Aran Goyoaga wrote this cookbook with recipes and stories inspired by her childhood in the Basque Country, motherhood, and living as an ex-pat. The book is divided by season and within each chapter you will find a section for small plates and another for sweet treats. Aran left the professional kitchen of the Ritz Carlton to stay home with her first child and she channeled her cooking into her blog, Cannelle et Vanille (cinnamon and vanilla) after the smells of her childhood. Aran became gluten free in 2009 and began adapting all her recipes to her new lifestlye. You can tell from her gorgeous photography that she had outdone herself. We asked Aran a few questions to get to know her a bit better. (Note – this book is not a kosher cookbook, but most of the recipes can be made kosher)
You have quite an impressive background cooking in a professional kitchen, do you ever miss it?
I come from a family of professional pastry chefs and I worked as one myself for a few years before I become a mother. I miss the camaraderie, the discipline and the intensity of the professional kitchen. It was addicting. But at the same time, I don’t miss the grueling schedule, no holidays off… It wasn’t very compatible with family life unfortunately.
You became gluten free in 2009, as a pastry chef how did you handle that adjustment?
I started to dabble in it in 2009, but was diagnosed with gluten sensitivity in early 2010. It’s then when I become completely gluten-free. The adjustment was actually easy because I was so ill that I was ready to try anything. I followed a strict elimination diet for the first 6 months or so and I stopped eating not only gluten, but also dairy, soy, sugar, most grains, caffeine… I quickly began to feel better and felt very encouraged. Having worked as a pastry chef, it’s engrained in me the curiosity to experiment and try new ingredients. I loved learning about different flours and testing new recipes. It felt very natural and exciting.
ROASTED BEET, BLOOD ORANGE & MIXED GREEN SALAD
Is there any food you still really really miss?
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In all honestly, I rarely have any cravings for it. I stood inside Poilâne in Paris with that smell of yeast and freshly baked brioche permeating the air. That is probably the only time I have felt nostalgic for bread, but because it makes me so sick, I could never even attempt to eat it.
You organize this cookbook, Small Plates Sweet Treats, by season, why did you decide to do it that way?
I am inspired by seasons and it’s really how I like to shop and cook at home. My grandparents were farmers and most people we knew grew their own food, so cooking was always associated with the time of year and what was available at the time. That strong sense of seasonality has never left me. When vegetables and fruits are picked at the right time, at their peak and have grown in soil in accordance to nature’s rhythm, their flavor is so intense that cooking becomes simple and flavorful.
Who is your cooking inspiration?
I am inspired by many people really. My own family, other cooks and chefs, what the farmer might suggest… I have been very inspired by Basque chefs Hilario Arbelaitz and Martin Berasategui who have an immense understanding of technique and great respect for the raw ingredient, which is the way I grew up.
SWISS CHARD, PEAR & GRUYÈRE TART
What is your favorite dish to cook?
I find it hard to pick only one dish because it varies constantly. I really like to eat things with a spoon, so soups, custards, creamy risottos (yes, I eat them with a spoon), but I think that one of my favorite things to make are tarts. Both savory and sweet. Something about playing with different textures of doughs and fillings, rolling pastry… They are so versatile and allow for many variations. In my book, the Swiss chard, pear and Gruyere tart seems to be everyone’s favorite.
How did you learn to take such gorgeous pictures?
I am a self-taught photographer. I started slowly by reading the camera’s manual and practicing a lot. I would observe the photographs I responded to and try to understand what it was about them that I loved. This really taught me a lot about light and composition.
What is your earliest cooking memory?
When I helped my grandmother and mother cook Christmas dinner. It was a stew of lamb with artichokes, carrot and potatoes that my grandmother made often. The artichokes were dredged in flour and dipped in egg. That became my task. I stood on a green-colored stool and felt such connection to what I was doing.
CHOCOLATE, HAZELNUT & FLEUR DE SEL POTS DE CRÈME
Chocolate chip cookies 🙂
This cookbooks looks fantastic! And gluten free – perfect!
also reciepes look simple.nice to have something pretty to serve my gluten friends when they visi
The smell that brings me back to my childhood is the odor emanating from a pot of gently simmering chicken soup. Yum!
I can certainly understand giving up foods that make you feel sick, but especially if you can make alternatives like the ones here. The photos show food that’s stunning, interesting and healthy. What could be better? The chard tart and the salad look especially wonderful to me.
chicken and rice. plain and simple but delicious.
would love to try this cookbook. I have been eliminating the carbs in my diet and always looking for good recipes.
this has beautiful recipes, would love to try
My grandpa’s homemade spaghetti always brings me back to my childhood. It was and still is a family favorite!
Spaghetti and meatballs!
I like all the appetizers. Great for entertaining. Two favorites are the Feta Cheese and Potato Fritters and the Brie Cheese Bake
Those chocolate hazelnut pots look amazing! My sis and niece are GF – think they’d appreciate too.
