fully.
Leave a side to cool. Make sure it’s fully cool before putting on the shortbread. Spread across shortbread.

Apple Squares

Apple dessert

*** Dairy free, soya free, egg free and gluten free ***

These freeze well and store in freezer for up to 3 months.

Ingredients

200g self raising gluten free flour

1 tsp baking powder

100g sugar

50ml flavourless oil (sunflower oil, vegetable oil, rapeseed oil)

160ml milk (any alternative milk)

15ml/1 tbsp/20g golden syrup

1 tsp cider vinegar

1 medium cooking apple

Method

Line a 200mm x 200mm baking tray with parchment/greaseproof paper.
Preheat oven to 180 Degrees Celsius

Sponge layer

Mix all dry ingredients
Add the remaining ingredients and mix well.

Apple layer

Slice apples thinly and layer on tray.
Sprinkle sugar over the apples.
Pour sponge mix over the apple mix and put into oven as quickly as possible and bake for 22/25 minutes.

Rainbow vegan cake

Vegan gluten free Birthday

Free from 14 allergens

Ingredients

500g/2 cups self raising gluten free flour

2 tsp baking powder

200g/1 cup sugar

120ml/½ cup sunflower oil

400ml/1 and ²_/3 cups milk (any alternative milk)

45ml/3 tbls golden syrup/maple syrup

½ teaspoon vanilla essence

Food colouring- quantity will depend on brand

Method

• Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius

• Sieve flour and baking soda together. Add the sugar.

• In another bowl whisk the milk, oil, vanilla and syrup together. (this is really important)

• Add the liquid to dry ingredients and mix well but don’t over mix.

• Split into 4 portions. Add required colour to each. Put into lined baking tray (8inch circular)

• Bake at 180 degrees celsius for 25 minutes.

Put buttercream between layers. https://freefromyummies.ie/2018/11/14/dairy-free-butter-cream/

Self Raising Gluten free Flour

Many supermarkets will have their version so gluten free flours. They usually consist of a mix of different Gluten free flours mixed in different portions, depending on the property of each flour.

One variety is Dove Self Raising Flour.

Egg replacements ideas

Here are numerous Egg replacement ideas.

**** EGG REPLACEMENT ****

Ideas in relation to how and when to use them

Vegan gluten free fudge

*** Vegan gluten free fudge ***

Ingredients

400g condensed milk https://freefromyummies.ie/2019/10/07/vegan-condensed-milk/

400g Vegan chocolate

Method

Place condensed milk and chocolate in slow cooker at high until chocolate is melted.
Once chocolate is melted, turn down to low.
Leave on low for 90 minutes, stir regularly.
At end of 90 minutes, add any extra ingredients/flavours
Pour in lined tray or moulds and put into fridge overnight.

Flavours

White chocolate
Creme mint chocolate
Baileys
Lemon
Peanut/almond butter
Vanilla

Vegan Chocolate Square

Shortbread base with a creamy chocolate topping

Dairy free, soya free, egg free, nut free, peanut free and gluten free

*** BASE ***

75g plain flour (any flour will work, I use a gluten free flour mix).

50g cornflour

1 tbsp warm water

100g dairy free butter

50g icing sugar

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degrees celcuis

Mix all the ingredients together and spread on a 20cm square baking tray.

Bake for 20 minutes until it begins to colour.

Place in fridge to cool while you make the topping.

*** TOPPING ***

1 can (400ml) full fat coconut milk placed in fridge overnight and use cream from top

2 tbsp icing sugar (sieved to remove lumps) (extra may be needed if mixture doesn’t thicken)

150g dairy and soya free chocolate

Method

Melt the chocolate

Whisk the coconut milk and icing sugar together. Whisk at high speed for at least 5 minutes.

Fold in the melted chocolate but make sure the chocolate has cooled down.

If the mixture doesn’t thicken add another tablespoon of icing sugar and mix again.

