GLUTEN FREE CORNBREAD RECIPE & HOW TO MAKE MUSHROOM ‘BACON’

Gluten Free Cornbread with Brie, Apple Slices and a dollop of

Honey Mustard Mayonnaise. Topped with Mushroom Bacon.

Posted by Bryna Bear aka Gluten Free Baking Bear

     This cornbread recipe is moist with only a hint of sweetness.  It was originally a whole wheat recipe that I found called “The Best Cornbread Ever”.  Changing up the flour to GF worked well.  I also increased the amount of flour and baking powder a little bit; and added xanthan gum and vinegar.

     The cornbread can be baked in an 8” square or round pan; but for the Southern Tea Party I made them in muffin-sized portions.  This can be easily made Dairy Free by replacing the dairy ingredients with non-dairy and then made Vegan by also using my egg replacer (listed below in the recipe) instead of the eggs.

     The mushroom ‘bacon’ was used instead of real bacon at my Tea Party because many of the guests were vegetarian or non-red meat eating.  It is truly surprising how much the mushrooms actually taste like real bacon - minus the cholesterol.  The mushrooms also looked like small pieces of bacon!

     I made cornbread sandwiches by topping each muffin with a piece of Brie, a thin slice of apple, a dollop of honey mustard mayonnaise (homemade of course) and a few pieces of mushroom bacon.  For a pretty presentation I served the sandwiches in fancy baking cups. 

GLUTEN FREE CORNBREAD

From: glutenfreebakingbear.com

Ingredients

½ cup	Sorghum Flour
¼ cup	Tapioca Flour
¼ cup	Chickpea Flour
1 cup	Corn Meal, finely ground (I used yellow)
1 tsp.	Xanthan or Guar Gum
1 tsp.	Baking Powder
¼ tsp.	Baking Soda
¼ tsp.	Salt
¼ cup	Melted Butter (for Diary-free or Vegan use Canola or Olive Oil)
2 Tbs.	Sugar
½ cup	Sour Cream (for Dairy-free or Vegan use Non-Dairy Sour Cream)
½ cup	Milk (for Dairy-Free or Vegan use non-dairy milk)
2	Eggs (for Vegans, in separate cup place: ½ cup water; 2 Tbs. Cornstarch, 2 tsp. Oil, ¼ tsp. Baking Powder & 1/8 tsp. Xanthan or Guar Gum and whisk with a fork until frothy, then add to the recipe where eggs are added.)
1 Tbs.	Apple Cider Vinegar

Directions

     Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

     In a bowl mix all the flours, cornmeal, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  With a wire whisk stir dry ingredients until well mixed.   Set aside.

     In a separate large bowl whisk sugar and butter (or oil) until well blended.

     Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition.  (or add the egg replacer and beat in)

     Whisk in sour cream and milk.

     Add the vinegar and mix well.

     Add dry ingredients, all at once, stir together with a fork until just blended.

     Scoop into baking cup lined muffin tins or put into a well greased 8” pan.

     Place in center of oven and bake muffins for12-15 minutes or bake in pan for 15-20 minutes.

     Cool in pan for 10 minutes and then serve warm.  Cut the bread in the pan into desired sized pieces.

     Store left over cornbread in an airtight container.  Put it into the freezer of you will not be eating it within the next 2 days.

MUSHROOM BACON

Ingredients

½ pound	Shitake Mushrooms
2-4 Tbs.	Olive Oil
½ - 1 tsp.	Salt
Dash	Wheat-free Tamari or Soy Sauce (optional)

Directions

     Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

     If using dried Shitake mushrooms (I used these), first soak them in warm water for about half an hour and then squeeze out any excess water.

     Remove the mushroom stems and discard.

Remove stems and cut into 1/4 inch thick slices.

     Slice the mushrooms about ¼ inch thick and place in a bowl.

     Add enough oil to coat the mushrooms.  Salt to taste.  Add a dash of wheat free tamari or soy sauce if you like.  Stir until mushrooms are well coated and well mixed.

Mushrooms coated in oil and mixed with salt and a dash of gf tamari.

     Spread out a single layer of the mushrooms on a silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheet.

Raw mushrooms on silpat lined baking sheet.

     Bake for 1 hour.  It is necessary to stir the mushrooms every 10 minutes until done.

     Be careful not to over do or burn them or they will be unusable (I learned this the hard way). To prevent overdoing them, keep taste-testing the mushrooms every ten minutes after the first 30-40 minutes of baking. Take the ones that are already done out of the pan if others still need to bake longer.

     They are done when they are nicely browned and no longer flexible when you try to bend them.

    Cool completely and then store in an airtight container.  I used a glass mason jar.  The ones I made for the Tea a few weeks ago are still nice and crisp and fresh tasting.  

     These can be used anywhere you would use regular bacon to garnish or to add crunch to foods.  Add the mushrooms just before serving or they will lose their crisp texture.

HONEY MUSTARD DRESSING

Ingredients

1/2 cup	Mayonnaise (I used Vegenaise so that it was Dairy Free and Vegan)
1 Tbs.	Mustard (I used Spicy Brown which I had on hand, Dijon or any mustard would work also.)
2 Tsp.	Honey (for Vegan use Agave)
To taste	Salt and Pepper (optional)

Directions 

1. Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl or cup. Adjust the amounts of mustard, honey or agave & seasonings to taste.

