Gluten-free Apple Pie Bars
With a flaky shortbread crust, sweet apple filling, and crunchy streusel topping, these gluten-free apple pie bars make the perfect autumn snack or dessert. They taste just like apple pie— but are so much easier to make!
Simple, scrumptious and gluten free
You can find plenty of gluten-free options in this adorable pastry shop in Brno. Definitely try a vegan gelato (in a cup) from their ice cream trucks in the summer months.
Dark chocolate cake, frosted with luscious cookies and cream buttercream and topped with cookie crumbs and whole Oreos— this cake is every bit as decadent as it sounds. Intensely rich and chocolatey, it’s just like eating an Oreo in cake form!
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I’ll never forget the day when my husband discovered that Nabisco had come out with gluten-free Oreo cookies. He couldn’t stop talking about it, and indeed, visited three supermarkets in one day to try to find them. No luck. We spend months looking for them in Czech grocery stores and specialty shops— nothing. While gluten-free Oreos are now fairly easy to track down now in the US, unfortunately, they are not available in the Czech Republic yet.
Determined to get my hands on them, I ended up ordering two packs from Amazon.co.uk. When they arrived, my husband and I sat down eagerly together to try our new gluten-free goodies. Our verdict: pretty darn tasty. The cream filling seemed to be identical, and the texture and taste of the cookie were almost the same as the original. The only difference we noticed was that the gluten-free version had a slightly savory aftertaste, like a cracker. Overall, we were very satisfied with our purchase.
As we had more than enough for snacks, my husband requested that I use some of the Oreos in a baked good. Excited, I thought about my favorite desserts; I love cookies, but I love cake even more. Especially chocolate cake. So, what could be better but to combine the two?
I ended up making this beautiful, indulgent cake for our wedding anniversary. While the recipe could easily be doubled, I chose to make a single-layer cake for the two of us (I cannot bear the thought of cake going to waste). With its dark chocolate sponge, delicious Oreo buttercream, and chunks of whole Oreo cookies, this cake was a huge hit in my house. I hope you will love it just as much as I do.
This cake is very easy to make, and most of the ingredients are pantry staples. The only unusual items are gluten-free Oreos (essential, for obvious reasons) and black cocoa powder (optional, but highly recommended). Here is the full list:
While not required, if you can get your hands on black cocoa powder I would highly recommend using it for this cake. Black cocoa powder has a rich, intense taste and is much darker in color than natural cocoa powder, which will not only deepen the chocolate flavor of the cake but will make it appear almost black— just like an Oreo!
For best results, I suggest combining black cocoa powder with another type of cocoa powder in baking. For this recipe, I used 20g of natural cocoa powder and 20g of black cocoa powder.
First, preheat the oven to 350⁰ F /180⁰ C / 160⁰ C fan. Grease an 8-inch or 9-inch round cake pan and set aside.
In a mixing bowl, stir together the sifted dry ingredients (flour, sugar, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and xanthan gum) until nicely combined and all clumps have disappeared.
In a separate larger bowl, add the milk, eggs, oil, and vanilla and beat with an electric mixer or stand mixer on medium speed for 1-2 minutes.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients. Beat everything together with a mixer on medium speed for 1-2 minutes. Easy peasy!
Stir in the hot coffee. Don’t worry, this will not make your cake taste like coffee, it will just enhance the chocolate flavor. The batter will be shiny and fairly thin (and that’s okay).
Pour the batter into the greased cake pan. Bake for 35-38 minutes. To test for doneness, stick a toothpick through the center of the cake— if it comes out mostly clean, it’s done! If the toothpick comes out sticky, put the cake bake into the oven for another 1-2 minutes.
Once the cake is baked, let it cool for about 10 minutes in the pan, then transfer to a wire rack to let it cool completely.
If the cake is domed (like mine), you can trim off the top with a serrated knife or cake leveler. However, if you do this, do not throw out those cake scraps from the top! They are actually the moistest part of the cake and are absolutely delicious. Enjoy them as a snack, or freeze them for later to make cake balls/pops/truffles.
First, we’re going to blitz some Oreos. Put 7 gluten-free Oreos in a food processor and pulse until they become fine crumbs. Set aside, and try not to nibble.
Now for the frosting. In a large mixing bowl, whip the soft butter with a stand mixer or electric mixer for 4-5 minutes until pale and fluffy.
Add half the (sifted) powdered sugar into the butter, and mix on low for 1-2 minutes until combined. Turn up the speed to medium-high and whip for another 2-3 minutes.
Add the second half of the sifted powdered sugar and repeat.
Add the vanilla extract and then add the milk, one tbsp at a time, to loosen up the frosting. If the frosting is too stiff, add a little more milk. If it’s too runny, add a little more powdered sugar.
Once it’s nice and spreadable, reserve approximately ⅓ of the frosting and place it in a covered bowl or container for decorating at a later stage (this is the vanilla frosting).
With the remaining ⅔ of the frosting, add the Oreo crumbs gradually, one small handful at a time, mixing as you go. Add as many crumbs as you like, depending on your preference, and stop once your frosting has achieved its desired look and consistency (this is the cookies and cream frosting).
Decorating time! You can frost the cake however you want, but I started by doing a crumb coat with the cookies and cream buttercream. A crumb coat is a thin layer of frosting that helps seal in all the crumbs before adding the final coat. I put my crumb-coated cake into the fridge to set for 30 minutes.
Next, I added a second, thicker layer of Oreo buttercream to the cake. I used a palette knife to make it nice and smooth, then decorated the sides of the cake with extra Oreo cookie crumbs. Personally, I think the crumbs add a nice texture and also create a lovely visual contrast with the white frosting.
