About

In 2011, we started out this blog basing our meals on the principles of the primal diet, also sometimes referred to as paleo, low-carb or the “caveman diet”. It made sense to us from an evolutionary standpoint to eat foods were available to the early humans – namely meat, seafood, fresh vegetables and fruits, nuts and seeds.  One could say the focal point of this eating plan was avoiding sugars and grains, particularly grains that contain gluten. 

The Perfect Health Diet (graphic from http://perfecthealthdiet.com/the-diet/)
The Perfect Health Diet (graphic from http://perfecthealthdiet.com/the-diet/)

This eventually evolved into the Perfect Health Diet, as it was a more accurate representation of how we were eating, since it included rice and the “pleasure foods” that we’ve never saw fit to give up.  When making long-term dietary choices, it makes no sense to absolutely deny yourself foods that make you happy.  Life is short, after all.  Who wants to spend it without decadent dark chocolate, paella, cheesy goodness, Pinot noir, and roasted nuts?

Now, 10+ years down the road, we have incorporated grains and legumes back into our diet – after all, we now live in New Mexico!    Labels aside, this blog is about eating real food – not food in packages with nutritional labels or that you see advertised on t.v.   Quality counts, a lot!  Meat and eggs from pasture-raised animals are not only better for you, but better for the environment.  It only takes common sense to realize that ingesting pesticides found on conventionally grown fruits and vegetables can’t be good for you in the long run.  Supporting local farmers, when you can, helps the local economy and reduces food transportation costs.

So, in a nutshell:

  • Eat fresh, organic produce when possible
  • Eat certified organic meats/eggs, preferably from animals that were pasture-raised and treated humanely.
  • Avoid artificial ingredients, processed foods, high-fructose corn syrup, GMO, etc.
  • Simply-prepared foods are the best and let the flavor of the food shine!
  • Enjoy your life and your food!

I hope you enjoy the recipes and the music!  Thanks for visiting!

Nancy

I’m the “He Cleans” portion of the show, and my role is part taste tester, part wine opener, and DJ. While Nancy tempts your taste buds with her excellent skills at the stove, I’ll provide the soundtrack for the meal and who knows what else.

So, if the kitchen’s a rockin’…you’ve found the right place! Hope you’re hungry!

James

Here we are back in 2011…

plaza

32 thoughts on “About”

  1. Hi there Nancy & James!

    My name is Steve Walters and I recently started blogging at http://www.eatingbangkok.com, which is currently being updated with recipes, but in the next few months will be my vehicle for covering the food and restaurant scene in Bangkok Thailand.

    I am now in the process of meeting as many food bloggers as I can and I found your site http://shecookshecleans.net recently and was pretty impressed. I’ve added your site to my Foodie Blogs list here: http://www.eatingbangkok.com/foodie-blogs/ and would also like to add you to my blogroll.

    If you could add my site to your blogroll and write back to let me know it has been added I will add you to mine as well and the exchange would be greatly appreciated!

    As you might imagine I am very excited to get moved to Bangkok and get started on covering the food scene there as I feel it is an area that isn’t well covered by English speaking bloggers. I plan on adding loads of great reviews, pictures and even video and will be holding contests as well. It should be fun, entertaining and informative for everyone that visits.

    Thank you so much in advance for adding me to your blogroll and I look forward to reading your posts (I’ve subscribed!) and maybe even featuring some of your own posts as I do plan on a weekly roundup of Thai themed recipes and posts from other food bloggers.

    Warm regards,
    Steve

    P.S. If you are on Twitter I would love to have you as a follower and I follow back:

    Reply

    1. As you’ve discovered, I’m a new blogger at “Musings of a Sly Rooster.” I truly enjoy your recipes (Lemon Garlic Shrimp over Cauliflower Mash is an absolute favorite) and appreciate your food philosophy. I look forward to future collaborations!

