A cookbook dedicated to gluten-free Air Frying soars in some places and stumbles in others.
“I Love My Air Fryer” Gluten-Free Recipe Book Review
Do you own an Air Fryer? The answer is probably yes. A whopping 4 million were sold last year. (four million!)
When Air Fryers first started getting attention, I didn’t think much of it. They’ve been around for a while and other than getting some play on television shopping channels, they never really caught on. This, of course, has changed.
Now Air Fryers are everywhere and, if you’re like me, you’re probably wondering what the %^$ to do with one—besides using it to make crispy frozen French fries.
The “I Love My Air Fryer” Gluten-Free Recipe Book by Michelle Fagone aims to help us answer this question.
Filled with 175 gluten-free recipes for an Air Fryer, this book surprised me. I expected it to be filled with recipes for fried foods like onions rings and other such foods.
It’s not.
The book covers everything from how to make gluten-free blueberry muffins to a simple recipe for Two-Ingredient Barbecued Pulled Jackfruit. (A recipe that promises to make a meat-free pulled pork in only 10 minutes.)With recipes for lobster and sea bass nestled among recipes for jalapeno poppers and “pizza bombs”, this book attempts to be a serious cookbook for gluten-free eaters who like to have a little fun in the kitchen.
That’s where this book succeeds. The recipes are interesting, enticing, and, easy. The photos are lovely, showcasing how many different foods can be prepared —and prepared well in an Air Fryer.
Where the book falls short is with the ingredient recommendations.
Most of the recipes use naturally gluten-free ingredients. However, for the baked and breaded recipes, you’ll need a gluten-free flour blend. Since gluten-free flour blends vary so much from brand-to-brand, I wish the author had included a note about which brand of flour she used to create and test the recipes. This is especially important since some recipes call for additional xanthan gum. Some gluten-free flour blends include xanthan gum; others don’t. Adding xanthan gum to a blend that already contains it will give you a very different result than adding xanthan gum to a blend that contains none.
Of greater concern was the inclusion of ingredients that sent up a red flag to me, specifically oyster sauce, gochujang, oats, and cornflakes. These ingredients need a clear note about using the gluten-free version. (The traditional versions often contain gluten.)
It surprised me that these ingredients were overlooked because in the recipe for Moo Shu Pork Wrappers (p 127) there’s a helpful note about using a gluten-free hoisin sauce. And in the recipe for Giant Nachos (p 166), there’s a note about the vegetarian status of refried beans. The author clearly tried to include thoughtful and helpful notes about ingredients.
However, the unevenness of the ingredient notes is of concern. Knowing to select gluten-free cornflakes or to look for gluten-free oyster sauce, is one of those “big little things” that make cooking gluten-free a challenge.
If simple ingredient alerts were included, I would wholeheartedly recommend this book. Heck, flipping through it got me interested in Air Frying—a tough feat. I wanted to love this book.
Unfortunately, because of the oversight of some potential gluten-containing ingredients, I can only recommend this book with reservations.
If you understand the complex ins and outs of gluten-free cooking or follow a gluten-free diet as a lifestyle choice rather than for health reasons, this cookbook would make a lovely addition to your collection.
For those new to the gluten-free diet, especially those who follow the gluten-free diet due to health reasons, like celiac disease, I can’t recommend the title. I’d hate to see someone “gluten” themselves because a recipe called for cornflakes, instead of gluten-free cornflakes.
About
The “I Love My Air Fryer” Gluten-Free Recipe Book: From Lemon Blueberry Muffins to Mediterranean Short Ribs, 175 Easy and Delicious Gluten-Free Recipes by Michelle Fagone.
List Price: $16.99
Available on Amazon (affiliate link)
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