More Great Good Dairy-Free Desserts: Sin-sational Sumptuous Treats [Paperback]

This book is completely vegan and most recipes contain some whole grain ingredients and less refined sweeteners.

The first chapter - Getting Started - contains helpful information about baking without dairy products and using natural sweeteners. I especially liked the "Tips and Techniques for Making and Baking Desserts" and "A Baker's Dozen Secrets to Successful Desserts." I also like that Costigan recommends using organic ingredients.

The rest of the book is devoted to recipes. I particulary enjoyed the information, advice and tips at the beginning of each section.

- Great Good Gels, Creams, Puddings, and Sauces

- Great Good Cookies, Bars, and Little Bites

- Great Good Cobblers, Crisps, Biscuits, Muffins, and More

- Great Good Cakes, Fillings, Frostings, and Glazes

- Great Good Pies and Tarts

- Great Good Fruit, Beverages, Frozen Desserts, and Confections

For me, the most surprising thing about these recipes was how light they all were - even when I replaced the white sugar with whole wheat. You defintely would never guess the recipes were vegan or healthier than the typical white sugar/white flour, made with dairy desserts.

My only problem - and I have this critism with almost all dessert cookbooks - is that all the recipes were too sweet. I cut down the sweetener by 1/4 to 1/2 in almost everyone. But that is easily done and would not keep me from using this book.

Our favorite recipes were Currant Scones, Oat Sesame Squares, and Coconut Sorbet. Yum!

Fran Costigan has done it again. Her latest cookbook, More Great Good Dairy-free Desserts Naturally, is much more than an update of Great Good Desserts Naturally, her first such book published in 1999. Seven years and five reprints later, Costigan's recipes from working as a consultant in professional kitchens, baking custom cakes for private clients, and teaching at the Natural Gourmet Cookery School and the Institute of Culinary Education in NYC, were compiled for a more

comprehensive dairy- and egg-free dessert cookbook.

The first 23 pages are devoted to listing and defining essential

ingredients and equipment, tips and techniques for making and baking desserts ("Think like a pastry chef: Organize your mise en place"), and a baker's dozen secrets to successful desserts ("Use pure vanilla extract, not vanillin, an artificial flavoring"). Costigan demystifies the "natural sugar" confusion by categorizing granulated sugar into "dark whole," and "light natural," with five pages devoted to natural sweeteners.

There are over two-hundred pages of mouth-watering recipes, including gels, creams, puddings, sauces, cookies, bars, little bites, cobblers, crisps, biscuits, muffins, cakes, fillings, frostings, glazes, pies, tarts, fruit, beverages, frozen desserts, and confections. Costigan's expertise as a pastry chef is captured in her fool-proof, flaky pie crusts and tarts. She painstakingly walks the reader through each step in such a way that you feel you are in her classroom. (I might add that my pie crust turned out perfect!)

New Yorkers will want to try the New York Eggless Cream made with Costigan's incredibly decadent Ultimate Chocolate Sauce, and kids of all ages will go nuts for the Caramel Popcorn Treats. Coconut aficionados will salivate over the Coconut Cloud Layer Cake, a version of which was served at Costigans' sons' wedding. Did someone mention chocolate? There are over 20 chocolate recipes listed in the index, including a unique version of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups filled with

peanut butter mousse!

More Great Good Dairy-free Desserts Naturally was well worth the wait. It is a must-have for anyone who enjoys baking, regardless of their experience.

I have been vegan for nearly 9 years and have done quite a bit of baking both in restaurants and at home. This book gave me a clear understanding of the baking process as well as a wide variety of baked goods to prepare. I have to admit the german carob un-chocolate cake is one of the best recipies I've ever used for a cake. Many non-vegan friends never knew the difference and joked that I'd returned to their side. With the recipies in this book you don't have to give up light moist cakes. Thanks Fran. And I can't wait till I have time to take your pastry class in New York!