Fri, 3 February 2017
Ingredients:
225g (9oz) Denise's delicious flour blend (see below)
2 teaspoons gluten-free baking powder
½ teaspoon xanthan gum
½ teaspoon salt
125g (5oz) blueberries
15g (½oz) ground almonds
150g (6oz) butter/margarine
200g (8oz) ricotta cheese
260g (10½oz) sugar
3 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Method:
Preheat the oven to Gas Mark 4/180°C/350°F. Prepare a 1lb/450g loaf tin, greasing it well with butter/margarine and lining it with baking parchment or a ready-made liner.
In a medium bowl, mix together the flour, baking powder, xanthan gum and salt.
Rinse the blueberries and toss them in ground almonds to coat them lightly.
Using an electric mixer, beat together the butter/margarine, ricotta and sugar, on a high speed for 3 minutes until pale and fluffy. Add the eggs one at a time, mixing on a medium speed after each addition until blended with the mixture. Mix in the vanilla extract.
Remove the bowl from the mixer and stir in the dry ingredients in three or four batches with a metal spoon until just incorporated. Do not over mix. Stir in the blueberries gently, trying not to crush them.
Pour the batter into the prepared tin, smoothing out the top with a spatula. Place in the centre of the oven. Bake for 1 hour 10 minutes to 1 hour 20 minutes, or until a skewer comes out clean. If the cake seems very brown after 40 minutes, then cover with a sheet of tinfoil to keep it from browning further.
Remove from the oven and let it cool for 15 minutes in the tin. Gently remove the cake from the tin and let it cool completely on a wire rack. Remove the parchment or baking liner before serving.
Denise's delicious flour blend:
Makes approximately 850g (2lb) flour blend
250g (10oz) rice flour
25g (1oz) tapioca flour
275g (11oz) potato flour
275g (11oz) corn flour
13g (½oz) teff flour
1 teaspoon gluten-free (GF) baking powder
1 teaspoon guar gum
Sieve all the ingredients into a bowl and mix well.
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Recipes by Denise O'Callaghan from her book 'Recipes from my Gluten-Free Kitchen' (Mercier Press). Denise is the founder of Denise's Delicious Gluten-Free Bakery whose product range is available across Ireland from the major supermarkets, artisan food stores and the online store at www.delicious.ie.
