(Gluten-free) Chocolate peanut butter brownies

Shauna James Ahern sent me a copy of Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef (a love story) in anticipation of Thanksgiving (a very glutenous, gluttonous holiday if ever there was one). She hopes to spread the word that gluten-free baking is tasty and fun to share with those that we love. Check and check.

Last week, we celebrated Veteran’s Day with two days off from school and an excellent (gluten-free!) baking project: chocolate peanut butter brownies.

Holden told me, “Mommy, I like being your big grocery store helper; I wish I could be 146,000 feet tall so I’d be the biggest helper there is!”

Sweet, right? Of course, as a giant, he couldn’t fit in the store, but his heart is in the right place.

After our scavenger-hunt-like search for Xantham gum ($13, ouch) and our argument over whether unsweetened chocolate could be delicious if enough sugar was added to the recipe, Holden and I enjoyed our baking adventure: we got to use fun gadgets that I didn’t remember I owned such as the food scale and the double boiler; Holden was very responsible for dumping, mixing, and swirling; together, we whisked and licked beaters.

The result? Super tasty but a little less pretty than Shauna’s own picture. Is it okay to blame my five-year-old peanut butter swirler that we didn’t achieve the picture perfect image below? Sorry, kid. I love you anyway.

chocolate peanut butter brownies by shauna james ahern

Thanks to Shauna for sharing her recipes with me. Make sure to check out her book, Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef (a love story), if you find yourself cooking for anyone with Celiac Disease. I’ll be sharing my brownies and Xantham gum with my friend, Sarah, if I can stop eating them long enough.

Danny (AKA the Chef) and Shauna invited many many bloggers to their Thanksgiving feast. If you want to check out the other dishes (not made by five-year-olds) and get inspired to cook, bake and roast a full-on Thanksgiving, visit glutenfreegirl.blogspot.com. Oh yeah, and she’s also giving away a ton of prizes:

• 3 copies of their cookbook
• a collection of all the gluten-free flours necessary to bake from their coookbook
• a grab bag of spices and oils that might be necessary
• a baking package, including jelly roll pans, a Silpat, tart pans, etc.
• and finally, a KITCHEN AID MIXER!

I am among a posse of bloggers who tested her recipes Shauna’s gluten-free recipes this week. See what everyone else thought about the gluten-free Thanksgiving dishes:

Andrea’s Recipes | gluten-free pumpkin scones
Not Without Salt | gluten-free chocolate biscotti
Zest Bakery | warm pumpkin polenta with goat cheese
The Mommy Bowl | gluten-free bread
Smith Bites | gluten-free celery root soup with cashew cream
White on Rice Couple | Turkey Sloppy Joes on Rosemary Rolls
What’s Gaby Cooking | gluten-free molasses cookies
Kitchen Gadget Girl | gluten-free pumpkin strata
Tiffin Tales | gluten-free Thanksgiving torte
Adventures of a Gluten-Free Mom | gluten, dairy and egg free crescent rolls and cinnamon rolls
Eat the Love | Gluten Free Maple Sweet Potato Cheesecake with Gingerbread Bottom
Gluten-Free Doctor Recipes | gluten-free sourdough rosemary rolls and gluten-free mincemeat cookies
The Art of Gluten-Free Baking | gluten-free pumpkin pie
Sophisticated Gourmet | cranberry-almond-coconut macaroons topped with chocolate
Cook 4 Seasons | gluten-free pumpkin mousse
Cook It Allergy Free | Cornbread and (Shauna’s) Crusty Bread Stuffing
Lexie’s Kitchen | dairy-free, egg-free, gluten-free, no-bake pumpkin pie filling
Recipe Girl | an entire Thanksgiving menu, gluten-free
Two Peas and Their Pod | gluten-free apple cranberry crisp
Gluten-Free for Good | gluten-free cherry cobbler
My Madeleine | butternut squash soup.
The Sensitive Pantry | gluten-free brown sugar hand pies
Art and Lemons | gluten-free rustic squash tarts
Bellalimento | Gluten Free Pumpkin Roll with Mascarpone and Nutella Filling
Mom Food Project | an entire Thanksgiving, gluten-free
Gluten-Free Easily | candy carrot coins
Dish Towel Diaries | kale Caesar slaw.
A Baking Life | gluten-free gingerbread cake
Glugle Gluten-Free | gluten-free pumpkin muffins
Wenderly | sweet and savory prosciutto cups
Cannelle Et Vanille | sweet potato and crabapple clafoutis