Amber Beam is the author of Weeknight Paleo: 9 Weeks of Quick and Easy Gluten-Free Meals. She develops quick, easy, and flavorful recipes that follow a grain-free, gluten-free approach. Amber enjoys spending time with her husband and English Bulldog, watching James Bond films, and occasionally indulging in exceptional chocolates.
October Unprocessed is a chance to reassess what you eat and why. It invites you to consider what “good food” means for your body and to test those ideas in a practical way. Every day we make hundreds of small choices about food; taking time to question assumptions can help you make decisions that truly support your health.
Information about diet and nutrition can be overwhelming, with conflicting claims about fats, calories, and carbohydrates. A simple way to cut through the noise is to run a personal experiment: try changes on yourself and observe the results. In scientific terms, many studies include dozens of participants (n=30 and up), but in the Paleo and real-food communities a personal trial—n=1—is a valid and useful approach. You are the only subject you need to care about: your body, your results.
As your own experimenter, start by asking practical questions: Which foods leave you bloated or sluggish? Do processed foods cause energy crashes? Does dairy or gluten affect your digestion or mood? By eliminating processed foods for a period—especially during October Unprocessed—you can directly compare how you feel before and after the change. Many people notice improvements quickly: fewer sugar crashes, smoother digestion, clearer skin, or better sleep.
When I adopted a Paleo-style diet—removing sugar, dairy, soy, legumes, and grains—I experienced noticeable benefits: weight loss, more restful sleep, fewer energy dips, and clearer skin. Beyond these physical changes, the experiment helped me understand the link between whole ingredients and how I felt. I stopped seeing my struggles as a personal failing and started treating food as a tool for better health: more vegetables, fruit, and quality protein.
Making that shift also required practical changes. To eat mostly unprocessed food I had to learn to cook regularly and rely less on takeout and frozen meals. Real food tends to have a short shelf life, so planning and preparation became essential. Over the course of a year I taught myself kitchen techniques and discovered time-saving shortcuts that made cooking manageable even with a busy job and a long commute. The effort paid off: cooking became a priority because it reliably improved how I felt.
My experience inspired me to write a cookbook for people who want wholesome meals that fit hectic modern lives. Cooking from real ingredients doesn’t have to be complicated; it just requires a commitment to practice and a few reliable techniques. Once you accept responsibility for what you eat and how you feel, small changes add up.
I encourage you to run your own n=1 experiment. Try removing processed foods for a few weeks, pay attention to energy, sleep, digestion, and mood, and adjust based on what you learn. Become a thoughtful, not-so-mad scientist of your own health—test your assumptions, learn from results, and adopt the habits that make you feel your best.
Carnitas-Style Taco Tower
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Ingredients
- Leftover pulled pork
Sassy Coleslaw
- ½ cup freshly squeezed orange juice
- ¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
- ½ small red onion
- 2 cloves garlic
- 2 tablespoons fresh cilantro
- 1 tablespoon honey
- ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
- salt & pepper to taste
- 1 package of pre-shredded coleslaw, wash before use
Avocado Cream
- 3 ripe avocados
- 1 lemon, juiced
- 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
- salt & pepper to taste
Instructions
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To make the Sassy Coleslaw, combine orange juice, lime juice, red onion, garlic, cilantro, honey, and oil in a food processor and blend until smooth. Season the vinaigrette with salt and pepper. Toss the coleslaw with the dressing in a large bowl and refrigerate for 30 minutes to let flavors meld.
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For the Avocado Cream, mash the avocados with lemon juice, Dijon mustard, salt, and pepper. Start by mashing with a fork, then whisk or beat until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.
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Assemble the taco tower using a food ring mold. Place one-third coleslaw into the form and press down gently. Add leftover pulled pork to fill the next two-thirds, pressing to compact. Top with avocado cream, lift the mold, and repeat for remaining servings.
Notes
Nutrition
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