CANDIED BACON SALAD Remember when bacon was A Thing? It was everywhere. Bacon chocolate, bacon cupcakes . . . I love bacon as much as the next Paleo person, but I’m glad to see that the hype has died down a bit. That doesn’t mean I’m not going to freak out about this...

BÁNH MÌ TACOS There’s a great burger place in Roanoke, Virginia, called Beamer’s 25 (named after Virginia Tech football coach Frank Beamer), and I almost always order their Bánh Mì burger, a pork burger topped with pickled veggies and served with a side of ginger. I...

BABY BACK RIBS My brother makes the best ribs I’ve ever had—it’s probably his dry rub, which he was nice enough to share with us here. My husband and I love making ribs on a Sunday when we’re going to be home all afternoon and can enjoy the smell of spicy, slow-cooked...

VACA FRITA Over the years I’ve discovered that my favorite foods are generally those that do well with a generous squeeze of fresh lime juice—pad thai, tacos, and a lot of Latin dishes like this one. Vaca frita translated into English means “fried cow,” and it’s...

TACO SALAD If you come over to our house and I wasn’t expecting you, I’ll probably try to feed you this taco salad. It’s one of my favorite easy recipes, and I never get sick of it (probably because it’s topped with avocado, salsa, and lime—three of my favorite...

STEAK MARSALA At first I thought it would be hard to find something Paleo to eat at an Italian restaurant, but it’s really not too bad if you do a little digging past the pasta and lasagna. I love to order steak Marsala if it’s on the menu, and I get a side of...

SHEPHERD’S PIE There are so many great things you can do with cauliflower (which is why we have an entire chapter devoted to it), but one of my favorites is to mash it up with some garlic and butter and use it in place of potatoes. This Paleo Shepherd’s Pie does just...

ROPA VIEJA If you haven’t been to Miami, you should go, and eat Cuban food every day—it’s wonderful. I had ropa vieja for the first time at a Cuban restaurant in Miami, and I really liked it. The dish got its name because ropa vieja means “old clothes” in Spanish, and...

MEATBALLS I think meatballs were the first dish to give me what I now refer to as “flour rage,” which is when you go Paleo and suddenly realize how much gluten, sugar, and dairy are in foods that really don’t need them. Milk in scrambled eggs; sugar in every sauce...

HAMBURGER AND RICE–STYLE GROUND BEEF When I was younger, my mom would make hamburger and rice all the time—it was one of my dad’s favorite meals, and my brother and I grew to love it as well. Some people who follow the Paleo diet swear by white rice as an acceptable...