Nearly Normal Cooking for Gluten Free Eating cookbook (paperback)

Nearly Normal Cooking™ for Gluten-Free Eating (published 2006) is the culmination of culinary experiments, research and insights into gluten-free life. In a world where gluten-free food has nearly always been synonymous with enjoyment-free food, this badly needed guidebook will help all those with gluten intolerance begin to live the “nearly normal” life they so deserve. In a genial and easy-to-read manner, Jules shares tips and tricks of cooking gluten-free so that no one will ever know the difference.

Among the highlights included in this cookbook are:

• The HOW-TOs of Gluten-Free Living
• A Reference guide of safe grains and ingredients
• Helpful advice and references on celiac disease
• More than 145 delicious and do-able recipes for every meal of the day

Jules Shepard, a long-time lover of all baked goodies, was diagnosed with life-altering celiac disease in 1999. Until that time, she had suffered through nearly ten years of misdiagnoses and a roller coaster of gastrointestinal symptoms. Transitioning from a steady diet of pizza, pasta and bagels to rice, beans and bananas was incredibly difficult, particularly without the aid of any tasteful specialty cookbooks or gluten-free mixes.

Especially unique to this cookbook are gluten-free recipes containing ingredients found in most kitchens and grocery stores – no extensive searching and expensive specialty store bills are necessary to make safe and delicious meals. Jules Shepard also discloses the recipe to her own all purpose gluten-free flour which is unlike any other on the market today. Using a special combination of five different flours, the result is a versatile blend of flours that tastes – yes tastes – like the flour we were all raised on.

“This cookbook is the culmination of years of trial and error – once diagnosed with celiac disease I set out to do away with the typical dry, gritty gluten-free food that pervades the marketplace,” says author Jules Shepard. “The point of the cookbook is to infuse a little humor while helping the reader learn to live life as close to normal as possible — and of course to learn to make gluten-free meals that everyone will honestly enjoy eating!”

As an avid cook and good Southern woman, Jules attempted to continue creating delicious meals and tempting treats for her family and friends. But when they could stand gluten-free food no longer, she set about to revolutionize recipes without gluten. With the goal of making gluten-free food taste nearly normal, Jules spent years experimenting with various grains and flours to formulate recipes that offer a fresh and tasty approach to living and eating without missing the wheat or gluten.

Those suffering from celiac disease can’t process grains like wheat, barley or rye, which cause damage to their intestines, among other health problems. It is fast becoming recognized as one of the most common life-long genetic diseases, yet the only known treatment requires strict adherence to a diet without gluten. This diet is not easy, nor is it satisfying – until now!

Jules Shepard is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate in English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and also earned her JD and LL.M. in international and comparative law from the Duke University School of Law. A former state prosecutor, Jules now focuses on her family, and on creating yum-o, gluten-free creations that no one would suspect are gluten free.