Photo: Tara Donne

Read the instructions (even the ones in the beginning of the book, before the recipes) all the way through before you buy the items you need and get to work. This is standard protocol for all cooking, but especially important in gluten-free. Recipes often use ingredients such as refined coconut oil and potato starch, and important information about how to measure them (e.g., coconut oil must be melted first) is often in the opening chapter.

All gluten-free flours have their strengths—and weaknesses. McKenna likes garbanzo and fava bean flour for banana bread, cupcakes and cakes that she wants to have a "nice rise" and fluffiness to them. Rice flour, on the other hand, would make a cake grainy and dense—but it's perfect for brownies.

Just add water. McKenna's trick for batters that seem too thick (and you know you've crossed into that territory when it's hard to stir, or a wooden spoon stands up straight when stuck into the mixture): Just add a little bit of hot water, a teaspoon or so at a time. The heat will loosen up any stiffness.

Measure xanthan gum precisely. This is one step where you don't want to eyeball it, McKenna says, because even a little too much xanthan gum (a carbohydrate that adds volume) than a recipe calls for will ruin a cake's texture, making it too chewy.