Sweet Laurel: Recipes for Whole Food, Grain-Free Desserts: A Baking Book

by Laurel Gallucci, Claire Thomas, Lauren Conrad (Foreword)

From LA's trendy bakery comes the new definitive grain-free baking book that makes eating paleo, gluten-free, and dairy-free diets a lot sweeter for home bakers.

From the beginning, Sweet Laurel has been about making sweet things simple. The recipes here are indulgent yet healthful. They use just a few quality ingredients to create delicious desserts that benefit your body; all of these treats are paleo, and many are vegan and raw. From Matcha Sandwich Cookies to Salted Lemon Meringue Pie to Classic German Chocolate Cake, these treats are at once uncomplicated, beautiful, and satisfying, made only with wholesome ingredients such as almonds, coconut, cacao, and dates. Here, too, are basic staple recipes to keep with you, like grain-free vanilla extract and vegan caramel, and fancy finishes, like paleo sprinkles and dairy-free ice cream.

Whether you’re looking for simpler recipes, seeking a better approach to dessert, or struggling with an allergy that has prevented you from enjoying sweets, Sweet Laurel will change the way you bake.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction, Reference

256 pages, Hardcover

Published April 3, 2018

Reviews

[Diana C · Rating 2 out of 5]

I’m a pretty experienced gluten free baker, as I’ve been diagnosed with celiacs several years ago and I’ve been making a lot of my own desserts since then.
I was excited to try out these recipes, especially as they seemed so simple—few ingredients, few steps, beautiful pictures.
So far ive tried the lemon bars and cinnamon rolls, two items that are hard to make generally and ive found it extremely hard to make gluten free. i haven’t tried any of the “simpler” recipes from this book such as cookies and cakes, but those are generally easier and might be more successful.
Both of these recipes were disasters. The cinnamon bun dough was more of a batter than a dough, was impossible to roll, and even then the final product was meal-y and dense. The lemon bars were equally unsuccessful, with the bars turning out more like lemon-y scrambled eggs than anything in the photos. Again, I’m sure there are tricks and ways to fix these problems. The issue with this cookbook is that IF you follow the recipes, step by step with extreme detail, your end result is not going to be a success. It almost feels like they didn’t test these out with other home cooks? I dont think im the only one who saw these results, as many of the reviews here are about how beautiful and simple the recipes SEEM, but im not sure how others found the results. this is just one of the most disappointing GF cookbooks ive tried so far. I’d be happy if im the only one with these problems, but i suspect that is not the case.

[MK ( MaKayla)]

I'll rate this after I try some of the recipes . They all sound so amazing !

[Drea Sebastiano-Stanley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Reading the reviews and can't help, but wonder--has anyone attempted these recipes? I have tried my hand at making GF, vegan, and other dietary restriction treats for years and was please to see the recipes in this book had very few ingredients and seemed relatively easy. All four recipes I attempted did not turn out. The scones had a metallic, bitter taste (which I think is from how much baking soda is required) and the cakes turned soupy--inedible. The pictures are beautiful though, but seemingly unrealistic for the recipes listed. I can't help, but wonder if there are details missing about the types of ingredients used and how? A great alternative for this is the Minimalist Baker. All her recipes are without fail and available online.

[Courtney Pletcher · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a treat, literally! In one sitting over the course of an hour, I read the introduction, the Sweet Laurel story, and looked at every single recipe in this book! The recipes are wonderfully instructional, seem easy to follow, and I was amazed that the ingredients were fairly minimal and similar for all these delightful desserts! I bookmarked no less than 14 recipes that I want to try as soon as possible! The pictures in this book are so beautiful and aesthetic, they’re making me crave something sweet! I better get to baking!

[Sarah Mendelson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love sweets and pastries but with my wheat allergy and sensitivity to certain grains, finding delicious grain free treats was difficult. This cookbook has brought actual glee into my life. The best part? All recipes are low Glycemic/sugar. So happy this book exists!

[Sarah Bedwell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yum! Made the blueberry morning muffins, fall-in-love banana bread, and birthday cake and all are sooo good. Love it is all healthy whole food ingredients too.

[Angelina Baldwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having a daughter who is gluten-free, finding delicious and tasty desserts is not always an easy task. Enter Sweet Laurel’s Baking Book. I first came up Sweet Laurel on Instagram and tried a few recipes, and all were a huge hit and knew I needed to grab this baking book asap! Simple ingredients, easy instructions make this a no stress baking dream. I have tried dozens of recipes and haven’t had one that I, nor my family, didn’t love.

[Brit · Rating 5 out of 5]

This cookbook is a saving grace for those with food intolerances. I was thrilled to be able to actually eat excellent tasting cake while not feeling sick afterwards. The brownie recipe and the vegan caramel recipe are amazing. You will not regret this purchase. Looking forward the Savory Laurel cookbook they are currently working on.

[Kym · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sweet Laurel's recipes grain-free baking at it's finest. The recipes also tend to be dairy-free, too. The photos make the recipes look divine and there are a few basic recipes for things I'd like to try, like dairy-free cream cheese and cheesecake. I can't wait to try these!

[Marla · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the best paleo baking book.

[Kelsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excited to try these recipes - easy to read and the recipes look relatively simple to make on the whole.

[Kristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty book with refreshing concept for "simple" grain-free desserts. (No 4-flour mixes here!). But I am not prepared to make my own vanilla extract.

[Diana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love this cookbook! The recipes mostly use almond flour instead of lots of strange flour substitutes. I checked the book out from the library but am buying my own copy.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

Everything looks so tempting and yummy. Test will be when I actually make something!

[Liz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sweet Laurel is a grain-free, whole foods-focused baking cookbook with gorgeous photos and simple-ish recipes. For the variety of recipes, photos, an ease of use--this book is a five without a doubt. The book explains its baking philosophy well, and as an alternative for folks with allergies or other dietary restrictions, I could see these simple recipes for cookies and cake moving someone to tears. And I liked a lot of the recipes that I tried: the vegan caramel was devoured in a day or two when left in my fridge unattended, the double chocolate muffins and savory turmeric bread likewise did not last long. But a few of the other recipes I tried, namely the Orange Pistachio Loaf and the Chocolate Caramel Blondies, fell WAY short. The Blondies called for 3 Tbsp. of vanilla extract--so much vanilla extract that they still tasted tinged with alcohol even after baking over the recommended time and chilling in the fridge; the Orange Pistachio Loaf called for SIX eggs and had a strange sweet quiche flavor the first day, though it did fade with time. Some of these issues might have been related to baking times, but that's because the recipes needed better guidance about how to check for doneness. The grain-free nature of these ingredients meant traditional baking markers didn't hold true. Overall, I will be baking more from this cookbook, but that's more because of a personal desire to eat less refined sugar and wheat than swooning over the ones I've already baked.

[Lane Beachler · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am hard pressed to believe anyone who’s given this book more than 2 stars has baked enough recipes in it to fairly rate it. I’ve been baking regularly for nearly 20 years and strictly gluten free for the past 5.

I can’t fault the essential recipes (although some are absurd) or batter-based goods. But anything that involves a dough being rolled will result in a colossal failure. It’s a sticky mess every time. Another issue I have is with the frostings, glazes and fillings. If they’re not clumpy then they’re too loose and melty.

I was actually surprised to find that a cookbook of this caliber didn’t measure ingredients in weight as well. But that’s not the root cause of these issues. I highly doubt they tested these quantities before publishing.

[erin iocco · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sweet Laurel is a game changer when it comes to healthy desserts. All these decedent treats are actually good for you and you would never be able to tell. In the first few weeks of reading the book, I made numerous recipes and have loved most of them. The mocha chocolate muffins are one of the best sweet recipes I’ve ever made (gluten free or otherwise!). Dairy free, grain free, and refined sugar free, but 100% delicious!

[V · Rating 5 out of 5]

So far I've only tried the honey walnut coffee cake recipe and it was INCREDIBLE! Kids devoured it, hubby loved it (and he's very picky). I would easily serve it to non-gf'ers without being worried. A keeper for sure. I was super impressed. It also made a substantial amount - perfect for a brunch party. I can't wait to try more of their recipes.

[Rebecca · Rating 2 out of 5]

If all you want to eat is almonds and coconut, this book is perfect for you. I try to steer clear of almonds for medical reasons, and it was disappointing to see so many almond-based recipes with little in the way of alternatives. Not a very useful cookbooks for me unfortunately.

[Alexandria Clark · Rating 2 out of 5]

In the winter I love to bake new recipes for my lactose intolerant self. When I was gifted this cookbook, I was so excited to try some new recipes! I have tried to make the poptarts, peach cobbler and biscuits. Each time I made them, the dough turned out soupy and hard to work with.

[Maggie Grace · Rating 2 out of 5]

Lovely book with pretty photos. I think the recipes would be great if you need to eat grain free. Heavy use of coconut oil, coconut milk and almonds, things I am allergic to. Even though I can't bake from this book, I did enjoy looking at the recipes and the photos.

[Julie Marquez · Rating 4 out of 5]

This probably shouldn’t count towards my reading challenge, but I did read all the stories and information. All the recipes sound promising but I made one flop carrot cake and one good flourless chocolate cake, and caramel turned out excellent.

[reader · Rating 2 out of 5]

A lot of the recipes here are unfortunately a huge waste of ingredients. Gluten free flours are expensive as it is, the amount maple syrup some of these recipes call for is crazy!

Recipes I liked:
—————————
• Streusel blueberry muffins

Recipes I did not like:
———————————
• Coconut flour crepes

[Carolann De Matos]

As a person with an almond allergy, this cookbook was not able to provide me with any safe recipes.

[Alexis Campbell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is such a beautiful cookbook filled with lovely recipes. So many that I can’t wait to try! The Savory version of the cookbook looks wonderful too!

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some of these recipes (ahem, banana bread) have been reworked and updated on their website. I should have looked before baking. It was very tasty banana slop.

[Ryan Juno · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want to own this

[Maddy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best GF cookbook! Not a great baker and this makes it super simple for me

[Mindy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful pictures and some inspiring recipes for whole foods, grain free desserts.

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

All sorts of yummy recipes