Real Food Basics Review {+ Sprouted Biscuit Recipe)

Real Food Basics was the first book I read that introduced me to the crazy concept that fats are good. It introduced me to a lot of concepts, actually, like drinking raw milk, soaking grains and avoiding sugar.

Before reading this book, I thought that what I was eating was a healthy diet. I was so wrong. And I had the constant headaches, rashes and body aches to prove it.

Thankfully, Real Food Basics gave me a good foundation to start with. From there, I’ve done a lot more research and made real food the norm in our house. Kate’s book made it easy to get started and a lot less overwhelming than I would have made it. Now, a few years later, Kate has learned even more and decided to release a second (very pretty) version of Real Food Basics.

Here are some highlights from Real Food Basics:

Real Food Doesn’t Have to Be Weird

How many times have you thought of health food and had an image of something strange and unappetizing come to mind? Yeah, me too. Which is why I was so relieved to read through this book and find that I knew what all of this stuff was. I just needed to learn how to prepare it a little differently.

Kids Enjoy Real Food

My kids love the real food versions of the stuff they used to eat. So much of what we make was already familiar (and delicious) to them, so it wasn’t very challenging to get them to try it. (Getting them on board with our love of Thai food has been a bit of a challenge, though. Sigh.)

You Don’t Need a Bunch of Extra Stuff

Real Food Basics comes with a handy kitchen supply list. On it are the basics: good knives, baking sheets, crock pot, etc. Nothing is required that you probably don’t already have on hand. She does have a “nice to have” list, which, I’ll admit, some of those things are nice to have – like a really good blender – but they aren’t necessary.

Real Food is Simple

The basic takeaway from Real Food Basics is to eat it avoid processed food and eat plenty of healthy fat. By introducing us to real foods by making minor changes to familiar foods, Kate makes eating a nourishing diet simple and sustainable.

(If you’re not new to real food and you’d like even more great recipes, check out Kate’s other books here.)

Sprouted Biscuit Recipe

The following recipe is from Real Food Basics:

Image by Katie at Nourishing Simplicity

This recipe isn’t easily adapted for soaking because of the need to have cold butter.  Sprouted flour is the best, but unbleached flour could be subbed in a pinch. Almond flour also works for a grain- and gluten-free option. (Kate explains how and why to make sprouted flour in the book).

Ingredients:

• About 2 c. sprouted spelt flour (I had just under)
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. salt
• 4 tbsp. butter
• 1 c. buttermilk
• Flour for dusting

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Mix the flour, baking soda, and salt together. Cut the butter into 1 tbsp. chunks and add it (cold) to the flour mix. Use a pastry blender to cut it in, leaving some larger chunks (about the size of peas). Don’t be afraid to do it a lot less than you think you need to — this is the secret to fluffy biscuits!!

(By the time I was completely finished working with my dough, I had chunks of butter sticking out everywhere. Some even melted in the oven as I put the biscuits in and turned brown on my baking sheet. You NEED the dough to look like this!)

Add buttermilk a little at a time, stirring very gently until incorporated. Put the dough onto a floured cutting board (it will be sticky) and fold it over a few times. Roll it out and fold it over twice (like you are folding a towel – leave it quadrupled). Roll it out again, and fold it over twice. Roll it out a third time. This process puts the fluffy layers into the biscuits.

Cut biscuits in any shape you’d like (I did triangles so I wouldn’t have to re-work the dough to cut more, since too much working results in less tender biscuits).

Bake for about 15 minutes on an ungreased cookie sheet. Serve warm. Makes 4 – 6 servings.

Get it now

Real Food Basics is Kate’s featured book for the month of February, which means it’s only $5! Get the pdf of Real Food Basics now! Or, if you prefer to use an e-reader, you can grab the Kindle version here.

Have you gotten a copy yet? What’s your favorite part? What are you excited to try?

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