Love cookbooks and cooking tips? Then this week’s links are going to be right up your alley! 

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

Cookbook Hoarders, Unite!

It’s official: October is National Cookbook Month. Really—I’m not making it up as an excuse to justify my out-of-control cookbook hoarding. Want to see the newest books stacked up on my nightstand?

First up: Danielle Walker’s Against All Grain: Meals Made Simple!

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

Danielle’s setting the cookbook world on fire with her two bestsellers—one comforting grain-free meal at a time. Her latest release, Danielle Walker’s Against All Grain: Meals Made Simple, builds on the wonderful recipes of her first cookbook by taking the guesswork out of making dinner.

By the way, simple doesn’t mean boring, folks. Take a bite of Danielle’s famous Pepperoni Pizza Pasta, and you’ll understand what I mean.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

In Meals Made Simple, Danielle streamlines the cooking process, providing make-ahead options, shopping lists for efficient grocery trips, slow cooker/one-pot/and 30-minute meals, and eight(!) full weeks’ worth of dinner ideas.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

If you have this book, you’ve got no excuse not to cook.

Next up: Mediterranean Paleo Cooking!

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

It’s been eons since I last pinballed around Europe, but I’ve always been crazy about the bold flavors of the Mediterranean. Not surprisingly, I couldn’t wait for Mediterranean Paleo Cooking to show up on my doorstep. Caitlin Weeks and Chef Nabil Boumrar, a delightful couple from San Francisco, have achieved the near-impossible (or at least improbable): they’ve created tantalizing recipes for all sorts of dishes I thought I’d never eat again when I started Paleo. Falafel? Pita bread? Ravioli? Check, check, and check.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

The photos and layout by Diane Sanfilippo make the dishes in this gorgeous tome pop off the pages. Best of all? There are extensive modifications for every recipe, so don’t fret if you’re AIP, nut-free, egg-free, low FODMAP, SCD/GAPS, or lower carb—or all of the above—you’re all in luck! (If you’re allergic to everything, you’re not often called “lucky” when it comes to food, but I AM NOT JOKING.)

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

As someone who likes to flavor-boost my dishes with the least fuss possible, I can’t get enough of Cindy Sexton’s new cookbook, Paleo Takes 5 or Fewer.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

Distilling a recipe to its bare essentials takes considerable skill, but Cindy does it with apparent ease and a whole lot of style throughout her flavor-packed book. Grab some sticky notes when you flip through Cindy’s book; you’ll find yourself bookmarking everything from Duck Fat Cabbage with Pork & Caraway Seeds to Chunky Beef Chili.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

Bonus: each deliciously simple recipe has nutrient density facts provided by super nerd Dr. Mat Lalonde.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

Ask me how to get your family to eat Paleo, and I’ll refer you to Stacy Toth and Matthew McCarry—a.k.a., The Paleo Parents. For years, these two have led by example, showing how adopting a real-food lifestyle has kept their kids healthy and active, and resulted in an over 200-pound collective weight loss for the adults.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

In their new book, Real Life Paleo, The Paleo Parents demonstrate how to transition to Paleo with an easy 3-phase approach and tons of actionable tips and tricks. My kids have already tagged all the recipes they want me to cook from this family-friendly book.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

Last, but not least? A gift I bought myself: Michael Ruhlman’s How to Roast.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

This one’s the first in a series about fundamental cooking techniques, and it’s a master’s class in roasting. Like Michael’s other cookbooks, this one is sprinkled with his no-nonsense advice—and each recipe is accompanied by clear step-by-step photos by his talented wife, Donna. 

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

Whew! I’ve got my reading cut out for me…

Cyber Farmers Markets

I know, I know: Support your local farmer. But let’s get real: sometimes, I find it hard to get my lazy butt to the farmers’ market on the weekend. Luckily, I live in the tech-obsessed Bay Area where you can support farmers by ordering their products online for delivery to your door. It’s like magic!

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

Don’t believe me? You can read about the digital grocery platforms that are designed to disrupt the supermarket system at a price people can afford in the new issue of Edible San Francisco. It’s a win-win, if you ask me (and they did!).

Cooking Tips Up the Wazoo!

Mark Bittman, noted journalist and cookbook author, recently spoke about how cooking at home was “the most radical thing” we can do—and also how it’s incredibly important. I couldn’t agree more.

To help inspire everyone to cook, I’ve compiled some cooking tips for you to learn and/or practice this week. Yep, I’m giving you homework. AND YOU BETTER DO IT, TOO.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

  • Study this nifty infographic about apples and cooking and learn which varieties work best for certain cooking techniques. Then, find a new apple variety, and make my Bacon Apple Smothered Pork Chops

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

  • Do your salad greens get wilted and melty in a blink of an eye? The Kitchn experiments with three suggested methods for extending the crispness of lettuce greens and suggests the most effective one. (Spoiler: put the greens in a paper towel-lined airtight container!)

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

  • You’re reading my blog, so chances are, you like eating meat. But cooking meat can be an intimidating process ’cause no one wants to ruin an expensive piece of sustainable, pastured protein. Don’t worry! Listen to this recent Fresh Air episode where the sage food nerds from America’s Test Kitchen give their best tips from their new cookbook, The Cook’s Illustrated Meat Book. Love pork? Check out this great visual guide from the book that shows you what to do with the common retail pork cuts.

Forky Friday: 10/24/14 by Michelle Tam https://nomnompaleo.com

Now, go forth and conquer your kitchen!


Looking for more recipes? Head on over to my Recipe Index! You’ll also find exclusive recipes on my iPad® app, and in my New York Times bestselling cookbook, Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans (Andrews McMeel 2013).

About Michelle Tam

Hello! My name is Michelle Tam, and I love to eat. I think about food all the time. It borders on obsession. I’ve always loved the sights and smells of the kitchen. My mother was (and is) an excellent cook, and as a kid, I was her little shadow as she prepared supper each night. From her, I gained a deep, abiding love for magically transforming pantry items into mouth-watering family meals.

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