Repairing the Gut
Whether you’ve recently recovered from an infection requiring antibiotics, are healing after treatment for a parasite, or are battling against anxiety and depression, repairing …
Nut-Free Paleo Bread
My mother-in-law will be visiting this spring and she is allergic to nuts. It’s got me working on nut-free versions of many of my recipes (because I don’t want gluten-containing …
Paleo Mayo and Ranch Dip
Once you master homemade Paleo mayonnaise (often called Paleonnaise), a whole new world of salad dressings and dips opens up to you. That’s why this recipe post is a two-for-one. …
How Mood and Gut Health Are Linked
One of the challenges that I face personally with my health is something called the Gut-Brain Connection (or sometimes called the Gut-Brain Axis). Basically, brain health affects …
Tourtière-Inspired Shepherd’s Pie
Tourtière is a French Canadian meat pie that my mom used to make when I was a girl. It is traditionally made with ground pork, but over the years I’ve experimented with different …
How To Cheat And Stay On Track
Most advocates of Paleolithic nutrition allow for some cheating. “What?” you say, “I get to CHEAT? Why didn’t you mention this earlier?!”. Well, first of all, I hate the word …
Honey-Garlic Chicken Wings
These are ridiculously delicious wings and great for anyone avoiding nightshades. If you cook them on the barbecue (which is the way we like them!), they end up as a “dry” wing …
Chocolate Cut-Out Cookies (Nut-Free)
Cut-out cookies are so much fun to make with the kids! I developed this recipe because we needed something “nut free” for all those places we go where we’re not allowed to bring …
Broccoli Banana Muffins (with chocolate chips)
Don’t be afraid. You can’t taste the broccoli very strongly. But it’s there, adding wonderful nutrition to these delicious broccoli banana muffins. Both my girls adore these …
Braised Cauliflower, Leeks and Artichoke Hearts
This combination might sound a little unusual, but I promise that the addition of bacon grease and garlic makes the flavors come together remarkably well! This simple vegetable …
Wine-Poached Salmon
This is such a simple and quick way to prepare salmon (or trout or other similar fish). You can use any seasoning you like here, but thyme works especially well. I suggest using …
Zucchini Muffins
I love cooking muffins full of vegetables (both when I can sneak vegetables in and when that vegetable is the star of the muffin). This recipe is based on my mother’s zucchini …
Guacamole
Guacamole is actually very easy to make at home. To pick ripe avocados, look for ones that are a darker green outside and that have just a little bit of give when you palpate them …
Paleo “Multigrain” Bread
This recipe is based on Elena Amsterdam’s Bread 2.0, which makes a very satisfying Paleo bread (also check out her Paleo Bread recipe which omits arrowroot powder in favor of more …
Homemade “Bangers”
I can’t eat eggs. Like many on the Autoimmune Protocol, they provoke an immune response in my body. So, what’s for breakfast?! Even low sodium bacon and …
Paleo Baby Foods–What to Introduce When
You can absolutely start your baby off right by feeding them Paleolithic foods, properly cooked (when necessary) and mashed or pureed. There is really no compelling reason why you …
Chocolate Chip “Oatmeal” Cookies
Or maybe these could be better named Chocolate Chip “Multi-grain” Cookies, since that is actually the cookie that they are designed to emulate. Chocolate chip multi-grain cookies …
Paleo Chicken Fingers
What kid doesn’t like chicken fingers? I’ve experimented with a few different techniques, trying to find one that yields a nice “breading” while being easy enough to tackle for a …
Kale: Superfood and Delicious Too!
