The Low-Carb Baking and Dessert Cookbook

Rating:
Summary: A real treat to help treat the sweet tooth more responsibly!
Review: As a borderline sugar addict who's taken in a frightening number of fast-burning carbs in her near-daily quota of candies, cookies, and the like, I am so excited to have found this book! So far I've only tried a few of the recipes, but it seems that I will now be able to treat my sweet tooth with truly tasty treats without overloading on all the bad stuff -- allowing those goodies to be more like true goodies! I appreciate the time that's taken to introduce and explain the various ingredients, and the best way to tweak them for your own personal taste preferences, as well as the source section in the back to help track down some of the more hard-to-find ingredients. The recipes appear fairly quick and easy to follow, and I note a number of recipes for gluten-free muffins and breads. (Thankfully, I'm not gluten sensitive, but I have a friend who is and know how restrictive her diet can be. She'll be delighted with this.) Overall, a great find!

Rating:
Summary: Best Low-Carb Baking and Dessert CookBook on the Market
Review: Excellent! Just Excellent! Ever since I became committed to the
low-carb lifestyle I have sought the secret of enjoying my
favorite breads and desserts without violating my low-carb code.
I have found the secret in Ursula Solom's cookbook.

One of my favorites is the Mocha Swirl Cheesecake. Sweet and moist it will satisfy your cheesecake craving. Both novice and
experienced cooks will find the recipes to be user friendly.

I recommend this book to everyone who is dedicated to a low-carb
lifestyle.

Ursula Solom we are anxiously awaitng your next book.

Rating:
Summary: Low-Carb Baking is so easy and tastey!
Review: I am so excited about your new Low-Carb Baking and Dessert Cookbook! I have tried several of the recipes and haven't been disappointed yet! Thank you Ursula for your second great book!

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Summary: Low carb dosen't need to m ean no flavor.
Review: I love the recipes I have tried. My favorites are Pecan Toffee Crunch, which are just like candied pecans but low in carbs. So often foods that are low in carbs often are even lower in flavor. Another delicious recipe is the Nutty Hi-Pro Mini Bars. These are moist and so creamy......they are worth the price of the cookbook. Try the crepes...you will not be disappointed. Another delicious recipe is the Meringue Shells....made without sugar and yet are fantastic. Another recipe I love is the Shortbread Cookies. They are soft and yummy. The Sandy Pecan Balls are comparable to Russian Teacakes and are as delicious.
Some great bread recipes are the Date bread, olive and Brown bread. These are all wonderful. Just because it's low-carb does not mean you are sentenced to a life of no flavor .The author has spent considerable time in explaining different sweeteners and where to get them. This book will revitalize your commitment to eating low-carb, because the flavor has not been sacrificed.


Rating:
Summary: The best easy reading cook book I have ever seen!
Review: I must say, I love sweet things and giving up sugar is about the hardest thing I can ever do. But making the easy to follow cookie recipes. And breads out of this world! It is wondeful. The Author Ursula Solom sure knows her stuff. I would reccomend this book to anyone, that is wanting to keep eating sweet things and still loose weight. You will love the writing and you will get healthier at the same time. This is a real winner!

Rating:
Summary: Make sure you're happy with the ingredients used
Review: This book had some yummy sounding recipes, but they almost all use sugar alcohols and many use soy. The bread recipes use vital wheat gluten. Since I can't eat these items, none of the recipes were of any use to me and I returned the book.

Rating:
Summary: Discussion of sweeteners used
Review: This book has lots of recipes -- over 200 according to the cover. The bread recipes use a little Stevia as sweetener, or no sweetener. Most of the recipes for muffins, rolls, coffee cake, and desserts (cakes, pies, cookies, ice cream, pudding) use a combination of 3 sweeteners together -- Stevia, Splenda (sucralose), and Xylitol. Most of the candy recipes use chocolate that has already been sweetened by sugar alcohols by the manufacturer.

Xylitol is a type of "sugar alcohol". Sugar alcohols are safe for diabetics and those on low-carb diets, because they don't get absorbed by the body, and just pass through. Sugar alcohols are used in most low-carb candy bars for dieters and-or diabetics. Sugar alcohols taste great, with no bitterness or aftertaste. The only apparent drawbacks to sugar alcohols are (1) the expense, (2) not available at SOME grocery stores, but there are some mail-order sources; and (3) as stated in small print on the labels of most products with sugar alcohols, "excess consumption may cause a laxative effect". In other words, they can cause loose bowels when eaten "in excess". How is "in excess" defined? It depends on your digestive system. Mine is sensitive, so that half of a candy bar sweetened by sugar alcohols causes unpleasant effects. My husband can tolerate at least twice as much.

In comparison, Splenda (sucralose) and Stevia do not have the potential digestive problems, but do have a tiny bitter after-taste, in my opinion. Some people don't seem to notice the after-taste of Splenda. Splenda is more expensive than regular sugar. Splenda has a little bit of carbohydrate (although much less than regular sugar), so if you have a lot of it, the carbohydrates do "count". Stevia has no carbs. If you have difficulty finding Stevia, try a health food store or the internet.

In the first chapter, the author states that it is OK to modify the ratio combinations of sweeteners in the recipes. "If you want to leave out xylitol, double the about of Splenda called for; reverse this if you want to leave out the Splenda". A chart of sweetener equivalents is on page 14. Exceptions on substitutions: The cookie chapter cautions against leaving out the xylitol for cookie recipes (I assume because of the texture). Substitutions for candy receipes are also restricted.

I haven't actually tried any of the receipes in this book yet, so I can't comment in that regard.

To test how you react to sugar acohols, you could buy some candy that contains Maltitol or other sugar alcohols, and see what effect it has on you and your family. Check how many grams of sugar alcohols are listed in the nutrition information label, when figuring out how many grams you can tolerate. Some sugar-free candies, such as Russell Stover brand, and some sugar-free ice creams are sweetened by a combination of sugar alcohols and Splenda. The ratio of sugar alcohol to Splenda varies by brand.



Rating:
Summary: Low- Carb Cooking Can Taste Great.
Review: Ursula Solom has done it again! Gone are the days when low carb means eating food that tastes like cardboard. Thank God. If you want to eat bread that is delicious, try Ursula's Quick Brown Bread...it is moist and dark. Another fantastic innovative bread is the Date Bread. This is one of the best breads I have ever tasted. You have to try the vanilla cookies...if you feel like something sweet...they are great. If you want a cookie that tastes like a Russian Tea Cake- try the Sandy Pecan Balls, with 1.5 carbs per cookie.
How about a cream puff? Yep there is a recipe that is really good. The vanilla custard is creamy and fantastic. I put the vanilla custard into the creampuff. I also tried the Nutty Hi-Pro bars- they are worth the price of the book. Great for kids lunches. This book is brimming with great recipes, although I have not tried them all.

Low carb dieting does not need to mean a life of mundane, tasteless food. This diet has had a tremendous effect on me, with a weight loss of 10 pounds in 2 months. Now I can indulge my sweet tooth or eat some bread and not feel guilty. Thanks Ursula, you are the best.


Rating:
Summary: Outstanding!!
Review: What a great book with so much information that even I can understand. Ursula Solom has put her heart into this book and I know like many other cooks we are anxious to try out her new recipes and enjoy.

I read recently, in an interview, that the author attributes inspiration for the book to being in excellent health. Said having quit all forms of caffeine freed the mind for more creativity. I say amen to that as I too am free with a little help from my friends at www.s oycoffee.com. They have an excellent coffee sub called s o y f e e that I simply adore. Made from soy that you brew like coffee, it's simply a godsend.

I want to thank the author for writing a really great book.