Cut the Sugar, You're Sweet Enough

fabulous! i have been wanting to cut sugar out, or at least decrease it. the cover is gorgeous!

Cut the Sugar, You're Sweet Enough is a wonderfully written, very approachable guidebook to reducing your sugar intake. Reasons for cutting down and cutting out sugar from your diet are touched on in the book, but also included are sugar alternatives and clear, non-intimidating recipes and tips on how to reduce/remove sugar from your diet.

The recipes look delicious, and featured some ingredients that I have never used before, but which may be familiar with any home cook who is concerned about the level of sugar in their diet. The ingredients that I have never used include liquid stevia, sorghum flour and maca.

There are also simpler recipes, such as 3 ingredient Chocolate Pudding and 2 ingredient Peanut Butter Cookies.

I wasn't sure that I'd actually find anything good in here, but have been wanting to cut down on sugar. (And didn't we pick the perfect time of year to do it? When there are so many temptations....sigh.) Anywho - what I found were several fantastic recipes, across all genres of food! Will be using these quite a bit in the upcoming months!

A wide range of healthy and delicious recipes, to help eliminate sugar-cravings, and eat healthier, based on the author's own struggles with consuming high amounts of sugar.

Having recently attempted to cut sugar and wheat from my diet, I ventured off to the health shop and found myself with a cupboard full of chia seeds, ground flaxseed and whey protein amongst others. So a cupboard full of goods but no idea how to use them! This book was an absolute gem to find.
Ranging from breakfasts, to bars, to puddings and sweet treats as well as a number of vegan main options and even bread, the book really does have a wide variety to offer. I was interested at the section showing you how to make your own nut milk as some of these are very expensive in supermarkets. The photos are mouth watering and look fresh and colourful. With a handy measuring and temperature converter at the back, and a complete and easy to use index, this book is sure to fulfil many sugar free fantasies!

I was immediately drawn to this book by the absolutely mouthwatering cover - it's so colourful and pretty and I could almost smell the strawberries!

There is an introduction where Ella tells her story and the reason behind the book and I have already paid a visit to her blog and signed up to the mailing list. The recipe section of the book is split into breakfast, salads & appetizers, soups, mains & sides, desserts, snacks and drinks - so it's not all sweet things, as you might have thought from the cover. The recipes are set out in a very eye-catching, user-friendly way, many with full colour photographs.

As an non-meat eater this is a fabulous book, I don't think there is one recipe in this book that I wouldn't like and I'll certainly be giving most of them a try over the coming weeks. I don't make a secret about my love of chickpeas so when I saw the recipe for chickpea crepes with smashed chickpea filling my face lit up with joy. I'm not sure I'm advanced enough cook to have an attempt at making crepes but the chickpea filling will go great in a pita bread.

Although designed for the US market, I feel that this book translates well into the UK kitchen. There are no exotic weird ingredients and even a handy metric conversion at the back. I would recommend this book to my family and friends as we are all trying to eat healthy and Ella makes it easy!

IN this book there are a lot of nice recipes with lower sugar than usual. With the growing epidemic of diabetes it is nice to see a book like Ella's which has beautiful pictures and is attainable for all. The recipes are not full of hard to find ingredients which makes this a gift idea for next year for a few of my family members.

A bright and summery cookbook, Cut the Sugar, You're Sweet Enough offers beautiful pictures and diverse recipes. Cut the Sugar does not set out to promote removing sugar completely from your life. Instead it helps readers find sugar alternatives, creating sweet food that is nutritious and replacing the bad sugary things with healthy and enjoyable sweets.

I have watched the quit-sugar craze arrive and seen how colleagues and friends have cut sugar completely from their diets. Many have stuck with it, others succumb to cravings, while others simply can't manage the restrictions a sugar-free diet imposes. I, on the hand, have continued to eat my regular, balanced, mainly healthy but defiantly not sugar-free diet. I haven't read the quit sugar books that sit on our library shelf nor have I watched any sugar-is-killing-us documentaries. I would rather enjoy my sweets in naive bliss. But when I heard about this book, a book about reducing sugar but still enjoying the sweet side of life, I was very intrigued. I was not disappointed. While Ella Leche's level of diet restriction is well out of my range of dedication, it does offer some practical tips for reducing bad sugar intake and replacing it with healthy and nutritious sugar intake.

