Nom Nom Paleo: Food for Humans

If you like cookbooks, then I have a fantastic treat for you! Michelle Tam and Henry Fong have written a delightful, funny, warm, and satisfying cookbook filled with mouth-watering photographs and fascinating recipes. This is not your average, run-of-the-mill cookbook. Not by a long shot.

Tam has been recording her Paleo-inspired recipes on her blog for years now. (see www.nomnompaleo.com) Her style is humorous, irreverent, and engaging. She employs cartoon drawings of herself and her family as well as loads of silly jokes. Her cookbook is very similar to her website.

Despite her lighthearted style, Nom Nom Paleo recipes are seriously substantial. However, her cookbook is not an in-depth guide to Paleo eating or living. If you are looking for loads of scientific analysis, you'll need to go elsewhere. But if you desire lots of delicious-sounding, intriguing, international recipes which shun all grains, dairy, legumes, alcohol, and refined sugar, then this is definitely the book you crave.

My daughter, home from college for the summer, immediately fell in love with this gorgeous cookbook and decided to make the chicken nugget recipe as well as the cauliflower mash. The nuggets were way too labor-intensive for me to even consider (keep in mind I am a lazy cook!) but we bought the ingredients and the whole family took advantage of the results of her labor.


The nuggets came out quite salty-- a result of brining the chicken pieces for an hour before shallow frying-- but moist and tasty. The light coating of starch (we used potato starch as we didn't have arrowroot) was slightly crispy. The cauliflower was yummy, too. I added a touch of heavy cream (NOT included in this Paleo recipe!) to make the mash a bit creamier. No one would mistake the texture for mashed potatoes, but this is a nice dish anyway. (Do you like my placemat???)

The chicken nuggets and cauliflower mash were probably two of the most boring, although kid-friendly, recipes in the whole book. You might prefer the Kalua Pig, a traditional Hawaiian recipe made in the slow cooker. Or how about Crispy Roast Pork Belly? Big-O Bacon Burgers? Fast Pho? Pistachio Apple Salad?

Every time I turn the page, each new recipe has me drooling. This might be a cookbook I have to purchase and own. And if you know me, I don't say that lightly. (I am not only lazy, but also a cheapskate.)

So check it out at your local library. Or buy your own copy! I think you'll love it.


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