No One Likes Crumbley Cookies

Let me start off by saying that one of the things I love about being a Virginian (and there are many) is the wide range of local food and products available year round in the state. When most people think of wine country they think of California and Napa Valley. I like to think of Virginia and the Shenandoah valley; we have so many beautiful wineries and meaderies in our state that highlight many local fruits in their wines that there's nothing quiet like it in your common types of wine. But beyond my love for the local wines is my huge love for our summer farmer's markets. I love going to the Falls Church farmer's market on a Saturday morning and seeing the wide range of local foods.

The range and quality of produce that a farmer's market is amazing. One of my secrets to making delicious food that people love is to use local produce as much as possible. Not only does it give you a sense of pride that you used food close to home, but you know the food is fresh. It doesn't have to be frozen in a truck and driven cross-country to reach you. It's fresh picked fruit and vegetables practically delivered to your doorstep. Sometimes the most delicious food is food locally available and simply cooked or baked to highlight the beauty in the produce.

That's why I'm so excited to be hosting this week's Local Food & Farmer's Market #SundaySupper. This weekend many of us are sharing recipes that use food locally grown near us. So not only are you going to find beautiful and delicious recipes made with local ingredients, but you'll be able to learn more about each of our participants through the stories they tell about their homes and local regions. (i.e. Food always brings people together.)

Please check out all of the recipes below, and be sure to check out my Gluten Free Sour Cherry Cake at the bottom!

Appetizers & Salads

Garlic Scape Dip from The Girl In the Little Red Kitchen
Onion Bacon Jam with Bread n' Brie from Gotta Get Baked
Kale & Pepita Pesto from girlichef
Garden Quinoa Salad from The Urban Mrs
Grilled Cherry Tomato and Goat Cheese Salad from Pescetarian Journal
Watermelon-Feta Salad with Pomegranate Drizzle from The Weekend Gourmet

Soups & Sides

Watermelon Gazpacho from Jane's Adventures in Dinner
Classic Gazpacho from Curious Cuisiniere
Pea Soup from Small Wallet, Big Appetite
Pickled Garlic Scapes from kimchi MOM
Cheesy Zucchini Hodge Podge from Cupcakes & Kale Chips
Succotash from Magnolia Days
3 Easy Japanese Spinach Recipes from NinjaBaking.com
Michigan-Made Meal with Seasoned Potato Chips from Foxes Love Lemons

Entrees

Summer Veggie Pizza from Country Girl In The Village
Tomato Pie from The Hand That Rocks The Ladle
Kitchen Sink Vegetable Curry from What Smells So Good?
Margherita Pizza from Growing Up Gabel
Cheesy Zucchini Fritters from Cindy's Recipes and Writings
Three Sauces with Summer Herbs to Transform a Simple Grilled Dinner from Cook the Story
Vegetable Quesadillas from Cookin' Mimi
Mushroom Scallion Risotto from Vintage Kitchen Notes
Lemony Summer Linguine with Grilled Vegetables from Neighborfood
Pasta alla Norma Nuda from Juanita's Cocina
Arugula Pizza from Family Foodie

Desserts

Peach Cobbler from That Skinny Chick Can Bake
Coconut Cherry Bars from Killer Bunnies, Inc
Lightened Up Peach and Blueberry Cobbler from Peanut Butter and Peppers
Cherry Brandy Cobbler from The Wimpy Vegetarian
Peach Maple Ice Cream from Pies and Plots
Cherry Clafoutis from Food Lust People Love
Roasted Figs with Caramel, Honey Ice Cream and Aged Balsamic from Crazy Foodie Stunts
Peach Ice Cream Paletas from Basic N Delicious
Gluten Free Sour Cherry Cake from No One Likes Crumbley Cookies

Join the #SundaySupper conversation on twitter today! We tweet throughout the day and share recipes from all over the world. Our weekly chat starts at 7:00 pm EST. Follow the #SundaySupper hashtag and remember to include it in your tweets to join in the chat. Check out our#SundaySupper Pinterest board for more fabulous recipes and food photos.

Gluten Free Sour Cherry Cake

Here's the recipe for my Gluten Free Sour Cherry Cake. I've adapted a white cake recipe from I Am Baker to be gluten free. I reduced the flour ratio a bit like I normally do for gluten free cakes, and I don't use almond extract since my gluten free flour blend uses almond flour. I like to use sour cherries in this recipe because the burst of sour flavor contrasts the sweetness of the cake and the frosting quite well. If you can't find sour cherries, then you can use traditional sweet cherries as a substitute.

