Wednesday, November 18, 2009

New Cookbooks

I recently received the following books:
  • "Delicious ~ Gluten free baking with buckwheat flour" by Michelle Brewster
As the title mentions, all the recipes are made with buckwheat flour, which is a sticky/starchy flour which doesn't require added gums, starches or binders. I tried a small version of the "multi seed" bread (I replaced the egg with flax meal & water), it was very good. A little sweet for my taste buds, so I'll add less sweetener next time (I used date molasses, half the amount needed in the recipe).
  • "Flying Apron's Gluten Free & Vegan Baking Book" by Jennifer Katzinger
I haven't tried any recipe yet but they look very tempting. I was glad to read that chickpea flour can be replaced by chestnut flour (I'm not pro-legume flours because of the phytates they contain. Most of these flours are made from non pre-soaked legumes (and of course they are uncooked) which makes them very hard to digest). There is a mini bread section and only half of the breads are yeast free.
  • "C'est pas de la tarte" by Fannie Denault
I don't think this book has been translated to English but it's a little gem for alternative cooking. All the pie crusts (sweet and savory) are made of "unusual" ingredients (gluten free or not, but the recipes can be adapted) such as polenta, popcorn, shredded cabbage, agar flakes, sesame seeds...etc. I find this little book very inspiring. Who needs flour anyway? ;)

I also pre-ordered the 2 following books:
  • "The Allergen-Free Baker's Handbook ~ How to bake without gluten, wheat, dairy, eggs, soy, peanuts, tree nuts and sesame" by Cybele Pascal (it will be released by the end of December)
  • "Allergy-Free Desserts ~ Gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, soy-free, and nut-free delights" by Elizabeth Gordon (it will be released in February)
I know it may seem like I bake a lot but it's quite the contrary. I don't bake much and usually prefer using nut flours instead of GF grain flour. I also use little to no sweetener (I'd much prefer to use fruits instead ~ something I need to research more about), no eggs and no yeast (I'm also not a big fan of leavening agents (baking powder & soda) so if I can skip them...).

2 comments:

Jennifer said...

Just curious...what don't you like about leavening agents?

Zenseer said...

I don't like leavening agents for various reasons:
1/I can taste them (especially baking soda)
2/GF baking usually requires more leaving than regular baking (which is also probably why I can taste it)
3/Commercial baking powders usually contains aluminium and other not so great ingredients.
4/Baking powder can also contain potato starch and I need to stay away from nightshades.
6/I think leavening should come from fermentation which would make baked goods more digestible and allow the body to absorb all the nutrients. I know that not everything can always be fermented (either a matter of time or taste) but I'd like to experiment with adding some GF sourdough starter to baked goods.
7/Or I should try to blend my own baking powder (baking soda, cream of tartar and some starch of some kind).

CURRENT MOON

BlogCatalog

Small Business Blogs - BlogCatalog Blog Directory
Add to Technorati Favorites