Learning to Bake Allergen-Free: A Crash Course for Busy Parents on Baking without Wheat, Gluten, Dairy, Eggs, Soy or Nuts

by Colette Martin, Stephen Wangen (Foreword by)

Overview

A crash course for busy parents on baking without wheat, gluten, dairy, eggs, soy, or nuts

Has your child been diagnosed with food allergies? If so, help is here! Colette Martin has been there too: When her son Patrick was diagnosed with multiple food allergies in 2001, she had to learn all-new ways to feed him—and especially to make baked goods that he both could and would eat.

Learning to Bake Allergen-Free is the book Colette Martin wishes she had back then. She ingeniously presents a dozen manageable lessons that will arm parents to prepare allergen-free baked goods the entire family can enjoy together. The book features:
• More than 70 recipes (including variations) sure to become family staples—for muffins, rolls, breads, cookies, bars, scones, cakes, tarts, pizza, and pies— starting with the easiest techniques and adding new skills along the way
• Clear explanations of the most common allergens and gluten, with all the details you need on which substitutions work, and why
• Hundreds of simple tips for adapting recipes and troubleshooting as you go
• Detailed guidelines and more than 15 recipes for making allergen-free treats from packaged gluten-free baking mixes
• Special crash courses focused on key ingredients and techniques, including sweetening options, decorating a cake simply but superbly, kicking everyday recipes up a notch, and much more!

Whether you already love to bake or are a kitchen novice, Learning to Bake Allergen-Free will give you the knowledge, skills, recipes, and confidence to make food that your family can safely eat—and that they’ll love!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781615190539
Publisher:	The Experiment, LLC
Publication date:	06/19/2012
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	1,104,846
Product dimensions:	7.80(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.70(d)

About the Author

Colette Martin is a food allergy mom and an expert on how to bake allergen-free. Having first learned to bake in her grandmother’s kitchen with wheat, butter, milk, and eggs, she understands firsthand what it means to transform a kitchen to accommodate multiple food allergies. She is an advocate for food-allergic families, Vice-Chairperson on the Board of Directors for the Kids with Food Allergies Foundation, and a member of the Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network and of the American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders.

Stephen Wangen, ND, is a licensed and board certified gluten intolerant physician who lectures nationally on the subject of gluten intolerance. He is co-founder and Medical Director of the Irritable Bowel Syndrome Treatment Center, and is on the Board of Trustees of the Gluten Intolerant Group of North America. He continues to investigate the relationship between food allergies and health as the research director of the Innate Health Foundation. He is the author of two books, Healthier Without Wheat and The Irritable Bowel Syndrome Solution.