Kale is definitely a superfood. And as far as superfoods go, it’s fairly cheap and easily found. I find myself eating it more and more, raw tossed in a salad, chopped and added …
Kale Chips
There are lots of recipes for kale chips out there. I got my initial recipe from a wonderful twitter follower @Paleoeater (who has a great blog full of delicious recipes). I have …
Curry Cream of Carrot Soup
Sometimes being forced to improvise is a good thing. In the case of this soup, it’s a great thing! As I stared into my fridge hoping for inspiration, I could see that the only …
Paleo Club Crackers
My oldest daughter’s favorite food is cheddar cheese on club crackers. The cheese part doesn’t bother me, but the cracker part does! So, I’m on the hunt for a Paleo version of …
The Importance of Vegetables
Out of all the foods we could potentially eat, vegetables and fruit are some of the only items not mired in controversy: virtually every health authority agrees they should have a …
Paleo Chewy Granola Bars
I have played with homemade chewy granola bar recipes for about a year. I never did master my oat-based recipe, so I didn’t have the best of starting points for a Paleo version. …
Barbecue Chicken with Arugula Pesto
My family loves to barbecue even when it’s freezing out, but you could always cook this chicken under the broiler or on an indoor grill. The best part about this chicken is that …
Molten Lava Chocolate Cake
Many people who commit to Paleolithic nutrition work very hard to rid their diets of any foods that mimic the unhealthy foods they used to eat. But other people need the …
Swedish Meatballs
First off, I have to specially thank one of my twitter followers, @Paleoanton, who originally sent me this authentic recipe for Swedish meatballs. Meatballs are a kid (and …
Mexican Chocolate Coffee Cake
The inspiration for this cake came from my daughter’s second birthday cake. I baked Elena Amsterdam’s chocolate layer cake with coconut flour recipe and frosted with a lacto-Paleo …
Minted Zucchini
Minted zucchini is a lovely and simple vegetable side dish. I like it served with grilled lamb or fish for a Mediterranean-inspired meal. That pairing is especially great in the …
Paleo Pasta
I think pasta is actually really easy to modify for a Paleolithic diet. Noodles are just a vessel for sauce, after all, and there are plenty of wonderful vegetables that can do …
What IS a Paleolithic Lifestyle?
(originally posted November 15, 2011) A Paleolithic lifestyle is about more than just nutrition. It’s about getting ALL of your Paleolithic ducks in a row. When we approach our …
Holiday Trifle, Paleo Style
This fabulous take on a holiday classic is actually relatively low-sugar (less than a cup in the whole thing!) My idea for this recipe started as I started thinking about Christmas …
Braised Kale, Three Ways
Who knew? I LOVE kale! I remember eating it as a kid because it grew wild in our garden and we were quite poor. But now, as an adult, I actually choose to eat kale. It’s also a …
Potatoless Potato-Leek Soup
Potatoes are a gray area food. Some people include peeled potatoes in their Paleolithic diets and some don’t. My preference is not to, especially when there are such great …
Trouble Sleeping?
After following a Paleolithic diet, I think prioritizing sleep is probably the most important thing you can do for both your short- and long-term health. But sometimes just trying …
Garlic-Margarita Whitefish
While some people might find whitefish bland or boring, I actually find that it’s an incredible base for many delicious flavors! My Nightshade-Free Curry-Baked Tilapia, …
Avocado Banana Chip Salad
The inspiration for this salad comes from way back when my toddler was first introduced to solid food. I used the book Super Baby Food book by Ruth Yaron for some recipes (her …
Hearty Beef Stew
This recipe was a special request from one of my Twitter followers, @DianaVitti, a few winters ago. It’s perfect for cold weather, when you’re craving something rich, …
Which Fats Should You Eat?
The Paleo framework should settle around roughly balanced macronutrients; 30 to 40 percent fat is a healthy and comfortable zone for many people. See What About Fat?, Carbs Vs. …
Carrot-Parsnip Muffins
This recipe starts with the carrot cake recipe that my mom found in the archives while doing a paper on traditional French Canadian cuisine for a college paper. The original …
Why Grains Are Bad–Part 2, Omega 3 vs. 6 Fats
Dr. Ballantyne no longer supports this article. Please see her up-to-date information here. Two important facets of the Paleo diet are to avoid foods that irritate our gut and to …
Almond Butter Chocolate Chip Cookies
I had to create a Paleo version of the Whole Foods peanut butter chocolate chip cookie for my daughters. They love the chewy, soft texture, the sweetness, the nutty flavor, the …
What About Fat?
Dr. Ballantyne no longer supports this article. Please see her up-to-date information here. There is one diet myth that persists beyond all others, that dietary fat will make you …
Bacon-Braised Brussel Sprouts
Prior to discovering to the Paleo diet, the only way I ate Brussels sprouts was smothered in cheese sauce. I actually like Brussels sprouts as long as the flavor isn’t too …
Why Grains Are Bad–Part 1, Lectins and the Gut
The idea that grains are harmful is one of the most fundamental tenets of the Paleo diet. But, the rationale for avoiding them is often misunderstood, and sometimes oversimplified …
Pumpkin Pie Squares
I love pumpkin, and have created many Paleo pumpkin-related recipes (including pumpkin pie, pumpkin pancakes, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin pie coffee cake, and pumpkin plantain spice …
Curry-Braised Kale and Cabbage
One of my biggest challenges with eating Paleo is keeping variety in vegetable side dishes. I seem to crave more vegetable variety now, maybe because I’m eating vegetables at …
Baked Spiced Sweet Potatoes
This seems hardly fair, to create an entire recipe for just these little sweet potatoes. But these are such a tasty side dish to just about any meat and my kids love them (when …