If you are new to a grain- and dairy-free lifestyle, you may see some ingredients within these pages that are unfamiliar. Perhaps you’ve passed by these very items on your local grocery store shelves and never paid much attention, or perhaps you’ve never even heard of them before. This guide will help you familiarize yourself with some of our basic grain, dairy and refined sugar replacements, which we consider to be staples in our own homes. You can find more information and which brands we love most by visiting our online resource page at www.yiddishkitchen.com/resources.
Almond Flour: Finely milled almond flour is one of the more versatile grain-free flours used in grain- and gluten-free baking. It has an easy-to-work-with texture and can be used for baking, thickening, binding and even pasta making. Almond flour is carried in most health food stores and is now often found in the health foods section of your mainstream grocery. Most recipes in this book work best with blanced, finely ground almond flour.
Arrowroot Starch: Similar to tapioca in texture, arrowroot is a starch derived from the arrowroot plant and is easily digestible for those with food sensitivities. It is often used in baking, thickening and breading grain-free recipes. Arrowroot can typically be found in most health food stores and is now often found in the health foods section of your mainstream grocery.
Avocado Oil: This oil is fantastic for high-temperature cooking including baking, frying and sautéing. We prefer the oils mentioned here because they are higher in quality than most mainstream oils, which can often be rancid and unstable for higher cooking temperatures. It can typically be found in most health food stores and is now often found in the health foods section of your mainstream grocery.
Cassava Flour: This flour is the closest to regular wheat-based flour and is made from cassava or yuca root. This flour can occasionally be found in international markets, but the consistency and quality can be questionable. We prefer to buy ours online.
Chestnut Flour: Chestnut flour is made from dried, ground chestnuts. It is slightly sweet in flavor and a great grain-free alternative for baking or even making noodles. Chestnut flour can be found in Italian specialty stores or online.
Coconut Flour: Coconut flour is made from ground coconut meat and is a great nut-free alternative to other nut-based flours. It tends to be more “thirsty” than other grain-free flours, so less is needed in most recipes in order to prevent a dense end product. Coconut flour can typically be found in most health food stores and is now often found in the health foods section of your mainstream grocery.
Coconut Oil: This oil is also great for cooking high temperatures at like avocado oil, and is now more and more common in mainstream grocery stores. We prefer the oils mentioned here because they are higher in quality than most mainstream oils, which can often be rancid and unstable for higher cooking temperatures. It can typically be found in most health food stores.
Coconut Palm Sugar: Coconut sugar is derived from the sap of cut flower buds of the coconut palm. It is less refined than white sugar and tends to retain more of the fiber and nutrients, though it should still be used sparingly. Coconut sugar can typically be found in most health food stores and is now often found in the health foods section of your mainstream grocery.
Maple Sugar: Maple sugar is prepared from the sap of a maple tree. It has a higher glycemic index than coconut sugar, but makes a great alternative to refined white sugar. Maple sugar can typically be found in most health food stores and is now often found in the health foods section of your mainstream grocery.
Olive Oil: Olive oil is an easily attainable higher quality cooking oil, which does not become denatured in the cooking process like some cooking oils. It can be found in most mainstream grocery stores.
Palm Shortening: Palm shortening is a great substitute for butter as long as it’s non-hydrogenated and substainably harvested.
Tapioca Starch: Tapioca is an easy-to-digest starch sourced from the yuca/cassava root. It is used in a similar manner as arrowroot in grain-free eating. While this starch comes from the same source as cassava flour, it has very different properties in cooking. Tapioca can often be substituted for arrowroot, but rarely can be substituted for cassava flour. Tapioca starch can typically be found in most health food stores and is now often found in the health foods section of your mainstream grocery. It can also be found in international markets, relatively inexpensively.