SEARCH

Chef Rachel’s Review of Cooking with Coconut Oil

Book Reviews,Books,New Cookbook

If you’re already sold on coconut oil you know what the buzz is about. If you’re not sold on this fantastic fat source, you will be soon. Coconut oil can help reduce inflammation, control blood sugar, improve brain function, boost immunity, stimulate your metabolism and help your body fight infections. This super food is versatile, as are the products made from coconut (coconut flour, coconut milk, flaked or shredded coconut, and raw coconut butter).

I made four recipes from Cooking With Coconut Oil: Gluten-Free, Grain-Free Recipes for Good Living by Elizabeth Nyland, TheGuiltyKitchen.Com. I flagged many more that I want to try. My favorite was the cracker recipe, Herb Crackers, page 126. I made these twice, once as directed with the nutritional yeast and a second time without it. I preferred the version without the nutritional yeast. I loved the crunch and so did the friends I shared it with. I enjoyed them plain without any topping, served with a green salad, with fish, chicken or meat.  The recipe calls for both ground flax seeds and hemp hearts. I have been looking for more ways to get hemp hearts into my diet (they contain some therapeutic properties).

I also really enjoyed her Sandwich Bread, as is or with a little bit of pasture-raised (KerryGold) butter.

Cooking With Coconut Oil contains breakfast recipes, salads and dressings, sides, mains, snacks, starters, deserts, and baked goods, all taste-tested by her family, including her husband and two young children.

The food photos taken by the author look clean, crisp and inviting.  You’ll find unusual and delicious looking dishes, such as Caveman Porridge, Avocado Pesto, Zucchini Noodle Salad, a non-cauliflower version of Mashed Fauxtatoes, Hasselback Sweet Potatoes, and Cauliflower Crusted Pizza. One of my friends loved this even though I didn’t get the crust as crisp as I would have liked. I tasted it and sent him home with the rest since I rarely eat cheese and if I do it is usually just a sprinkle of goat or sheep feta or goat cheese on a salad. I would make the topping cheese-less next time.

If you want luscious-looking deserts made with multiple forms of coconut, you can try Elizabeth’s Carrot Cake with Coconut Faux Cream Cheese Frosting, Chocolate Coconut Cake with Coconut Frosting, Chocolate Strawberry Ice Box Pie, Pear Tart, and so many other lovely looking treats for special occasions.

It’s a compact book, easy to carry around to read or to shop with. It would make a great gift for the natural foods lover and coconut lover in your life.

No Comments

Leave a Reply