Hey Reader!

In the 68th issue of The MF Kitchen, you'll slice into the details of:

• Recipes for my Elotes Inspired Mac & Cheese and Biscoff Protein Mousse!
• This vegetable has more protein than steak?!
• How you can modify ANY one of my recipes to better fit you!
• A macro friendly cheat code I've used since 2016...

Preheat your ovens…

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Weekly Recipe Roundup 🍽️

Greek-Inspired Chicken Nuggets These Greek Inspired Chicken Nuggets are a unique spin on the classic chicken nugget I’ve never seen done before! They are a flavor bomb, only 34 calories, and are great for meal prep! Click below to download the recipe and make it easy yourself: ​​​Greek Inspired Chicken Nuggets.pdf​

Biscoff Protein Mousse If you want a quick and easy high-protein snack that takes a minute to make, this Biscoff Protein Mousse is it! 27g protein and only 299 cals for a big bowl! ​​Click below to download the recipe and make it easy yourself: ​​​Biscoff Protein Mousse.pdf​

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Recipe Recreations Of The Week 🤌

The best part about kids is that they will ALWAYS keep it real lol. So kiddo approved is ALWAYS the goal! 🍕

Macros for the WHOLE 12" Cheese Pizza:​
580 Cals, 66g Carbs, 12g Fat, 52g Protein

Here's the recipe and video:​
👉 https://www.instagram.com/p/CtMkaHtAme5/​

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Zach's Beats 🎧

This has been my go-to workout mix for the past 2-3 weeks. Warning: It’s for bass heads lol. ​BroHaun Mix Submission​

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Weird Food Fact 🤓

Let’s rewind to childhood for a minute…

You're 8 years old, sitting at the dinner table.

In front of you is a big plate of steamed broccoli, mocking you in all its green, leafy glory.

Your mom hits you with that classic line:

You roll your eyes because you’ve heard this vegetable propaganda before.

Fast forward a couple of decades later, and it turns out, mom kind of had a point.

👉 Calorie-for-calorie, broccoli actually has more protein than steak.

Yeah, that shocked me too.

But before you start blending broccoli shakes for your post-workout gains, here’s the catch…

Broccoli is insanely low in calories.

You’d need to eat over 3 pounds of broccoli (about 400 calories worth) to match the 30g of protein in a typical steak.

And how much steak gives you 30g of protein?

Roughly 4.3 ounces of cooked lean steak (like sirloin), or about the size of a small palm.

So no, broccoli isn’t your next go-to protein source.

But it is a sneaky way to boost your volume, fiber, and even your protein slightly without adding many calories.

It’s not the hero of your meal, but it’s an incredible sidekick.

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One FAQ ❓

Answer: I def can see how this can be a challenge and I'll outline how to navigate this.

Let me first explain what my goal is for every recipe I develop.

First priority:​
​Delicious (aka as close to the “real” high-calorie version).

Second priority:
​Macro Friendly (aka “Macro Balanced”). I don't demonize or overly glorify any macronutrient (protein, carbs, or fats). They all have their roles. So I make my recipe so they have a balanced percentage of each so you can stay on track with hitting your macros for the day.

Third Priority: ​
​Easy AF to make. If it isn't ungodly easy for me to make, then I don't put it out. I am 10+ years into this and if it's not stupid easy to me, then it's not going to be easy for you. So I dive back into how to make it a 100% success rate for you.

Ok back to the topic at hand. How to modify a recipe to help you hit your macro goals...

Most of my recipes have a distribution of 40% carbs, 35% protein, and 25% fats.

I think this ratio is great for overall health, performance, and lifestyle nutritional flexibility.

• So if a recipe is too high in calories, you can scale down portion size.
• If a recipe is too high in protein in a savory recipe, just lower the protein source I use.
• If a recipe is too high in carbs in a savory recipe, just lower the carb source I use.
• If a recipe is too high in fats in a savory recipe, just lower the fat sources I use aka using a leaner protein source is a likely solution.

For sweet recipes, the idea is similar to scaling it down (serving size) to make it lower calorie/lower protein.

But if you want the calories to be the same but with lower protein and higher carb, you can just sub out the protein powder 1:1 with all-purpose flour.

The fat content on a lot of my sweet recipes is pretty low so I don't think that's the issue.

This is a deep topic I could go a ton deeper into but this is the general game plan.

Hope this helps!

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Serving Surprise 😮

In 2016, I found a macro friendly cheat code ingredient that I have used all the time since then!

What is this ingredient?

It was...

No Sugar Added Apple Pie Filling!

The macros are insane and the texture/flavor is on point.

Only 30 calories for 85g is incredible.

A rule of thumb for me is anything below a 1:1 ratio of calories to grams is considered low calorie.

Let me know if you want me to dive deeper into this ratio in a full guide.

But back to the pie fillings...

The only downfall is that there are only two flavors of these no sugar added pie fillings.

Apple Pie and Cherry Pie.

So just like in 2013 when I started macro friendly cooking, I set out to solve my own problem.

I wanted MORE flavors of these macro friendly pie fillings.

And I NAILED it.

No Sugar Added Blueberry Pie Filling

👉 Here's the recipe​

No Sugar Added Strawberry Pie Filling

👉 Here's the recipe​

Both are only 30 calories per serving as well!

Give them a try and let me know what you think 🙌🏻

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Something I was thinking about this week:

Eating out, getting pre-packaged food, whatever it may be.

These options tend to always be higher calorie.

So taking more control by cooking allows you to flip the script.

You can lose fat WHILE enjoying the food you eat.

And to me? That's pretty damn cool 😎

Much love and happy cooking,​
Zach

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