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Yummy Supper: 100 Fresh, Luscious & Honest Recipes from a {Gluten-Free} Omnivore is a new book by the Berkeley-based food blogger Erin Scott – her
blog shares the same name. And if the title has you wondering “Hey, isn’t a gluten-free omnivore an oxymoron?” you’re not alone.
As Scott explains in her introduction, she has always been a passionate home cook and food-lover. But when she was diagnosed with
Celiac Disease, and then learned that her two kids are also gluten-intolerant, she was devastated.
“I felt a deep loss and worried that a lifelong pleasure in adventurous eating had come to an end. Our social lives, which had always revolved around food, became fraught and complicated. Travel seemed impossible," she writes.
At first, she did what many people in her situation do: buy as many gluten-free products they can find. But she quickly learned that these heavily processed foods were neither tasty nor satisfying.
“My diagnoses left me feeling isolated and alone – a pariah in a community of serious food lovers,” she wrote, adding that she couldn’t bear the thought of being one of those people asking servers so many questions about ingredients and preparation. But slowly, she underwent a mental shift, and began to see her situation through a new lens. So much of what she already loved to eat was naturally gluten-free.
“My ‘limitation’ forced us to become more creative and expansive in our approach to food,” she writes. The diagnosis even inspired her family to plant their own garden: “We have never eaten so well."
The recipes that follow are inspired by the past few years of gluten-free living, decadent meat dishes like bourbon-braised short ribs with brown sugar; lighter fare, like the cover photo of fish tacos with pomegranate salsa; and many veggie options, like a quinoa salad with crispy kale, curried chickpeas, apple, and fennel.
And then there are some from a period where Scott and her family traveled around the world. Think pistachio lamb and beef kebabs on rosemary skewers from Turkey and black rice pudding from Bali.
Scott writes that she’s trying to be as inclusive as possible, and wants to please everyone – omnivores and gluten-lovers alike — who eats at her table. With this book, it seems that she’s doing an excellent job.
Erin Scott will be celebrating the launch of
Yummy Supper on Sept. 7 from 2 to 4 p.m. in the Edible Schoolyard Garden in Berkeley, co-hosted by Omnivore Books. Kids are welcome, and there will be popsicles.
She will also be appearing with fellow blogger and cookbook author, Kimberley Hasselbrink, author of the newly-released
Vibrant Food on Sept. 14 at 4 p.m. at Book Passage in Corte Madera. For further Bay Area events throughout October and beyond,
check out Scott's blog.
