The Lactose-Free Family Cookbook [Paperback]

Jan Main (Author), Marsha Rosen RD (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 6, 2002

A cookbook for the 50 million Americans who suffer from lactose intolerance. And what a collection of recipes -- 150 great-tasting alternatives to dishes that usually contain substantial amounts of milk, butter and cheese.

With The Lactose-Free Family Cookbook, you'll be able to prepare meals you thought you'd never be able to enjoy again. Imagine the taste sensations that await you with recipes like Cream of Butternut Squash Soup, Caesar Salad with Creamy Garlic Dressing, Scalloped Potatoes, Florentine Lasagna, Creamy Leek and Tomato Pasta, Salmon Mousse, Lemon Cheesecake -- even Vanilla Ice Cream!

Sound unbelievable? Believe it! With the innovative use of substitute ingredients such as purées, fruit juices and tofu, author Jan Main has created dishes so appetizing, you'll forget they're dairy-free. And without the milk and butter content, you get the added bonus of lower fat and cholesterol while still providing the essential calcium that can be lost without the dairy products.

The Lactose-Free Family Cookbook features:

• 150 popular recipes -- reinvented without milk
• Nutritional analysis for each recipe
• Tips on non-dairy sources of calcium to maintain dietary balance
• Most recipes can be prepared in 30 minutes or less

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Jan Main is a professional home economist and caterer who has been teaching and writing about food since 1978.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Sample Recipe from the Pasta and Pizza section of the chapter on Main Courses

Tuna Vegetable Sauce

Remember that much-loved tuna casserole? Here's a revamped version using soy milk to make a speedy sauce for noodles or rice the whole family can enjoy.

1 tbsp (15 mL) vegetable oil

2 cups (500 mL) sliced mushrooms (8 oz/250 g)

1 stalk, celery, chopped (1/2 cup/125 mL)

1 small onion, chopped (1/2 cup 125 mL)

1/3 cup (75 mL) chopped sweet red or green pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

1 tbsp (15 mL) all-purpose flour

1 1/2 cup (375 mL) soy milk or lactose-reduced milk

1 can (6.5 oz/184 g) tuna packed in water, drained

1 tbsp (15 mL) ketchup

1 tsp (5 mL) Worcestershire sauce

1/2 tsp (2 mL) salt

1/4 cup (50 mL) chopped fresh parsley

1. In large saucepan, heat oil over medium heat; cook mushrooms, celery, onion, red pepper and garlic, covered, 8 to 10 minutes or until onions are softened.

2. Sprinkle with flour, stirring to combine. Gradually stir in soy milk; cook, stirring, over medium heat until thickened.

3. Stir in tuna, ketchup, Worcestershire sauce and salt until well combined. Spoon over rice or pasta; sprinkle with parsley.

Makes about 3 cups (750 mL)

[Sidebar tip]
Cook rice or pasta according to package directions. Allow 2 cups uncooked parboiled rice for 4 servings and 12 oz to 1 lb (375 to 500 g) pasta for 4 servings.

[Nutritional analysis]
Per serving (3/4 cup/175 mL)
Calories 160.3
Protein 17.4 g
Carbohydrate 11.0 g
Fat 5.7 g
Calcium 33.0 mg
Dietary Fiber 3.0 g

Percent of calories from:
Carbohydrate: 27%
Protein: 42%
Fat: 31%

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 218 pages
• Publisher: Robert Rose (July 6, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1896503241
• ISBN-13: 978-1896503240
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 7.1 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #867,577 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

28 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Wacky but useful, November 18, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: The Lactose-Free Family Cookbook (Paperback)

I categorize certain cookbooks as "wacky". The presenceof recipes with names like "pear ginger cake" or "roastedratatouille pizza", for example, will put a cookbook in the wacky category. This should not be confused with bad. Main does use yogurt and aged cheese in many of the recipes, so this is far from the best cookbook for those with true milk allergies. But both the allergic and the lactose intolerant will find the introductory material enjoyable and enlightening; Brenda Davis' explanation of calcium absorption is one of the most up-to-date I've seen in a cookbook. Nutritional information for each recipe is supplied. The presentation is attractive, and while this isn't exactly a complete basic cookbook, the directions are fairly detailed and do not assume much expertise. The layout of the recipes, notes and directions is exceptionally attractive

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lactose-Free Family Cookbook, January 27, 2000

By 

Meenakshi Bewtra (Philadelphia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Lactose-Free Family Cookbook (Paperback)

I thought this was a great cookbook: not only did it go into what lactose intolerance is, but it also offered multiple suggestions about how to meet adequate calcium requirements (as well as other nutritional requirements) when one is lactose intolerant. I tried out quite a few of the receipes and found them to be wonderful; even my friends who are not lactose intolerant loved them.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A decent introduction to lactose-free cooking., March 28, 2007

By 

S. Habein (Spokane, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Lactose-Free Family Cookbook (Paperback)

Recently, I checked out Jan Main's The Lactose-Free Family Cookbook from the library, curious to see if it had any good recipes. Turns out, there were about 30 recipes I was interested in.

There are pluses and minuses to this book. What's good is the amount of space devoted to talking about alternative ways to up your calcium intake, and what foods provide the greatest source. Some of the information defining lactose intolerance will be old news to someone who has been dealing with it for quite some time, but to a person just encountering an angry stomach, it will probably be helpful. Also, just because I only found 30 recipes I was interested in does not mean you won't find more. Most of the recipes are easy to handle for someone who is an okay cook -- there are a lot of recipes that are basically chopped vegetables and pasta in a certain sort of sauce, as well as some salads.

However, there were enough drawbacks to the book where I think it's best left as a library check-out than an actual purchase.

#1. As the book was written several years ago, the availability of lactose-free products has increased since its publication. Main relies quite often on tofu in her recipes, which is fine for some of them, but in other recipes it would have been just as easy to substitute lactose-free products.

#2. Some of the recipes use yogurt or hard cheeses, and while there are lactose-free versions of these (soy yogurt, Kraft brand cheese-- check the label, it's true!), I just have a pet peeve about the assumption that there are a lot of people out there who can tolerate these dairy products when someone with more serious lactose intolerance (like myself) can't. However, that's just a personal criticism for the book.

#3. When I tried to make the recipe for Spanokopita, the directions were not written very well. Now, I could understand what I was meant to do since I'm a fairly experienced cook, but a more beginner-level cook might have some trouble. I haven't taken a closer look at some of the recipes I have, but a better copy editing job should have been done on this book.

My recommendation is to check this one out at the library first before deciding if it's a book that would be worth it for you to purchase. I haven't done a lot of research into what other lactose-free cookbooks are out there, but I doubt this one is the best.