Customer Reviews

Low Carb Gourmet

5 star:		(9)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

First, this is an excellent book, but not what I thought I had ordered, so I am quite disappointed. I had the Low Carb Gourmet book out of the library and decided that I wanted to own it. The soft cover book that came from Amazon.ca, has the same cover photo,and has the same author, Karen Barnaby, but includes only a fraction of the recipes of the hardcover book. Sadly, many of the recipes I particularly wanted have been eliminated. I note that this version appears to have been published in the UK, while the Canadian hard cover was published and bound in the US. The recipes that are included are not substantially different from the original, except that in the Canadian version Ms. Barnaby gives optional amounts of Sugar Twin plus Splenda, instead of just Splenda for sweetening, which she deems to give superior flavour. If I had known that this book was so different I doubt I would have ordered it.

I have been a low-carber for decades. This book has become my bible. I regularly use the cauliflower (for potato & rice substitutions) and spaghetti squash (for pasta substitutions) recipes and I always combine my Splenda with Canadian Sugar Twin, a suggestion I've seen nowhere else. But everytime I open the book I am irritated by the fact that shortly after I started using the book it began to fall apart and is now in many loose pieces. I don't know if you can get any guarantee against this.
It still remains one of my favorites.

Karen Barnaby's "Low-Carb Gourmet" represents a winning combination of recipes and cooking (and eating) tips and would be an excellent addition to any low-carber's library.

Considering that this is a low-carb cookbook and not a low-carb how-to manual, the author very clearly introduces and explains the basics of low-carbing. To name just a few examples, in the book, she explains the effects of caffeine, alcohol, and water on the low-carb diet, explains how to calculate true carb counts, provides excellent examples of low-carb shopping lists and ingredients, provides a list of ideal low-carb snacks, suggests low-carb substitutes for high-carb ingredients, demystifies artificial sweeteners, teaches us how to spot hidden carbs in foods, and lists essentials for low-carb baking. She has also made the book an excellent culinary how-to guide in general by scattering throughout the book little side notes and suggestion boxes where she covers topics such as useful kitchen gadgets, how to store parsley to keep it fresh longer, making flavoured butters, tips for stabilizing whipping cream, and how to peel tomatoes (and yes, she teaches us that there IS more than one way to do this!).

Besides providing us with a useful reference book for following a low-carb lifestyle, most importantly, however, Karen Barnaby shows us that low-carbing isn't just about eggs, bacon, and a big slab of steak - it's about healthy, tasty, and varied foods that are not just great for a low-carb lifestyle, but for a healthy lifestyle in general. No matter what your food preferences are, there is something in this cookbook for everyone. For example, among the many recipes in this book, she even includes recipes creatively influenced by international cuisines such as Italian ("Flat Roasted Chicken with Prosciutto and Green Olives"), Chinese ("Daikon Radish, Chinese Cabbage, and Tofu Soup"), Japanese ("Cucumber Salad with Umeboshi and Bonito Flakes"), Thai ("Simple Chicken and Coconut Milk Curry"), French ("Braised Fennel with White Wine and Parmesan"), and Middle Eastern ("Lamb, Feta, and Olive Meatballs"), just to name a few. And although the book contains an impressive number of recipes, what's more impressive is the fact that the author gives suggestions for modifying the recipes and their ingredients to make all new dishes, thereby making the low-carb possibilities endless (and all delicious!).

Readers will be happy to see that every recipe in the book includes a carb count and other nutritional details per serving and will be even happier to find at the back of the book a handy summary chart of nutritional information for every recipe, ranked from the lowest carbohydrate count to the highest count. There is no doubt that readers will appreciate this convenient addition to the book as it allows low-carbers to easily calculate at a glance carb counts of meals they are interested in making. As well, the chart makes it easier for readers to determine which recipes may be appropriate for them at a particular stage of low-carbing (e.g., for Atkins followers, the chart makes it super easy to figure out which recipes are best during the induction phase). And if that's not enough, the author even gives us numerous ideas for low-carb entertaining! And before all you NON-low-carbers raise your eyebrows in suspicion, I can tell you that I have impressed more than a few low-carb skeptics with Karen Barnaby's "Shepherd's Pie with Mushrooms, Smoked Cheddar, Bacon, and Sour Cream". Superb!

I've made numerous recipes from this cookbook, and all of them were easy to follow for the novice chef and were absolutely fantastic! I highly recommend Karen Barnaby's "Low-Carb Gourmet". If she doesn't win you over with her amazingly delicious low-carb recipes, she'll win you over with her engaging and entertaining writing style which made the book a joy to read (AND to use!).

To be honest, anything with "gourmet" in the title sounds intimidating to me. I'm a bacon-and-eggs kind of cook. But there's nothing to fear in this book. There's a wide variety of recipes with a range of syles and 'effort' levels. Something to please everyone, for sure. In addition to new ideas I can't wait to try, like the Asian inspired recipes, it's very strong on basic LC cooking, with recipes for (and variations on) stand-bys like spaghetti squash, mashed cauliflower, and chicken stock. Sometimes, appropriate condiments are hard to come by, so I was happy to see the recipes for ketchup, barbecue sauce, and pesto.

I love this book and it's been a big asset to my kitchen.

Wow. This cookbook far exceeded expectations in terms of creativity and taste. The recipes are successful, and ingredients not too difficult to find. Although most recipes are really high in fat, and I don't cook from it every night. It is a wonderful Saturday night meal-guide to entertain with. To succeed with low-carb, variety is important, and this book delivers.

I would highly recommend this cookbook! Usually if I find between 3 and 5 recipes from a cookbook that are good, I'll consider that the cookbook is okay; but I have tried 10 and found that they were all very good. Several of the dishes have been served to young adults that are not doing low carb and even they thought the dishes tasted good. The cheesecakes, tofu-roni,and the deep dish pizza quiche are now mainstays from my kitchen.

This cookbook has lots of bookmarks in it, marking recipes that I am looking forward to trying.

With the success of the ones I've tried so far I don't think they'll be disappointing!

I have read and owned countless cookbooks in my life. None of them are even close in comparison to this one. I have used most of the recipes at least once so far, and every one has been just scrumptious. Not only that, but the recipes were extremelly simple to follow! I have served many of these recipes for company, and they are always asking for the recipe. I have given several copies of this book as gifts, always with the recipiants being overjoyed. I highly reccomend it to anybody.

I own quite a few cookbooks but use most of them only rarely--with the exception of this cookbook. Great tasting recipes and clear instructions, made from ingredients that are actually available. Most of the recipes can be prepared in a time frame that is realistic for working people who are not professional chefs. Highly recommended.

This has become a regular source for tasty low carb ideas. I have my own well worn copy and bought this one as a gift.

I was intrigued by this book when I saw all the positive reviews so I decided to check it out at my local library. Well, I was dissapointed. First of all, only 1/3 of the book is meat, fish, poultry and the rest is filled with recipes about sauces, salads, veggies and desserts. Meat recipes were poor and most of them were composed around ground meat, lots of butter and cheese. Some recipes were so greasy that meals made me nauseous ( and still hungry!). Some of the chicken, fish and veggie recipes were fantastic. Dessert ideas were great ( I was surprised to see what you can make with almond meal). Overall, I had around 50 recipes that suited my taste but the rest I find needed improvement.