Strawberry Lemonade Bars

I was never really a fan of desserts until I went gluten free last year. Maybe its the whole "you want what you can't have" thing, I don't know, but I never wanted cake at my birthday parties, I only ever had ice cream... and just vanilla at that. I wasn't into cookies or lemon bars or even toppings on my ice cream! I do still hate chocolate though... (its okay, I've been called crazy many times in my life about this, so feel free to pile on) Given my general dislike for desserts before, I really don't know where my newfound love for gluten free desserts came from, but now I'm obsessed with my toffee-tastic girlscout cookies, cinnamon rolls, doughnuts, and all things strawberry dessert related. I would love to make a good apple crisp or apple pie on some gluten free crust and devour that, but I'm not allowed to have apples right now... Stupid fructose!

When I ran across the recipe for Strawberry Lemonade Bars on "Averie Cooks" I knew I was going to have to figure out a way to make them friendly for my new diet. Strawberries and lemons are already allowed, so I figured the rest wouldn't be too much of a problem. And really, it wasn't. The most difficult... okay tedious... part was cutting up the strawberries! Everything else was a piece of cake... I mean bar...

Here is the original recipe: http://www.averiecooks.com/2014/07/strawberry-lemonade-bars.html

We live in California and have amazing fresh strawberries already so I used only fresh and none frozen, but I'm sure it would work fine if you needed to use all or some frozen berries instead.

To make it gluten free, simply use all purpose gluten-free flour instead of regular. I used gfJules Gluten Free Flour and did a 1 to 1 replacement. Your favorite blend will work just great I'm sure.

If you need to make it low-FODMAP too like me, then simply use lactose free sour cream in the "filling" portion where it calls for greek yogurt or sour cream. We found Green Valley Organics Lactose Free Sour Cream at Sprouts and it looks like they make yogurt too which you could use.

Other than that, just follow the instructions and you're good to go!! (Note: I used the wrong size pan so mine are a little flatter than the originals, but they were still AMAZINGLY tasty!)

Make yourself a batch tomorrow. It will make you feel like spring has finally arrived!

Heavenly Strawberry Crisp

Strawberry crisp is one of my all time favorite desserts so I was really happy when I saw that strawberries, oats, and plain sugar are all allowed on the low-FODMAP diet!

The original recipe we found on Pinterest a long time ago, before I was even gluten free: http://sugarandspice-celeste.blogspot.ca/2010/06/scrumptious-strawberry-crisp.html?m=1 and we've made some modifications since then.

Here's how we make it:

2 baskets of strawberries (you know, those green ones that berries come in when you get them at a farmer's market or strawberry stand, which is where I recommend you get them, they're so much better and fresher!)

1/2 cup sugar

2 tbsp cornstarch

(If you can find rhubarb, I highly encourage you to add it, but we usually end up making it with just strawberries)

Mix these ingredients together and put into the bottom of your baking dish.

For the topping, mix together the following ingredients in a separate bowl:

1 cup all-purpose gluten-free flour (we use Jules!)

1/2 cup old-fashioned rolled oats (make sure they are gluten free if you're extra sensitive 

1/3 cup white sugar

1/3 cup packed brown sugar 

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon 

1/4 tsp salt

1 tsp vanilla

1 stick unsalted butter, melted

Scatter this mix over the top of the strawberries.

Bake at 350 degrees F until the top is brown and the juices are bubbly. Should be about 35-40 min. Let it sit for about 10 minutes and then dig in. 

The rest of the family puts a scoop of vanilla ice cream on top, but I haven't found any lactose free yet so I just ate mine plain. I didn't feel like I was missing out though. I even had more for breakfast this morning!