Ready for a few quick, easy & fat loss friendly meal ideas?
I don’t love spending a ton of time in the kitchen. I’ve got my hands full with work and creating a life I love. But, I do want to eat amazing food (and not break the bank or spend tons of time on complex recipes along the way).
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If I’m going to spend time cooking (and I’m trying to do more of that), I want to be able to get multiple (different) uses out of whatever I’ve cooked. And of course, I want them to be delicious!
This week, I did that with ground beef. You could use ground chicken, ground turkey or skip the meat all together & go vegetarian.
I cooked a package of ground beef and then got three awesome meals out of it:
Spaghetti Squash Marinara
I’m on a huge spaghetti squash kick lately. It’s the only kind of squash I like!
I cut the squash in half, lengthwise, scrape out the seeds and bake it face down at 375 degrees until it’s just slightly softer to the touch. Don’t ask me how long – it depends entirely on the size of your squash. Larger squashes can take close to an hour. Smaller ones can take 20-25 minutes.
Without removing the squash from it’s shell (is it a shell?) I use a fork to loosen up the strands of squash and then toss in the leftover ground beef and some organic tomato sauce*. If you’re not sensitive to dairy, you can add a little cheese, too! I like to add ricotta so it feels a bit like lasagna.
Bonus: when you eat it out of the squash, you have fewer dishes! I’m all about that!
Broccoli Nachos
My friend Maggie inspired me with a similar meal she made. She topped broccoli with a paleo-inspired chili. Talk about making chili both more filling & more nutritious! I don’t yet have bowls in my new tiny house (they’re still at my other apartment) and I have a thing for Mexican food, so I took a slightly different approach.
I steamed a head of broccoli and topped it with my leftover ground meat as well as all my favorite nacho toppings: guacamole, jalapenos, salsa and a little bit of cheese.
This meal was ready in less than 10 minutes and kept me full for hours!
(The picture below shows a slightly different variation where I used grilled chicken, which was also delicious and a great way to use up leftover chicken breasts or thighs.)
Riced Cauliflower Chopped Suey
Did you ever have chopped suey growing up? In my family, it meant a blend of elbow macaroni, diced tomatoes, onions and ground meat. It was quick & it was inexpensive.
I don’t eat much pasta these days but I have a version of this classic that’s healthier, quicker and more filling!
I grabbed a bag of frozen cauliflower rice and threw it in a skillet with a bit of ghee* (grass fed butter with the milk fat removed because I’m a little sensitive to dairy – you could totally butter). While that heated up, I opened a can of diced tomatoes & poured off the extra water. I had some jalapeno poppers left from the Super Bowl so I diced those and added them to the cauliflower rice (you could add garlic, onions or any additional veggies you desire) along with the tomatoes. At the last minute I added the pre-cooked ground beef.
So delish and it reheats beautifully!
If you want to see more of my daily food choices, follow me on Instagram and click the little circle at the top of your Instagram feed to view my daily stories!
In October 2019, our relationship with Thrive Market changed. They decided to put their marketing dollars in avenues outside of podcasting but we still think they’re a good choice if you’re looking to save money on health & personal care products.
The recipe they shared includes cane sugar but I wanted to see if it would be tasty with just the sweetness from the kombucha. It turned out great!! It was definitely sweet enough for me so I’ll share exactly how I made it!
First, I headed to the liquor store to find vodka that is gluten free. Many vodka brands are grain-finished and therefore contain gluten.
I bought Zachlawi brand sweet potato vodka. It’s really smooth and even has a natural bit of sweetness to it.
You could go so many ways with the kombucha but I used GT’s brand – Trilogy flavor – and I got the 1.4 liter bottle. Every brand and flavor has a different amount of sugar so if you’re trying to minimize your sugar consumption, make sure to take a look at the label & compare!
Then I picked up fresh rosemary, fresh cranberries and unsweetened cranberry juice. Keep in mind: most juice you buy in the juice aisle will have added sugar so make sure you’re looking at the ingredients! Just cranberries and water! No sugars!
In a large pitcher I combined:
2 handfuls whole cranberries
1.5 cups unsweetened cranberry juice
1.5 cups vodka
1 large bottle of kombucha (1.4 liter bottle)
6 sprigs fresh rosemary
I let it sit for about 4 hours in the fridge before drinking. You want to make sure to give that rosemary flavor some time to develop! It’s so worth it!
I made sure each glass included some whole cranberries and a sprig of rosemary but I skipped the sugar rim around the glass.
The kombucha adds a sparkle & fizz plus some sweetness – it’s a great balance to the bright bitterness of the unsweetened cranberry juice.
When possible, I don’t eat before my workouts. I do 95% of my workouts about 10-12 hours into an overnight fast.
The exception is when I’m really hungry. If I’m really hungry and feel that not eating will negatively impact my workout intensity, I’ll have a small snack that won’t impact my blood sugar. I don’t want my body using sugar to fuel my workouts; I want it using fat.
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If I’m super hungry, I might have a small handful of almonds or a half packet of coconut butter.
Otherwise, I eat an early dinner (I’m almost always done eating before 7pm on weekdays) and I don’t eat again until sometime between 10am & noon.
In addition to not eating before my workout, I try not to eat within 90 minutes after my workout. Said another way, I won’t eat until at least 90 minutes after my workout ends.
We’ve learned from the body building world that getting in protein and/or carbs right after a workout is super important for muscle growth & recovery. I’ll agree that it’s important for muscle growth. Kinda.
But here’s what happens when we eat right after a workout: we blunt the catabolic process of the activity. Remember, fat loss is catabolic. It represents a break down process – breaking down body fat to fuel the body.
