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Practical Paleo Book Review
Practical Paleo by Diane Sanfilippo was one of the first books I bought back in 2013 as I began my journey from the standard American diet (SAD) to a whole food, paleo diet. I had already read Wheat Belly by Dr. Davis and was interested in learning more about how changing one’s diet could improve health. Since then, a second, improved edition has been released. I was blown away by Practical Paleo when I first read it. The same holds true for the second edition.
When I first read Practical Paleo, I was impressed by how the author took complex medical and nutrition knowledge and made it easy to understand. For that reason alone, I have recommended the book to multiple friends and family over the years. The second edition is no different. If you get confused by all the jargon floating out there about nutrition, this book is for you.
I buy nearly all my books in Kindle version. I have ADHD and used to carry around at least three or four books with me everywhere I went because I never knew what I might want to read when waiting around at the doctor’s office or when looking for something to read at lunch. While I acknowledge that the print version is outstanding, I still prefer my Kindle version. I prefer the portability and the organization that my Kindle provides. I like being able to bookmark pages, highlight text and search in the device. I often do some grocery planning while at lunch so having my cookbooks portable really helps me plan and stay on track.
The drawback in buying the new edition on my Kindle is that I had to uninstall the old edition in order to load the new edition. Essentially, I lost the prior version when I upgraded to the new version. There was some content lost, but Diane made those recipes available on her website, which was very considerate to her readers. She didn’t have to do that, but it speaks highly of how much she cares about those who follow her work. If I had both in print, that wouldn’t be an issue. Then again, I wouldn’t want two sitting on my shelf so I would probably give the previous version away. As of now, I haven’t noticed the missing content so it hasn’t had much impact on me.
Diane did a lot of work in adding valuable content for people transitioning to paleo. I appreciated the sections on whether or not to go all in or to transition slowly. When I transitioned, I did it slowly, very slowly, but I hesitated to say much about it at the time as I felt I was doing it wrong. Well, I wasn’t. I was doing what worked for me, and seeing that validated in the second edition was empowering. There are people who will need to jump in and do it all at once, and there are people who will find that too overwhelming and give up easily if they attempt it that way. I knew I would be more successful if I picked one change at a time. It’s what worked for me. One caveat – I decided ahead of time that I would take a year to transition, and I stuck with it. I made the decision, did some high-level planning and within a year, I was where I wanted to be.
The photographs in the book are outstanding and go a long way toward catching my interest in a recipe. The food styling is very appealing and something I hope to get better at in my own photographs. I’ve since bought courses online to improve my photography skills.
One issue I have is that the photos are at the end of the recipe, and in the Kindle version, the photo appears to belong to the recipe that follows, which can be confusing. It doesn’t override my preference for the e-book, though.
Some of my favorite recipes in the book are the Balsamic Braised Short Ribs, the Mustard-Glazed Chicken Thighs, the Superfood Meatloaf, and the Restaurant-Style Lettuce Cups.
The Balsamic Braised Short Ribs were an instant hit years ago when I bought the first edition of the book. I think it was the first recipe I tried. I knew after my first bite that this paleo thing was going to be okay. Seriously. I thought, 'If I can eat like this every day, I can do this!’ The dish is really easy to prepare and perfect for a lazy weekend when all you want to do is park it on the couch with a good book. Throw a bunch of stuff in the Dutch oven, pop it in the oven and several hours later, your house smells amazing and dinner is just as fabulous. Watch the liquid in the pot periodically and add more if needed. Don’t let it get too dry. My Dutch oven seems to need more liquid for dishes that cook a long time so I find myself adding a bit part way through similar recipes. It could just be my Dutch oven, though. Get to know your equipment and be prepared to add liquid if needed.
The Mustard-Glazed Chicken Thighs are super easy and perfect for weeknights. Toss them in the oven when you walk in the door, go change, boom, dinner is almost done. You could prep some carrots or Brussels sprouts for roasting ahead of time and toss those in the oven with the chicken and let both cook together while you change clothes and set the table.
The Superfood Meatloaf was so, so good! I made two smaller loaves for just me, planning to freeze one and ended up eating an entire loaf in one or two days. I had grass-fed beef liver on hand so I used that instead, but cut the amount of liver in half to help the flavor be less overwhelming. At the time, I could not find ketchup without a ton of sugar and didn’t want to make my own. To substitute, I used a small can of tomato paste and added some of the seasonings used in the meatloaf to it along with a splash of apple cider vinegar to replace the ketchup. It tasted pretty much like barbecue sauce. It was so yumtastic!
The Restaurant-Style Lettuce Cups are like the lettuce wraps you get at your favorite Asian restaurant. I did mine a little differently using what I had on hand, just as Diane suggests often in her Instagram stories. My daughter won’t eat meat, but she will eat shrimp so I used shrimp. I marinated the shrimp just like the chicken and proceeded with the recipe. I used some leftover Yai’s Thai Almond Sauce that I had in the fridge in my satay sauce.
My recommendation: Practical Paleo is perfect for the paleo newbie just starting out. It’s a fabulous resource to share with friends and family who want to know more about this way of eating. The holidays will be here before you know it so keep an eye out for sales around Thanksgiving and grab a few copies as gifts.
