The Paleo Diet Part 12

Honeydew melon, blackberries

Broiled lean pork chops

Herbal tea

Lunch:

Waldorf Salad*

Broiled halibut steak with lime juice

Steamed cauliflower Apple Mineral water Dinner: Tossed green salad with scallions and Figs cuc.u.mbers Chicken Vegetable Soup*

Stir-Fried Beef with Vegetables*

Figs and walnuts Iced tea Snack: hard-boiled eggs, pecans, raisins hard-boiled eggs, pecans, raisins WEDNESDAYBreakfast: Strawberries and apricots Zesty Shrimp-Avocado Omelet*

Cup of decaffeinated coffee Lunch: Cuc.u.mber and tomato slices with Veggie Dip*

Steamed crab Dried apricots Mineral water Dinner: Oysters on the half sh.e.l.l Cuc.u.mber slices dipped in Guacamole Fiesta*

Altamira Stuffed Chicken*

Ratatouille*

Bowl of fresh boysenberries, raisins, and almonds Gla.s.s of nonalcoholic dry white wine Snack: papaya, walnuts, Spicy Beef Jerky* papaya, walnuts, Spicy Beef Jerky*

THURSDAYBreakfast: Strawberries Small beefsteak with Peach Salsa*

Herbal tea Lunch: Tossed green salad with flaxseed oil and lemon juice Sand Harbor Baked Cod*

Medjool dates and fresh nectarines Iced tea Dinner: Marinated Mushrooms*

Green salad with olive oil and lemon juice Broiled Tenderloin of Pork with Spicy Rub*

Steamed cabbage with lemon juice and paprika Baked Walnut-Cinnamon Apples*

Gla.s.s of ice water Snack: cold chicken breast, cantaloupe cold chicken breast, cantaloupe FRIDAYBreakfast: Fresh or frozen blueberries and cantaloupe Cold steamed king crab legs Water with lemon Lunch: Green salad with avocado, quartered tomatoes, and black olives (rinsed of salt) dressed with Anaheim Cilantro Salsa*

Gingery Chicken and Veggies*

Apple Mineral water Dinner: Spinach salad with walnuts and flaxseed oil dressing Cold trout Baked Tomatoes*

Chopped pecans, raspberries, and Medjool dates Mineral water Snack: hard-boiled egg, cold prawns hard-boiled egg, cold prawns SAt.u.r.dAYBreakfast: Cold chicken b.r.e.a.s.t.s covered with Anaheim Cilantro Salsa*

Watermelon Herbal tea Lunch: Tahoe Shrimp Salad*

Melon slices and strawberries Sugar-free Diet 7-Up Dinner: Carrot, radish, cherry tomato, sliced cuc.u.mber tray Baked Haddock Italiano*

Steamed asparagus Almonds, raisins, and peaches Mineral water Snack: Basic Beef Jerky,* oranges SUNDAYBreakfast: Bowl of sliced banana, pears, walnuts Soft-boiled eggs Cup of decaffeinated coffee Lunch: Tossed green salad dressed with olive oil and lemon juice Red Snapper in Snappy Sauce*

Apple slices with lemon juice Mineral water Dinner: Ambrosia Salad*

Broiled lobster tails with olive oil and fresh pepper Steamed artichoke with lemon juice Strawberry-Blueberry Horizon*

Cup of decaffeinated coffee Snack: mango, kiwi fruit, Dried Salmon*

MONDAYBreakfast: Cantaloupe Stuffed with Blackberries and Pecans*

Cold leftover lobster Herbal tea Lunch: Tossed green salad with olive oil and lemon juice Kenny's Barbecued Spicy Chicken*

Tangerine sections Gla.s.s of nonalcoholic chardonnay Dinner: Marinated Mushrooms*

Chicken Vegetable Soup*

London broil sprinkled with fresh ground pepper and garlic powder Spicy Stuffed Squash*

Peach-Almond Delight*

Iced tea Snack: Kyle's Apple Breakfast,* Spicy Beef Jerky*

TUESDAYBreakfast: Grapefruit Cold leftover London broil Herbal tea Lunch: Gazpacho*

