EasyPaleoMeals Is Back on Pinterest

Summer is finally winding down and it seems like I will finally getting back to writing up some new posts on EPM.  It's been an awesome, but hellishly busy summer for our family and frankly, blogging is just low on the priority list when the weather is nice.  Blame it on living in upstate New York.  Our summers our brief and we milk every warm moment we can out of them.

Pinterest

As the title suggests I have created a new Pinterest account.  You may link to in from the sidebar on www.EasyPaleoMeals.org.

Pinterest killed my original account last winter for reasons unknown to myself.  Apparently they do that to people.  No explanation was given, though I tried for months to find out why and get it reinstated.  But whatever, it's their platform and they can run it as they see fit.  From what I have read, I believe that it had something to do with verifying my website and listing it on Pinterest as a business (which I had done just a couple of weeks prior to getting evaporated). So this time I will keep it more low profile, although it appears that they have made a lot of changes to the interface... and hopefully to the algorithm they use to weed out spammers.

So, I had around 2500 individuals following my boards on Pinterest last time around, and EasyPaleoMeals.org still gets a ton of traffic from Pinterest Pins.  Hopefully we get get some of that former glory back.

I appreciate the help of everyone who reads EPM! Thanks!

It's A Boy.... Oh Boy Oh Boy

What's Been Going On At Home

Our new son was born on March 5th.  He is healthy and pretty much happy, but he is damn demanding.  We knew that we were incredibly lucky with our daughter two years ago.  She was and is exceptionally independent and content.  Our son is another story.  I am pretty amazed at how much complaining he does, but that's the way it goes.  Maybe nature lures you into having another kid by making the first one easy.

So we have a demanding newborn and now a 2-year-old who is competing for attention. Fortunately my wife and I are both at home together for another month.  After that, I am on my own.  I am certain that we will find more of a rhythm before she goes back to work.  Right now the pace is insane, and only being able to sleep in 3-5 hour increments for more than a month is definitely pretty brutal right now.  I smell a post about getting adequate sleep and Paleo in the near future...

But man, I really feel tremendously lucky to have two healthy, happy, and perfect kids.  We are really blessed and I truly appreciate both of them and all of the effort my wife has put into ensuring her pregnancy was as healthy as possible and continuing with breast-feeding and all the challenges that go along with that.

EasyPaleoMeals

Right now I am way behind on catching up with emails, writing posts, and several other things I want and need to be doing.  I am back on track to get 4-5 hours of work done a week, starting today.  So this post will address a couple of things, then I am back to work on the site.

Kutsko Kitchen

I got a really nice email from Nate Kutsko of Kutsko Kitchen just before the baby insanity started. I will respond to him today but I wanted to mention his beautiful wooden cutting and serving boards with integrated channels.  I have tweeted about them and pinned them before, but I really feel that they are great kitchen prep and dining tools which fit in perfectly with the Paleo lifestyle.  I plan to review a Kutsko Kitchen product in the near future, so keep an eye out for that.

Theme And Logo

I am still looking for an appropriate theme that is going to give me the look, feel and function that I want for EasyPaleoMeals.  I think I have a couple narrowed down.  If I can't get it to look the way I want it to look I may just leave it as it is now, but I really want something different.  I also have a couple of ideas for a new logo design.  It incorporates the simple green and black block letter design I currently use, but I think it will generally look a little more appealing and give a better initial impression of what I want the site and brand to be all about.

I originally designed the current logo to be very simple and easily recognizable on all facets of social media. I think it works well for that, but it needs a little something extra.  Right now it is low on my priority list, but it is on my radar.  Right now I want to focus on content, which I have a million ideas for but little time to execute.

So that is is for now.  More when I have more to tell.  Thanks for reading!

Some Easy Paleo Meals Updates

Some Quick Updates (For The 3 People Who Actually Read This Blog)

In 5 days we will be having Child #2.  So that is my major preoccupation at the moment.  We have been busy physically preparing the house for our new baby boy to arrive next week and mentally preparing our daughter for her coming world upheaval.  Oh, and we have been mentally preparing for for the next several months of living on a few hours of sleep at a time... if we are lucky anyway.  So wish us luck.

EasyPaleoMeals

I have been working on some new posts.  I am a terribly inconsistent blogger.  It's not that I am not working to continuously improve the site, but I just find little time to create worthwhile content that I think people will be interested in reading.  When I publish something, I want it to be great and not half-assed.