Table of Contents

Foreword xv

Preface: When the Food You Eat is Making You Sick xvii

Part 1 Baking Lessons

1 A New Adventure 3

Reading labels 6

Redefining healthy eating 12

Eating together 14

Breaking the rules 15

Key Lessons 16

2 Replacing Wheat 17

Gluten-free versus wheat-free 18

Great grains 19

The role of gums 25

How to use gums 26

Off-the-shelf gluten-free flour blends 26

Mixing your own flour blends 29

Gluten-free biscuit and baking mixes 31

Measuring flour 32

Key Lessons 34

3 Replacing Milk and Avoiding Soy 35

Non-dairy milk options 37

Exploring milk further 42

Buttermilk, cream, yogurt, and sour cream 43

About oils 44

Butter, margarine, and shortening 47

Making the most of shortening 50

In place of ice cream 50

Key Lessons 51

4 Banking Without Eggs 53

Why traditional bakers use eggs 55

Flaxseed gel 57

Applesauce and other fruit purees 59

Packaged egg replaces 62

Other options 64

Choosing an egg substitute 65

Key Lessons 65

5 The Allergen-Free Baker's Pantry 67

Avoiding contamination 68

The tools you need 71

Stocking the shelves 77

Buying allergen-free products 83

Organizing your kitchen for safety 85

Key Lessons 86

Part 2 The Allergen-Free Baking Lab

6 Get Started With Simple Batters: Cakes, Muffins and Quick Breads in a Snap 89

Crash Course: Mixing Ingredients 91

Blueberry Muffins 93

Banana Bread 94

Cinnamon Raisin Whole-Grain Muffins 95

Crash Course: Using Baking Soda and Baking Powder 96

Cranberry Bread 98

Apple Cinnamon Breakfast Cake 99

Crash Course: When is it Done? 100

Zucchini Bread 103

Coffee Cake with Streusel Topping 104

Crash Course: About Creaming 106

Vanilla Pound Cake 108

Creamy Vanilla Frosting 109

7 Next Batter Up: Scones, Doughnuts and Other Yeast-Free Standbys 111

Crash Course: About Thick Batters 113

Blueberry Scones 114

Crash Course: How to Form Scones 115

Cranberry Orange Scones 118

Baked Doughnuts 119

Sweet Potato Dinner Rolls 122

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies 123

Poured Pizza Crust 124

8 No Butter, No Problem: Perfect Allergen-Free Cookies, Tarts and Pies Every Time 127

Crash Course: About Gluten-Free Doughs and Crusts 129

Sugar Cookies 131

Crash Course: Rolling Out a Crust 134

Strawberry Tartlets 135

Chocolate Chunk Cookies 138

Crash Course: Sweetening Options 140

Sucanat Pie Crust 146

Apple Raisin Pie Filling 147

Lemon Tart 148

Crash Course: What is zest? 150

9 Rise to the Occasion: Breads, Rolls and Pastries Made with Yeast 151

Crash Course: About Yeast 153

Basic Dinner Rolls 157

Crash Course: Proofing Methods 158

Basic Sandwich Bread 161

Basic Bagels 164

Crash Course: Quick Fixes for Dough 166

Multipurpose Flatbread 167

Millet Baguettes 169

English Muffins 171

Crash Course: Activating and Testing Yeast 173

Chocolate Croissants 175

Chocolate Glaze 177

Crash Course: How to Use a Glaze 178

Crescent Rolls 180

Cinnamon Rolls 181

Vanilla Glaze 184

Cinnamon Raisin Bread 185

Crash Course: Using Active Dry Yeast 186

10 Chocolate 1-2-3: Tips and Tricks for Cake, Brownies, Mousse and More 187

Crash Course: About Chocolate 189

Basic Chocolate Cupcakes 195

Double Chocolate Muffins 197

Triple-Play Chocolate Cake 198

Crash Course: A Super Simple Way to Decorate a Cake 200

Ganache 201

Crash Course: Not All Chocolate is the Same 202

Eggless Chocolate Mousse 204

Chocolate No-Nut Crisp 205

Chocolate Cranberry Rice Cookies 206

Basic Brownies 207

11 Extra Credit: Bars, Cookies and Stovetop Delights to Round Out Your Repertoire 209

Rocky Oat Bars 211

Banana Oatmeal Cookies 212

Mixed Berry Crumble 213

Crash Course: Baking on the Stovetop 215

Brown Rice Pudding 216

Banana Hemp Pudding 217

Strawberry Jam 219

Strawberry Oat Squares 220

12 Mix it Up: Adapting Gluten-Free Baking Mixes for Allergen-Free Results 221

Crash Course: Selecting a Gluten-Free Baking Mix 223

Crash Course: Choosing Replacements for Eggs with Gluten-Free Baking Mixes 226

Double Chocolate Brownies from Pamela's Products Chocolate Brownie Mix 227

Mixed Berry Scones from Namaste Foods No Sugar Added! Muffin Mix 229

Blueberry Pancakes from Authentic Foods Pancake & Baking Mix 230

Low-Sugar Chocolate Muffins from Namaste Foods No Sugar Added! Muffin Mix 231

Banana Chocolate Chip Muffins from King Arthur Flour Gluten Free Muffin Mix 232

Carrot Cake from Namaste Foods Spice Cake Mix 233

Crash Course: Choosing Replacements for Milk, Butter and Yogurt with Gluten-Free Baking Mixes 234

Spicy Corn Bread from Pamela's Products Cornbread & Muffin Mix 235

Hamburger/Sandwich Rools from Jules Gluten Free Bread Mix 237

Chocolate Chip Cookies from Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix 239

Party Cupcakes from Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Vanilla Cake Mix 240

Favorite Chocolate Cake from Gluten-Free Pantry Decadent Chocolate Cake Mix 241

Crash Course: Make it Special 242

Pancakes with Chocolate Maple Syrup from Organ Stonemilled Buckwheat Pancake Mix 243

