Customer Reviews

The Gluten-Free Good Health Cookbook: The Delicious Way to Strengthen Your Immune System and Neutralize Inflammation

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I purchased this book to use as a cookbook, largely on the basis of my good experiences with annalise roberts' other books, which concentrate on gluten free baking (and, to a lesser extent, gluten free versions of common gluten-containing staples like fresh pasta). You won't find recipes for such foods in this book-- recipe wise, this book has only a small handful of baking recipes and largely contains recipes for things like clam chowder, roasted asparagus and shrimp curry. Given Annalise Roberts particular baking expertise (and the blurb on the cover touting that this book is "from the author of the bestselling gluten free baking classics") this is very disappointing. Also, I believe most people looking for gluten free cookbooks are interested in the kinds of recipes that would normally contain wheat (like bread, pasta, cookies, etc..), because these are the foods that become unavailable when a gluten free diet is required. Most people are already going to be comfortable with non-gluten containing cooking for things like salad, soup, and fish, and have lots of such recipes from their pre-celiac days. I think of a gluten free cookbook stocked almost exclusively with these kinds of recipes as 'cheating.'

I also have some more idiosyncratic problems with the recipes-- most feature meat, fish, and other animal products. I am a vegetarian, and I found very few recipes I could make. Also, most of the vegetable recipes are very basic and will be incredibly familiar to anyone with basic cooking knowledge, vegetarian or carnivore (roasted vegetables, mashed potatoes, sauteed spinach with garlic, baby greens with balsamic vinaigrette). More generally, I'm a bit skeptical of this supposedly novel, all purpose healthy 'diet' that, aside from its wheatlessness, reads a lot like a standard american diet where vegetable based preparations are largely relegated to the 50's-sounding chapter "vegetables and side dishes." Another irritation that probably won't bother most readers: over half of the (meagre 8) dessert recipe contain tofu, which I am allergic to. Overall, therefore, the recipes were not what I what I was expecting and are just not ones I can use, though others with fewer dietary restrictions may have a better experience.

In fairness, this book seems as much intended to be a self-help nutrition/diet book as a cookbook, though also on this score I find it lacking. I have noticed a bizarre tendency to vilify wheat amongst celiac authors, which these authors take to an extreme, billing a gluten free diet as best for everyone's health. Obviously, wheat is toxic for those with celiac disease or wheat allergies. And, as the authors point out, no doubt the average american eats way too much highly refined what flour and would benefit from cutting back. They rightly emphasize the nutritional benefits of a 'whole foods' diet, but does that mean everyone should stop eating any wheat, barley or rye altogether, even whole grain versions? Obviously not. While they provide some additional references to suggest problems with a heavily wheat based diet, I don't find the scientific evidence they cite remotely sufficient to support their general claim that eating any gluten containing grains cause problematic inflammation and would best be avoided by everyone. And the tone of some of the text sometimes has a junk science quality with dubious, ambiguous self-help buzzwords like "detoxify," which made me even more skeptical of their claims.

I have been looking for a gluten free book that gives "healthy" recipes, not just breads, pies and cakes! This book more than met my expectations! The information is so helpful and informative! The food looks delicious and I cant wait to cook my way through this book, like Julie and Julia! The gluten free community really needed a book like this that focuses on healthy good foods like vegetables and grains that are "naturally" gluten free! I just wish they had a few more recipes using alternative grains like amaranth and millet. However, this book is a true treasure and a MUST for those looking to be healthy, not just gluten free! Thank you so much for this gift.
Jodi Baretz, LCSW gluten-free holistic health counselor

I received this book as a gift, and I found the text incredibly readable, inviting, and inspiring. The authors really know their stuff, and they make it easy for a novice to tackle very healthful recipes. I decided to begin 2010 by trying out a couple, and I could not stop refilling my bowl! Tonight I tried -- and devoured -- the Spanish peasant soup (108) and the butternut squash gratin (157), and I am planning to marinate the chicken for tomorrow's grilled chicken with lemon, rosemary and garlic (227). My family is thrilled, and I look forward to working my way through many more of these delicious recipes. What a way to get your "five a day!"

