Wheat-Free Recipes & Menus : Delicious Dining Without Wheat or Gluten

This book is divided by section; Breads: yeast breads, quick breads and breakfast breads; Breakfast and Brunch: breads, meats, cereals, casseroles and other dishes; Pasta, Grains, Beans and Rice: pasta, grains, beans and rice; Desserts: cakes, bars and cookies, fruit desserts, puddings and custards, pies, miscellaneous; Soups: soups and soup components; Sauces and Salad Dressings: salad dressings, chutney and salsa, sauces for entrees or vegetables, dessert sauces and miscellaneous; Vegetables: potatoes and miscellaneous; Poultry: grilled chicken, stove-top chicken, and baked dishes; Fish and Seafood: fish and shellfish; Meats - Beef and Pork: beef, mixed meats, and pork & ham; Menus and finally, Appendices with valuable info like wheat flour equivalents and substitutes for wheat as a thickener.

My only major complaint (apart from that some of the recipies don't turn out half as well as they sound, but then again, that's to be expected on a gluten-free diet), is that unless you like Mexican / south-western food, about a quarter of these recipies are of no use to you. Before being diagnosed with celiac I used to get terrible indigestion (the author claims her only problem with wheat and gluten was a runny nose and stuffy sinuses). For anyone who is a celiac, and who has experienced the horrible side effects of simply eating food before a diagnosis is established, you probably want to AVOID foods that traditionally cause heartburn or gas or other symptoms similar to what I call a 'wheat-attack'. I'm sure plenty of people out there are able to handle Mexican / south-western food, but a huge number of celiacs are sensitive to all kinds of food, and kicking food up with peppers and spices and whatever else is great if your sinuses are blocked, but after having heartburn for months on end, you might not be too eager to start cooking up a big ol' pot of chilli!

Over all, it's still a good buy. I mean, even though I don't see many celiacs (espically soon after their diagnosis) cooking some of these things, it's a good book to have. You can make lots of things that are fairly "soft" on your tummy, and maybe after a little while (it's been almost 2 years since my diagnosis and I STILL won't touch a pot of chilli!) you can try some of these more spicy variations in the kitchen. If you're simply gluten-intolerant, or have sinus problems like the author, then this book is a great investment! If I weren't a celiac I'd definately give it 5 stars!

My only quibble with this book is that it does use a fair amount of sugar (although brown, rather than white) in some recipes, which is not as healthy as it might be. But the author has another book which addresses this issue: Special Diet Solutions - Healthy cooking without wheat, gluten, dairy, eggs, yeast or refined sugar.

All in all this is a marvelous book for anyone who is dealing with a wheat or glueten food allergy or sensitivity. Don't hesitate!