Cookbook Review: The Gluten-Free Cheat Sheet: Go G-Free in 30 Days or Less

I felt like I won the jackpot a couple of weeks ago when April Peveteaux, the mastermind behind Gluten is My Bitch, sent me her newest cookbook that is out TODAY! I was totally going to buy it anyway since everything she writes makes me feel like I am not a crazy person for having to eat gluten-free. I was also skeptical though since I am a look-at-the-pictures, get-intimidated-by-recipes kind of cookbook reader. Since this book doesn’t have pictures, I figured I was screwed.

After getting some recommendations as to which recipes would be easy enough for me to execute and could be eaten by our GF, vegetarian, peanut and sesame seed-free household, I got to work. The first recipe I tried was the Cheesy Quinoa Broccoli Mac since it had the word cheesy in it.

I am not kidding when I say that this was the EASIEST recipe to follow. Bonus points for the fact that my 15 month old ate it without a struggle. Since making it the first time, I’ve made it again but with even more cheese because you can never have enough cheese.

I got a little cocky since the cheesy mac was so easy to make and attempted the Spinach Enchiladas, complete with homemade enchilada sauce. This was way more labor intensive than the cheesy mac, but still totally doable. Aside from a rookie mistake of trying to blend the sauce ingredients in a small food processor rather than a large blender, everything went off without a hitch. My husband was very skeptical when I told him I made everything since he said it was restaurant quality.

I was batting 1000, so I figured I would try one of the appetizers. The Polenta Crostini with White Beans and Kale looked pretty straightforward. Once again, I was the lauded at the dinner table. And once again, I had a 15 month old eating something healthy… willingly.

April’s book is full of tips, resources, meal plans and of course, lots of yummy recipes. Below is how to make my new go-to meal!

reprinted courtesy of April Peveteaux, The Gluten-Free Cheat Sheet: Go G-Free in 30 Days or Less

Cheesy Quinoa Broccoli Mac

Once I made this for my daughter’s class when we were demonstrating what could be made with a box of vegetables from the CSA our school supports. It was gone in 5 minutes flat.

PREP TIME: 15 minutes

COOK TIME: 30 minutes

2 cups water

1 cup quinoa

½ cup gluten-free vegetable stock

1 cup broccoli, chopped

1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded

1. Bring water to boil in medium saucepan. Add quinoa once water is at rapid boil, and turn down heat to low. Allow quinoa to cook for 20 minutes.
2. Turn heat under quinoa down to lowest setting to simmer. Immediately add vegetable stock and broccoli to saucepan and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Add cheddar cheese and combine until completely melted. Remove saucepan from heat and serve.

MAKES: 6 servings

Tags: april peveteaux, cookbook, gluten free, gluten is my bitch, gluten-free cheat sheet, recipes, resources