Mission Statement: all reviews will be my honest assessment of the material in question. My opinion will never be influenced by personal bias or my opinion of the author.
The Paleo Cookbook
These are the results my clients have experienced and that i have experienced as well – that’s why I’m a huge advocate for the paleo diet and I believe you too can experience how amazing it is to suddenly be able to go through your days with more energy, while seeing a happier, healthier body in the mirror.
Nikki Young
Who is this book for?
It’s for someone looking to adopt a healthy diet and maybe lose a few pounds in the process. The book may also be for someone with a special preference for paleo dieting or a person looking for some new meal ideas to add to their daily menu.
What will I learn from it?
You’ll learn to cook and prepare a variety of paleo meals for different occasions.
Strong points
- It features a very extensive list of recipes. Seven books all in all; two main books, and five theme-based books (i.e chocolate and capsicum sandwiches). So in addition to meals that would make good diet staples, there are also paleo-based dessert recipes and snacks.
- Excellent layout with high-quality pictures for every recipe.
- Clear instructions on how to prepare the meals.
- Contains creative solutions to make paleo friendly versions of modern foods such as noodles and sandwiches.
Weak points
* I couldn’t find any major flaws with this product. It delivers exactly what it promises. One drawback is that nutritional information is not listed for each meal, but that’s not hard to look up yourself either. The book also contains some recipes with “forbidden” foods that might anger some of the purists but these did not bother me.
Overall
One of my clients swears by this cookbook, which was the main reason I wanted to read and review it. I don’t typically consider recipe books but I was pleasantly surprised by Young’s. It delivers what it promises and does so in a stylish way. The collection of recipes may be used whether one is dieting, bulking or just maintaining their physique.
I’ve tried about a dozen recipes so far, and they’ve all turned out well. My personal favorites are coconut chicken curry, white fish with almond and tomato sauce, and “kids” meatloaf (no idea how Young came up with that name). The coconut sorbet dessert was awesome. There’s also a coconut chocolate cake I’d really like to try but I’ll have to ask someone to make that for me. Baking is just too much for a simpleton like me. But I’ll report back once I can bribe someone into baking it.
This book holds even greater value if you’re following the paleo diet to a T, which I don’t (nor does the author, according to an interview). Want a quick paleo snack? It’s here. Want’s a filling paleo meal that requires little prep time? It’s here. Want to impress someone with an elaborate paleo dinner? It’s here too. But regardless of your diet habits, the recipes in this book will keep you occupied for a long time, adding variety and flavor to your meals.
If anyone already has this book, or buys it, feel free to post your personal favorites in the comments section.
A quick note about paleo diets in general
There’s now research that supports the health benefits of a paleo diet. A recent study* showed participants’ health markers improved when they switched to a paleo diet for ten days. Most people will see benefits in these markers simply by making an effort to eat healthier, in which case the cause would be reducing calorie intake and the resultant weight loss.
This study was of particular note because calorie and macronutrient intake was controlled and set to maintain the weight of participants. The benefits seen – such as lower fasting insulin, improvements in insulin sensitivity and blood lipids – resulted from manipulating quality, not quantity, of foods in the participants’ diet.
Also these results were recorded after merely ten days of following the paleo diet, so they were seen without the confounding factor of weight loss. When it comes to health, the paradigm of “a calorie is a calorie” doesn’t ring true. However, it isn’t wrong to assume that similar results would have been obtained by following a regular “clean” diet despite what some of the hardcore paleo proponents may tell you.
* Frassetto, et al. Metabolic and physiologic improvements from consuming a paleolithic, hunter-gatherer type diet. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2009 Feb 11.
