A Cook Going Shopping For A New Book

[Emma-Lee]

Hello!

I love to cook and now that I have been diagnosed with Celiac I need a new cookbook. I am shopping in the next day or so, but am curious what your recommendations are? I enjoy cooking pastas and stews. However, a variety of options is preferable. Thanks!

[love2travel]

Hello!

I love to cook and now that I have been diagnosed with Celiac I need a new cookbook. I am shopping in the next day or so, but am curious what your recommendations are? I enjoy cooking pastas and stews. However, a variety of options is preferable. Thanks!

When I was first told I likely had celiac disease I went out and purchased several gluten-free books without really planning ahead. However, I was very disappointed unless there was a huge baking/pasta/pizza dough/flatbread, etc. section. So many mainstream cookbooks contain tons of intrinsically gluten-free recipes, anyway, that are so easy to adjust (i.e. just exchange gluten-free soy sauce for gluten soy sauce and so on). In probably about 15 gluten-free cookbooks (mine and those from the library) I have not found one single unique or unusual recipe that I have not seen before (cooking, not baking). Stews are almost always gluten-free anyway except for the thickener which you can easily replace with gluten-free flours or starches such as arrowroot and be sure to use gluten-free broths.

I have found that in many gluten-free books even the pasta recipes call for purchased gluten-free pasta! Ick. I always make my own, anyway. For example, the Donna Washburn and Heath Butt books contain some great baking recipes but none for homemade pasta. Carol Ferster may be another you may be interested in. Her famous pizza crust recipe is online. For my pasta recipes I've searched online instead with better success.

I hope I have not discouraged you from purchasing cookbooks - I am obsessed and own nearly 500. But just be aware that many, if not most, are already gluten-free. Also be aware that many books also include only one or two flour blends or mixes that are used for everything, ranging from breads to cookies to cakes to pasta. I teach cooking classes and personally feel that it is so much more fun to create your own mixes plural. Most mixes you can easily find online easily. There are also not a lot of cookbooks that include pastry recipes. But many baking ones do, of course.

One book that contains a recipe for homemade pasta and pizza crust is "Artisanal Gluten-Free Cooking" by Kelli and Peter Bronski. But the book contains many recipes that are so easily converted as I mentioned above.

My recommendation is to go to your library first especially if you are new to cooking in general.

Baking books is a different matter if you want to experiment with all sorts of fun flours and starches. I have a few of those I enjoy such as Annalise Roberts' "Gluten-Free Baking Classics" and "Gluten-Free Baking with the Culinary Institute of America".

Having said all the above I would LOVE to get cookbook recommendations by anyone if they contain tons of interesting recipes that would be difficult to make gluten-free without 'em.

[sa1937]

Baking books is a different matter if you want to experiment with all sorts of fun flours and starches. I have a few of those I enjoy such as Annalise Roberts' "Gluten-Free Baking Classics" and "Gluten-Free Baking with the Culinary Institute of America".

Having said all the above I would LOVE to get cookbook recommendations by anyone if they contain tons of interesting recipes that would be difficult to make gluten-free without 'em.

I also have Gluten-Free Baking Classics and have tried a couple of bread recipes, which are pretty good...there are still more I want to try from that book (I'm pretty pleased with it). For me, bread is my "gold standard" to see if I like a cookbook or not.

After buying a couple of other cookbooks, I'm kind of leary in investing in more. I just don't need another Joy of Cooking type book. I have a couple of Roben Ryberg's cookbooks...rather disappointed in the second one and haven't even wanted to try any more recipes from it after 3 things I baked went straight into the garbage. Why they didn't turn out, I have no clue.