I've used coconut flour a bit. Many of the coconut flour recipes I've seen use *a lot* of eggs. Not a problem for me but might be for others. The texture of the cupcakes I made was interesting - dense, but light. I need to do more experimenting, but it is a very expensive flour. Here is the *best* and easiest GF Bread recipe I have ever made. You would hardly know it is gluten free. Gluten Free Focaccia Ingredients: ● 1 1/2 tsp dry yeast ● 3/4 cup warm water ● 1 tsp sugar ● 1 cup brown rice flour ● 1/4 cup potato starch ● 1/4 cup tapioca flour ● 1 1/2 tsp xanthan gum ● 1 tsp unflavored gelatin powder ● 1 tsp dried rosemary ● 1/2 tsp gluten-free onion powder ● 3/4 tsp salt ● 2 large eggs ● 2 Tbs olive oil ● 1/2 tsp cider vinegar ● ● Topping ● 1 tsp seasoning (Italian, herb, whatever) ● 1/4 tsp salt ● 1 TBs olive oil Directions: 1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. 2. Dissolve sugar in warm water. Sprinkle yeast into water and stir until dissolved. Set aside to foam, about 5 minutes. 3. Combine flours, xanthan gum, gelatin powder, rosemary, onion powder, and salt in a small mixer bowl. 4. Whisk eggs, olive oil and vinegar into the dissolved yeast and stir the mixture into the flour. 5. Beat dough with mixer for 2 minutes, using a spatula to keep stirring down the dough on the mixer beaters. The dough will be soft and sticky. 6. Transfer dough to an 8 x 8 or 9 x 9 inch non-stick pan coated with cooking spray and cornmeal. (I usually line pan bottom with parchment) 7. Brush top with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, and season as you wish (I use thyme) 8. Cover and let rise in warm place for 40 minutes. 9. Bake for 15 minutes. Yum! Off topic - my fab Candied Ginger Gluten-free cookie. Ingredients: * 1 cup Unsalted Butter, slightly softened * 3/4 cup Brown Sugar * 1/3 cup White Sugar * 2 Eggs * 1 tsp Vanilla * 1 cup Sorghum Flour * 1 cup Brown Rice flour * 1/2 cup Tapioca Starch/Flour * 1/2 cup Potato Starch * 1/2 tsp Baking Soda * 1 tsp Baking Powder * 1 1/2 tsp Xanthan Gum * 1/2 tsp Salt * 3/4 cup Flaked Coconut, unsweetened * 2 - 4 Tbs Coarsely Chopped Candied Ginger (I used 4), plus extra * 1/2 cup Dried Cranberries Directions: Preheat oven to 325F degrees. Mix the flours, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and xanthan gum together with a whisk and set aside. Using an electric mixer beat the butter until soft, and add the sugars, blending well. Add the eggs, one at a time, incorporating each well. Add the vanilla and blend. Add the dry ingredients until just blended Add the coconut, ginger, and cranberries and mix until just blended, about 10 seconds. Spoon a full tablespoon of dough (or use scoop) and press into a 2" circle (about 1/4" thick). Sprinkle additional chopped ginger on top of each cookie, to taste. Bake approximately 17 minutes (top of cookies won't brown much) Let cookies cool on cookie sheet for about 5 minutes before moving to cooling rack. Makes 3 to 4 dozen cookies, depending on size.