In another effort to make EPM into a more better and more relevant blog, I think that I am going to start taking down PaleoPancakes.co and publishing that content to to EPM.  This will allow me to shut down PaleoPancakes.co and focus more effort on EPM.  While I am at it, I'll be updating the images from that site and making them more Pinterest friendly.

I am probably going to do the same thing with PaleoSoda.blogspot.com.  I will start migrating that content over to EPM.  My hope is that all of this content will help bolster the site, add a little more gravity to the EPM brand, and and make it a generally more engaging experience.  Also, I am kind of lazy about updating so many niche specific blogs. So it is time to get these posts under one roof.

I am also experimenting with new blog templates for EPM.  So if you hit it up and see something crazy going on or an error message, just check back later and it should be fixed.  The standard WordPress template is responsive and clean looking, but I want something a little more refined and professional for the future. That is one of the behind the scenes things that takes up a lot of my time.

Social Media

I have signed up for a Vine.co account and a Pheed.com account.  I have published a few Vine videos which are set to automatically publish on my Facebook page and Twitter account.  Nothing too interesting, but I really like the concept of short and fast videos.  I think there is some cool stuff I can do with that medium.

Pheed is totally new to me, but I really like the concept there too.  Especially the audio side.  I have yet to post anything up to Pheed but I think there are some cool things I can do there too.

I have said it before, Pinterest is the one social medium that I really love.  I spend most of my time there and I automate my Tweets and Facebook updates from Pinterest.  Google+ is fine but doesn't engage me like I thought it might originally.  In my mind, it is just a slightly more cumbersome version of Facebook.  Meh. Maybe something cool will happen in the future to change my mind, but for now I only use it in conjunction with Twitter and Facebook.  If Pinterest makes it so that you can post to G+ then I will probably use it more.

Again, if you want to know what EPM is all about, follow me on Pinterest. 

New Year and Another New Approach

As we roll deeper into 2013, I have taken some time to once again re-evaluate the direction and mission of EasyPaleoMeals. My original vision for creating a Paleo diet recipe site and later, a Paleo recipe sharing site never manifested itself in the way I thought it would.

I am not sad about that at all.

Change

What I have is a new opportunity to find a different path which is better suited to my strengths as a Paleo lifestyle blogger.  Truthfully, it has taken me a while to really figure out what I enjoy most about the Paleo lifestyle.

I know that there is no way that I will ever have the time or desire to constantly cook and create new Paleo recipes to share. And with other incredible websites out there already doing this to such a high standard, it just doesn't make sense for me to keep trying.

I love Paleo food. I love writing about Paleo food. I like cooking and making Paleo food, but I don't love cooking and making Paleo food.

The food I make for myself and my family... I just want to eat it. I want it to taste awesome, but I don't want to think about it in intricate detail, then take photos of it and describe every detail of its construction.

What do I love doing?

I really enjoy reading books and blogs on Paleo cooking, education, and fitness. I love making great recipes that others have agonized over the details on, and have crafted fantastic flavor from. I love sharing delicious recipes and Crossfit hacks I have found in Pinterest.  I am also a minimalist and kitchenware geek and I love to discuss really cool and simple kitchen tools that I use.

So, EasyPaleoMeals goes in yet another new direction. The face of my daily activity will be dedicated to Pinterest. I love Pinterest. Yes, EPM has a Facebook page, Google+ presence, and a Twitter account, but being the highly visual person that I am, Pinterest suits me best.

What does this mean for EasyPaleoMeals.org?

The website itself will continue to represent a base for my other Paleo blogs about my two favorite Paleo food subjects (PaleoCookies.net and PaleoPancakes.co). It will also be the place where I write about some other subjects I want to explore. But primarily, EPM will be where I post reviews of Paleo and Primal related cookbooks, lifestyle guides, CrossFit related fitness and motivational books, 30-day Paleo challenges, and probably some reviews of cookware that I find essential, healthy and useful while cooking Paleo food.  I won't rule out the odd recipe once in a while.

I believe that this is a better general direction for EPM right now.  It's back to just me operating the site and controlling the content.  We'll see how it works out.  If you are reading this post (and still interested!) I want to thank you for sticking with me and I hope that you will enjoy the new direction.  Please feel free to email me with your feedback and suggestions.  It is appreciated!  EasyPaleoMeals(at)gmail(dot)com

Happy Paleo Holidays - Paleo Roasts Cookbook Review

Happy Paleo Holidays from EPM!

If you are a Facebook Fan of EasyPaleoMeals or follow us on Google+ or Twitter, you have already heard me tell you about Nikki Young's brand new eCookbook; Delicious Paleo Roasts

What It Is

This is an eCookbook (instant download in pdf format, no tax or shipping and handling charges) and Nikki Young is initially releasing it for $7 (regular price is $12).