Broiled turkey burgers Sliced star fruit Mineral water Dinner: b.u.t.ter Leaf Avocado Salad*

Cajun Catfish Bake*

Steamed collard greens Cantaloupe Stuffed with Blackberries and Pecans*

Gla.s.s of mineral water Snack: peel-and-eat shrimp, cauliflower florets, pecans WEDNESDAYBreakfast: Fresh mangos and papayas Lean breakfast beefsteak smothered with Peach Salsa*

Herbal tea Lunch: Celery and carrot sticks dipped in Guacamole Fiesta*

Paleo Zucchini Soup*

Sauteed Rocky Mountain Chicken Livers*

Fresh blueberries Water with lemon slice Dinner: Spinach Salad a la Cordani*

Tender Buffalo Roast*

Steamed asparagus and carrots with lemon juice and garlic powder Fresh Cinnamon Applesauce*

Cup of decaffeinated coffee Snack: hard-boiled egg, walnuts, raisins THURSDAYBreakfast: Fresh plums Cold leftover Tender Buffalo Roast* slices covered with fresh Anaheim Cilantro Salsa*

Lemon water Lunch: Spicy Tomato Soup*

Shrimp-Stuffed Avocado*

Watermelon Diet soda Dinner: Tomato, cuc.u.mber, and purple onion salad with olive oil Roast Pheasant with Fruit and Nut Stuffing*

Carrot-Mushroom Stir-Fry*

Waldorf Salad*

Gla.s.s of red wine or mineral water Snack: cold, lean steak slices; tomato quarters FRIDAYBreakfast: Cantaloupe Eggs scrambled in olive oil and basil Herbal tea Lunch: Almond Chicken Salad*

Gla.s.s of lemon water Dinner: Marinated Mushrooms*

Isola Baked Pork Chops*

Ratatouille*

Baked Walnut-Cinnamon Apples*

Diet soda Snack: cold chicken b.r.e.a.s.t.s, sunflower seeds SAt.u.r.dAYBreakfast: Fresh or frozen strawberries Poached eggs, cold prawns Tea Lunch: Open Dinner: Tossed green salad with flaxseed oil and lemon juice Barbecued Venison Steaks with Herbs*

Steamed summer squash with lemon juice Walnut Broccoli with Carrots*

2 or 3 Medjool dates Ice water Snack: carrot and celery sticks, raisins, walnuts

So there you have it-three delicious and healthful meal plans (Level I: three Open Meals per week; Level II: two Open Meals per week; and Level III: one Open Meal per week). Use these meal plans to familiarize yourself with Paleo Diet principles. Once you have become a seasoned Paleo Dieter, use your own creativity and ingenuity to develop your own scrumptious Paleo feasts!

10.

Paleo Recipes With the Paleo Diet, you'll end up eating enormously diverse and bountiful meals that include all sorts of fruits, vegetables, meats, and seafood-many of which are rarely or never eaten on "normal" diets.

Throughout this book, I've been telling you how good this food is. In this chapter, I'm going to prove it. On the following pages you'll find a wide variety of breakfast, lunch, and dinner recipes, as well as recipes for making Stone Age snacks and desserts, salt- and sugar-free sauces, dressings, salsas, and condiments to help you launch the Paleo Diet in your own kitchen. Consider them a starting point for your own creativity and ingenuity. Starting the Paleo Diet doesn't mean you'll have to throw out your old cookbooks. It is easy to modify almost any basic recipe to conform to Stone Age dietary principles. I've also just published The Paleo Diet Cookbook The Paleo Diet Cookbook, which contains more than 150 recipes not found in this revised edition of the diet plan.