Prep Time 30 minutes (this will go faster if you have someone pit the cherries with you)
Bake Time 30 minutes
Results in one sheet cake
Cake Ingredients1 1/2 sticks butter, cubed (let it sit out for about 15 minutes)
1 3/4 cup sugar
1 cup sweet rice flour
1/2 cup almond flour (substitute with 1/4 c rice flour and 1/4 tapioca flour if you are allergic to nuts)
1/4 cup potato flour

1/4 cup tapioca flour

1 tsp xantham gum

4 tsp baking powder

1 cup room temperature milk

6 room temperature egg whites

1 1/4 tsp vanilla

1 cup pitted sour cherries

Frosting Ingredients
1 cup cold whipping cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 tbsp sugar

Steps to make the Cake
Preheat an oven to 350F. Line the bottom of a greased sheet cake pan with parchment paper. (Makes removal super low stress)

In a large bowl, cream the butter with half of the sugar. In a small bowl, blend together the flours, gum, and powder. Mix the flour into the creamed butter until well combined. Stir in the milk until most of the lumps are gone.

In a medium sized bowl, whisk the egg whites, other half of the sugar, and vanilla for about 2 minutes, or until the whites start to foam. Add the egg whites to the batter, and stir until a consistent batter has formed. Fold in the sour cherries.

Pour the batter into the pan and place the pan in the oven for about 30 minutes, or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and cool for about 10 minutes. Invert onto a wire cooling rack and let cool to room temperature. It need to be cool to the touch or else the frosting will melt.

Steps to make the frosting
Pour the cream, sugar, and vanilla into a cold bowl. Whisk the cream until soft peaks form and it is spreadable without losing form. Return the cake to the pan (make sure both the cake and the pan are cool to the touch) and frost the top of the cake.

Enjoy! (I dropped some of the cake off to two of my friends. Hooray!)

Hi everyone! I hope that you're having a wonderful weekend! To continue the theme of the month, #chocolatelove, here's a delicious recipe that's perfect for Valentine's Day this week. It's a tasty yellow cake filled with a chocolate cherry filling and frosted with a whipped chocolate frosting. For this cake I like to take the batter for a 9in round pan and make 4 smaller round cakes out of it. It's a great technique for making gluten free cakes that cook evenly and don't sink in the middle. I hope you enjoy this recipe!

The cake recipe is based on Ruhlman's Ratio for sponge cake, and the whipped chocolate frosting recipe is located here.

Servings 2 4"inch 2-layer cakes

Prep Time 30 minutes

Bake Time 25 minutes

Ingredients
Yellow Cake
4 eggs and 1 yolk, room temperature
8 oz sugar
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tsp vanilla
2 tsp baking powder
3 oz white rice flour
3 oz potato starch
2 oz tapioca flour
2 sticks melted butter, room temperature

Cherry filling
1/4 cup cherries, halved and pitted
1/4 cup white wine
2 tbsp lemon juice
3 tbsp sugar
1/2 cup of whipped chocolate frosting

Whipped chocolate frosting (see recipe here)

Steps

Preheat the oven to 350F. Grease and dust either 1 9inch round cake pan or 4 small 4inch springform pans.

Combine the eggs, sugar, juice, and vanilla. Whisk for a few minutes until the eggs have tripled in volume. In a small bowl, combine the powder, flours, and starch. Fold the flour into the egg mix, 1/2 a cup at a time. Once combined, pour the butter into the batter and fold until combined. Pour the batter into the prepared pan(s). Bake for 20 minutes in the smaller pans (30 minutes if using a 9inch pan), or until a toothpick inserted comes out clean. Remove from the oven and let cool.

In a small sauce pan, combine the cherries, white wine, juice, and sugar. Cook over medium low heat, stirring occasionally. Cook the cherries for about 20 minutes, or until the flesh is soft and tender. Remove the sauce from the heat and let cool to room temperature.

Once cool, fold in the 1/2 cup of frosting. If using 1 9in pan, use a knife to separate the cake into 2 layers. To assemble the cake:

Place the bottom layer onto a plate. Place a sizable amount of the cherry filling onto the cake and spread. You want this layer to be between 1/4 to 1/2 an inch.