Good Meat Cookbook

Whether you're already consuming sustainable meats like grass-fed beef, or you're heading in that direction, it's important to understand that meat raised on grass cannot always be prepared in the same way as conventional meat. Grass-fed beef is much leaner so there is little to insulate it from the heat source, making it important to cook with lower temperatures.  Also because of the lack of insulation, the meat will cook about 30-50% faster!  I'm embarrassed to admit how many grass-fed roasts and steaks I've ruined because I didn't know how to properly cook them!

As someone who knew very little about cooking until 10 years ago, I tend to depend a lot on cookbooks (truth be told, I'm a "cookbook junkie") for guidance and instruction.  That's why I am so thrilled about a new cookbook designed specifically for sustainably raised meats.  Please allow me to introduce "Good Meat-The Complete Guide to Sourcing and Cooking Sustainable Meat" by  Deborah Krasner.

This is not just a 400 page cook book with over 200 recipes (weighing in at 5 pounds)! It's a complete educational resource. My favorite part is the section on "Cow Anatomy" where she breaks down where each cut of meat comes from and how to communicate a cutting order to the butcher.  When I first started buying meat directly from the farmer, nothing was more intimidating than getting that call to say "Your beef is ready, time to get your cutting order to the butcher!" Yikes! I had no clue what was I doing.

Krasner's cookbook not only does this for beef, but offers the same great information on lamb, pork, rabbit and poultry!  If you're like I was and the only thing stopping you from buying a whole side of beef, pork or lamb is not understanding how to find it and order it, this is for you.  The book is packed with beautiful full-color photographs, thorough explanations of cooking techniques and, for those of you blessed with a little acreage, she even discusses the economics of raising meat in your own backyard. 

High Fat, Low Carb Hitting the Mainstream

You know something has finally hit the "mainstream" when it shows up in Reader's Digest, People Magazine or appears on the nightly news with Katy Couric.  I've been preaching a high fat diet (from clean sources of grass-fed animal fat ) for the past 10 years so although it's been a long wait, it's still nice to see the "mainstream" finally catching up as evidenced in the December issue of Reader's Digest.  There you'll find an interview with Gary Taubes, author of the new book, "Why We Get Fat And What To Do About It".  Gary's new book promises to be a myth-shattering examination of a century's worth of dietary advice.  I can't wait to read it!

Right now I am still working on the amazing book, Primal Body, Primal Mind by Nora Gedgaudas, but I suspect there is a very similar message being promoted.  High fat, moderate protein, low carb seems to be the wave of the immediate future and my husband, Scott, and I have decided to put it to the test.  Starting January 1st we completely eliminated all sugar and grains (actually I started back on November 1st, but Christmas threw me off a bit) and are following the high fat, moderate protein, low-carb lifestyle recommended by today's leading nutrition researchers in the fields of both weight loss and longevity sciences (anti-aging).

While we have eaten liberally of clean sources of animal fat for the past 10 years, I have struggled to give up sugar and grains and have never really understood the consequences of eating too much protein.  Primal Body, Primal Mind has neatly tied it all together for me and we are so far thoroughly enjoying the new meal plan!  I continue to lose approximately one pound each week of "baby weight" and eagerly look forward to discovering my body's new "normal".  I consistently gained 40-50 pounds with all five pregnancies so the look back to 135 lbs has gotten longer and longer each time.  However, with only 8 lbs. to go, I couldn't be more confident that "low fat" eating is NOT the answer!

Also, please understand that finding optimal health is not just all about weight loss.  On a high fat diet you will begin to heal your entire body and mind! To help illustrate and prove this, at the end of October I had a complete blood chemistry analysis and I've decided that for better or worse, I will reveal the results of those tests after I am tested again in 6 months.  Scott hasn't had "before" testing done yet, but I'm hoping I can twist his arm to join me in our own little "case study".