One cautionary note: In all your cooking, do your best to follow the spirit of the diet. If you eat certain Paleo foods or food combinations excessively, you can sabotage and defeat this lifetime nutrition plan and even gain weight. With modern food-processing techniques and creative recipes, a clever cook can a.s.semble Stone Age ingredients in a manner that defies the basic logic of the diet. For instance, it is possible to make nut and root flours in food processors that can be combined with honey, olive oil, and eggs and later baked to resemble almost any modern processed food with very un-Paleo characteristics-high in carbohydrates, sugar, and fats. Those high-fat, high-sugar, high-carbohydrate Paleo food combinations may taste good, but they're not much better for your health and well-being than cookies, cakes, breads, and doughnuts. These foods are great treats to be eaten every once in a while and are better for you than the commercially available, processed versions. But if they become common fare-particularly if you're trying to lose weight-many of the potential benefits of the Paleo Diet will be lost.

When eaten in excessive quant.i.ties, even unprocessed or minimally processed foods that would have been available to our Paleolithic ancestors, such as dried fruits (raisins, dates, figs, and others), nuts, and honey, can throw the diet off balance and can be particularly troublesome if you're trying to lose weight. The best way to satisfy your craving for sweets is to eat fresh fruit. Instead of pie, think melons-or blueberries, blackberries, pears, peaches, strawberries, or any other favorite fresh fruit.

If you still feel hungry after eating a Paleo meal, eat more lean protein-chicken or turkey b.r.e.a.s.t.s, fish, lean beef, shrimp, crab, or game meat if you can get it-or more crisp, succulent vegetables or juicy, sweet, fresh fruit.

When you carefully examine the Paleo Diet recipes, you'll notice that most of them contain only fresh meats, seafood, fruits, vegetables, nuts, and seeds, with added spices, certain oils, and condiments made from all of these ingredients. Stick to these foods. Depending on your level of the Paleo Diet (I, II, or III), you may occasionally want to include a few recipes that contain vinegar, wine, honey, or a dash of salt. There's nothing wrong with eating these foods occasionally, occasionally, unless you have a health problem or an autoimmune disease, as discussed earlier in the book. Enjoy a gla.s.s of wine, a trace of salt in your food, a bit of honey in your dessert, or even an occasional bagel-but don't make them your norm. unless you have a health problem or an autoimmune disease, as discussed earlier in the book. Enjoy a gla.s.s of wine, a trace of salt in your food, a bit of honey in your dessert, or even an occasional bagel-but don't make them your norm.

Basic Recipe Principles When you make Paleo recipes with modern foods, make sure that all the ingredients are free of: * grains* legumes, including peanuts* dairy products * salt * salt* yeast (baked goods, pickled foods, vinegar, fermented foods, and fermented beverages all contain yeast, which may cause trouble for people with autoimmune diseases)* processed sugars* potatoes* added fats (except for permitted oils in limited quant.i.ties) Try to choose lean cuts of domestic meats. Cook simply by baking, broiling, steaming, or sauteeing in a little oil.

Stone Age Food Subst.i.tutions Salt Subst.i.tute powdered garlic, powdered onion, lemon juice, lime juice, lemon crystals, lemon pepper free of salt, cayenne pepper, chili powder, commercially available salt-free spice mixes, black pepper, c.u.min, turmeric, ground cloves, oregano, ground allspice, celery seeds, coriander seeds, and ground cardamom seeds. Actually, any spice or combination of spices can be used to replace salt. I do not recommend using any of the so-called lite salts or pota.s.sium chloride salts, because chloride, like sodium, is not good for your health.

Vinegar Subst.i.tute lemon or lime juice (fresh or reconst.i.tuted). For tomato-containing recipes such as salsa, replace vinegar with lime juice; with fruit recipes, lemon juice usually works.

b.u.t.ter/Fat Replace b.u.t.ter, margarine, shortening, or lard with olive oil, flaxseed oil, walnut oil, or avocado oil. As I've discussed, olive oil has a wonderful flavor and is high in the health-promoting monounsaturated fats but generally has a poor omega 6 to omega 3 fat ratio. The same holds true for avocado oil. These two oils should frequently be complemented by, or blended with, other oils containing better omega 6 to omega 3 ratios such as flaxseed or walnut oils. The only oil you should cook with is olive oil. Flaxseed and walnut oils are unstable during cooking and may produce toxic by-products.