Cut the Sugar begins with a message from Ella describing her journey with illness, food and health. An introduction to a variety of healthy basic ingredients, such as superfood, grains and seeds, healthy fats, protein sources, gluten-free flours, and sugar alternatives follows.

All the recipes are plant based and gluten free. There are also some that are also egg and dairy free. There is some sugar in these recipes, particularly the desserts and some snacks. But that's the point! You can eat some sugar, just from different sources and in smaller quantities. The sugar sources range from coconut palm sugar and stevia, to Medjool dates and rice malt syrup.

While some recipes are straight out of the I'm so healthy, you can only buy these ingredients in extremist health shops, others are simple and pure genius. A cookie made solely from mashed banana and oats!!

The recipes are organised by section. Firstly, there are breakfast recipes, such as the caramelised onion, leek and potato chickpea frittata that is egg free. A great range of salads follows, which have plenty of nuts, seeds and beans. Soups are next, and range from the refreshing to the surprising, such as the brussels sprout, pea and fresh dill soup or the hearty miso soup. The mains section provides hearty meals that are wheat, diary and meat free, like the zucchini noodles with spinach pesto or the chickpea flatbread pizza. This leads onto the dessert section, where there is everything from the simple mixed berry crumble pots, to raw brownies with chocolate ganache. I was intrigued by the cinnamon and rooibos cake, which uses spelt flour, brewed rooibos tea and applesauce. The snack section follows including protein bars, turnip the beet chips, multiseed bread, and flax crackers. And finally there is a drink section with a variety of smoothies.

A lot of the recipes in this book seem less like a reduced-sugar cookbook and more like one that is for people with allergies or intolerances. Take the diary-free cashew cheese ball for example. But anyone will enjoy these fresh meals, even if they want to add a side of chicken, beef or wheat pasta.

Most of the fat content in the baking recipes is sourced from coconut oil. If you're not a convert of this trend you can always switch the quantities to another oil. Also, milk alternatives such as almond or hemp milk could be switched to whatever type of milk you drink. I think I'll also be skipping the hemp, milk or seeds, as it is illegal to eat in Australia. I would have liked a little more detail in the alternative ingredients section, such as disadvantages to some of these ingredients, their origins or why it is best to use them rather than other alternatives. For example, coconut oil is cited as the fat of choice, but despite the claimed benefits there is no mention of it being high in saturated fats. There is also an extensive index, which is grouped by ingredients as well as finished product.

Overall, this is a very beautiful book. It would make a great gift and the perfect accompaniment to any kitchen library.

The publishers provided a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What a surprisingly delightful book! While browsing recipes today, I really wanted to make two of them, and was thrilled to discover I already had everything I needed! They came together quickly and easily, and here I am, munching on Superseed Flax Crackers and Raw Veggie Pate as I type! Love the healthier takes on sweet stuff (sweet potato frosting?!) as well as the savory dishes (which are more my style). Can't wait to make more!

This is a very modern book and great if you are into the modern super grains, no meat in this book but all very health vegetarian meals and lots of fruit based recipes. There are desserts which uses stevia, maple syrup or coconut nectar as sweeteners and they look very impressive. I like the ideas, but, although they had a section on soup, I think the recipes would be more suited for a spring and summer menu. They look so fresh and summery and of course, most are in season at those times.
I think the children would really love the food, and as most of the dishes are healthy, would introduce good eating habits.

A terrific recipe book with insight into a life changing way of eating and enjoying the food around you. Loved it!

With all the evidence about the bad effects of too much sugar on our health, I am grateful for this comprehensive cookbook. This goes far beyond it’s title by giving the reader detailed information in the beginning about superfoods, grains and grainlike seeds, what to eat when you want something sweet, best sugar substitutes and a lot more.

