[Gift]
When I first got told I had to follow a gluten free diet, I had no idea where to start! All I could cook were pasta bakes, and gluten free food was expensive, and I had no other inspiration. I’ve always loved baking too, and it meant that I had to learn to bake in a completely different way.
So what did I do? I went to a book shop in search for some gluten free recipe books, and I discovered the NOSH series from Joy May.
I picked up the NOSH: Gluten Free book, and away I went with it. After several failed attempts at my favourite lemon drizzle cake, I went home and tried the recipe from this book and it worked an absolute treat! Plus there are so many great ideas for quick meals for yourself, and food for all the family.
The NOSH books are self published from the May family down in Bedford. Joy May, the author is gluten intolerant, and when she wrote the first book, there was a very limited amount of gluten free ingredients compared to now. Since then, another three gluten free books have been written, and even the books that aren’t specifically gluten free, the recipes still have easy gluten free swaps available.
The Everyday Gluten Free one has wholesome recipes that are hassle free, and ranges from breakfast, lunch, dinner and baking, and even has a vegetarian section. There’s even a decent recipe for bread maker bread!
A lot of the recipes in this one have refined sugar-free recipes, and a lot of the baking section requires alternatives like coconut sugar and honey. Personally, I realised that I have a lot of refined sugar in my diet, and I do feel benefits from reducing my sugar intake. I guess if you wanted to use regular sugar, you could do so. I really appreciate that this book is mindful of your health as well as creating delicious food.
In all of the gluten free books, there is a list of all the ingredients suitable for those following a gluten free diet, so if someone else is cooking for you, it’s really helpful!
From this book, I had to try their chocolate chip cookie recipe as I LOVE cookies and so does everyone else at home. They were amazing, and using coconut sugar didn’t alter the taste either!
In the Quick and Easy one, although it’s not a dedicated gluten free book, there is a little GF symbol above the recipe to state that you can convert this to a gluten free meal. Along with it, it says how. So if someone else is cooking for a coeliac, they know how. It makes it really easy!
Each recipe takes around 25 minutes to cook, and has a star rating on how easy it is, so it’s perfect if you don’t particularly enjoy cooking, or are pressed for time (like me and my other half).
And as me and James are buying our first house together, we think it’s time to both learn how to cook meals for each other, and find out what we like. What better way to do so, than to try a recipe from the book.
We also tried the cider and cranberry bangers and mash from the ‘NOSH: Gluten free’ book, and it was unbelievably tasty, and perfect comfort food for over the autumn!
James doesn’t particularly enjoy cooking, but he found the recipes really easy to follow, and I don’t think he did a bad job!
Nosh even do a student cookbook which has options for gluten free alternatives, which I wish I had when I was a student, it would have made my life a lot easier, and my meals would be a lot more varied than pasta bake.
Cook books like this are staples with me, and I love flicking through them for meal inspiration. I definitely recommend them for newer and established coeliacs alike, and they make great gifts.
Have you tried any of the NOSH cookbooks? Have a look at their website for their range and stockists if you haven’t!
Subscribe to my blog below if you want to see more, and follow me on my social media (links below) to see what else I’m enjoying!
Thanks for reading,
Georgina x
The Coeliac Sloth 