Marble Squares from Pamela's Products Chocolate Chunk Cookie Mix 246

Chocolate Mousse Tarts from King Arthur Flour Gluten Free Cookie Mix 248

Raspberry Brownie Bites from Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Brownie Mix 250

Chocolate Blackberry Cake from King Arthur Flour Gluten Free Chocolate Cake Mix 251

A final word: create your own 252

Appendix A Troubleshooting Recipes 253

Appendix B Substitutions 257

Appendix C A Blueprint for Adapting a Traditional Recipe 259

Appendix D Metric Conversions and Weights 263

Appendix E Resources 267

Acknowledgments 271

Notes 273

Index 275

About the Author 282

Editorial Reviews

"This book will give you the depth of knowledge you need to be a successful allergen-free baker."

Chef Ming Tsai

"This might just be the most comprehensive allergen-free baking guide we’ve ever seen."

VegNews

"This amazing collection of lessons and recipes will fast-forward the learning curve for anyone new to cooking with food allergies. Speaking with the voice of experience, Colette Martin offers in-depth but approachable chapters on replacing key ingredients, even seemingly integral baking ingredients like eggs. Her ‘Crash Course’ subchapters cover everything from using baking soda and baking powder, to proofing yeast breads, to how to tell when the darn thing is done! Learning to Bake Allergen-Free will be a companion you will want to keep close by in your kitchen for frequent reference."

Jules Shepard

"Colette Martin’s Learning to Bake Allergen-Free is a welcome addition to the world of allergen-free cooking. Martin’s approach to the challenge is masterful and complete. This is more than a cookbook; this is a resource book for families struggling to feed a family member with multiple food allergies. She guides the way, teaching us how to adapt recipes for results that the whole family will enjoy. Kudos to Colette Martin for tackling this challenge head-on and providing families with a much-needed resource."

Wendy Book

"Colette Martin’s book will be a great resource for the home baker hesitant to venture ‘out of the box.’ Her use of a variety of name-brand gluten-free flours and mixes makes for easy adaptation."

Chef Richard J. Coppedge

"A fabulous education in a cookbook! Learning to Bake Allergen-Free will move you right to the head of the baking class thanks to Colette Martin’s thorough and easy-to-understand lessons about allergens, ingredients, and substitutions. Colette’s recipes are poised to become staples in your repertoire, so happy baking, and enjoy your new discoveries!"

Lori Sandler

"Learning to Bake Allergen-Free is the guide that I sought for years, and a positively beautiful book. Colette Martin presents all of her secrets, from the most reliable egg substitutes to the best gluten-free baking mixes, and her masterful recipe collection is the icing on the cake!"

Alisa Fleming

"Colette Martin shares her favorite, creative recipes and her love of baking with you so you will come to love gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free baking, too."

Lynda Mitchell

"I love how this book really breaks down baking with alternate ingredients. Cooking from Learning to Bake Allergen-Free is like having a baking guru alongside you in your kitchen."

Delight Gluten-Free

"You will learn a mountain from [Colette] Martin’s lessons and recipes, whether you’re a novice or more experienced baker. She gives brilliant guidance on egg replacers, explains mysteries such as why more baking powder is used when there are no wheat or eggs, and even helps you figure out when your gluten-free baking is done. . . . There are more than 70 allergy-friendly recipes and page after page of invaluable baking advice. This book is a must-have."

Allergic Living

"As a practicing allergy and asthma specialist, I see patients every day who have multiple food allergies, but the diagnosis is just the first step. These families need to modify their diets to avoid wheat, milk, eggs, peanuts, nuts, soy, and other common food allergens. Learning to Bake Allergen-Free is exactly the book these families need when they leave my office. It’s jam-packed with practical advice, simple baking techniques, and easy recipes that the whole family can enjoy! It will, for sure, bring smiles to many, for years to come."