dunmoanin, I am so glad i have read your post. My situation is not what you have discribed but i see some similarities. I had a blow out with my husband last week. I understand that men from divorce are stuck between two families...but last week just took the straw for me. I'm lucky , very lucky in one sense because my sd does nto live with us. She comes EOW. BUT she manipulates and tries to hog alot of time from her father when it suites her. IE she is very jealous of her own brother when he spends time with his dad when they both come over. My dh puts her in her place but this jealousy has been there since i'm met her when she was 5 years old. She definitely was jealous when i came into her dads life and he again put her in her place. So in none sense , dad doesn't put his daughter all the time on a pedestal BUT he does favor her above both his sons...which i find disgusting. He does share way too much info...i mean, all daily activity with her on the phone when she phones. She use to phone all the time...but thankfully that has stopped because she is older, in her teens and fights with her dad because he now has opened his eyes. But what happened last week really stabbed me. I have been testing her by telling her about plans ahead of time...and she sabotages them. I only told my dh 2 days ago. I blew up...God help...i've never been so angry in my life and some of the things i said were so vile towards him and his daugther but i just erupted. i basically said that he should marry his daughter and go......i wont say it further...but you get the gist..... i told him she says jump andhe says how high...that he backstabbed me as a wife and friend. He knew we had plans but the dear daugther phones and he promised to take her to lunch and watch her game and dumps all the plans out the door for the entire family for her! Well i told him off , told him my feelings..and also told him to keep his plans wih his daugther and that i would make other arrangments. i slept separatly for 2 nights We spoke, mended...and low and behold she phones again..says someting to him that shocked him and he defended me..and told her to stay at home ... I'm drained....i'm unhappy...not at my husband...but at the events that unfolded. The stupid games...andi todl him last night that i'm starting to hate her, resent her and not care....its building. I wnat to let it go..but i do not trust her and she plays games.....Been taught by her mother , she's influenced by her mother....so there is nothing i can do about it....but i do notsee it gettign any better when she is older. I just see more games...i just pray that my husband keeps his eyes open. He does buckle from time to time. He said he wanted to give a diamond necklace for her sweet 16....keep in mind he doesn't havea penny to his name! He wont give jewellery to me but he wants to do it for his daughter!!!!????? I'm not jealous. Honestly i'm not. BUt i just do not think its normal for a man to share every detail moment of his life with his daugther....he's also pulled back from doing that now as well. But how long will this happen? After reading your story, i just cannot believe you stayed that long and took so much disrespect. I had one incident last week and i made sure he knew exactly how i felt adn i told him he goes down that path, i will be out the door...no lie there! I encourage him to see his kids and be with them....but not to leave me hanging because of sd manipulations. To make him choose between me and her..or now...her and my son. I hate it. I hate the games. Its disgusting me this week and i'm sooooooo upset about this. I really have no interest in seeing her next time. I need a break

I prefer to use just thighs for chicken and dumplings, but have used the whole chicken on occasion. Cook the chicken ( cut into parts if using whole chicken) and the vegetables (cut into bite sized pieces) in a heavy pot with just enough water or broth to cover, until done. I use quite a lot of vegetables, onions, carrots, celery, mushrooms, peas, chopped parsley. Allow to cool a bit, debone the chicken and cut it into bite sized pieces. Return to pot with broth and vegetables. You may need to add more broth at this point, you want enough liquid to cook the dumplings. Bring to a very gentle simmer, add dumplings, cover, cook until dumplings are done. (They will almost double in size). Dumplings 1 ½ Sticks butter 2 C water 2 C sifted all purpose flour 1 tsp salt* 4 eggs 1/4 ro ½ C flour * I like to use a seasoned salt. Morton’s Nature’s Seasoning when making chicken & dumplings, or garlic salt for beef stew with dumplings. For ham & dumplings I omit the salt entirely, they pick up enough from the ham broth. In medium saucepan, bring water to boil. Add butter to melt. Add flour and salt all at once, stir and continue to cook until mixture leaves sides of pan. Remove from heat, allow to cool slightly. Add the 4 eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition, (Be sure each egg is well incorporated into the flour mixture before adding the next one.) For the flatter, strip dumplings, turn dough out onto floured work surface (you may want to do this in sections, about a third at a time.) And pat out with floured hands or use rolling pin. Cut into strips, about 1" X 2". (Or get fancy and make whatever shape you like, squares, diamonds, etc.) If you prefer drop dumplings, skip the rolling out step, and just drop dough by the spoonful into gently simmering broth. (A cookie dough scoop is great for this). Cover and cook until done, about 8 or 10 min. These dumplings will absolutely melt in your mouth!

Oh yes, biscuits! That's why I say, "I am dough challenged." Just about anything that requires flour and shaping is a challenge for me. I don't care how many people tell me secrets or how easy it is. A perfect scone or biscuit requires attention and a very light touch. I can make adequate ones, but not sublime ones. The perfect oatmeal cookie eluded me for some of the reasons DLM mentions. I finally settled on using a mix of shortening and butter to achieve the right mix of crunch but still a little softness. I use 1/3 organic shortening and 2/3 butter. I tried half and half and it was a little too greasy for my taste. So after some experimentation I came up with that ratio. I think the secret to my grandmother's oatmeal cookies is she used stick margarine, but I tried them with all margarine and I just didn't like them. Margarine has fallen out of favor and thus margarine just doesn't seem to be what it used to be. One could use Crisco too, that's what my other grandmother used in baking, but I'm just not a huge fan. I'll bet the secret to a lot of old "grandma" recipes was some leaf lard . . .