14 flours. 140 recipes. 0 glutens. ALL DESSERT. Coming to you September 13th.
I got an early copy of my book in the mail a couple of weeks ago. I was so excited to unwrap it and see the incarnation of nearly 2 years of intense work; it was a bit like Christmas (or Chrismukkuh as we celebrate in my family). I was afraid to crack the cover at first. Then I flipped through it really fast, scared I would find a mistake. Then I spent way too many hours poring over every page with Jay, then Sarah and Amelia, who chimed in every once in a while, "Oooh, I ate that!"
Now that a bit of time has passed, the book has begun to settle comfortably into my kitchen (and pretty much anywhere I go so I can wave it in front of every person with eyes and say, "I made this!"). Today I adapted a recipe from it, a cinnamon swirl biscuit I'm working on for a magazine article. Last week it was galettes, cobbler, brownies, and tart for a project Sarah and I will share with you next week. It's a nice change of pace to not have to lug the laptop into the kitchen every time I want to make a recipe. As a friend from dance class said, "I like cookbooks. I need something to spill stuff on in the kitchen."
So here's a sneak peek of the book, along with outtakes of the pie I shot approximately 1000 times for the cover.
I hope Alternative Baker becomes as well-loved (and spilled-on) in your kitchens as it already has in mine (oops). Preorder a copy, and September 13th may feel like Christmukkuh in your home, too. You can do so at:
- Amazon U.S., UK, Canada , and Australia
- Barnes and Noble
- Indie Bound
- Books-a-Million
- Powell's
- ...and anywhere books are sold.
What you'll find inside:
- Recipes for every baking level, from "flour child" to "grainiac"
- 92 beautifully photographed base recipes, many with seasonal variations, for a total of 140 recipes
- 95% brand-new recipes, with a few favorites adapted and reshot from the blog
- All-natural, from-scratch recipes for a wide variety of diets, including vegan, nut-free, and dairy-free; no gums ever
- US (cups, teaspoons) and Metric (grams, milliliters) measurements
- Everything you want to know about gluten-free whole-grain and nut-based flours including shopping and storage tips, nutritional information, and flavor profiles
- Tips and tricks on how to bake like a boss
Chapters include:
Breakfast Desserts
Cakes
Tarts
Pie
Rustic Fruit Desserts
Cookies and Bars (and cats)
and Custards, Puddings and Spoon Desserts
Get the lowdown at AlternativeBaker.com and on Instagram with #AlternativeBakerBook.
Happy baking!
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I cannot wait to have my own copy to spill things on! This book baby of yours is so beautiful and I want to hold it and hug it and make all the things with it! Congrats my friend - now get some well-deserved rest.
Congratulations Alanna, this looks like the most amazing baking book! The photos are absolutely stunning, and I love the title, too. Can't wait to see it and cook from it :)
Seriously can't WAIT for this book! I've been looking forward to it ever since you announced it!
Absolutely cannot wait to have this in my kitchen. What a wonderful, wonderful achievement. You should be so proud as I'm sure you are.
Oh this look excellent. Congratulations! I'm definitely going to have to pick this up for some gluten-free loves in my life.
Just Stunning. Congratulations on your hard won achievement! Look forward to getting and will try to keep this lovely book from getting too messed up in the kitchen! Wishing you much success.
It's amazing Alanna, can't wait for my copy to get here. Going to get more copies as it's going to be a great Christmas gift for all my friends. Congratulations so happy for you! Best Wishes!
YAHOOOOO!
Can't wait to read this! Thanks for the breakdown, and GOODJOB!
What an amazing achievement, my friend! I am SO looking forward to baking from your beautiful book, and I truly believe it's going to become a classic in gluten free baking. Super excited for you! xoxoxo
That's freakin' incredible! So excited to read it and so excited for you. This is a very much needed book!
I AM SO DAMN EXCITED XOXOXO
Already ordered my copy! Can't wait for September 13th...
So much to look forward to in this book. I will be baking the heck out of it. :)) SUPER EXCITED!
Cheers to your success Alanna!
<3
Congratulations Sweetheart! Grandma and Bubba are smiling down from heaven and we all applaud this magnificent achievement! Hopefully I won't spill much on your gorgeous photographs. ;)
Congratulations! I am not even a big baker, but after following you over the years, I know I need this one. I have no problem with wheat, but I love the idea of including all of the other grains--it just makes sense. And thank you for the "no gums"--that is where I do have some trepidation, nutrition-wise. I mostly hope this is a success so we can get a savory book, too!
I'm so excited, I love baking for my family. My daughter and I are gluten free, so I will definitely buy your cookbook!
This is absolutely stunning and every time I hold my breath at the sheer beauty of a picture, the next gorgeous one comes along. Can't wait to get my copy and once I stop drooling over the pictures, hopefully will start baking from it :)
WOW! I've already pinned all the photos...can't WAIT!! Just fabulous...thx!
Congrats Alanna!! It seems stunning!
You had me at breakfast desserts. Well actually at the cover. Congrats!
Congratulations dear Alanna on this amazing cookbook! I will definitely have it in my kitchen and try not to spill stuff on it! :D Besides all the great recipes, I'm specially looking forward to all those gorgeous photos, can't wait to have it in my hands! <3
Congratulations, Alanna! The book looks absolutely stunning! <3
I am so crazy-excited, Alanna! You are such an amazing talent and I am so eager to get my copy and get in the kitchen and bake all of your delicious goodies! Congratulations on all your hard work!
Cheers,
Maureen
Gosh I could not be more excited for you!!! The preview pictures are absolutely stunning Alanna! I cant wait to hold the book in my hand! and make recipes from it!! Your photography is one of the best I have seen out there! Much love! :) and heartiest Congratulations! Cant wait to celebrate with you :)
Yes yes yes, a million yes's to this fantastic book!!!
