Recipe book recommendations for a young family

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Kisti
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Recipe book recommendations for a young family

Post by Kisti »

Hi everyone,

I just found out I'm APOE 3/4 the other week. I'm 36 yrs old and have no first degree relatives with Alzheimer's (yet), and I've gone through 2 pregnancies in the past 4 years without gestational diabetes or high blood pressure (if anything low blood pressure). I want to work on some lifestyle changes but because of the business of life with 2 little ones it has to easily fit into what we're already doing.

The biggest challenge right now is food. Everything I cook has to work for everyone (kids age 1, 3, and adults) and has to be reliably successful and delicious (I'm a bit of a foodie. I wouldn't be happy eating a head of broccoli and a can of salmon for lunch). Bonus if it can be done in an instant pot or a whole meal baked together on a pan (or two).

I'm really struggling with breakfasts that don't have bread, eggs, or added sugars (granola), but that can either be made in advance on the weekend or can come together in the same amount of time as these foods we're used to making for breakfast. We do love smoothies but in the middle of the Canadian winter and -30 degrees celcius they aren't so appealing right now.

I have both of the Oh She Glows cookbooks and we love them. But they don't include the fish and other animal products of the Mediterranean diet.

I know the internet is full of recipes but I prefer to work with books, or a good recipe blog, especially for planning main meals. Are there any recipe books that people love that will make these diet changes easier? Where I don't need to worry about checking ingredients and can just know anything from it will be good for reducing my Alzheimer's risk? I've been looking at the Plant Paradox cookbook online but can't decide. Thanks!
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srbogert
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Re: Recipe book recommendations for a young family

Post by srbogert »

Kisti wrote:Hi everyone,

I just found out I'm APOE 3/4 the other week. I'm 36 yrs old and have no first degree relatives with Alzheimer's (yet), and I've gone through 2 pregnancies in the past 4 years without gestational diabetes or high blood pressure (if anything low blood pressure). I want to work on some lifestyle changes but because of the business of life with 2 little ones it has to easily fit into what we're already doing. ...
I have both of the Oh She Glows cookbooks and we love them. But they don't include the fish and other animal products of the Mediterranean diet. ...
Where I don't need to worry about checking ingredients and can just know anything from it will be good for reducing my Alzheimer's risk? I've been looking at the Plant Paradox cookbook online but can't decide. Thanks!
Hello Kisti, and welcome to the group! First, congratulations on your good health to date, and on your commitment to staying healthy. Life with young children is a challenge, and so I understand your desire to keep it both good and simple. Since you are new to the ApoE world, I'd like to suggest that you look at the Primer. It describes the issues related to having ApoE4, and provides some lifestyle strategies for managing it.

For recipes, I'll recommend that you take a look at the Recipes from Our Members Wiki Page. It may not be as extensive as you would like, but its a good place to start. You can also do a search for recipes and cookbook recommendations (Including Gundry's book) that are sprinkled throughout the forum. This link will get you started. See the How To Guide to learn more about doing advanced searches.

With that said, I'll just add a note of caution that no cookbook is going to be right for everybody all the time. The real name of the game is eliminating inflammation, and that is an individual thing. Some folks are more sensitive to certain foods than others (dairy, grains, beans, saturated fats, and so forth), and you will have to find what works best for you. Good Luck - and let us know if you find a cookbook that you like.
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SusanJ
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Re: Recipe book recommendations for a young family

Post by SusanJ »

Kisti wrote:Are there any recipe books that people love that will make these diet changes easier?
Check out Danielle Walker. She's a well-known food blogger, her 4 cookbooks are very creative (and the later ones offer changes for SCD, Whole30, etc) and she has 3 children that she cooks for. I have all of her cookbooks. I have many favorite recipes I use regularly, while some recipes don't work for my diet, and many others are easy to modify, especially if you are used to cooking. Her last one offers several Instant Pot and sheet pan meals to make dinner easier.

Many of her breakfast recipes do contain the things you are trying to eliminate, so my best breakfast advice would be to rethink what you eat at breakfast, such as doing a hash or leftovers, but you could also look for homemade sausage patties, n'oatmeals/porridges, chia puddings, homemade non-dairy yogurt with stirred-in nuts and spices, or fruit sweetened baked goods.

If you're not opposed to fruit-sweetened recipes, here are a couple examples of her recipes:
https://againstallgrain.com/2012/03/18/ ... paleo-scd/
https://againstallgrain.com/2013/01/04/ ... -porridge/

I'd say start with her blog (https://againstallgrain.com/recipe-index/) to get an idea of her cooking style, and then decide if you want to splurge on the cookbooks.
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CarrieS
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Re: Recipe book recommendations for a young family

Post by CarrieS »

Kisti wrote:Are there any recipe books that people love that will make these diet changes easier?
SusanJ wrote:Check out Danielle Walker. She's a well-known food blogger, her 4 cookbooks are very creative (and the later ones offer changes for SCD, Whole30, etc) and she has 3 children that she cooks for. I have all of her cookbooks. I have many favorite recipes I use regularly, while some recipes don't work for my diet, and many others are easy to modify, especially if you are used to cooking. Her last one offers several Instant Pot and sheet pan meals to make dinner easier.
I love Danielle's books too and change ingredients to fit my personal dietary needs.
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