Gluten-Free Girl: How I Found the Food That Loves Me Back...And How You Can Too

by Shauna James Ahern

Do you, or someone you love, have to avoid certain foods? Imagine passing on the pizza during your honeymoon in Rome, or skipping the sugar cookies your sister makes at Christmas. Shauna James Ahern understands your pain—literally. After years of inexplicable exhaustion and endless medical tests, she found relief in her diagnosis of celiac disease. After giving up gluten, she learned how to live well and love food more fully. Now she can help you do it, too.
In  Gluten-Free Girl,  Shauna James Ahern shares the journey that changed her from a typical Gen-X processed-food junkie to a fun-loving foodie. She shows you how to say yes to a gluten-free lifestyle and embrace a whole new world of fresh foods and flavors. She shares dozens of recipes everyone will love, like salmon with blackberry sauce, chocolate banana bread, and lemon olive oil cookies. Part memoir, part best friend giving advice, part cookbook,  Gluten-Free Girl  will put the spring back in your step and your diet, one delicious meal at a time.

Genres: Nonfiction, Food, Health, Cookbooks, Memoir, Cooking, Biography

288 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2007

Reviews

[Rachel · Rating 2 out of 5]

As someone who is constantly trying to learn more about food and new ways to make recipes and who has a chronic illness with dietary reprocussions, I was really interested in reading this book. What a disappointment.

I don't quite understand was she so obsessed with rehashing the foods of her childhood. It seemed like at least a third of the book was spent bad mouthing the food she grew up with (which seemed typical of many American family diets in the 1970s) without drawing any real parallels to her disease. I am glad she figured out what is wrong with her and is now eating so well, but her condescension was overwhelming and a real turn-off to me as a reader. By the end I was honestly hoping that her parents will not be able to read the book, her railing against the white bread and American cheese of her childhood was so frequent and harsh (not to mention excessive).

The book was also quite repetitive, revisiting the same foods, ideas, concepts and anecdotes more often than was necessary to make her point. A lot of the book was lifted directly from her blog without much in the way of editing, which might help explain the disjointed feeling of parts of the book.

I think that a better format for this book would have been either a straight memoir with recipes (if no other reason than that she could really just delve into the childhood stuff for a couple of chapters and then move on for the rest of the book) or a collection of food essays and recipes rather than trying to tell us how we can find "the food that loves us back", which I don't think the book quite accomplished.

If helping others (rather than simply telling her story) was the main goal of the book (and I think the subtitle certainly gives that impression, despite the author's apparent reluctence to follow through on that aspect) I think readers would have been better served by learning more about her recipe development methods or by including some constructive advice to people who don't have the access to high quality ingredients that she has, money to spend on truffle oil or the time to bake bread 3-4 times a week.

[Kate · Rating 2 out of 5]

This highly-touted book got off to a great start but by the end had dissolved into sentimental pap. Ahern makes some excellent points and recommendations for people who need to eat gluten-free and, after diagnosis, suddenly find that they must dramatically adjust their eating habits. But she's a hardcore foodie, and, as such, impractical and obsessive about preparing/thinking about/eating/living with/shopping for food. My mom, who must live gluten-free (I read her copy of this book), doesn't have the time or desire to spend hours upon hours in her kitchen making everything from scratch -- she eats to live and doesn't live to eat. Ahern lives to eat, and this book is for people who do the same. It is most certainly not a practical guide for living a gluten-free lifestyle.

Also, Ahern gets horribly mushy at the end detailing her romance with "The Chef" -- they ride off into the gluten-free sunset together. I'm sure many readers find this tale inspirational but I found it tiresome. I know Ahern believes that all things in life, from her celiac diagnosis to her romantic endeavors, are connected in one big gluten-free journey, but... Again, this is not the practical info I was looking for, nor was it useful to my mom as she struggles to live gluten-free.

So ultimately, Gluten-Free Girl is a very mixed bag. If you're a foodie, you may love this book. If not, I'd look elsewhere for gluten-free recipes, solutions and philosophies.

[Kathleen F · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've known about this book since before it was first published, and could only bring myself to read it now. As a person who's living with Celiac Disease, I really wanted to love this book. But I haven't been able to meet my diagnosis with the everlasting "yes" that Shauna James Ahern has. For me, it's more like the everlasting "oy."

