Overview of Five Popular Gluten Free Cookbooks

This cookbook is for those who are avoiding gluten, wheat, dairy and eggs. Fenster includes a glossary of ingredients, which tells the reader what it looks like and where to find it. Fenster has a couple of gluten free flour mix formulas that she includes in this cookbook. The recipes include appetizers, salads, soup, breads, breakfast, brunch, main dishes, side dishes, desserts, beverages and condiments. There are several pages of menus ideas using the different recipes from the cookbook for each meal. The appendix includes baking tips for alternative sweeteners, dairy substitutes, egg substitutes, and wheat-free flours; a conversion table for wheat flour equivalents; and hidden sources of wheat, gluten, eggs, soy and dairy. Most pages have at least two recipes; personally I prefer one recipe per page. This cookbook is good for those who are new to the gluten free diet, but are not new to cooking. Flours used: almond, Bob's Red Mill all-purpose gluten free, brown rice, corn, garbanzo/fava bean, sorghum, sweet rice, tapioca and white rice.

Hagman, Bette. The Gluten-Free Gourmet Cooks Comfort Foods: More than 200 Recipes for Creating Old Favorites with New Flours. New York: Henry Holt and Company, 2004.

Gives a history of Celiac Disease and includes information for support groups. Then Hagman, discusses "Autism and the gluten free/casein free diet" in the next chapter. My favorite chapters are the ones that discuss exotic and common gluten free flours. Hagman includes five different gluten free mix formulas that can be used to substitute for wheat flour in most recipes. She includes recipes for comfort foods in many categories: appetizers, casseroles, pasta dishes, breakfast, chicken and meat, seafood, vegetables, sandwiches, breads, desserts, mixes, dressings, salsas, and creams. This cookbook is for cooks at any level from beginners to experts. It doesn't matter if you are new to the gluten free diet or have been following it for years, these recipes are for you. Flours used: almond, amaranth, buckwheat, garfava bean, millet, Montina, potato, quinoa, rice, sorghum, sweet rice, tapioca, and teff.
Roberts, Annalise G. Gluten-Free Baking Classics. Chicago, IL: Surrey Books, 2006.

Roberts has put nothing but dessert after dessert in her cookbook. There are many recipes for cakes, cookies, muffing, sweet breads and scones, pies, and many other sweet things. If you are craving sweets this is the cookbook for you. However, this cookbook is not for someone new to the gluten free diet nor it is it for new cooks. Flours used: brown rice, garfava bean, millet, sorghum, tapioca, and white rice.

Sanderson, Shari. Incredible Edible Gluten Free Food for Kids: 150 Family-Tested Recipes. Bethesda, MD: Woodbine House, 2002.

Sanderson begins with a guide for beginners, which contain helpful information on what foods to avoid, how to organize your kitchen, how to prepare your kitchen for a gluten free meal. Her second chapter explains Celiac Disease in easy to understand terms. She follows this with a chapter on helping your child with his/her gluten free diet in particular discussing how to cope with temptation and how to get your child's special needs taken care of at school and at daycare. Recipes categories include appetizers, breads, breakfast, lunch and dinner ideas, main dishes, salads, vegetables, soups & stews, and desserts. In the back of the cookbook is a table for baking substitution; a table for answers common baking problems; and tables for converting to metric measurements. This cookbook is good for those who are new at the gluten free diet and it is good for beginner cooks. Flours used: brown rice, chickpea, light bean, potato, soy, tapioca, white rice, and whole brown rice.

Washington, Donna and Heather Butt. 125 Best Gluten-Free Recipes. Toronto, Ontario, Canada: Robert Rose, Inc., 2003.

The authors begin by listing common gluten free flours and starch used in their cookbook giving information on each one such as: taste, texture, how it is best used and storage advise. At the beginning of each section there is a page of advice on such topics as teaching kids about how to handle going gluten free; tips on eating out; and baking tips. The 125 recipes given are an assortment of appetizers, main dishes, breads and desserts. This book is good for those who are new at the gluten free diet and it is good for cooks at all levels of experience. Flours used: almond, brown rice, buckwheat, hazelnut, pecan, sorghum, soy, sweet rice, white rice, whole bean, and yellow pea.