buy books or just rely on websites?

idauria

I want to be more versed in paleo cooking. I know there are tons of internet resources, many of which I have already bookmarked. I want to know if it's worth it to invest in an actual cookbook, such as Make it Paleo(from the website the food lovers kitchen). Any thoughts?

skwidlund

I don't think it's necessary, at all. I think someone could go paleo pretty darn well and learn a lot about cooking in general just from a blog like Nom Nom Paleo.

That being said...I do love a good cookbook and have a nice paleo collection that I turn to over and over.

I think it comes down to what you like personally.

kcmsmith0405

I found "Well Fed" to be a book well worth reading (though I have to admit I have not purchased it yet I just borrowed it for free on my kindle). She eats a little differently than I do but her recipes and tips about eating Paleo long term are top notch and helpful. I just add in the other stuff I eat and use a lot of her base recipe and meal planning and preparing ideas as I go.

I fell into Paleo accidentally when I got an autoimmune disease and discovered "IBS Low Starch Diet" by Carol Sinclair. With that and advice from my doc to eat more natural foods and a hand-out about eating a Paleo type diet I then started researching and tailoring my diet to myself and my family. I do still eat junk occasionally, but I find that as long as 90% of my eating is healthy, whole and natural I do well.

I have tried a few other books but not found them as helpful. Most of mine has been internet research and common sense and what works for my body, you will find once you get off the processed food you can tell which foods bother you if you eat them again.

Hope this helps!

idauria

I actually have Well Fed in my Amazon cart. I also have "It Starts with Food: Discover the Whole30 and Change Your Life in Unexpected Ways". Anyone read that?

I am leaning towards not buying the books though because I am not a newbie. I have been doing my own internet based research for a while and my diet really isn't that bad. I have been primarily wheat and grain free for a while so I don't think taking the full plunge will be that difficult for me, especially since in the past I have had to do a yeast free diet and that was the most restrictive diet I have even done! I guess I am just looking not so much for paleo philosophy but food and recipe ideas.

Thanks for the advice!

P.S. I did bookmark Nomnompaleo, her stuff looks great!

tabbychiro

Have you checked your local library? Borrowing a book might give you a better idea if you want to buy it or not.

kcmsmith0405

The "Well Fed" book is not about philosophy or how to be paleo, she assumes anyone reading it already is paleo or close. It is much more about how to cook once for a week and cut down on meal making times in between, She includes how to calculate how much you need and some ideas for keeping your meals from becoming the same every day. She has a lot of her own recipes for spice blends and all kinds of yummy looking dishes as well. I think it is a good read for any natural type people just on cooking and recipes in general.

skwidlund

It Starts With Food has some recipes in the back, but it's much more of a why and how-to sort of book. It's awesome and I've been recommending it to everyone (even a lady in the hospital waiting room last week!). If you're interested in the science behind paleo, it's a great book. So is Practical Paleo, which has the science and great recipes.

idauria

It Starts With Food has some recipes in the back, but it's much more of a why and how-to sort of book. It's awesome and I've been recommending it to everyone (even a lady in the hospital waiting room last week!). If you're interested in the science behind paleo, it's a great book. So is Practical Paleo, which has the science and great recipes.

I just ordered It Starts with Food for my Kindle. I definitely like to learn about the science behind stuff.

caribougal

I just finished reading ISWF. Definitely a kindle read, not hard copy. They provide some menu mix/match charts, but it's not a cookbook.

I downloaded the free sample of well-fed, and was very impressed. I'm going to purchase the PDF version to have on my iPad, since I cook with the iPad as a reference tool a lot!

I also think the nomnompaleo app for iPad is AMAZING! I think it's worth every penny and I love supporting my favorite blogger. It's a gorgeous cooking app, with great functionality and step by step pictures. You can do in-app purchases just of the things you want. I purchased most of it.

annyikha

Yes, It Starts With Food does have why/how-to things, but their meal blueprints in the back are fantastic. The templates have really helped me get away from needing this ingredient or that and have aided me greatly in my move towards just buying what's on sale/in season and available at the market and the grocery store. Their curry suggestion is just AMAZING. I had it with fresh scallops one night, beef the next, and chicken a third time with red or green curry paste and different vegetables. The book is worth it just for the back stuff alone.

