with paleo- approved mayonnaise.
DAIRY-FREE NOT RECOMMENDED
These recipes are not recommended to be
made dairy-free by making substitutions.
HANDS-ON AND TOTAL COOKING TIMES
Note that all total and hands-on times are
approximate. Times don’t include preheating
the oven, boiling water, or making optional
toppings or sauces. If marinating is required,
the least amount of time required is included
in the total time. For recipes with sauce or
dressing, those instructions are included in
the order in which the timing is most efficient
for the entire recipe.
1 HOUR OR LESS
These recipes can be made completely within
an hour.
SOAKING REQUIRED
This label applies to recipes that include
soaking an ingredient for 1 hour or more.
CHILLING REQUIRED
These labels apply to recipes that require
chilling for 30 minutes or more.
SECONDARY RECIPE
This label only applies if the secondary recipe
isn’t optional (e.g., teriyaki sauce for teriyaki
meatballs). Even so, sometimes store-bought
options can be subbed. This does not include
salad dressings or optional toppings.
SLOW COOKER
These recipes require the use of a slow cooker.
Important Tips & Tidbits
Understanding measurements. To avoid any
wording confusion, let me clarify how dry
measurements are described: If I say, “1 cup
cucumber, sliced into ½-inch rounds,” that
means you are measuring a cup of ½-inch
rounds, not a whole cucumber. Another
example is: If I say “⅓ cup shallot, minced”
you are measuring ⅓ cup minced shallot. A
rounded cup means a few pieces of what you
are measuring (often fruit) will stick up above
the measuring line.
Basic recipes. Many cookbooks have a section
on how to make healthy “basic” recipes, like
properly cooking beans, making homemade
nut milk, or making homemade stock. I do not
have this, because the reality is: I don’t make
beans from scratch, I rarely make my own
nut milk, and the few times I’ve made my own
stock, it stunk up the kitchen for a whole day.
Instead, I look for BPA-free organic canned
beans and full-fat coconut milk, as well as low-
sodium, free-range organic chicken broth. If
you are interested in more of these DIY basics,
there are ample book resources out there, if
you do some noodling.
Preparing bananas for smoothies. My favorite
smoothie foundation is the magical banana.
A ripe frozen banana turns any smoothie
into something creamy and decadent, even
when it’s packed with veggies. I always have
a bunch of bananas ripening on the counter.
When they are dotted with brown spots, I peel
and slice them into 1-inch pieces. I then add
them to a plastic food storage bag and lay the
bag flat, horizontally in my freezer. They’ll
freeze in a layer that’s easy to break apart.
Approximately 6 banana pieces equals
1 medium-sized banana.
Eggs. I always use large eggs, and eggs should be
room temperature when used in baking recipes.
Canned coconut milk. If canned coconut milk
feels a little heavy to you, try this: add 1 can
coconut milk to a blender with 2 cups water.
Blend until smooth and store to use as milk
throughout the week. You can also use light
canned coconut milk or unsweetened almond
milk. However, almond milk will create a
product that is less rich and creamy, and I
cannot vouch for the results.
Dates. In this book, I use medjool dates that
come with the pit in. If you can only find
pitted dates, you may need to soak them in
hot water for 10 to 12 minutes, then drain
thoroughly to make them juicy.
Nut/seed butters. Ideally, I try to use newer/
runnier nut and seed butters, because they