Having admitted this, it can be difficult to read such unceasing positivity. I think it's WONDERFUL that she's transformed her life and her way of eating because of her disease, and that it may be the reason she ultimately met her soulmate. But for some of us the journey with celiac is a bit more difficult--we have partners and families who can't cope as well with the gluten-free lifestyle, other food sensitivities beyond gluten to deal with, less easy access to the ingredients she sings about. Not to mention a bit less desire to spend so much time in the kitchen--perhaps my life will change, but at this stage I can't imagine myself spending my Sundays making stock from scratch.

I think if this book had come out when I was first diagnosed, I might have had a different reaction to it. But as another reviewer mentioned, each "chapter" is a bit repetitive--she keeps rehashing things, especially the particulars of celiac, when she should have been able to move on after the first chapter.

What I *will* take from the book is her description of alternative grains like amaranth and teff, which might be helpful. However, this is information you can also find in her blog.

On the plus side, this is a quick read. : )

[Jenny · Rating 5 out of 5]

Words cannot even begin to express how I feel about Gluten Free Girl. As a reader of her companion blog, I have fallen in love with the smooth words and beautiful descriptions that Shauna describes on the pages of both her blog and book.

This book is not a HOW TO on being Gluten free, as a portion of the title suggests. (That part should have been left off the title.) Instead, Shauna takes us on a journey of how she fell in love with food, was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, and how she learned to live with it.

I really like Shauna's approach for dealing with her disease. She takes food by storm instead of sulking about what she cannot eat. In the process she learned much more about loving food than she ever expected. I swooned when she detailed her relationship with the chef. (I know how it feels to find the love of your life.)

This book also re-emphasized the importance of buying fresh, quality ingredients. Please give this book a chance, especially if you are looking to heighten your senses and learn to enjoy food even more than you already do.

[Andra Watkins · Rating 1 out of 5]

I wanted to love this book. I love food, even though I am sensitive to gluten. I adore eating. I even like Shauna's blog.

This book comes off snooty and condescending. For some people, embracing life fully is not about making food, tasting food, communing through food. For others, like the author, living life IS about that, and that is fine. There are multiple ways to deal with a gluten intolerance or celiac, with hers being just one of them. In both her monotonous litanies about the poisonous food she consumed in her formative years and in recounting her journey to finding happiness, she only makes HER way okay. She refuses to acknowledge that, for some people, packaged gluten-free meals may be the only way to trust food again. Others will stink at cooking, no matter how much they try. She never makes it okay for a celiac or gluten-free person to find a way to happiness that does not revolve around food. She knocks others for failing to see the world her way, and, in doing so, becomes the very person she professes to despise.

As a book, this would've been much better sold without the 'how to' component, which, from reading the reviews, created unrealistic expectations for more readers than just me. I know that was not her choice, something I say to underscore that her instincts on that score should've carried more weight. I am in the process of trying to find a way to live without gluten, and this book really didn't help me.

[Lady Susan · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was a 2.5. I guess I should preface this review by saying that I really like Shauna's website: Gluten-free Girl. It was one of the first food blogs I was introduced to. Ironically, I now find it an invaluable resource since I have been diagnosed as celiac.

That being said.....I find her writing to be too much at times. Too flowery, too descriptive, to wordy. Also...at times I thought the book a bit....pretentious? I mean, she went on and on about all these exotic and expensive ingredients that are available to her Locally! Oh and she has five Local! butchers that live Right! Around! the Corner! I mean, Shauna, not everyone lives in Seattle with practically everything available to them and in the right season. She talks about trying vegetables other than the ones of her childhood--Carrots, broccoli, etc. That is great....if you have access to vegetables other than carrots, broccoli, etc. with which to experiment. The grocery store where I live doesn't carry fava beans.

Also, I found the writing to be a bit disjointed--jumping around chronologically, etc. So yeah...it was o.k.

[else fine · Rating 2 out of 5]

People keep trying to loan me this book. I wish they would stop. I also have celiac disease, and lean towards sounding like a newly converted missionary at times, and like many other people with the disease, I spend a lot of time stewing over the terrible foods I ate in my benighted ignorance, and the horrible ramifications my diet had for my health. Seriously - I lived on those cans of fried mock duck chunks you find at Asian markets (wheat gluten fried in wheat sauce), noodles, and beer. It's no wonder my body gave up on the stuff, probably out of fear and despair. But Ahern out-stews me, easily. You'd think she'd suffered more than anyone ever, and she blames her mom for most of it. I felt really bad for her poor mom, probably just doing her best, feeding her what in retrospect was a bad array of wheaty foods, but no different from what most people eat. It's seriously uncomfortable to read.
Blame slinging and navel gazing aside, the food writing is too twee for my taste, all misty rapture and preciousness. If you enjoy Thomas Kincade paintings or Christian television, this is the food writing for you.