What You Get

Delicious Paleo Roasts is what the title says; an eCookbook dedicated exclusively to roasted meats and vegetables.  The eCookbook contains 20 recipes including:

• Citrus-Garlic Butterflied Leg of Lamb
• Pine Nut-Stuffed Lamb with Cinnamon and Cayenne
• Braised Venison Roast with Apples 
• Mediterranean Slow-Cooked Turkey Breast
• And of course, 16 more

These recipes are just in time for the Holiday season and any one of them will easily become Holiday a tradition for those leading a Paleo lifestyle.

Our Thanksgiving Meal

We made the Mediterranean Slow-Cooked Turkey Breast recipe for our Thanksgiving dinner and it was delicious!  We look forward to making more of these recipes for other occasions including Christmas this season.

I personally think that this is an incredible bargain for a Paleo eCookbook and jumped right on it (cant' go wrong with only $7!).  I do like to recommend great Paleo cookbooks when I come across them, and since I have had such good luck with other Paleo eCookbooks from Nikki Young, I do not hesitate to recommend Delicious Paleo Roasts before I have made anything from it.  I am quite certain that these recipes will be awesome, and I hope that you will give them a shot too!

Here is the link again: Delicious Paleo Roasts by Nikki Young

Take Care,
Chris

Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies and Squidoo

Just a fast update since it's been a while...

Paleo Chocolate Chip Cookies
I'm still plugging away on content for EasyPaleoMeals.org.  Last week I created a new post on Paleo chocolate chip cookies for PaleoCookies.net.  That was just a quick overview of some of the excellent Paleo chocolate chip cookie recipes I've been trying out recently.  I don't have any of my own recipes that I have been working on, but I thought it was way overdue for a post on chocolate chip cookies.

Squidoo
I have been spending a lot of time on Squidoo lately creating some cool Lenses on Paleo-related subjects.  I really like the Squidoo Lens (i.e. blog) format.  I don't know why, but I just do.  It's a great community and actually pretty challenging to put together a decent looking Lens.  I can't say that I am doing a great job at it by any means, but I enjoy it and I think I have put together some pretty unique and useful content so far.  Please check it out: EasyPaleoMeals on Squidoo

The EPM eBook Status
The Special Report/eBook I have been working on hasn't seen much progress lately... probably because I have been distracted by Pinterest and Squidoo!  But it will be ready sometime during or shortly after Christmas and New Year's.  I believe that the timing will be appropriate for the content I am creating.  This is going to be a completely free eBook and I think people are going to be pretty blown away by the quality of the content and the value it offers.  Again, this will be completely free.  I am probably nuts for spending 4 months plus on an eBook and giving it away, but I hope that people who enjoy my blogs will get some good information from the content and pass it on to others (okay, I am really hoping that people will spread the word about EPM!).

That's all I have for now.  I will try to post again before the end of the month.  Follow me on Google+, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest for more frequent news and updates!

Take care,
Chris

Reconsideration

It's been a few weeks since I have written any updates on the status of EasyPaleoMeals.org.  Not for any good reason mind you.

The Paleo Crickets Are Chirping

I realize that I fully expected bloggers and businesses to be knocking the door down to be the first to publish an article promoting themselves on EPM.  Delusions of grandeur have certainly humbled me and our team.

The intention of the site is still to promote the Paleo lifestyle by sharing the vision and experiences of others.  Although the lack of submissions has been disappointing, it has not altered our goals for EPM in the long run.

I think we all realize that the site needs more promotion and more internally generated content before we start seeing elevated community participation.

Re-Focus

So, as we slowly build the site and the EasyPaleoMeals brand, expect more content generated by us, and probably some re-publishing of content already created for PaleoCookies.net, PaleoBreakfast.co, and PaleoPancakes.co.  These websites are still anchors for what we started out doing over a year ago and will continue to provide some great unique content for the Paleo community.

One More Note

We are working on an "EPM Special Report".  What does that mean?  Well, soon we hope to implement an opt-in sign up form on all of the EasyPaleoMeals.org family of websites.  You know, the same kind of newsletter sign up form you see on all of the major Paleo websites.

Like everyone else, we want to respectfully capture the email addresses of everyone interested in EPM so that we may continue to build a relationship with them and make sure they are the first to known about any news or special offers we have to share in the future.

