Celiacs are a diverse community. We’re all over the world, of all ages, genders, religious and ethnic backgrounds. Aside from our celiac disease, what do we have in common?
Long before I published my cookbook, I wondered. And I decided to find out.
This survey is from 2020. I want to thank everyone who responded, and who shared their experiences with gluten-free baking.
The respondents were primarily from the United States, United Kingdom and Switzerland. The questions were about attitudes towards baking and cookbooks. The results helped inspire me to write Easy, Tasty Gluten Free!
Most of us bake
In my survey, 20% of respondents baked about twice each month; another 35% baked at least once a week. So more than half of us bake regularly. I do too – I would far prefer to enjoy something I know is safe, and in which I can identify all of the ingredients. And I love the feeling of creating! The only downside for me is that I live alone. If I’m not careful, a whole batch of cookies or brownies can disappear in just a couple of days! So I tend to coordinate my baking with visits to friends, and bring along a little surprise. Work is also good for this; I have yet to find an office that doesn’t welcome an unexpected snack!
We love a good cookbook
With all this baking to do, it’s no surprise that we tend to be cookbook buyers. More than a third (35%) of my respondents have between four and eight cookbooks; another 20% have nine or more.
My own cookbook collection is solidly in the “more” category: I have 68 cookbooks, of which only 11 are specifically for gluten-free cooking. The rest range from specific foods (garlic, potatoes, peaches) to the classics like The Joy of Cooking. I also love vintage cookbooks (find out why) and have about a half-dozen of those, going back to the 1800s.
Keep it simple, please
As you well know, gluten-free living is complicated enough without complex recipes. People wrote about the need for hard-to-find ingredients, expensive ingredients, and too many ingredients. One person said their main complaint was “the need to have 10+ ingredients that are not available in less than 2 stores.” Does that ring a bell with you?
I agree! One of the reasons I started developing my own recipes and conversions was that I was tired of buying large bags of bizarre ingredients when I only needed a tablespoon of each. The waste was too much for me.
What about you?
What are your gluten-free baking habits? Do you enjoy crafting something fancy, or prefer quick and easy? Do you stick with the recipe, or go freestyle?
If you’re new, not that confident, or just want delicious treats for everyone that don’t take a lot of time, expertise, or complicated ingredients, check out my Easy, Tasty Gluten Free cookbook.