Foodies100 bloggers come from wealth of backgrounds and culinary heritages and in this new series we take a peek into some of our community’s different kitchens.

Today we look into a Paleo inspired kitchen which is where Ruth from Let Her Eat Clean cooks.

What is Paleo?

Paleo, also commonly referred to as Caveman, Hunter-Gatherer and Stone Age, is short for The Paleolithic Diet. That is, a diet or modern nutritional plan based on the presumed ancient diet of our ancestors.

 What did our ancestors eat?

Pure, unadulterated fruits, vegetables, lean meats, seafood, eggs, nuts and seeds, healthy fats; nothing more, nothing less – or so the godfathers of The Paleo Diet tells us.

These Paleo Diet ‘founders’ are often called out as Robb Wolf, Mark Sissons and Loren Cordain  with each of them having a series of informative books to their name.

Cutting the cr@p

Ultimately Paleo just cuts out the refined, processed junk that has crept into our diets as a result of modern day food processes. It eliminates refined sugar but also excludes grains, dairy, legumes, starches and alcohol on the basis that our bodies aren’t meant to consume them.

Fat won’t make you fat

But in the absence of cream, knock yourself out with pork crackling, chicken skin, coconut, lard and bacon. These Paleo folk are wild for bacon… Ultimately fat becomes the Paleo dieters’ fuel in the absence of more modernly assumed traditional ‘energy’ foods such as rice, pasta, bread and white potatoes.

Why would I bother? It sounds like a faff

Many people tend to go down the Paleo road in an effort to lose weight. It’s a non-restrictive approach that doesn’t require any form of weighing, measuring or macronutrient calculating. Once you’ve got a well stocked Paleo-friendly pantry, the rest is relatively easy. Pretty much everyone that follows a Paleo diet also reports awesome ‘side effects’ that include seriously improved general health and well being. There are numerous success stories associated with Type 2 diabetes reversal and being able to ditch medications previously taken for cholesterol issues, for example.

So if you’re Paleo you never, ever eat chocolate again?

There are certainly many shades of Paleo. ‘Proper’ Paleo for want of a better term is quite simply pure, unadulterated fruits, vegetables, lean meats, seafood, eggs, nuts and seeds, healthy fats. However, 80-20 Paleo is probably the most common. That is, someone who eats strictly Paleo 80% of the time but does dip their hand into the biscuit tin or ice cream tub for the other 20% of the time. Common Paleo ‘treats’ include dark chocolate, red wine, high quality dairy and any of the glorious recipes from Natural Kitchen Adventures’ great bakes section!

Are you up for giving Paleo a go?

About Ruth

Ruth is very much part time Paleo – given her penchant for Pinot Noir, the darkest chocolate and the creamiest organic Cornish brie. She blogs over at Let Her Eat Clean and recently shared her thoughts on Paleo here.

Ruth will be running a Paleo seminar in conjunction with Momentum Training in London on July 13th. For more information see here.

If you would like to share what goes on in your kitchen with the community please leave a comment below.