Our good friend, Steph, found of the Stupid Easy Paleo blog, has written a kick ass cookbook on the best nutrition for optimal physical performance.
Stephanie says it best in the introduction, "Quality nutrition forms the base of the performance pyramid, and it's even more critical to success than training time, sleep and everything else you do. Eating nutrient-dense, whole foods that provide the energy and substrate for training and recovery is the key to building a solid foundation."
The Performance Paleo Cookbook is packed with meal strategies based on your workout schedule, meal planning tips, pre-workout snacks, post-workout refuels, protein packed meals to help build strength, sides that are carb-dense to maximize recovery, and more, including macronutrient breakdowns!
Steph was kind enough to let us feature her Creamy Mango Jalapeño Dressing recipe:
CREAMY MANGO JALAPEÑO DRESSING
Sweet, tangy and a little bit spicy
This dressing was a happy coincidence. When I was developing my Crunchy Slaw With Chicken (page 158), I wanted to add some sweet and spice. Instead of adding chopped mango and jalapeño, I threw it all into the blender and came up with this dressing. It’s surprisingly creamy, and you can customize the heat level by keeping more or less of the jalapeño seeds.
MAKES 4 SERVINGS
1 cup (92 g) mango, fresh or frozen
Zest of 1 lime
6 tbsp (90 mL) lime juice
2 tbsp (30 mL) light-tasting olive oil
1 jalapeño pepper, stem removed
1⁄2 tsp sea salt
1⁄4 tsp fish sauce
Combine all the ingredients in a high-powered blender or food processor and blend until smooth. If you add the entire jalapeño pepper—seeds and inner white membrane— the dressing will be medium to spicy.
TOTAL RECIPE MACRONUTRIENTS (IN GRAMS PER SERVING)
PROTEIN TRACE
FAT 7G
TOTAL CARB 10G
NET CARB 9G
If you or someone you know is looking to take their performance to the next level, nutrition is where it's at, and they should definitely get it all started with The Performance Paleo Cookbook.