Sometime soon, when you access one of our websites you will be asked if you want to join our mailing list.  In return for that favor, we want to give you something.  That something will be a highly detailed Paleo lifestyle-related report.

I don't want to reveal exactly what that report is going to be on just yet, but it is something that anyone following the Paleo/Primal/Ancestral lifestyle is going to want to read.  It's going to be awesome and knock people's socks off, I promise!

The plan is for this special report to be the first of a long series.  This first report is the culmination of over a year of research, and I believe that it will be very well received.

I am going to leave it at that for now.  So keep an eye out for some more promotion and the email opt-in soon.

Cheers,
Chris

Guest Post Submission Requirements and FAQ is in Beta

We are continuing to work this week on putting together specific requirements for guest post format and content.  While this will be a work in process for a while, it will remain fairly loose in terms of specifics.  You can see what we have so far by clicking here: EPM Guest Post Requirements, Submissions, & FAQ

As we keep saying, our mission is to have incredibly high quality guest-generated content that anyone in the Paleo/Primal/Ancestral community may benefit from.

If you have a story you would like to tell, a blog or business that you would like to let the world know about, please contact us with any questions you might have or submit your idea or outline for a post you would like to contribute.  We look forward to hearing from you!  info@easypaleomeals.org

-Chris

Our First Guest Post Is Up

We published our first guest post today: Paleo Foods That Will Help You Build Muscle by Guilia Gonzaga on EPM.

We are also working on our standardized Guest Post Requirements which I think will continue to be a work in process for a while.  But don't let that stand in your way if you are a Paleo-related blogger, writer, or business who wants to post on EasyPaleoMeals.org.  Please contact us and we can give you some guidance.  info@easypaleomeals.org

This is just a brief update this week.  More to come next week!

Welcome To The EasyPaleoMeals.org Blog

Our First Blog Post
Welcome to all EasyPaleoMeals.org fans!  We have created this blog as a way to keep you informed on everything going on behind the scenes at EPM.  The reason for this is the new direction we are taking with the site.  But before we get to that in subsequent posts, let me explain a little bit about myself and about the origins of EPM.

About Me
I am Chris.  I am the founder of EasyPaleoMeals and originally I was the guy creating all of the posts and working on the site myself.  Now I am the Managing Editor and Social Media Liaison for EasyPaleoMeals.org.

What that means is that I now play the role of organizing the content of the site (more on this later). I have also been elected by my partners as the social media voice of the organization.  Basically, if you are reading anything posted by EPM on this blog, Twitter, Google+, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Pinterest, or elsewhere, there is a 99% chance that it is me doing the writing.  I will apologize in advance!

About EasyPaleoMeals.org
As I said, I created the website almost a year ago.  I began writing blogs which revolved around my experience with the Paleo Diet shortly after converting to the Paleo lifestyle in early 2011.  I fell in love with the the science of the diet and quickly began seeing results.  I wanted to share the best recipes and resources that I had found with others and before long I had four successful blogs all about Paleo food.

I originally intended to make EPM a website that consolidated those four blogs, but I got really busy just working on the four sites individually.  So, time had passed and the site existed as a shell for a very long time.

Fast forward to about two months ago and there are now three of us with a common passion for Paleo and a bigger vision for what EPM could be.  With this shared interest in the website, we decided that we really wanted to create something that contributes significantly to the Paleo/Primal/Ancestral community.  Something bigger than the three of us and something that has not been done before.

What's Next?
I was going to leave this for the next post, but this is supposed to be a "behind the scenes" blog, so here goes.  We are still working on all of the details and the exact approach, but in a nutshell, we are working to create a community of Paleo-related bloggers.

Our intention is to open the website exclusively to guest posts/articles.  EPM will be exclusively user generated content that is NOT in a forum format.

Now, we have nothing against forums at all.  But what we want is to create a space where bloggers or individuals can create posts containing fantastic original content in a continuous stream of conscious about anything Paleo or Paleo-related.

Most importantly to us, it will be a place where Paleo bloggers can get unprecedented exposure for their work and their own websites.  This will give readers the chance to sample different writers work and give them the opportunity to find someone they can relate to and really speaks to them.  There will be massive benefits to the writers in the form of increased exposure and traffic to their sites as well.

We believe that this concept has the power to really change lives by helping to promote healthy lifestyles with Paleo nutrition and fitness, and also help writers and bloggers find dedicated followers while making the community stronger as a whole.

There is more to come.  So please look for our next blog post and make sure you follow us on EasyPaleoMeals.org, Google+, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Pinterest for more information as we move ahead.

Chris