Spread the chocolate mix over the cold base. Place in fridge for at least 2 hours before cutting/serving.

Alternatives:

Add chocolate chips to cooled chocolate mix. If you have a safe white chocolate, white chocolate chips are nice through it.
Add chopped walnuts or roast hazelnuts.
Decorate with strawberries/raspberries.

Oat free flapjacks

Dairy free, soya free, egg free and gluten free.

Ingredients

50g sugar
3 tbsp golden syrup
75g dairy free butter
150g buckwheat flakes
50g corn flakes (use gluten free if required)

Method

Preheat the oven to 180 degree celcuis (350 F)
Put the butter/sugar/syrup in a saucepan and on a medium heat gently heat until the sugar melts.
Add the flakes and mix until fully combine.
Spread on a lined baking tin.
Bake for 25 minutes, until golden brown.

Alternatives

Use oats/millet/quinoa flakes instead of buckwheat
Use maple syrup instead of golden syrup
Add 50g raisins/dried fruit.
Add 50g dairy free chocolate chips
Spread dairy free chocolate across the top.
Add 2 tablespoons of nut butter.
Use rice krispies instead of corn flakes.

Spinach yogurt muffins

Vegan and gluten free muffins

Ingredients

270g gluten free self-raising flour

1 tbsp baking powder

Half tsp baking soda

Half tsp cinnamon

Pinch of salt

4 cups of spinach

100g caster sugar

50g brown sugar

120ml milk (I used rice milk)

60ml flavourless oil (sunflower oil, vegetable oil, rapeseed oil, corn oil)

125ml Vegan yogurt

1 tsp cider vinegar

Method

Preheat oven to 180 degree celcuis.
Mix flour, baking powder, baking soda, cinnamon and salt together (dry mix)
In blender add spinach, sugar, milk, oil and yogurt together (wet mix).
Add wet mix to dry mix and cider vinegar and mix well.
Put into muffin cases and put into oven as quickly as possible.
Bake for 22/25 minutes.

Sweet potato and carrot cake

Sweet potato and carrot cake
Dairy free, soya free, egg free and gluten free

**Ingredients**
200g sweet potato
50g carrots
130g dairy free butter/margarine
200g flour (I used gluten free flour)
1 tbsp golden syrup (optional)

**Method**

Boil sweet potato and carrot until very soft (you can do this in microwave). Remove the water from the vegetables and add butter/margarine and mash well, even better if pureed with hand blender.
Sieve flour and add to vegetables. Add golden syrup and mix well.
Bake in oven at 180 degrees for 25/30 minutes.
Do not over cook as it’ll go hard.

Honeycomb

*** Very easy honeycomb ***
Free from all the top allergens

100g caster sugar
40ml golden syrup
1 tsp bicarbonate soda
Spray of oil

Method

Line baking tray with parchment paper and spray with oil to prevent sticking.
Mix sugar and golden syrup and melt over low heat. When sugar is fully melted, turn up heat to allow mixture to turn a carmel colour (this will happen quite quickly). Be careful not to burn it.
Turn off heat and add bicarbonate soda and quickly mix well together. Make sure bicarbonate soda is fully absorbed.
Mixture should be bubbling. Transfer immediately to baking tray.
It should expand in size on baking tray, leave 60/90 minutes to harden.

Golden syrup

A question regularly asked is what is golden syrup? The following information is taken directly from Wikipedia.

Golden syrup or light treacle is a thick amber-coloured form of inverted sugar syrup made in the process of refining sugar cane or sugar beet juice into sugar, or by treatment of a sugar solution with acid. It is used in a variety of baking recipes and desserts. It has an appearance similar to honey and is often used as a substitute where honey is unavailable or prohibitively expensive.

It is not to be confused with amber corn syrup or amber refined sugar. Regular molasses, or dark treacle, has both a richer colour and a strong, distinctive flavour.

A common brand used is Lyle Golden Syrup.