Jeanne Sauvage - Gluten-Free Baking for the Holidays: 60 Recipes for Traditional Festive Treats

Its a rare cookbook that can really make a difference in peoples lives. But for those who find their favorite holiday baked goods forever banished from their plates, Jeanne Sauvages Gluten-Free Baking for the Holidays certainly does. Instead of simply missing out on all the cookies, desserts, and festive breads that are a treasured part of most families celebrations, those who suffer from gluten-intolerance can now turn to Jeannes tempting, gluten-free versions instead.

Ive personally seen how the gluten Grinch can steal holiday pleasure; a close family member was diagnosed with an allergy to gluten several years ago. She could no longer enjoy any of the classic goodies our familys enthusiastic bakers routinely make and serve. No more sampling the gingerbread boys or sugar cookies or chocolate chippers that we bake with the children. No more eating the puffy dinner rolls, or tender biscuits, or turkey stuffing at Thanksgiving dinner or the pie after the meal.

In an effort to provide some substitutes, I tried to create a few gluten-free baked goods recipes myself. But even though I trained as a pastry chef and have written a number of popular baking books over the years, I havent been thrilled with my results. With a couple of exceptions, theyve been poor stand-ins for the originals I hoped to duplicate.

You see, creating recipes for tasty baked goods while eliminating gluten is wretchedly difficulteven for a professional baker. Wheat flour has long been the foundation ingredient in virtually all of our best-loved sweet treats and breads, and when its removed, much of the traditional baking expertise must be thrown out. A new specialized body of knowledge must be painstakingly developed and employed in its place. This is where Jeanne Sauvage comes in.

Over eleven years of kitchen experimentation and study have commenced since Jeanne was diagnosed with gluten-intolerance in 2000. She has single-mindedly dedicated herself to discovering the secrets and conquering the formidable chemical challenges of baking gluten-free. Throughout, her primary goal has been to win out over the gluten Grinch by devising tempting versions of the same mainstream repertoire of treats she always baked: cookies, cakes, pies, and breads as good as they ever were, just minus that particular protein she cant eat. Shes adamant about not settling for the compromised quality often found in gluten-free offerings, either for herself or for others on a similar regime. We just lack the ability to digest gluten, she says, not our ability to taste or enjoy good food.

I am grateful to Jeanne for her diligence and remarkable success in cracking the gluten-free baking code. This past holiday, I baked her gluten-free dinner rolls and her spiced Speculaas cookies and served them in place of my usual wheat-based versions. (Interestingly, though I know that formulating these recipes was challenging, they were remarkably straightforward and required no special baking expertise to make.) It was terrific that everybody at my table could once again enjoy the usual holiday treats togetherwithout my having to offer any explanations or apologies, I might add. Ill be reaching for Gluten-Free Baking for the Holidays often in the future. If you must skip gluten or just bake for someone else who does, I think you might want to reach for it, too.

NANCY BAGGETT