[Marnie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shauna wrote this book after she found out she had celiac disease & had to give up gluten. While it was nice to read about how she learned to eat better & treat her body right, she's kind of a food snob & most of her ideas arent very realistic for most people, like no one I know would spend $25 on a bottle of cooking oil or $150 on a kitchen knife, & most of her recipes look like they're really high in fat.I was also surprised to see other allergens like eggs in her recipes, I thought people with gluten intolerance usually had other allergies too, like I do. She does do a really good job of describing the food & inspired me to try some of the more exotic grains. I mostly enjoyed this book, but Shauna's writing style can be hard to read sometimes, she uses too many big words & doesnt seem very down to earth.

[Rebecca · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm currently wrestling with Celiac and oddly enough there is this relatively mainstream memoir about the disease. I really just breezed through it, the writing is pretty abysmal. Also, I can't eat dairy currently and she talks about cheese so often I wanted to smack her. Seems to me that the book is just a bunch of repetitive blog posts strung together and published in hardcover. But there are certain aspects of this story that I can relate too so strongly that I kind of want to give this book to everyone I know so that they'll get a picture of what it's like to live with Celiac.

[Lena · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’m not quite sure how to describe Shauna Ahern’s book about living with celiac, a disease in which the body responds to the gluten found in wheat and other common grains with an intestine-damaging immune response. The book part memoir, in that Ahern tells her personal story of life before and after her diagnosis. It is also part how-to guide, as she discusses the basics of the gluten-free diet, where gluten can hide, and how to do things like talk to restaurant servers about what you can and cannot eat. There is also a recipe component, in which she offers a number of her own gluten-free concoctions. And then there is the philosophical food musings, in which she rails on American processed packaged food culture and sings the praises of organic, locally grown whole foods.

As I read this book, I found some of these aspects very interesting and useful, while others grew repetitive and cause me to do a fair amount of skimming. Unlike Ahern, I do not have full-blown celiac, but it runs in my family and I am producing antibodies to gluten. Since the odds of my developing it are higher than average, I have been told to eliminate gluten from my diet. As a passionate lover of bread and pasta, I greeted this recommendation with woeful dismay. Given how widespread gluten is in American food, following the celiac diet is astonishingly difficult: if those French fries were cooked in the same oil as onion rings, for example, they will be contaminated with gluten. Even rice-based Asian cuisines aren’t safe because there is wheat in most soy sauce.

Ahern is entirely undaunted by these kinds of restrictions, however, and has used her diagnosis as an excuse to wholeheartedly embrace the previously unexplored world of all the gluten-free foods that she can eat. She is a tireless cheerleader for the explosion of taste and flavor that comes from cooking your own meals with fresh, quality ingredients, and her passionate enthusiasm for food makes it very clear that living with celiac need not mean living a life of deprivation. It is this enthusiasm that was for me the most valuable part of the book; I became genuinely excited about doing more of my own cooking and exploring the uncharted waters of things sorghum flour and popped amaranth.

Ahern’s own transition to a gluten-free life was made easier by the fact that she already loved to cook, so I don’t know that this book will be very useful to someone without the ability or inclination to spend as much time as she does in the kitchen. It’s the only book I’ve read on the subject so far, so I hope there are others that offer less time consuming strategies to those who those who are not already committed gourmet chefs. For those who are struggling with the sense of loss that comes from being told you can never again eat a slice of crusty bread fresh from the bakery, however, Ahern’s enthusiasm for everything else you still can eat is a surprisingly effective antidote.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

I have a visceral dislike of the author's website, so I expected to hate the book with the same name. Shauna's long digressions about food make a lot more sense in a book than they do on a food blog (and a book can't make blatant cash grabs or say nasty things on twitter). I suspect that the benefit of an editor and a medium better suited towards longer stories helped. It was a book about the evolution of Shauna's relationship with food throughout her life, beginning with Lucky Charms and casseroles and ending with gluten-free farmer's market fare.