      Reply

      1. Thank you, Sly Rooster! I read some of your posts already and enjoyed them….particularly the one about your “gluten-free” relatives. ha! I’m glad you don’t hold it against us that we try to be gluten-free. 🙂

  2. Hi! I just found your blog on tastespotting and I have recently started taking my family’s diet ‘back to the basics’ and I just heard about olive oil turning to a trans fat when heated I noticed your food pyramid says no cooking with the olive oil – I cannot find any documentation on this. I assume that is why YOU don’t cook with it? Could you give me any information on this and/or sources? I typically like to get my info from the Weston A. Price foundation and I am very excited about this journey in food – I also LOVE food and am excited to do some more looking around on your website. Thanks so much
    Megan
    http://foodsofourlives.com

    Reply

    1. Hi Megan!

      Thanks for the comment and thoughtful question.
      To be truthful, I do cook quite a bit with olive oil. I try to use coconut oil and fats from good meats as much as possible, but sometimes I’ll mix them with olive oil in the pan. Also when I roast vegetables in the oven, it is usually olive oil that I use to coat them – mostly because it is more convenient and I like the results.

      There seems to be a lot of controversy about the extent and significance of oxidative damage caused by heating olive oil. I take solace in this article from Mark’s Daily Apple, at http://www.marksdailyapple.com/defending-olive-oils-reputation/. He says:

      “Let’s put it to rest – olive oil, especially good quality virgin olive oil with all the phenolics intact, is decently resistant to heat-incurred oxidative damage and a great addition to your diet. And if you’re worried about exposure damage, adding a bit of vitamin E to olive oil seems to reduce oxidation. (…) Keep your intake moderate, don’t use it as a frying staple, choose the good stuff, and try to use it mostly at room temperature. I find that the culinary benefits of extra virgin olive oil (the taste, the pepperiness, the subtle depth) and the nutritional benefits (the phenolics, primarily) become heightened when added at room temperature (or at the most gently warmed) to dishes. I love butter and ghee and coconut oil as much as anyone, but the undercurrent of fear surrounding the exposure of olive oil to slightly elevated temperatures and to oxygen is unfounded and, in my opinion, misguided.”

      You can probably find more information there, if you’re interested in exploring his links and sources for the cited studies.

      Thanks again for visiting…hope you enjoy the website!

      Nancy

      Reply

  4. Hi–very excited about your site. I stumbled on it last night via Serious Eats. About 6 weeks ago I cut out most carbohydrates from my diet. A year and a half ago my husband and I began eating only local meats. We purchase as much local produce as we can, and local cheese too. We haven’t really subscribed to gluten-free or paleo, but are simply trying to eat in a way that makes sense to us. Your approach seems very similar to ours. I’m excited to look through your recipes and pick up some tips!

    Reply

    1. Hi there! We’re glad you found us, and hope you enjoy the recipes! We feel better after cutting out the wheat, but still like our cream, butter, cheese, and wine…I don’t think there’s a name for that approach yet. We just try to eat the best we can! Thanks for the comment!

      Reply

  5. I just found your blog through chowstalker. I really, really like it. Very nice recipes and it’s a bonus that it’s all primal. It’s always nice to find people who share my love for good recipes and food philosophy 🙂

    I will definitely visit more often. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply

    1. Thanks for the support on the food philosophy – after spending the weekend out of town, with people giving me strange looks about not eating bread at every meal – I could use it!

      Hope you continue to enjoy the blog!

      Reply
  7. Pingback: Gluten-free Pasta « Hedgerow Harvest

  9. Thanks to a mutual friend/blogger, Ms. Neverfrychickenwhenyourenaked, I’ve now found you here and on Facebook. I have perused a few of your recipes and am hooked! Looking forward to your inspiration in the kitchen, from the turntable and the “he cleans” part of this blog. I am the cook, cleaner and DJ at my house! So excited to have found you!