I also recommend Primal Body, Primal Mind and Practical Paleo. PBPM's concepts around protein intake have been very helpful, especially as I want to stretch my good quality meat as far as possible and welcome eating less of it per meal. The web is really good (especially on Pinterest, which has a ton of really amazing people posting things), but sometimes there's information in print that really goes beyond what people say online.

domez

Thanks for that blog Naturalnut, I found it inspiring that eating naturally is working for you and can work for me too. I,m buying Well Fed.

bubblicious84

I haven't bought any books yet; so far I've relied on websites and podcasts. But, I do want to get a couple of the books, like Well Fed, and maybe Eat Like a Dinosaur for my kids. But I'm a little worried it might be out of their age range? They're 10 (almost 11) and 9?

idauria

I haven't bought any books yet; so far I've relied on websites and podcasts. But, I do want to get a couple of the books, like Well Fed, and maybe Eat Like a Dinosaur for my kids. But I'm a little worried it might be out of their age range? They're 10 (almost 11) and 9?

Yeah, that's the other thing. I am wondering if I should change my kids' eating habits as well. They eat a lot of sandwiches and pasta, wheat products, etc. I fear that if I remove all that there would be very little left. I dunno.

zellagrrl

RE: kids who haven't been raised this way

The Everyday Paleo cookbook recommends that you not really discuss it initially, instead just make the change. And if they ask questions, then answer why. Or something along those lines. Realistically, if you cook it, they'll probably eat it. Or learn to cook for themselves :P

bubblicious84

I haven't bought any books yet; so far I've relied on websites and podcasts. But, I do want to get a couple of the books, like Well Fed, and maybe Eat Like a Dinosaur for my kids. But I'm a little worried it might be out of their age range? They're 10 (almost 11) and 9?

Yeah, that's the other thing. I am wondering if I should change my kids' eating habits as well. They eat a lot of sandwiches and pasta, wheat products, etc. I fear that if I remove all that there would be very little left. I dunno.

I have been trying to send my kids primal lunches for school, and start them off with a good breakfast that isn't SAD, and when I ask them if they stayed full all day, they said "yah, we weren't hungry at all!". So I do try to use that and explain that when they have a breakfast that isn't cereal but rather full of proteins and fat, that they stay fuller longer, and they don't seem to have that mid day crash that they used to. They usually do eat the dinners I fix (with a little complaining) but they aren't on it as much as I'd like them to be. I don't wanna be so tight with them about it that they aren't allowed to have a cupcake at a birthday party now and then, but if nothing else, I'd like them to be 80/20.

allyjoy83

Topic at hand: I personally prefer the internet. Mark's daily apple is an excellent resource for food and guidance. The only problem with the internet is that there are many more possibilities for splinter groups (for every eating and lifestyle choice). It can get a bit confusing with paleo -- pro dairy, grass fed/wild caught only, no honey, etc. The hard part is just cutting through all of the bull, and finding what's best for you.

If you want something simple to follow, a book is a better choice because it's a clearer picture.

As for kids: they'll eat it with less complaining if they help make it.

kcmsmith0405

I have a son who is GF and has a bunch of food allergies as well so it is easier to get him to eat healthy. I can't get my daughter or my husband to go off the grains and bad things though. I do have them eat the natural healthy food I prepare in addition to the grains they eat. I also go out of my way to make food that they like as much as I do. I do a lot of cooking with coconut flour for sweets and treats for them as well as replacement for my son and I for the grains and starches we do not eat.

Meanwhile I am just teaching my kids about how food can affect your body and your life and teaching them what is healthy. At 12 and 14 they know how to read a food label and say no to things that are bad (within their own limits of course). I teach them how to make healthier choices of junk food basically.

idauria

So, I have been reading It Starts with Food. I am halfway through and it's making me feel like the worst parent because I give my kids milk and let them eat grains, etc. This book is making me think that everything we eat is poison! I want to go through my pantry and toss all the candy and cracker in there. I think I will guide my kids' eating habits towards more healthy, whole foods. It's just going to be a process and take time. I can't just make them quit cold turkey like I am doing. However, is it really that bad for my daughter to have one slice of whole grain bread with almond butter for lunch? I guess I have to find a line I am comfortable with.

reluctantMANGO

I purchased the Practical Paleo book by Diane Sanfilippo of www.balancedbites.com, and it is WONDERFUL. I may have to buy the print copy. She goes into the reasons people choose to eat Paleo, and how to tweak your diet to target that purpose. There are over 100 recipes included, and everything is just so easy to understand.

annyikha

However, is it really that bad for my daughter to have one slice of whole grain bread with almond butter for lunch? I guess I have to find a line I am comfortable with.

There are tons of grain-free meal ideas for kids. Why not dehydrate some bananas in your oven or fry some plantains and give your kid almond butter with those? Bananas and plantains are more delicious than whole wheat bread, especially with nut butters.

don883

I've been gathering information from both books and the internet. Luckily, all of the Primal/Paleo books I've bought were helpful, and it's good to have them around for reference and motivation. I just bought Practical Paleo, a newer book that is worth buying and going back to every now and then for a Paleo overview and some decent recipes.