I was surprised at how much I had ignored that I had in common with Shauna: we both were diagnosed with celiac as adults, grew up eating mostly processed food, taught high school English, and were involved in car accidents (although mine happened after my diagnosis).

With these commonalities in mind, I reject a lot of what she has to say. Her discussion of the "wan, thin girl with no discernible personality" is extremely off-putting and snobby. She decided she had "nothing to say" to her. As someone else pointed out, maybe food isn't that young woman's life passion. Maybe it's fighting poverty or astronomy or anthropology. Frankly, all of the moaning over food that went on in this book was downright creepy. I also rolled my Brooklyn born and raised eyes over the assertion that most New Yorkers don't really cook. Maybe the Upper West Side yuppies she knew didn't, but NYC has a population of over 8 million people and I doubt she's met most of us.

Additionally, it is extremely irresponsible for her to say that gluten-free diets are useful for treating autism. The studies are at best inconclusive (although the stronger ones show that there is no link between a gluten-free diet and the reported improvement of autism symptoms in children). Autism is not a disease and autistics are not looking for a cure.

[Danna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another niece of mine has been diagnosed with gluten intolerance and was lamenting the fact that she couldn't enjoy her usual favorites at Thanksgiving. I'm her giver in this year's family x-mas gift exchange, so I had the brilliant idea of finding a lovely gluten-free baking book. Instead, I found this little gem! The first chapter really resonated with me, and reminds everyone that what we eat has a direct effect on our physical, mental, and emotional health (seems like a no-brainer, but in our "take a pill" world, it's easy to forget that critical link).

Yes, Ahern often sounds like a snob. Yes, this is mostly a collection of her blog entries (often verbatim) rather than what some would consider a proper book. Yes, she goes on and on about other personal events. Certainly this is a memoir rather than a medical guide to living with gluten intolerance. However, for my teenage niece who suddenly learned that the typical American diet she's been raised on is poisonous to her, my hope is that she'll find comfort and inspiration from this personal narrative.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

I actually would give this book 3.5 stars (why oh why won't goodreads do that????). I know the author did not intend this to be a "how to live gluten-free" book, but given the popularity of her blog and the chosen subtitle (which I know from reading her blog that she had no say over), a reader would expect to have more information provided. That said, she did provide some good information (especially the grains chapter), but I would have liked more information about the different flours and why some gluten free baking recipes use things like apple cider vinegar when their standard gluten version does not (ie. what such ingredients do for the recipe). Information like that would impower someone to do the experimentation in the kitchen that she is such a vocal advocate for. She can also get a bit repetitive about the importance of making foods from scratch and enjoying your meals.

But I do enjoy her writing style, and contrary to some other reviewers, I enjoyed the chapter on her relationship with "the Chef."

[Angie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I've seen this book many times since my daughter's Celiac diagnosis nearly three years ago. I've read reviews of people singing its praises. Maybe it's because I don't have Celiac myself, but I found the book disappointing. It was interesting and while she is an excellent author, I found the book to be very repetitious and it's different sections long-winded. I enjoyed the history of some of the gluten-free grains and appreciated the suggestions she gave; but many of the recipes are just not practical when trying to feed a nine-year old girl, let alone her even pickier siblings! We aren't a family of gourmet palates by any stretch of the imagination; and to really "get" the book, apparently you need to be.

[Sher · Rating 3 out of 5]

the author is extremely knowledgeable, and she has a wonderful way with words, although there are times she seems a little condescending. she knows her way around the land of celiacs. of course, it is a lot easier to handle radically changing your entire diet when you're single and fall in love with a chef who essentially converts his restaurant into a gluten-free haven.

seriously. not. bitter. but if you are a parent dealing with kids who must become gluten-free, this is probably not the most helpful book. kids will not care a lot about truffle oil.

[Tiffany · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have a hard time reviewing this book. I enjoy Ahern's writing. It can run toward the flowery and sentimental, but it's also lyrical and lovely. Even my most cynical self can't help being inspired by Ahern's passionate love for food, life, and "the chef." The only thing that prevents me from whole-heartedly recommending this book is that much of it is repetitive of Ahern's gluten-free girl blog.

['helen' · Rating 3 out of 5]

I recommend this book for 2 purposes: awesome gluten-free recipes & resources; and good stories about lving gluten-free in a white-flour nation.

