I have been baking scones and freezing them the last few days. I have some organic half and half that needs to be used up; so I am baking.
My favorite scone has lemon or orange zest and poppy seeds (sometimes substituted with Chia seeds when there are no poppy seeds). My husband’s favorite scone has chocolate chips and sliced almonds in it (sometimes with a little coconut thrown in for good measure).
Thursday I made a batch of my scones and substituted Chia seeds because the organic poppy seeds I had ordered didn’t arrive. I also made a batch of my husband’s scones. I decided to be a little creative and added some almond flour. The recipe calls for 2 cups of flour and I substituted 1/2 cup almond flour for part of the organic wheat flour. They tasted very good.
This morning I woke up determined to use the last of my half and half before it went bad. Again I made a batch of my scones using lemon zest (need to order some more orange zest) and Chia seeds. I also decided I would bake another batch of scones for my husband.
This is where I became a little over creative. The batch on Thursday with 1/2 cup of almond flour and 1 1/2 cups of organic wheat flour had been good. Why not change things up? I decided to make this batch totally gluten-free. For the 2 cups of flour required in the recipe I used 1 1/2 cups almond flour and 1/2 cup coconut flour (since I add coconut anyway) and a handful of unsulfured coconut. Hmm, I thought. Why not substitute the tablespoon of sugar with coconut sugar (denser and dryer than I thought but I went for it anyway). Well, if I was going to go gluten-free, why not go dairy free? I substituted the half and half for almond milk (left over from my daughter’s visit) and mixed it with the two eggs.
So, if I am going dairy free, I should use dairy-free mini chocolate chips. I mixed everything together and patted it out into a circle on parchment paper. I brushed the entire surface with a little of the almond milk/egg mixture and added a few more dairy-free chocolate chips and slivered almonds. Into the oven it went.
25 minutes later, I pulled out the scones with the melted chocolate chips and slivered almonds on top of a golden brown crust. My husband walks in a little while later and takes a slice of his favorite scone right off the baking sheet. He immediately asks what I did different. He says they are grainy and hard to swallow. Uh Oh! I had to taste them for myself. And yes they were a little gritty tasting and kind of stuck to the back of my throat when I swallowed, calling for a quick glass of water to get them down.
What went wrong? Should I have balanced the almond flour and coconut flour better? Should I have used coconut syrup instead of coconut sugar? Should I have used more almond milk or added an extra egg? I just don’t know! If any of you who have baked gluten-free have any suggestions, I would love to hear them. Until then, I may not be trying this again for a bit.
allergictolifemybattle 
The problem with going gluten free is you end up finding substitutes, which often taste foul, rather than just eating differently.
I am not gluten-free but thought I would experiment with a recipe I found to see what would happen.
Many times the chemistry of baking is a mystery to me and I’m not sure why something didn’t turn out. It is fun to experiment though and my husband is a good sport about my failures.
I told my husband that I had written the post. He said while he didn’t like it and it was a little dry, he would still eat it. LOL I am glad he is a good sport too.
Kathryn, it’s taken me far too long to pop in.
Expensive, but cheaper than throwing away with my track record. We have moved away from breads and cakes and delicious yumminess on a daily basis, saving those things only for special occasions, sadly.
I wanted to tell you how very sorry I was the other week to learn of your father’s passing. I hope you and your poor mother have been able to find a small measure of comfort in gathering with family and celebrating his life together.
I’m afraid I don’t have anything to offer in the GF baking department, as I am notoriously lousy at blending flours and thus rely on a handful of select mixes.
I hope you get some worthwhile suggestions. I do find a great deal of worthwhile tips and recipes on Pinterest, especially in the Paleo realm.
All the best to you,
–Kim
can you use applesauce for oil or sugar replacement.