The fabulous Melissa Joulwan, Whole9 Envoy Extraordinaire, author of The Clothes Make the Girl and  Pop Candy trading card vixen, has ventured once again into the bright lights of stardom.  Her new cookbook, Well Fed,  features more than 115 mouth-watering recipes from every corner of the world.  But Well Fed is more than just a cookbook – it’s the definitive resource for every Paleo chef (and aspiring chef).

In Well Fed, you will find all the practical details you’ll need to jump headfirst into a Good Food lifestyle, including a sample shopping list and step-by-step instructions for planning and cooking your meals.  (And the foreword is practically Paleo-Pulitzer prize-worthy. Yes, it’s worth the price of admission all by itself. No, we’re not biased.)  Finally, this book is gorgeous.  Coffee-table-worthy, don’t you dare spill chimmichurri on it, leave it out on the counter for all to see gorgeous. 

Want some more details?  We’ve been following the creation of Well Fed from Day One, so we can absolutely give you details.

Getting Down to Basics

Well Fed includes a comprehensive “No List” that quickly details which ingredients you’ll not find inside – and why. But that list is quickly followed by an expansive “Yes List”, which gives a great visual representation of all of the foods you will be eating during your healthy eating transformation.  This simple, detailed “Yes List” quickly and effectively takes the focus off of what you won’t be eating, and gets you excited about all of the new and delicious foods you’ll soon be featuring on your plate.

But knowing what to eat is only the first step in the process.  Knowing how to eat, in a way that fits your busy life, kitchen experience and culinary skills, is another matter altogether.  But don’t worry – Well Fed’s got you covered! Thanks to Joulwan’s expert kitchen management skills and the detail she’s included in this cookbook/handbook,  you’ll no longer find yourself stuck in Good Food Jail, chained to your stove (and dishwasher) to ensure you’re well fed.  She shows you, step-by-step, exactly how to properly prepare enough food for the week – without turning your kitchen into the set of I Love Lucy.

And finally, this cookbook, and the delicious meals contained within its pages is food that you (or we, or anyone) can actually cook.  No French, $3,000 kitchen appliance or dictionary of cooking terms required.  (We know that’s a standard line when it comes to cookbooks, but this it’s true – we swear on Julia Childs.)  The recipes in Well Fed will make you appear as a culinary genius to your Doubting Paleo family and friends – just remember to hide the cookbook-evidence. (You know, smoke and mirrors and such).

Around The World In Whole30 Days

Once you own a copy of Well Fed, you officially lose all right to complain about “boring” food.  Joulwan’s recipes will take you around the world without the cost of airfare or the smell of sweaty strangers on a bus. Sri Lankan curry sauce, Czech meatballs, Scotch eggs – oh the places you’ll go! Cook your way from the Far East to the East Coast, stopping everywhere of culinary importance along the way, without compromising the standards you’ve worked hard to define in your diet.

And the best part – these recipes will take you all the way through your Whole30 – and back.  Well Fed details enough 100% Whole30-approved recipe creations to provide you with enough breakfasts, lunches and dinners to last the duration of your program – with a few “repeats” thrown in for your favorite meals. (Seriously, there’s only ONE recipe in Well Fed that’s not Whole30 approved.  Just one!  And it’s so amazingly delicious, we couldn’t fault her for giving it to you.)

Family Ties

As if the great resources and Whole30-approved recipes weren’t enough to sell you, here’s what we love most about Well Fed: Joulwan’s family stories.  Scattered throughout the book, her tales of cooking with her parents, learning from her Dad and creating new dishes together shines a bright and poignant light on what food really means to us.

A common theme around here (the Whole9 community) is the social, familial and cultural value of food. For most of us, food is a connecting point, a medium through which our lives touch and overlap the lives of those around us. The smells and tastes of the foods around us are inexorably linked to the memories we’ve created and the traditions we’ve built.  Joulwan beautifully and poignantly illustrates how you can take the rich heritage that food has given your family, the food that feeds your soul, and make it applicable to the new way you have chosen to feed your body.

Get Well Fed!

Thanks to the fabulous Melissa Joulwan, there is absolutely no reason for you to ever complain that Paleo food is boring again – and not to buy your own copy of Well Fed (and several to give away as gifts).  This more-than-a-cookbook book has the potential to revolutionize your food-life, is Whole9/Whole30 endorsed and probably also has superpowers. (But we can’t vouch for that…officially.)

Bon appétit, friends!

Melissa Joulwan’s Well Fed can be purchased in print or e-book format through The Clothes Make the Girl storefront.  You can also download a free PDF sampler with kitchen tips and sample recipes.