This is a well-written blog - but doesn't always translate well as a book. It reads best when skimmed or read in small quantities (as you would a blog). As a memoir of sorts, it is a bit self-absorbed and repetitive.

[kristina · Rating 3 out of 5]

Beautiful, floral writing, but I was disappointed with the content. Much time was spent harping and hating the foods of her childhood and promoting really really expensive ingredients and cooking EVERYTHING from scratch.

All of the recipes can be found on her website... I was hoping for at least half of them to be new.

[Tina · Rating 1 out of 5]

i did not enjoy this book as much as i thought i would. got turned off by the writer telling me i should splurge on a $25 bottle of olive oil. it must be nice to have the time, money and energy to dance around the kitchen while cooking. i'd love to do that, but i live in a different world, and just couldn't connect.

[Danika · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really like her writing style and she clearly enjoys life and food. Agree with another reviewer, though. She spends WAY too much time slamming the food she grew up on (processed, prepared foods in the 70s). It gets really old.

[Alexa Hamilton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderfully good book about living within your limitations--and food. Shauna writes about food and love and dealing with chronic illness in a way that makes you envy her former students. It also reminds me that food, with limitations or without, is incredible.

[Heather · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first book I've read that was written by a blogger. It shows. But the memoir/ cookbook is pretty cool and has some good recipes and tips and tricks. She's a good writer, but a better blogger.

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

As someone who shouldn't eat wheat and loves food, I found this book slightly boring.

[carolyn radach · Rating 4 out of 5]

Originally when I was reading this book I started to feel like the author was a bit preachy with her specialty shops and organic oratories, for I too know the benefits of living in the majestic North West, but what I was really reacting to was the knowledge that I, and I alone, have not been taking the necessary steps to take care of my own self with celiacs disease. I do the best that I can with what I have, but knowing that there are other things that I should, or at least could, be doing to take better care of myself left me feeling irritated and frustrated with myself over the facts that I wasn't aware of, and should have been. Like root beer. I love root beer. Brown cows (root beer floats to the rest of you) are one of my favorites, and yet until tonight, while reading the very end of the book, I had no idea that the malt used to make the root beer contained gluten. How many times have I had root beer since being diagnosed 2 years ago? I don't even know. You see I don't have health insurance right now and so all of the research that I've done has been on my own, and nothing that I've read up until this point has ever mentioned anything like that!

Restaurants have been another on going issue for me. I'm always wary when going out with friends. My friends are great though (shout out for the girls), but as careful as I try to be, also because they watch me like hawks, I always feel apprehensive about the fork full of food that I put in my mouth, not knowing what it has been near. Even this past summer at the chain restaurant that my friends and I ate at, and even though the waitress we had did understand the disease and did her best to accommodate me, I still had to wonder about that first bite since I don't know what was going on in the kitchen. However, thanks to the authors husband, who cooks gluten free, I now have a new restaurant that I'll have to try, which, if I go, will probably be the only one that I'll attend for awhile. I say it like that since the menu looks a little pricey. So why do I got restaurants if I'm afraid to eat? Because I refuse to let that fear captivate me and take me away from spending time with those that I care about. All that I can do is the best I can with salads and meat filled meals (no fettuccine Alfredo for me). I simply refuse to let the hesitation I have about those places hinder me from a good time. Now I have even more tools take with me the next time I walk inside a restaurant.

But as well crafted as Shauna's tale is, it is not simply a story of someone with celiacs disease. It is, in my opinion, a love story. A story of someones love for food, love for themselves, love of life, and finding love when no one wants to deal with obstacles such as this one. Celiacs disease can be imposing for most people to deal with, for it's always in the forefront of the mind when traveling or going out. But somehow amidst the losers who couldn't see past the static she found someone who not only was willing to look past it, but could accommodate her needs as well. For you see only God could put together something as charming as someone who loves food, as well as being challenged by it, to someone who can cook it. For as I stated earlier she got to marry a chef! Life is full of irony. However, my favorite part of the book was the end. Not only does Shauna's tale come to a happy conclusion, but she talks about the lengths that he goes to in order to keep her safe, which were things that I never thought of. None the less I was touched by the chivalry and care that he took to make sure her system is not tainted. Like, he will brush his teeth before kissing her after eating something with gluten in it just to make sure there is nothing left on his breath that could contaminate her. Now it's been a long time since I was kissed like that, but I can fully appreciate the gesture and tenderness that he must feel for her in order to put her well being before his libido. I mean who would think that something as delicious as a kiss could harm the one you love. Are there anymore of those out there? A girl can hope, right?

