Laura B. Russell

gluten-free adaptations for noodles, dumplings, sauces and more.

Some of the GF doughs are reportedly trickier/stickier to work with, as you would expect, but the author has persisted and worked out a way that she can still enjoy these treats without jeopardizing her health, so props for that! I don't think I would necessarily bother with the dough, but I was curious as to whether it was possible, or what options were out there (no readily available GF dumpling wrappers, alas). The recipes fall into three categories: (1) major overhaul/recipes that need a big conversion to make them GF, like dumpling dough; (2) minor substitutions, like using GF soy sauce instead of regular; (3) naturally GF. Also included, and much appreciated, are tips for shopping for GF noodles and other ingredients--some things that would naturally be GF might actually be contaminated with wheat, so this is not always as simple as one would hope.

There is plenty to discover in here! A sample of recipes that sound tasty and doable:
* Steamed radish cake / Singapore "carrot cake" featuring the radish cake - pp.64-67
* Mandarin pancakes (that yummy soft bread that they serve with roast duck) - p 68
* Korean green onion pancakes - p 70
* Red curry soup with chicken and rice noodles - p 87
* sushi rice - p 100
* coconut rice (jasmine rice cooked in unsweetened coconut milk) - p 102
* sticky rice (pre-soaked for 8+ hours and steamed) - p 101
* kimchi fried rice, in case you've never had that, it's delicious - p 103
* bibimbap (sans the special bowls to make the rice crunchy, but I'm guessing still delicious) - p 108
* stir-fried rice cakes (Korean savories that you can apparently buy from the asian food store) - p 110
* various pickled relishes - p 114+
* cabbage kimchi - p 116
* sesame-crusted salmon - p 137
* rice paper-wrapped salmon in green curry sauce (using springroll wrappers) - p 138
* Thai coconut chicken soup - p 152
* chicken curry-don - p 156
* Chinese barbecued pork (sans the red dye) - p 169
* pork tonkatsu (with crushed cornflakes replacing the panko) - p 172
* coconut ice cream - p 186
* mango with sweet rice (sweetened coconut milk sauce is stirred into pre-cooked sticky rice) - p 187
* five-spice berry crisp - p 188
* Thai coffee macarons - p 190

sadly, no mochi or mochi-inspired recipes (or milk jelly), but overall a very good collection of useful information.

PREVIOUS REVIEW 6/26/2022 (I don't remember reading this before at all but here's what I wrote about the same book 5 months earlier)--
I was hoping for lots of GF dumplings and maybe some mochi, or at least some matcha rolls. These are ok recipes, but not that useful -- I don't need a recipe for kimchi fried rice (delicious but self-explanatory) or spring rolls, and I probably could've figured out the scallion pancakes if I were so inclined. Other recipes are also fine, but just not anything that I would feel like cooking for myself--bibimbap needs that special stone bowl to get the crunch crust right, etc.… (mehr)

I'll admit, what first drew me to this book was the amazing photography. It was just so pretty! Thankfully, the content of the book matched up perfectly with the quality of the pictures. This is a fantastic cookbook of leafy greens (ie brassicas). There are eighty recipes on how to cook the world's healthiest vegetables as well as short essays from renowned doctors and nutritionists on the importance of these veggies. There are also great summaries on the preparation, cutting, cleaning, and cooking of these sometimes obscure greens.

Some of the vegetables included in this cookbook are: kale, broccoli, turnips, cauliflower, brussels sprouts, horseradish, and many more. Some of these vegetables sound intimidating or even bland but the author does a fantastic job of dispelling any rumors or bad thoughts on these misunderstood vegetables. The recipes included sound soo soo delightful. I grew up eating one, rooty mash. It is a fantastic mix of sweet potatoes (in my case regular potatoes) and kohlrabi that elevates mashed potatoes to something heavenly. Some other recipes I plan on trying soon are: colcannon with brussels sprout leaves, spicy kale fried rice, and roasted cabbage wedges.

All the recipes in this cookbook are gluten free and most are vegan or vegetarian, some include meat but there is almost always alternative ingredients listed to fit different dietary needs. This book is a great addition to any kitchen.

I received this book for free from Blogging for Books in return for my honest, unbiased opinion.… (mehr)

4.5 Stars
A great cookbook for anyone wanting to introduce more green vegetables to a diet! This book is easy follow and not only includes some pictures but also simple but tasty recipes. The author has very informative sections on how to select the vegetables, the best way to prepare and store them, and includes substitutions as well. There's even a table of the recipes that let's the reader know whether the recipe is vegan, vegetarian, and if it's okay for specific food allergies. I have tried the one smoothie recipe and it's delicious! Cannot wait to try a few more. The only complaint I have is that I wanted more recipes (roughly 75-80 are in this book).

I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.… (mehr)