I had bought the baking cookbook buy Annalise Roberts and been so impressed buy it that when I went searching for other books by her I found this one. My husband is Gluten free, but he also has ulcerative colitis which is actually why he is gluten free. Eating and finding him things to eat takes up about 70 percent of our life or more. There a thousand books and ideas out there of how to eat healthier and help neutralize inflammation so I 've always been skeptical and thought most of them were just a bunch of bs... but because I was so impressed with this author I bought this book and can honestly say it's the best book I've ever bought. I have stomach issues myself and was the first one to read this book and try out her ideas on what to eat and let me tell you it actually helped. I've always had a problem with acid reflux and while I stayed true to the alkaline foods that cancelled out the acidic ones and drank lots of lemon water, I had no problem with it. A lot of the book explains about how food works in your system, and why acidic foods bother you and how alkaline foods help to cancel it out. The best thing about this book is it explains all about gluten and how it works in your system and why it bothers some and all of us. I've been hearing about gluten for 4 years now and never understood what it was, and no one could ever REALLY explain it to me.. but this book does an incredible job. And the explanations are informative and easy to read! It also has tons of recipes! Eating the gluten free regimen out of this book doesn't mean you can't have the things you love, it just shows you how to counter greasy things like french fries (which are the love of my life!) and balance the acidity in your system by eating and drinking things that will do so. You have my word that I live with enough people who have chrones disease, UC, IBS, etc to know the problems and stress and the way it alters your life. They all love this book as much as I do, it's a book i would suggest to anyone :)

Most people when advised to begin gluten free eating are overwhelmed as to how to proceed. This book gives good advice on how to eat healthy while eating gluten free. After discussing the health aspects there are good recipes to follow.

The book provides clear, easy instructions on how to "detox" your pantry as well as your body. Pillow and Roberts provide strong evidence that following this lifestyle will result in a healthier you. The recipes are written in a way that a novice in the kitchen can follow them, but the flavors are bold enough for even the most sophisticated palate.

The authors provide all of the tools you need to start eating healthy today...science in an easy to understand format, sample menus, and recipes you and your family will love. Like most men, my husband is a huge fan of meat, but veggies...not so much. He is now happy with Spinach and Goat Cheese Pie for dinner...meatless! I make the Rich Chocolate Mousse recipe for guests all of the time, and when I tell them it is made without the heavy cream of traditional mousse but with much healthier tofu instead, they are astounded because it tastes so rich.

I am a huge fan of Pillow and Roberts and their Food Philosopher website. I am so glad they have written this book. I hope it leads many people to live a healthier lifestyle as it did my husband and I.

This is an excellent book. Finding out that you have celiac disease should produce more changes in you than just trying to replace your cookies, cakes, pies. It should be a wake up call for you to really examine what you are putting in your mouth. What are you eating and why are you eating it, what does it do for your body and sometimes more importantly what does it do "to" your body. Gluten free goodie cookbooks are a dime a dozen, read something that might help you out.

I'm new to gluten-free eating and want to create a diet for myself based on natural, whole foods such as veggies and lean meats. I am not looking to include all sorts of processed, specially-made gluten-free crackers, cookies, breads, etc. in my diet. This book provides the guidance for doing just that. It is helping me understand how food affects the body and which foods I should be eating and when. I love the sample menus--they are so easy to follow! I really like how this book provides concrete ideas for meal plans instead of just listing a bunch of safe/unsafe foods out of context.

If you are truly interested in eating less processed, packaged foods and focusing more on real foods, you'll love this book. I highly recommend it.

I have long been a fan of Annalise Roberts. Her Gluten-Free Baking Classics is the gold standard for gluten-free baking, as far as I'm concerned. So when i bought The Gluten-free Good Health Cookbook, i bought it out of loyalty to the author, hoping for more great inspiring recipes. It sat on my bookshelves for several months, unread, but waiting. Then, one day, I woke up with very achy joints. I was pretty sure my pain was connected to something I'd eaten the night before. And then my eyes caught sight of The Gluten-Free Good Health Cookbook: THe Delicious Way to Strengthen Your Immune System and Neutralize Inflammation. "Neutralize Inflammation" is what caught my eye. I pulled the book down, sat down and read it all in one sitting. I can't begin to tell you how enlightening this book is! I realized that I was probably suffering from too much acidity. Additionally, I am allergic to wheat, and it explained in very user friendly terms, what gluten can do to the body, and how it causes inflammation. This book is so much more than a cookbook. It's a health guide. I highly recommend it, even if you don't cook from it.

Well-written, clear, concise. Answers many questions and provides delicious, sensible recipes that the whole family enjoys. Thank you!