Great Good Desserts Naturally: Secrets of Sensational Sin-Free Sweets

by Fran Costigan

Book Overview

Are you lactose intollerant? Is your cholesterol high? Or are you just craving some sweets but want to eat better? This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0967310806
• ISBN13: 9780967310800
• Release Date: January 1999
• Publisher: Good Cakes Publications
• Length: 144 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 7.9" x 11.0"

Customer Reviews

Should be in every vegan/vegetarian kitchen

Finally, a well-tested cookbook! (And a chef who actually gives away her secrets!) This is one of the best cookbooks I have ever used. Every recipe I've done has worked perfectly. Her instructions are detailed and if you follow them, they will work. She also gives all the essential information on the unusual ingredients so anyone who isn't used to using tofu or agar in desserts will be able to with no problem. (She doesn't talk your ear off, either -- just gets to the point!) As a professional chef I find most vegan/vegetarian cookbooks to be unreliable, so I make up my own variations. But this book is for REAL. Delicious desserts that NO ONE will guess are healthy! The double chocolate brownies are my favorite. One thing I've noticed though is, the ultimate chocolate frosting will set quicker if you cook it with the kuzu a few more minutes than she says. The only other thing I should mention is, there are more steps involved in these than your average baking recipes. You'll need a blender AND a food processor to get the best results on some of them -- but if you're like me and you love dessert but not the junk, it'll be worth it!

Great Good Desserts Delivers -- and kids love it, too

This is the best dessert book I ever used. It's clear and well organized with a lot of information but isn't overwhelming. The author has made baking without milk and eggs VERY simple and easy. I am a mom and my kids like desserts that taste good. Me too. I want us to stay away from dairy and eggs and junk but not feel deprived. I have tried many of these recipes -- they WORK and seem to be pretty forgiving -- a good thing because I am a new at baking and make a few goofs... The brownies and chocolate cake are beyond delicious. I made the lemon cake and vanilla cakes several times for parties. They make great cupcakes for kids parties too; iced with the chocolate peanut butter filling from another recipe. The recipes are easy to use in different ways. My friends didn't even ask how I made these without milk, butter, eggs, because they couldn't tell. Hope Fran writes another book because I'm working my way through all the recipes in this one fast.

I RATE THIS BOOK 10 STARS!DELCIOUS-EASY-NO SUGAR-LOWFAT!

The Recipe-Chocolate Cake to Live For and Ultimate Chocolate Frosting are worth the price of this book! I can cook but have not been successful with desserts. Until now! Fran's clear recipes and sense of humor have transformed me into the queen of dairy-free desserts (According to my happy family and friends). I think she must teach great classes and wish I was closer to NYC. What amazes me is that I have to fight to save pieces of these desserts for my vegan friends. EVERYONE LOVES THESE DESSERTS. I want to make every recipe. I am a chocolate person but love the blueberry slump as much. The format of the book is smart. THe beginning seems like a private class in natural foods, with so much information about healthy ingredients and how to use them and WHY and charts. I think beginners and more advanced bakers can use this book-it is like a terrific reference book with delcious recipes. She points out the recipes are easily varied. I doubled the orange cake (Tropical Fruit Gateau), split the layer in half, filled and frosted it with Chocolate and now it is a much requested birthday cake. I can't beleive how professional it looked. I am ordering onther copy for myself and definately will send this book out when a gift is needed. If I sound excited, it is because I am. Did I mention that the recipes are easy and many can be made and frozen? I can find only one negative and that is I want to see more books by Fran like this one. Yes I recommend this book.

Great Cookbook!

I recently purchased a copy of Great Good Desserts Naturally! by Fran Costigan. I am a strict vegetarian and try to cook and bake using only natural ingredients. This book has great recipes that taste as if they have been made the traditional way with eggs, butter, and sugar. I have made the double fudge brownies with great success, and my skeptical husband even thought they were excellent. I also made the cornbread recipe, which is moister than any of the traditional recipes I have made. This recipe can be turned into cornmeal pancakes or corn muffins as well. In the book, the author gives several tips about whole food ingredients as well as how to subsitute traditional ingredients with natural alternatives. She discusses appropriate baking utensils and techniques that make this book suitable for novice bakers in addition to experienced ones. She also tells how to modify recipes (e.g. making cupcakes from a cake recipe), and she provides information on how to present the desserts (frosting ideas for cakes, sauce ideas, fillings for cookies). The book contains recipes for cakes, frostings, cookies, frozen desserts, sauces, and more. I would recommend it as an easy way to have healthier snacks and sweets in your diet.

Delightful new cookbook for healthy dessert lovers

At last, a delightful new cookbook for people who want to indulge a sweet tooth, while striving towards being healthy. Fran Costigan's informative book is packed with recipes which include no butter, no refined sugar, no milk nor eggs, and are cholesterol free. Each recipe is written simply enough for a newcomer in the kitchen, and carefully tested to be totally fool proof. I love the author's lively notes, which makes the book ideal for bathtub reading. The book includes all my favorite traditional desserts; flaky pastry pies, yummy lemony custard sauce, fruit crumbles, outrageous chocolate sauce - even double fudge brownies (but all made healthily), as well as a new collection of contemporary, hip desserts, including lemon-lime tofu cream, carob cake, and "this is not my mother's pumpkin pie". This is a must-buy for anyone wanting to be healthy and happy at the same time!