This is a sponsored post. I received this cooking book at no charge to review. The opinions expressed are solely my own. I did not promise a favorable review. I don't know about you but I have a thing with cooking books. I LOVE THEM! And recently, I have been drawn to cooking books with a healthier focus, a clean eating focus, and of course, I love the dairy free focus. I do not shun gluten free and I love my veggies. I like cookbooks for new dinner ideas and don't want one full of treats and sweets. A little bit is okay but really, I want healthy meals to add to the menu in our house.
Many times I get into a cookbook and get scared away and perhaps don't even buy it. What scares me? Complicated instructions that involve "sophisticated" techniques or equipment or "nontraditional" shopping lists. If I have to buy almost every single ingredient that some may consider a standard ingredient, forget it! Come on guys, I live on Maui! We don't have a zillion of options and things cost a lot. Trust me, buying healthy, non-dairy, gluten free, specialty ingredients is tough. Amazon is a life saver in so many ways but seriously, I don't want to do my mainstay grocery shopping online. P.S. Cooking with Coconut Oil is available at Amazon in a paperback or Kindle version.
When I opened Cooking with Coconut Oil I instantly got sucked in. I pretty much read this cookbook. It was full of a wealth of information including why coconut oil is good for you, some information on the "nontraditional" ingredients, and hints to go paleo and make it easy for you. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying I am going paleo but I loved the information. The recipes weren't scary in terms of techniques and even if some required a bit more shopping than others, there were some I just needed an ingredient or two. Bingo! I can handle this.
I talked dear hubby and darling daughter into a field trip to Mana Foods to scout this store out for Mana Foods! I ended up picking up some coconut oil, almond meal, coconut flour, sesame seeds, nutritional yeast, and granola for darling daughter. I haven't used all my new ingredients yet but am slowly working my way into them. I seem to be savoring them and trying to make them last!coconut oil, etc. I heard it was the place to go on Maui because prices weren't as high as other health stores. It involved a long drive, limited parking, and rain but hey, this is something dear hubby can do for me every now and then. Take me to
Back to the cookbook, I have made two recipes for my family and both were a hit. For both, I did sweet potato recipes and used the locally grown purple sweet potatoes versus traditional orange. Our purple potatoes may be a bit sweeter but I still loved the recipes. The sweet potato casserole was a hit but I was sure to only top half with coconut flakes as darling daughter is not into coconut like I am. She loved the potatoes and asked for hers to be sprinkled with extra cinnamon. Sure thing! The second recipe I tried was the quiche with a sweet potato crust. This recipe had me a bit more worried about pulling it off but it wasn't anywhere near as hard as I imagined. And so much worth it! I LOVED IT! The family had no complaints either and darling daughter ate cooked veggies! She is a raw veggie kind of gal. And the crust? AMAZING! It was like a crispy potato chip. It did have some sweetness to it and just for your information, if you reheat the leftovers the crust loses its crispiness. Just saying....
What I love more is a cookbook that inspires me to incorporate new ideas into other meals. I recently started making our own tortillas and used coconut oil in those. Yummy, yummy, yummy! Although I am still experimenting with gluten free flour for these. My first attempt turned into play dough for darling daughter.And the sesame seeds I have been saving for a special day? I still have some for making the crackers in the cookbook but used some to coat my chicken with last night and the family loved it. I saw a similar idea in the cookbook too!
I can't wait to try some more recipes from the cookbook and perhaps one day I will get brave enough to make one of the ice creams that use coconut milk. My only concern is that they will taste too much like coconut for darling daughter. Only time will tell!
Daily Gratitude: I am thankful for my fellow FitFluential ambassador, Elizabeth Nyland, giving me the opportunity to review this cookbook.
Daily Affirmation: I am eating cleaner each and every day!