Sugars Concentrated sugars of any kind-even natural sugars (honey, maple sugar, and date sugar)-were not staple components for our Paleolithic ancestors. Sugars in the Paleo Diet should be obtained mainly from fruits and vegetables, not from concentrated sources. However, fruit purees flavored with lemon juice and spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, mint leaves, ginger, and vanilla, to name a few) can be used in recipes to add sweetness to sauces, condiments, and desserts.

Alcohol Alcoholic beverages clearly were not a component of true Paleolithic diets, and yours should be limited to an occasional gla.s.s of wine, beer, or spirits as part of your Open Meals. Wine, as long as it does not contain salt (as most cooking wines do), can be used to marinate meats and add flavor to many cooked dishes. When wine is used in this context, the amount of added alcohol and sugar is negligible; also, wine contains a number of health-promoting phytochemicals and antioxidants. Note: If you suffer from an autoimmune disease, the alcohol and the yeast in wine or other alcoholic beverages can potentially cause problems, and you would be wise to avoid them altogether.

Cereals Nut flours (almond, pecan, walnut, hazelnut) can be made in food processors or purchased at some health food or specialty stores, and they can be used to thicken sauces or to add flavor to condiments. Again, these products should be used sparingly. They have the potential to unbalance your diet and disrupt your health when they're used excessively or in combination with oils, honey, dried fruit, or fruit purees. The foundation of Paleo Diet carbohydrates is fresh fruits and vegetables-not nut flours, honey, fruit juices, or purees.

Now, bon appet.i.t bon appet.i.t!

Recipes Many thanks to Don Wiss, Patti Vincent, and all of the other cooks, Paleochefs, gourmets, and gourmands at PaleoFood.com for inspiring me. for inspiring me.

FISH AND SEAFOOD.

Cajun Catfish Bake Cajun Catfish Bake2 lb catfish 4 T olive oil 1 clove garlic, minced 3 T freshly squeezed lemon juice 1 tsp black pepper tsp cayenne pepper tsp turmeric Thoroughly wash catfish and place in a 9 13-inch baking dish greased with a little olive oil. Heat the rest of the olive oil in a saucepan and saute garlic. Pour over catfish. Sprinkle lemon juice and remaining spices evenly over fish. Bake at 350 degrees for twenty to twenty-five minutes. Serves three to four.

Sand Harbor Baked Cod1 lb cod filets c white wine yellow onion, sliced 2 T lemon juice 1 T dried dill 1 tsp turmeric Wash fish thoroughly in cool water, and lay it in a shallow baking dish. Pour in white wine. Spread onion slices evenly over fish, and sprinkle with lemon juice, dill, and turmeric. Cover with foil, and bake at 375 degrees for twenty minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork. Serves two to three.

Lime and Dill Crab2 large Dungeness crabs, cooked, cracked, sh.e.l.led, and chilled 2 T lime juice 2 tsp paprika 2 tsp dried, ground dill weed 2-3 limes, cut into wedges 3-4 sprigs parsley, finely chopped Drizzle crabmeat with lime juice and sprinkle with paprika and dill. Serve with lime wedges and garnish with parsley. Serves two.

Baked Haddock Italiano2 lb haddock 6 T olive oil 3 cloves garlic, minced 1 red onion, minced 1 green pepper, chopped 4 tomatoes, diced 6 T fresh chopped parsley 1 tsp dried basil 1 tsp dill weed 1/8 tsp black pepper 2 T lemon juice Thoroughly wash haddock in cool water and set aside. Heat oil in a heavy skillet, and saute garlic and onion until tender. Add green peppers and continue to saute on low heat until tender. Add tomatoes, parsley, basil, dill, and black pepper. Remove from heat and spread half the sauce in the bottom of a 9 13-inch baking dish. Place fish on top, and pour remaining sauce over entire fish. Sprinkle with lemon juice. Cover with foil, and bake at 375 degrees for fifteen to twenty minutes or until flaky. Serves four.