Your book is going to be SO amazing girl! You know I love my gluten/grain free baking, so I am going to need to pick this up...and make. every. single. dessert in, like, a week!
Simply stunning and I am so happy for you!
So far it's stunning! What an accomplishment, congratulations!!! I can't wait to see the whole thing! xO
Simply stunning, as I'm sure everything in there is!
Seriously, BRAVO!! This is amazing and I am beyond thrilled for you!!!
So very excited for you, and I can only imagine what it must have been like tentatively skimming each page when you held the first copy in your hands. (Like reading a just-published blog post, I'm sure, but with the anxiety cranked to a million!) I feel so privileged that I got to sample some of your genius ahead of time and can't wait to share the real deal with everyone I know (or meet. on the street. maybe a little creepy-style...) Congrats, girl. It's gorgeous.
PS I just placed my order - yay!!!!
I just received your book as a christmas gift and it looks amazing! Thank you! I am one of those folks who cannot have oat flour in anything as it reacts like Wheat in my belly. Out of all your other flours, what do you recommend as a substitute for the oat flour in general in your recipes that has the same weight, flavor and texture to oats? Looking forward to trying out your recipes this week on my family! Also...what is the deliciousness on page 16? I tried to find it elsewhere in the book and wondered if it was a version of the Raspberry Swirl Biscuits on page 20 made with blueberries instead? Blessings on you for making such a delectable offering for us non gluten folks! Angela
Aw, thanks for the sweet words, Angela! For oat flour, I think the safest bet is subbing in a GF all-purpose flour blend. Oat flour is unique in its soft starchiness. Sorghum and brown rice have similar flavor, but tend to be more gritty. Chestnut flour could be a good sub, too, especially if you order some made in the US that isn't brown and smoky. Let me know what you end up trying or if there's a specific recipe you want help troubleshooting! And yes, you're absolutely right about the blueberry swirl biscuits. :)
I am a proud owner of your book. The chestnut financiers are fantastic!
Unfortunately, after being diagnosed with celiac, I am not allowed to have oats for at least a year (even GF ones). Then, I might be able to reintroduce it to my diet, if proven that I don't react to it.
Many of the recipes have oat flour in it. What would be your recommendation on substituting it?
I know that you have worked hard to achieve the best combination possible, but I would love to try the rest of the recipes. Even if the result is not ideal, I am sure it will be far better than most recipes floating around on the internet.
Many thanks!
PS: what about a savoury alternative baker? Bread, burger buns, quiches, empanadas, focaccia.... hummmmmmmm!
Hi Joana, Thanks so much for the sweet note - I'm so glad you're enjoying the book! I'm so sorry to hear about your diagnosis - celiac sounds truly awful. Oat flour has a soft fluffiness that most GF flours don't, so I do use it a bunch. I think a GF all-purpose blend would be a super safe substitute (if you can sub by weight, all the better). If you'd prefer to stick with single flours, I would try sorghum, teff, chestnut, or buckwheat (depending on the recipe and what flavor you're going for). Sub by weight if you can! I think chestnut is probably closest in texture to oat flour but it has a strong flavor, while sorghum is closest in flavor. If you can find unroasted chestnut flour (usually produced in the US - it's white in color as opposed to the tan stuff from Italy which has a smoky flavor) that might be a good bet, though it's a bit of a splurge. My favorite source seems to be sold out at the moment. :( You could also try superfine brown rice flour - I've never seen it in stores, only mail-order, so I chose not to use it in my recipes, but Aran from Canelle e Vanille makes some beautiful baked goods with it so it might be a good substitute. Let me know if you have more q's or if you want help troubleshooting a specific recipe, and keep me posted on any experiments! :)
Oh and I'd love to write a more savory-focused second cookbook - thanks for the suggestion and encouragement! <3
Such a beautiful book you have produced! You must be very pleased with the positive feedback. I am enjoying looking through it and tried a recipe today- the roasted banana scones. Yum! I mixed them up last night and baked them this morning. They are moist, not overly sweet and complimented perfectly by the glaze which is just the right amount of sweetness. I think I will add Chinese 5 spice to the batter the next time around since I think it would enhance the other flavors. Another home run! Next I hope to try your vanilla bean frozen yogurt- it’s strawberry time here!
I'm so glad you're enjoying the book and that the scones were a success! Love the sound of Chinese 5 spice here - swoon! Please let me know how you like the frozen yogurt. Strawberries are amazing right now in California too!
The vanilla frozen yogurt was so good - my husband and I made short work of it! I also made the scones again and added 3/4 t. of five spice and 1/2 t. of cinnamon. It complimented the other ingredients very nicely. We enjoyed a couple of them while still warm - oh my!
Alanna, I have two questions: is this the place you’d like comments on your book’s recipes? And I’m wondering if you have been to Paris? A friend and I are going next month and have a list of possible gf bakeries and restaurants to try, but first hand recommendations are hard to beat. Thanks for any thoughts you might have.
I'm so glad you're enjoying the recipes! Those spices in the scones sound divine.
You can leave book comments here if you like. And if you have a few minutes to leave a review on Amazon, it's helpful to others looking for a good GF baking book!
Sadly it's been many years since I was in Paris. I can't wait to hear what you try! Have an amazing trip!
Today I baked your chestnut brownies and oh my - you were right about being spoiled for using another flour besides chestnut to make them. They are melt in the mouth delectable! I’m looking forward to trying them tomorrow to see how they keep. I’m thinking they will be an excellent accompaniment to some butter mint ice cream I made. Can’t wait! Love, love your cookbook!
Awwww thank you for trying the recipe and for the sweet words Trish! I'm so glad you love the brownies. I'm sure they'll be delicious with that ice cream - make me a bowl please! <3