Here are a few recipes from the book: apple-sweetened oat porridge; French crepes; raspberry chia jam; chia waffles; millet-apple breakfast cake; brussel sprouts and radish spring salad; super seed granola; crispy sweet potato wedges; Moroccan vegetable and sweet pea stew; Tex-Mex spicy chili; zucchini noodles with spinach pesto and cherry tomatoes; baked zucchini boats; veggie protein tacos; wild rice burgers; mixed-berry crumble pots; vanilla cupcakes with real strawberry frosting; sweet potato and date chocolate frosting and protein chocolate chip cookies.

For anything looking for a way to eliminate some or all of the sugar from their diet, this cookbook would be a very good place to start.

I LOVE this book and can't wait to purchase a hard copy. It's an easy, informative read packed full of good advice and delicious recipes. Definitely highly recommend it!

This book came along at the perfect time, as I am trying to find recipes with reduced sugar for a couple of members of my family. Ms Leche has offered a nice collection of 100+ recipes from breakfast to dessert. I think a few of the ingredients may be hard to find in some stores, but I think managers will realize the importance of the consumer if they ask. There are also some lovely color photos of many of the recipes. I think this book is a nice find.

I picked up a review copy of Cut The Sugar in November as part of my attempts to eat healthier. It is the work of blogger Ella Leché, and I checked out her blog, Pure Ella, before requesting a copy. I liked what I read and saw - which included some great looking food.

The book opens with Ella's own story, and the reason she started her blog. In a nutshell, back in 2008, she developed a rare autoimmune condition. Medication wasn't working so she started to try and heal herself naturally...which included not just healthy eating (or what she had thought of as healthy eating) but making significant changes to the way she eats.

The main change was cutting out sugar and the result was she felt better - regaining her good health. It is a change a lot of people are making but I didn't feel beaten over the head with the message. Ella isn't dictatorial and there is plenty of fruit in her recipes that it isn't like you give up sweetness, just the processed kind.

After telling Ella's story and sharing tips for healthy eating, the book presents recipes for each part of the day, including snacks like biscotti, and deserts. The recipes were beautifully photographed and had me wanting to try them. Plus they were meat-free, great for a veggie like me - I had some as mains whilst my husband had them as sides.

I haven't been through all the recipes yet but those I have tried have been easy to follow and easy to make. The overnight chia oats are now a breakfast regular and the salads have made my packed lunches healthier and more interesting. I wish I could take photos that do them justice but food photography isn't my forte so I am afraid you will have to go on my recommendation - which is this is a book for those who want to be a little healthier without feeling deprived.

Easy and simple recipes that can show how to cut sugar, milk and animal protein. With a clean, simple layout with beautiful pictures this is good start for someone considering vegetarian foods.

I love the approach of "Cut the Sugar" because if you're anything like me, cutting sugar out completely is IM-POSS-I-BLE. I just can't go without sweets! My biggest problem is breakfast. I always want something sweet for breakfast. Thankfully, Ms. Leche makes it easier with these recipes - including some awesome recipes for BREAKFAST! I definitely believe that there is a link between the food we eat, including sweets, and our health. I think that cutting back on the amount of sugar that we eat isn't just a wise choice, but it's something that, honestly, we all must do in order to maintain proper health. It's not easy, but it's not quite as difficult thanks to recipes like this one for Chocolate Dipped Biscotti:

A reasonable approach to sugars. (5 stars)

My sweet tooth is notorious in my social circles. I lose all shame when it comes to snagging the last donut or cookie. I never turn down a second slice of pie or scoop of ice cream. Most people keep office supplies in their desk drawer. I keep gum and candy. And like most addicts I go through cycles of wanting my drug of choice out of my life only to get low and fall back into its loving arms.

Most books I've encountered pretty much demand cutting out all sugars and I'm pretty sure if I did that my system would be shocked so bad I'd be sick. But the approach of Cut the Sugar, You're Sweet Enough surprised me. The emphasis on quality food that provides much needed nourishment without added sugars instead of eliminating all sugars seems far more reasonable and healthy, not to mention easier to sustain in the long term.