Dr. Atul N. Shah

Parents of children with food allergies will appreciate this practical book.”
—Library Journal

“I love how this book really breaks down baking with alternate ingredients. Cooking from Learning to Bake Allergen-Free is like having a baking guru alongside you in your kitchen.”
—Delight Gluten-Free

“This might just be the most comprehensive allergen-free baking guide we've ever seen.”
—VegNews 

“You will learn a mountain from [Colette] Martin’s lessons and recipes, whether you’re a novice or more experienced baker. She gives brilliant guidance on egg replacers, explains mysteries such as why more baking powder is used when there are no wheat or eggs, and even helps you figure out when your gluten-free baking is done. . . . There are more than 70 allergy-friendly recipes and page after page of invaluable baking advice. This book is a must-have.”
—Allergic Living

 “This book will give you the depth of knowledge you need to be a successful allergen-free baker.”
—Chef Ming Tsai, chef and owner of Blue Ginger and national spokesperson for the Food Allergy Anaphylaxis Network

“This amazing collection of lessons and recipes will fast-forward the learning curve for anyone new to cooking with food allergies. Speaking with the voice of experience, Colette Martin offers in-depth but approachable chapters on replacing key ingredients, even seemingly integral baking ingredients like eggs. Her ‘Crash Course’ subchapters cover everything from using baking soda and baking powder, to proofing yeast breads, to how to tell when the darn thing is done! Learning to Bake Allergen-Free will be a companion you will want to keep close by in your kitchen for frequent reference.”
—Jules Shepard, author of Free For All Cooking and The First Year: Celiac Disease and Living Gluten Free

“Colette Martin’s book will be a great resource for the home baker hesitant to venture ‘out of the box.’ Her use of a variety of name-brand gluten-free flours and mixes makes for easy adaptation.”
—Chef Richard J. Coppedge, Jr., CMB, professor of baking and pastry arts

“A fabulous education in a cookbook! Learning to Bake Allergen-Free will move you right to the head of the baking class thanks to Colette Martin’s thorough and easy-to-understand lessons about allergens, ingredients, and substitutions. Colette’s recipes are poised to become staples in your repertoire, so happy baking, and enjoy your new discoveries!”
—Lori Sandler, founder of Divvies and author of The Divvies Bakery Cookbook—No Nuts, No Eggs, No Dairy—Just Delicious!

“Learning to Bake Allergen-Free is the guide that I sought for years, and a positively beautiful book. Colette Martin presents all of her secrets, from the most reliable egg substitutes to the best gluten-free baking mixes, and her masterful recipe collection is the icing on the cake!”
—Alisa Fleming, author of Go Dairy Free: The Guide and Cookbook and founder of GoDairyFree.org

“As a practicing allergy and asthma specialist, I see patients every day who have multiple food allergies, but the diagnosis is just the first step. These families need to modify their diets to avoid wheat, milk, eggs, peanuts, nuts, soy, and other common food allergens. Learning to Bake Allergen-Free is exactly the book these families need when they leave my office. It’s jam-packed with practical advice, simple baking techniques, and easy recipes that the whole family can enjoy! It will, for sure, bring smiles to many, for years to come.”
—Dr. Atul N. Shah, Medical Director, Center4AsthmaAllergy.com, and author of the AmazingAllergist’s Awesome Series for Children, AmazingAllergist.com

“Colette Martin shares her favorite, creative recipes and her love of baking with you so you will come to love gluten-free, dairy-free, egg-free, nut-free baking, too.”
—Lynda Mitchell, President, Kids With Food Allergies Foundation

“Colette Martin’s Learning to Bake Allergen-Free is a welcome addition to the world of allergen-free cooking. Martin’s approach to the challenge is masterful and complete. This is more than a cookbook; this is a resource book for families struggling to feed a family member with multiple food allergies. She guides the way, teaching us how to adapt recipes for results that the whole family will enjoy. Kudos to Colette Martin for tackling this challenge head-on and providing families with a much-needed resource.”
—Wendy Book, President, American Partnership for Eosinophilic Disorders
 

From the Publisher

Breads, muffins, cookies, and cakes—treats often eliminated from restrictive diets—get the allergen-free treatment from Martin, who learned new ways to bake after her son was diagnosed with multiple food allergies. As readers bake through Coffee Cake with Streusel Topping, Millet Baguettes, and other recipes, they'll learn from her advice on "How to Form Scones" and "Choosing Replacements for Eggs with Gluten-Free Baking Mixes." Martin includes an overview of available flour blends, oils, sweeteners and other ingredients, as well as invaluable appendixes on troubleshooting problems and making substitutions. VERDICT Parents of children with food allergies will appreciate this practical book.

Library Journal