I highly recommend this book. Not just for those that have this disease, but for those that love those with it as well. Though Shauna's story is unique to her, you can get a sense of what the average person goes through and the anxiety they face, in certain situations, with this disease. Shauna embraced her disease with fervor, which honestly I've had trouble with. I miss my breads, and now I know I'll miss root beer too, but knowledge is power and it's good to know that I can continue learning how to make myself better and heal my body so that one day I can take care of not just myself, but my family as well (whenever I get one).

[CrystalIsReading on StoryGraph · Rating 3 out of 5]

Finally I am done with this book! It took me forever. I hesitated between 2 and 3 stars as a review...the writing and much of the content annoyed me, but the recipes look really good, and the information on gluten, celiac/ gluten intolerance, and living a gluten free lifestyle was invaluable. Certain portions of the book were really encouraging to me. I read her experiences learning to eat gluten free, what she felt like when she did eat gluten, etc, and completely identified with them. The recipe do sound delicious, and most of them are not too gourmet/ complicated. I want to try a number of them.
My problem was with the writing itself, and probably with the author herself, or at least how she comes across in the book. Her obsession with food was almost off putting--and I am someone who loves to talk food and cooking with everyone, and reads cookbooks for fun. But I would never say that a piece of food sang on my tongue, or rhapsodize about a peach dribbling down my face. I just felt like she was a little overboard for my taste with her obsession with and description of food. Like her literary self crossed with her gourmet self in a really annoying way.
She was also a bit pushy with the whole "you must buy only the best of everything. Guess what? not all of us grew up priviledged in southern California. We can't all run right out and budget our "entertainment spending" (you can afford entertainment?) on extravagant gourmet ingredients. I am sure special olive oils and salts taste great, but I have a priority to eat first, then to eat healthy food. gourmet doesn't fit into the budget--ANYWHERE.
I didn't enjoy the parts where she talked about her personal life either, especially her mommy issues. I am glad she has found some peace and forgiveness with her family now that she's older, and I'm not saying I don't think her life sucks. BUT I was tired of hearing about it pretty quickly. Your mom had issues? check. She fed you crappy food that probably made you sicker, and certainly not better? check. GOT IT! Now shut up and cook some more food I can eat. thanks.
(I think this all sounds awfully mean, but that is how this book made me feel. Mean and uncultured. Her writing brought out my inner Nelson [from the Simpsons], and that's never a good thing.)

[Jackie (Farm Lane Books) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Shauna James Ahern was diagnosed with celiac disease at the age of 38. This meant that if she ingested any gluten her small intestine would be damaged. She had to completely change her diet – avoiding bread, pasta and processed foods in which gluten could be hiding. Rather than become upset by the food she’d be missing, Shauna took the news positively – looking at it as an opportunity to improve her cooking skills and investigate new recipes.

Gluten-Free Girl isn’t just a book for people who’ve been diagnosed with celiac disease – anyone who enjoys reading about food will love it. Her passion for new ingredients and recipes shines throughout. She describes food in one of the most vivid ways I’ve ever encountered:

There is simply nothing like real butter. The first taste is smooth and full and has a certain cleanness. Then comes rushing in a hint of richness, as the butter starts to melt around the tongue. High, clear notes sing out. Like good cheese, butter has a taste of its origins – pastures, sunlight, green grass, and a farmer who wakes up early to milk the cows,

Unfortunately the recipes let this book down. Many were very basic and their only adaptation to being gluten-free was the word ‘gluten-free’ before ‘flour’ or ‘pasta’ in the ingredients list. I wish she’d included recipes for naturally gluten free dishes – especially the ones involving millet, amaranth and sorghum that she described so well within the text.

The only recipe that sounded tempting enough to make was the chocolate and banana bread, but unfortunately the inclusion of rice flour in the recipe meant it tasted gritty. I think gluten-free cookery has advanced a lot since this book was published and I’m sure that Shauna’s own recipes have progressed from this initial publication in 2007.

This book should be read for the way it passionately encourages people to experiment in the kitchen.