Chicken soup always brings me back.
I love this cookbook and would love to have it in my collection.
definitely yummy challah
I grew up with the sweet smells of chicken roasting and healthy sprouts sandwiches and pasta with nutritional yeast. I became observant about 8 years ago and perfected my challah recipe. after rushing my third child to the hospital with anaphylaxis, and blood test determined that he was allergic to not just peanuts but also wheat, I’ve had to learn how to cook gluten free. I love experimenting but 1 of the hardest things for me to do is also eliminate eggs. I do make a mean butternut squash gluten free mac and cheese, but have yet to find a good challah recipe without eggs. I entertain guests regularly in our home far away from the community and I’m always looking for something lovely to share.
Challah toast and coffee!
Brings me straight back to the days when my grandfather lived with us…I’d wake up and come downstairs to him puttering around making his breakfast…dipping his toast into his coffee…
stunning photos! how inspiring
beautiful food!
delicious looking food!
looks great.
My daughter-in-law has celiac disease and is of course, gluten-free. I always look for new recipes she would enjoy. MY favorite childhood scent memory is the smell of my mom’s marble cake baking. She used lots of orange juice.
Sights rather than sounds remind me of the food of my childhood. The meals of today are so much healthier than the meat-and-potatoes-with-one-overcooked-veggie-side of the past. Except for dessert!
My mom’s, from scratch, Gefilte Fish.
Wow, those pictures are stunning! I am not gluten free but I do try to avoid wheat so this cookbook sounds fascinating!
Stunning.
this book looks amazing. I try to make lots of gluten free recipe as I realize everyone roun me is trying to move to gluten free diets . this book looks really cool.
Aromas of chicken soup and of oatmeal raisin cookies.
Definitely the smell of my grandmothers noodle kugel!
Looks amazing, I’m always looking for recipes with in season ing. love the idea!!!!
I just share this with a friend who must eat Gluten free. I have started wondering if a change in my diet could help my health.
chicken and potatoes, mushroom barley soup
Being gluten free has been a blessing in disguise for me. I still miss eating certain foods, but I have never felt or looked better in my life. Since I grew up in Florida, the smell of falling rain on a hot summer’s day brings me back to my childhood.
the smell of shabbos cooking, when i walk into my apartment and the fish soup chicken and kugle are cooking it brings me back to coming home from school on friday to the smell of shabbos
hmmm. . .a smell that reminds me of good food. my mother was a terrible cook, so i don’t have any great memories of good smells. but i would like the book as my daughter is gluten free.
I love the smell of my mother’s tzimmes (the correct version with sweet potatoes NOT carrots) I think that rich sweet/tangy aroma should be bottled for perfume. 1/2 my family has either cut out or cut down on wheat and gluten. We have been experimenting with small success with almond flour. We would love to try our this cookbook.
I love the smell of my mother’s tzimmes (the correct sweet potato version – NOT carrots) That rich sweet/sour aroma should be bottled for perfume. 1/2 my family has decided to to cut out or cut way down on wheat and gluten. We’ve been experimenting with almond flour with mixed success. I would love to try out this cook book
cinnamon for me is evocative of so many pleasant things.
The cookbook seems to tantalize the eyes as well as the palette. I would love to see this as more and more friends become gluten-free.
I am always looking for good gluten free recipes, can wait to try the the ones above
The smell of chicken soup.
I’m tempted to start cutting gluten out of my diet. I’m always looking for new (healthier) dessert ideas. this cookbook looks amazing.
I have a newly gluten-free daughter who loves to bake. This would be a great gift for her upcoming birthday.
This sounds like a great cookbook!
I have just started eating gluten free and it’s been really hard to get recipes for such gourmet cooking. This is really great. My friend has gone gluten free for 4 months now and lost 15 lbs. just by cutting it out of her diet, but she still eats the same amount if carb calories. Very interesting. Frankenwheat, is scary. Gluten free is the way to better health.
Stunning pictures and love the concept of arranging recipes by season!
With my niece being diagnosed with Celiac disease at age 6, we’ve all learned to adapt our cooking. Baking, on the other hand, is still a challenge. This cookbook looks FABULOUS! I’d love to win it and use it well!
I am recently gluten free, a chef, and a food lover! I would be so appreciative to get such a beautiful and creative cookbook. I hope I win! Thank you for writing a creative cookbook for us GF 🙂
This sounds great. I love the idea of cooking with what is in season. Everything tastes better fresh from the farm or farmer’s market.
Growing up in an apartment building, the hallway always smelled like Shabbos cooking when I got off the elevator on my way home from school on Friday afternoons. It still smells the same way when I go to visit my parents for a Shabbos. I look forward to it every time I visit on a Friday!
what beautiful photos! who said gluten free couldn’t look and taste amazing?