CORNBREAD WITH BRIE, APPLE & MUSHROOM BACON

& HONEY MUSTARD DRESSING  

1. First make the cornbread muffins, mushroom bacon and honey mustard dressing.
2. Cut the brie or vegan or dairy free cheese into muffin sized pieces.
3. Cut and slice apples into muffin sized pieces.  
4. Cut each cornbread muffin in half crosswise.  
5. Spread each side with some Honey Mustard Dressing.
6. Put a piece of brie cheese (for dairy free use dairy free cheese for vegan use vegan cheese) on one half, top with a piece of apple that has been cut to fit the size of the muffin.  
7. Close the sandwich by putting the top of the muffin back on.  
8. Top each muffin with some mushroom bacon.  I put two pieces as an 'x' on top of each muffin.  For a fancier presentation I put each finished muffin sandwich in a fancy cupcake paper liner.

GLUTEN FREE CORNBREAD From: glutenfreebakingbear.com Ingredients ½ cup Sorghum Flour ¼ cup Tapioca Flour ¼ cup Chickpea Flour 1 cup Corn Meal, finely ground (I used yellow) 1 tsp. Xanthan or Guar Gum 1 tsp. Baking Powder ¼ tsp. Baking Soda ¼ tsp. Salt ¼ cup Melted Butter (use Canola or Olive Oil) 2 Tbs. Sugar ½ cup Sour Cream (for Dairy-free or Vegan use Non-Dairy Sour Cream) ½ cup Milk (for Dairy-Free or Vegan use non-dairy milk) 2 Eggs (for Vegans, in separate cup place: ½ cup water; 2 Tbs. Cornstarch, 2 tsp. Oil, ¼ tsp. Baking Powder & 1/8 tsp. Xanthan or Guar Gum and whisk with a fork until frothy.) 1 Tbs. Apple Cider Vinegar Directions Preheat oven to 425 degrees. In a bowl mix all the flours, cornmeal, xanthan gum, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. With a wire whisk stir dry ingredients until well mixed. Set aside. In a separate large bowl whisk sugar and butter (or oil) until well blended. Add eggs one at a time, beating after each addition. (or add the egg replacer and beat in) Whisk in sour cream and milk. Add the vinegar and mix well. Add dry ingredients, all at once, stir together with a fork until just blended. Scoop into baking cup lined muffin tins or put into a well greased 8” pan. Place in center of oven and bake muffins for12-15 minutes or bake in pan for 15-20 minutes. Cool in pan for 10 minutes and then serve warm. Cut the bread in the pan into desired sized pieces. Store left over cornbread in an airtight container. Put it into the freezer of you will not be eating it within the next 2 days. MUSHROOM BACON Ingredients ½ pound Shitake Mushrooms 2-4 Tbs. Olive Oil ½ - 1 tsp. Salt Dash Wheat-free Tamari or Soy Sauce (optional) Directions Preheat oven to 350 degrees. If using dried Shitake mushrooms (I used these), first soak them in warm water for about half an hour and then squeeze out any excess water. Remove the mushroom stems and discard. Slice the mushrooms about ¼ inch thick and place in a bowl. Add enough oil to coat the mushrooms. Salt to taste. Add a dash of wheat free tamari or soy sauce if you like. Stir until mushrooms are well coated and well mixed. Spread out a single layer of the mushrooms on a silpat or parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake for 1 hour. It is necessary to stir the mushrooms every 10 minutes until done. Be careful not to over do or burn them or they will be unusable (I learned this the hard way). To prevent overdoing them, keep taste-testing the mushrooms every ten minutes after the first 30-40 minutes of baking. Take the ones that are already done out of the pan if others still need to bake longer. They are done when they are nicely browned and no longer flexible when you try to bend them. Cool completely and then store in an airtight container. I used a glass mason jar. The ones I made for the Tea a few weeks ago are still nice and crisp and fresh tasting. These can be used anywhere you would regular bacon to garnish or add crispiness to foods. Add the mushrooms just before serving or they will lose their crisp texture. HONEY MUSTARD DRESSING Ingredients 1/2 cup Mayonnaise (I used Vegenaise so that it was Dairy Free and Vegan) 1 Tbs. Mustard (I used Spicy Brown which I had on hand, Dijon or any mustard would work also.) 2 Tsp. Honey (for Vegan use Agave) To taste Salt and Pepper (optional) Directions Mix all the ingredients together in a small bowl or cup. Adjust the amounts of mustard, honey or agave & seasonings to taste. CORNBREAD WITH BRIE, APPLE & MUSHROOM BACON & HONEY MUSTARD DRESSING  First make the cornbread muffins, mushroom bacon and honey mustard dressing. Cut the brie or vegan or dairy free cheese into muffin sized pieces. Cut and slice apples into muffin sized pieces. Cut each cornbread muffin in half crosswise.   Spread each side with some Honey Mustard Dressing. Put a piece of brie cheese (for dairy free use dairy free cheese for vegan use vegan cheese) on one half, top with a piece of apple that has been cut to fit the size of the muffin.   Close the sandwich by putting the top of the muffin back on.   Top each muffin with some mushroom bacon.  I put two pieces as an 'x' on top of each muffin.  For a fancier presentation I put each finished muffin sandwich in a fancy cupcake paper liner.