The Beginning

For anyone that knows me I have started a million blogs (okay not really that many) and some how have fallen away from them. I am not a gifted writer nor do I have anything really profound to share to the world. I do however, enjoy talking about the things I am passionate about. My parents and especially my wife, Laura, would call me a gypsy. I hate settling and it takes me forever to make a decision and when I do I will probably change it. So many times when I talk about being passionate about something the first thing Laura will say is, 'what is it this week?' However, no matter how many times I change my mind about a million different things I am always passionate about food. I love to eat! It isn't a secret and to be honest it has caused me to weigh a little more than I would like.

For as long as I can remember I have had stomach issues that has bothered, but has not really stopped me from eating even though I knew I might get sick. In the past few years I had become more in tune with what I was eating. I tried getting organic when I could, especially from local farmers or my own garden. I looked for local farmers who produced better meat and egg products. Yet, I was still eating junk. I was loading up on pasta, chips, and sweets. I had a love for Coca-Cola that was hard to break and which I occasionally still break. Sometime during this past summer I stumbled across the Paleo diet. I cannot remember how it happened but it did. I read the book The Primal Blueprint by Mark Sisson and it made sense. If you have never heard of the paleo diet (also called the primal diet, the caveman diet, and various other names) it basically states that we should avoid all grain, sugar, anything processed, dairy (although there is discussion on this), nightshades, legumes, soy, and no alcohol. What is allowed is meat (preferred grass fed, all natural, wild caught), most veggies (except for white potatoes, corn, and beans), nuts in limited quantity, fruit in moderation (because of the sugar content). This is by all means not an exhaustive list nor a full explanation of the diet. When I read the reasons though behind why this was the way to eat it made sense. The further I read the more it made sense. This diet has not only helped people lose weight and become more healthy but also help individuals with problems such as MS. 

I tried all summer to talk to Laura into starting the diet. She agreed but it is hard to give up a lot of the things that you love and are used to. We were rocky all summer long and broke it a lot. Recently that began to change. Laura who has had hypothyroid issues most of her life was recently told by her doctor that she should be following a Paleo diet. Her immune system is actually attacking her thyroid because of the things she eats. We are slowly fully phasing over and so far it has been good. Learning to cook without the things that have become second nature to me in my kitchen has been a little bit of challenge. I cook a lot with coconut oil and lard. I do not use any grains and instead use almond and coconut flour. In fact I just made some wonderful Chocolate Chip Cookies. I won't be eating cookies to often but it is nice to have a treat every now and again. 

My hope is with this blog I can talk about the recipes that I am making and how they turn out. I also plan on planting a garden again next spring and will begin using those ingredients in my cooking. I also hope that people will learn about Paleo. I understand the many reservations that you may have about the diet but learning about it wouldn't hurt. I know that not everyone would be willing to try and I also know that it is not the cheapest diet to be on. I'm hoping my garden next year will cut down on some of those costs but it will still be a little more costly then how I previously ate.  

Until later. 

- Christina