I finished off the top of the cake with large swirls of vanilla buttercream and, of course, whole Oreos cut in half. It is an Oreo cake, after all.
And there you have it: a delicious gluten-free Oreo cookie cake. What a beautiful thing to behold (and eat).
Serving Size 1 slice
Servings 8
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
The nutritional information is based on the brands and ingredients I used for this recipe. They may not be 100% accurate for you. Please check your nutrition labels for more precise information.
Planning a trip to Prague? Here are my tips on where to go for gluten-free desserts!
Zesty lemon sponge and tart blackberry icing come together beautifully in these delicious summer cupcakes.
A cookie is a sometimes food…I beg to differ. Crunchy on the outside, chewy and chocolatey on the inside, these gluten-free monster cookies are so delicious that you’ll want to gobble them up by the handful!
Monster cookies are something of a cookie mashup – in other words, a Frankenstein’s monster of a cookie. They contain a little bit of everything: peanut butter, oatmeal, chocolate chips, and most importantly, M&Ms. They are sweet, crunchy, nutty, slightly salty, and frighteningly tasty.
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Let’s go back to the beginning. It all begins with peanut butter. Ahh, peanut butter. I can honestly say that I would not want to live in a world without peanut butter. If I go to my pantry and find that peanut butter isn’t there, I become instantly panicky.
As good as peanut butter tastes on bread, crackers, fruit (or straight from the jar), it’s even more exciting when added to baked goods. I was thinking about some creative ways to use peanut butter in baking… peanut butter cookies, perhaps? Gorgeous, but rather simple. Peanut butter and chocolate cupcakes? Delicious and decadent, but a little heavy for the summer. What about peanut butter oatmeal cookies loaded with both M&Ms and chocolate chips? Now you’re talking!
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Thus, my quest to create the perfect gluten-free monster cookie was born. Before attempting to bake them for the first time, I spent some time eagerly researching recipes, both gluten-free and otherwise. After a little bit of trial and error in the kitchen, I can honestly say that I’m very happy with the monster I created (pun intended).
My monster cookie recipe is based on my personal preferences. As you know, I adore peanut butter, so I went for a subtle amount of crunch from the oats, with a more pronounced peanut butter flavor. After baking and tasting, I am happy to say that my version of the monster cookie is a wonderfully balanced cookie, with the oats, peanut butter, and chocolate all complimenting each other beautifully.
And even better, my gluten-free monster cookies are incredibly easy to make. Let’s get started!
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First, gather your ingredients. Most of these are common kitchen pantry ingredients, with a few delightful extras thrown in:
Before you start mixing your dry ingredients together, make sure you have a good gluten-free flour blend. As I live in the Czech Republic, it’s difficult for me to get gluten-free flour brands from the USA. Luckily, Doves Farm Freee from the UK is widely available here, and personally, I’ve had great success baking with this flour blend. But you can use any gluten-free flour blend you like.
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First, sift the flour, salt, baking soda, baking powder into a bowl. Sifting isn’t absolutely necessary, but it does help to prevent lumps and clumps in the mixing process. Next, add the oats, give them a good whisk, and set aside. That’s all your dry ingredients done!
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Now add your softened butter into a bowl. Since it’s summertime now, I took my butter out of the fridge for a few hours before baking. In the winter, I usually leave it out overnight to get to the right level of softness. Next, throw in that delicious peanut butter and the two of them become friends.
Beat them together with a stand mixer or an electric mixer for a few minutes. Grab your handy spatula and scrape down the sides of the bowl to reincorporate any butter and peanut butter stuck to the sides.
Now, add the white and brown sugar. Beat on medium speed for 1-2 minutes until pale and fluffy.
Now it’s time to add the eggs and vanilla extract. Reduce your speed to low and beat together for 1 minute more.
Now, add your entire flour/oats mixture into the wet ingredients. Beat together on a low speed until just combined. Be careful not to overmix- you don’t want your cookies to rise and fall.
By this point, you should have a lovely, light brown, sticky cookie dough batter.
Now it’s time for the fun part! Throw in the stars of the show: all of those delicious chocolate chips and M&Ms. Gently mix them into the batter until evenly dispersed (I used a wooden spoon for this).
Now, the waiting begins. The cookie dough will need to chill for at least 30 minutes to firm up (you can also chill it overnight if you wish). Cover the dough with plastic wrap and refrigerate.
Before you take out your cookie dough, don’t forget to preheat your oven! Set the oven temperature to 375⁰F / 190⁰ C / 170⁰ C fan. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Once your cookie dough is nice and chilled, remove it from the fridge and start rolling the dough into balls approximately 2 inches (5 cm) in diameter.
If you have some extra M&Ms leftover, you can press a few extra on the top of each ball for decoration. Don’t hold back, it will make your finished cookies even more chocolatey and delicious. Also, it makes the cookie dough balls look adorable.
Finally, these beauties are ready to bake! Put them in the oven for 12-14 minutes until the top is a nice golden brown color.
Check for doneness, and remove your cookies from the oven. Let them cool on the baking tray for a few minutes. Then remove them and let the cookies cool completely on a drying rack.
Mmm. They look monstrously good, don’t they?
Your gluten-free monster cookies are ready to eat! They make a perfect snack with an afternoon coffee or tea, or can be enjoyed as a light dessert with a glass of cold milk.
Eat these cookies however you like. That’s good enough for me.
Serving Size 1 cookie
Servings 24
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily value may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.
This nutritional information is based on the brands and ingredients I used for this recipe. They may not be 100% accurate for you. Please check your nutrition labels for more precise information.