[Laurie · Rating 3 out of 5]

When my husband was diagnosed with celiac disease in 2010, I was so happy to find Shauna Ahern's blog. There were lots of great recipes for us to try. I really like her blueberry muffin recipe and we made a mac and cheese recipe a few times (before discovering the much cheaper and easier Trader Joe's gluten-free mac and cheese). I've had this book on my to-reads list ever since, but I have stopped following Shauna's blog. The recipes were just too tedious and time-consuming. They involved lots of ingredients that I can't afford to buy nor do we have the time on weeknights to make an elaborate dinner. If our financial situation and my job situation were different, then yes. We would totally be making more of Shauna's meals. But as it is, we just can't hack it.

Her book essentially is all about the importance of food - making it and enjoying it. She spends a lot of time putting down the kinds of food I'm sure we all grew up with as kids - tv dinners, boxed mac and cheese, sugary cereals. Yes, I know those types of food aren't great for us. And yes, I know that my husband can't eat them anymore because of his celiac. However, just because we're now buying pre-packaged gluten-free foods doesn't mean we aren't enjoying or savoring our food. I admire that Shauna has the talent to experiment with such different foods, as well as the time and money to do so. But we do not. Will I be making any of the recipes provided in this book? No. Am I glad that Shauna finally figured out what she had celiac and was able to change her diet to make herself feel better? Yes.

[Rebecca Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book had me just from the title. I was walking around the library, saw the cover, and thought, "Hey, that's me." So I picked it up, took it home, and devoured it. I couldn't stop reading it whenever I could. I have neither heard of the author before,Shauna Ahern, nor read her blog. I realize that many people have very passionate feelings about this woman who have had exposure to her in the past, but I found the writing to be incredible.

Just like the author, I have lived my life feeling "off." I didn't know what was wrong, but I loved food. I love to bake. It's my thing. I don't know what led me to try going Gluten Free, but my sister in law, who also has an issue with Gluten, told me what I need to do and how I could survive. I decided to go Gluten and casein free for a couple of weeks to see how I felt afterward. Within a couple of days, I felt amazing. Reading the book made understand that I can still bake and cook for my family but need to find different ingredients to do so. I have gone days eating the same thing just because I didn't know what else to make. Shauna's description of her ingredients; the smells, the textures, etc., spoke to me. I have purchased ingredients that will finally allow me to eat a strawberry pie again and to enjoy homemade bread. This book has enlightened me and has transformed my GF limitations to the realization that the only limitations I have are the ones I put on myself. I want to taste and enjoy the way I have in the past. What a great book. I am so glad I picked it up!

[Julie Capell · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone who has been living gluten-free for 9 years now, I already know the hidden places where gluten lurks, how to mix up a good gluten-free flour blend, and how hard the problem is to diagnose. But this breezy, uplifting and charming memoir contained so much more than "just the facts" about celiac disease. Ahern's reminiscences of the Wonder bread sandwiches, mushroom-soup casseroles and TV dinners of her youth will ring true to anyone who grew up post-1960. While laughing with the author about all those "modern convenience" foods, we also feel the pain of her overweight youth and on-again, off-again symptoms of intenstinal malfunction. Written in extremely short, readable chapters that are loosely topically grouped, the author's blogging background serves her topic and her readers well, allowing her to cover everything from personal revelations to detailed information on little-known gluten-free flours. Sprinkled throughout are recipes celiacs will rejoice over, like pizza dough and crusty sorghum bread, along with recipes for foodies everywhere like Meyer lemon sorbet and rosemary-lemon roast chicken. The fig cookie recipe sounded so amazing I immediately got up and made a batch and all I can say is . . . OMG they really do taste like Fig Newtons, only WAY BETTER. This is a book that will see repeated use as I make my way, like Julie through the Julia Child cookbook, through every single recipe.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Do not read this book when hungry. Shauna James Ahern is a MASTER at describing food with adjectives that make your mouth water. I tried finishing this last night after a quick late night bowel of cereal, and my stomach *growled*.

I'm not gluten free, nor do I have celiac disease (to my knowledge). But I have friends who eat without gluten, and I was curious to read more about it.

Terribly enlightening. Created a lot of food shame for me, but that's mostly because Shauna writes about gluten free food so gleefully and I spend most my nights eating mac and cheese out of a box.

But I will admit, guiltily, to loving her descriptions of even processed food. Her trips down nostalgia lane, filled with tales about wonder bread and cheese wiz, just made me even hungrier! Gross, I know...