Whole30 Book Review
As I browsed the lending library at KIHC, my eyes were drawn to the abundance of cookbooks lining the shelves. From Keto and vegan to Mediterranean diets, there was a wide variety to explore. However, the one that sparked my interest was Whole30 Friends & Family by Melissa Hartwig Urban.
What is Whole30?
Melissa introduces the concept of Whole30, a 30-day elimination of foods that research has linked with cravings, metabolism, indigestion, or immune system responses. The cookbook serves as a continuation of this approach catered towards those who want to maintain their Whole30 program, while still enjoying social gatherings.
These gluten-free muffins have become a family favourite. They freeze fairly well so can be popped into a school lunch quite easily. The oats give them more protein than your traditional flour-based muffin, and they’re fairly forgiving if you need to replace some of the ingredients with others you have on hand (see below).
This protein ball recipe is adapted from the well-known plant-based food series “Oh She Glows” – in particular, Angela Liddon’s “Oh She Glows Every Day” cookbook… which will soon be available in our lending library! (Explore her 
These gluten-free biscuits continue to be one of our favourite family treats! They take about 5 minutes to prepare, are really forgiving with measurements, and the clean-up is pretty quick too.
These muffins are delicious, hardy and so versatile! The blueberries and walnuts can be substituted for any fruits and nut combination. This weekend I decided to use the rhubarb from the garden (1/2 cup) and strawberries (1 cup) the results were so yummy! The added greek yogurt gives these muffins a protein boost and they can easily be converted to gluten free. Remember if you are avoiding eggs the egg in the recipe can be replaced by 1 tbsp of freshly ground flax seed pulsed in 2.5 tbsp of water. This will also give you the added benefit of extra fibre.
Moving into winter, I find it challenging to eat enough veggies. Blended soups are a simple solution! They’re quite forgiving when you need to substitute ingredients or eyeball quantities. They freeze well (fill mason jars only 2/3 full to avoid breaking), and become a quick work lunch or dinner first course when you’re short of time. Better yet, they work well for families with food allergies, since they’re naturally free of dairy, gluten, egg, and nuts.