I was really impressed with the recipes because I really thought most of them would be boring and full of hard to find ingredients. Instead, they include lots of delicious naturally sweet whole foods like dates and sweet potatoes and ones that can provide the creamy texture many sweets have like avocado.

While I don't anticipate cutting my favorite sweets out of my diet any time soon, for the first time I feel like someone out there has a way to still enjoy the sweet life without allowing for the fact that food can and sometimes should be a pleasure.

I would like to thank Andrews McMeel Publishing for a free ARC of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an open and honest review.

A fantastic book! Just exactly the sort of thing someone like me wants in a cook book. Sadly, thanks to allium intolerances and allergies in my family (which no cook book seem to take into mind) I couldn’t give it top marks as I still need to skip or majorly modify some recipes… BUT! I love this book, I have it in my online bookstore shopping cart and will be OWNING this book very shortly so please excuse any constructive criticism I may give below as it’s just me providing open and honest feedback.

Okay, so where to start? I mean, wow! It is rare for me to find a modern cook book where there are just so many recipes I want to try them all, on my family, TODAY! We’re about to head back into the school year here and so I’ve been looking around for ways to liven up breakfast, packed lunches, snacks and dinners while sticking to simple, homemade, dairy free, refined sugar free and wheat/ grain free cooking… as that is what we do. So ‘Cut the sugar, you’re sweet enough’ has landed on my laptop just in time.

Gorgeous pictures, basic ingredients and clear and easy to follow instructions make it a welcoming and desirable book.

Yes I would have to modify anything containing the allium family (onion, garlic, chives, etc.), yes I would have to modify any of the sweet recipes that use Stevia (causes headaches or tastes bitter to some family members) and yes I would have to convert to Australian measurements and temperatures… but you know what? This book is WORTH that, and there is seriously very little of the above I would need to do! The positives and benefits of owning and using this cook book far outweigh these minor niggles. Plus there is a fantastic conversion page at the back of the book so those who need to convert and don’t have the tools in place – you won’t need them as the book helps you do it!

The only other minor niggle, and this is just me being overly picky, is I’m not a fan of pre-made pasta sauce. So when suggesting people use a jar of marinara sauce – and not provide a detailed recipe for a homemade option – yeah, I was a little disappointed in that. There IS a past sauce recipe in another recipe… but I don’t remember a recipe just to help make your own. But, as I’ve been making my own napoletana sauce for years, can easily sub. It’s just a shame there is such a basic sauce listed and suggested the reader buy it pre-made. Especially as the pre-mades can be filled with all sorts of things we wouldn’t normally eat.

Okay, that is just a pet peeve of mine – the dreaded pre-made! I do apologise for bringing it up, and it won’t stop me proudly owning and using this book, it’s just meant as a little constructive criticism.

Would I recommend this book for others? Yes I would. And I would do so loud and proud as it is well worth it. I’ve already been singing its praises on social media and recommending it to people I know there who have similar diets to my own.

Would I buy this book for myself? Yes, a very big yes. As said at the beginning of this review, I plan on placing it in an order in the next few days and cannot wait for the copy to arrive. I do prefer my cook books in paper form rather than eBook and so can’t wait to thumb through the paper version!

In summary: For anyone with dietary restrictions on wheat/ grain, dairy and sugars – this is definitely a book for you. Quick, easy and tasty look recipes I’m sure the whole family would love. Grab a copy as soon as you can!

I have been sugar free for 5 months. This cookbook is good, I can find the ingredients for recipes and there weren't too many ingredients per recipe. It included stuff even I a bad cook could cook .

I'm a huge fan of Ella's blog and so am very excited that she is finally releasing a book. Cut the Sugar is beautifully put together with fabulous recipes, all of which are different to her blog making this book a must buy. I especially loved the breakfast section and liked how clear and concise the layout is, making the task of reducing sugar in the diet less daunting. A must read for any health conscious advocates!

I was surprised at the variety, and frankly how yummy many of these recipes sound. Plan to buy the book, not only for myself, but for family and friends!

Very good cookbook with manageable recipes.

Really great book! I'm still trying some of the recipes but so far everything is beautiful.