Easy Eats - May/June 2012

Bacon Burgers, Grain-Free Onion Rings and Ranch Kale Chips from “Should You Go Paleo?” (Get the recipes, page 47). Photograph by Stephen Scott Gross. Food styling by Joyce Sangirardi.

LIVING AND LEARNING

Back when I was a bakery owner and Italian food writer, I never would have thought in a million years I’d be cooking gluten-free for my family — let alone people everywhere. It all started with a casual conversation with my friend Doe about Isaiah’s diagnosis and how I had to rethink most of the recipes in my repertoire. She suggested that I write a gluten-free, dairy-free cookbook. “You know,” she said, “you could really help a lot of people with your recipes.” That’s all it took, and my life has been full of surprises ever since. That was five years ago.

Since then so much has changed, not just for me, but within the gluten-free community. What I’ve found most compelling goes beyond my kitchen. So many people have written me about other dietary issues they have. Each one of us has such individual needs: Some also need to be dairy-free, refined sugar-free, grain-free and so much more, which has led me to the Paleo diet, a lifestyle free from all of these foods.

The possible health benefits of following the Paleo diet include increased energy, reduced inflammation and improved sleep. To learn the basics, we went straight to the source—Robb Wolf, bestselling author of The Paleo Solution. Plus, we gathered more than a month’s worth of recipes from bloggers across the country so you can see for yourself if the Paleo diet is right for your body. As for me, I’ve always been a big believer in eating whatever makes you feel good. Sometimes, just slowing down and listening to our bodies can be just what we need.