    Reply

    1. Isn’t Ms. Neverfrychickenwhenyourenaked wonderful? I really appreciate her for bringing me to your attention – and also appreciate your comment here for bringing YOU to my attention. I’ve been enjoying your inspiring posts on facebook for a while, but never got around to following your blog. That has been corrected now! Thank you for stopping by. ~Nancy

      Reply

      1. Thanks, Nancy. I am honored to know that you’ve read some of my posts. I am looking forward to trying your recipes, since I’ve found my way back into the kitchen to play in my food!! Gluten free now, I’m anxious to do even more with veggies, fruits and meats!! 😉

  10. Hi Nancy!

    First, let me introduce myself. My name is Amanda Riva and I am the Owner & Co-Founder of The Hot Plate (www.thehotplate.com). I found your blog and could not stop drooling over the photos! The Hot Plate is a free community for the hungriest Food Lovers on the web, and I’d love to have you share your recipes with us!

    The Hot Plate has lots of ways for you to promote and share your recipes with thousands of Food Lovers across the world! Now you can:

    – Promote your recipes and blog by submitting them to our THP Loved Photo Section (if you use Foodgawker and Tastespotting you know the drill)

    – Be part of the webs fastest growing community of hand picked Food Lovers

    If you have any questions or comments do not hesitate to let me know!

    Happy Cooking,
    Amanda

    Reply

    1. Thank you, Kari! I don’t have a recipe for fried chicken – I have never been very good at frying and have an irrational fear of trying to fry chicken. However I know who does have a great recipe for gluten-free fried chicken….check out The Domestic Man. He has many other wonderful recipes as well!
      http://thedomesticman.com/2012/05/15/gluten-free-southern-fried-chicken/ and
      http://thedomesticman.com/2012/12/27/gluten-grain-and-garbage-free-chick-fil-a-nuggets/

      Reply

  13. Just want to let you know that I enjoy your blog, particularly the graphics on this page and the photography. Come on over and check out my blog too if you’d like! holisticnutritionbasics.com

    Reply

  14. hi nancy, i really really like your blog. strangely, i really enjoy it because i am specifically not paleo and have no desire in ever switching over from my carb-riddled diet. i’ll explain.

    your blog gave me a little bit of hope. lately, a lot of my friends have gone paleo, and they are a little bit rabid about it. they literally insist on eating nothing but roast pork belly or bacon for almost every meal. it makes it impossible for me to invite them for dinner parties, and eating out in restaurants has become nigh impossible.

    it is nice to see that you guys are paleo, but polite and understanding that not everyone is or should be. thank you for that. i’ll definitely stop in time to time to see what you guys are up to.

    Reply

  15. Hi Misha! We appreciate that not everyone can commit to giving up yummy, yummy, delicious bread…especially the crusty type dipped in olive oil, or flaky biscuits…. Ok, I’m having a hard time right now, gotta snap out of it.

    We’re not so much paleo, but we are freaks about quality ingredients. However, I think that enjoying life and not alienating everyone around you is more important than adhering to some regimen (unless it is truly medically necessary). Sometimes you have to eat that chicken casserole that your mother made, even when you know it has chicken from a bad lifestyle in it, and the vegetables aren’t even close to organic, and (gasp) it might have bread crumbs on it.

    By the way, just followed your blog. Love your writing – -had me smiling before I even finished my first cup of coffee!

    Reply

  17. This weekend we came home with our 1/4 side of grass fed beef, in our order was a tri-tip. I’ve never made a tri-tip before and we just made your marinated tri-tip recipe and OMG it was delicious. Thank you for sharing your recipes. I’m excited to try some of your others.

    Reply
  18. Pingback: Pan Seared Blackened Flounder - Yak OutlawsYak Outlaws | For all things Kayak and SUP fishing

  19. Hi Nancy, I found your recipes on Pinterest and can’t wait to try them! I’m a diabetes educator for children with diabetes. I volunteer with Slamdunk (a basketball camp for children with diabetes). I’m always looking for help tips to share with parents and children. Hoping that you’re still posting.

    Reply

Leave a comment