Exercise is also catabolic. Exercise doesn’t grow muscle tissue, it stresses it. It creates micro tears. It’s catabolic.
Eating is anabolic.
When fat loss is the goal, we want that catabolic process of a workout to run it’s course completely before switching into an anabolic state (created by eating).
For that reason, I allow at least 90 minutes following a workout before I eat. That’s my general rule.
With this wonderful fall weather, I’ve been craving more warm meals & drinks than cool. As I brought home a venti Americano after my workout today, I thought I’d mix it up and make it something yummy.
A fall coffee treat – why not?
I almost always order my coffee black. Today was no exception.
But a combination of feeling too lazy to cook and wanting a treat led me to pull out my blender for a coffee inspired “lunch”.
I poured my hot Americano into my Vitamix and then added:
I’ll be in a hotel next weekend for ASCEND & I’m totally bringing my blender to make some of this to power me through those long days!
I got most of these ingredients through Thrive Market and if you give them a try, make sure you go through the URL thrivemarket.com/primalpotential so you save an extra 25% & get free shipping on your first order plus a free 30-day trial membership!
…
I thought today’s workout would be a gimme. It looked pretty easy on paper but holy smokes it caught me by surprise! My legs were exhausted & my lungs were burning in just the 2nd round!
“Saved by the Bell”
5 Rounds:
21 Air Squats
15/10 Calorie Bike
9 Alternating Dumbbell Snatches
What a great week of workouts!
On the food front:
You guys already know what I had for brunch! I know many of you probably feel like my coffee treat isn’t much of a meal, but it’s actually a legit amount of fat. More importantly, it works for me. It probably wouldn’t have worked for a me a couple years ago, but it does now, and that’s all that matters.
I’ve worked hard over a period of years to really improve my metabolic efficiency and part of that means I’m less hungry and have longer stretches of time between my meals.
Ultimately, the only thing that matters is what works for you & makes you feel amazing. Keep in mind that as you improve the quality of fuel you give your body, change your body composition and increase your fitness, your hunger and fuel demands will also change & adjust.
For dinner I had a huge bowl of brussels sprouts with soft boiled eggs and bacon mixed in. Oh, and a little goat cheese, too!
Enjoy your weekend & have a Happy Halloween! I’m going to be Ariel from The Little Mermaid. I’m pretty pumped about my red wig!
I’m not much of a cook. I keep my meals super simple, fast & easy. I don’t play around too much with spices because I’m cheap. True story. I don’t want to pay $8 for a spice I’m going to use 10 times a year.
But really, it’s about keeping it easy. Complex meals and time-consuming recipes just don’t flow with my personality and lifestyle.
For fat loss friendly eating to be sustainable for me, it’s gotta be easy. (I’ve done a few episodes on my fave fat loss foods as well as budget friendly options that you can check out here, here and here.)
It also has to be delicious. I won’t feel psychologically satisfied by a can of tuna.
My standards are simple: I eat foods I love that love me back. If I’m making it myself, it has to be simple, quick & easy.
This recipe tests the bounds of simple & fast because it requires a little bit of prep work (about 10 minutes) and bakes for 30 minutes.
On the flip side, it’s crazy delicious, can be made with zero dishes (major time saver on clean up) and only has 4 ingredients.
When I was 350+ lbs, I used to love eating sugar & starch while watching football. Pizza, Mexican food, cookies, you name it.
I still love watching football, I definitely enjoy a good meal while watching a game, but I don’t want to feel terrible afterwards.
So, while settling in for an evening of football yesterday, I decided I’d take the 10 minutes to prep something different that felt special.
I put the entire process on my Instagram story so make sure you’re following me here & here so you don’t miss anything that doesn’t make it to the blog.
I choose chicken thighs because they taste better, are cheaper, are a great blend of fat & protein and they’re much more forgiving when cooking. Chicken breasts dry out very easily; thighs don’t.
The kitchen gadget I mentioned is a mallet. I used it to flatten out the chicken.
Here’s what you’re going to need:
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs
Baby spinach
Goat cheese
Prosciutto
Preheat your oven to 375 degrees (F).
On a piece of wax or parchment paper, use the mallet to flatten out the chicken.
Layer a few spinach leaves, prosciutto & goat cheese on each piece of chicken. I pressed the cheese down with my fingers to make it more of a spread for easier rolling.
Using your hands, roll up each piece of chicken and place seam-side down on either a baking dish or a piece of aluminum foil. I used aluminum foil because a) I hate dishes but more importantly b) I don’t have a baking dish of any kind. I told you I don’t cook much.
I didn’t tie them or use toothpicks, they stayed together just fine being placed seam-side down. I think it helps that I didn’t overfill them.
Bake for 30 minutes or until cooked through. Bake time will vary based on how much stuffing you add and on the size of your thighs…the chicken thighs.
They were SO good! I’m having the leftovers tonight!
Please don’t ask me what the serving size is. Any serving size depends on you. It depends on what else you’re eating at that meal, what else you’ve eaten that day, your size, your goals, your activity level, etc.
…
I didn’t want to go to the gym this morning. It’s Fat Loss Fast Track launch week and my hands are totally full with work stuff but I know that’s when the workouts matter most. Here’s what it looked like for me:
AMRAP 15
55 power cleans
55 ring rows
55 cal bike
55 burpees
I really don’t like ring rows but they were the best option today with my shoulder still being super irritated. I felt 10x better after the workout than I did before, so that’s a win!
On the food front:
After my workout I had my cabbage salad with 1/2 as much cabbage as normal, 4 slices of bacon, 2 eggs, a handful of walnuts and some Primal Kitchen Chipotle lime mayo.
A few hours later I was stoked to find that I got my shipment from Bulletproof coffee! They recently started selling ready-to-drink bottles of bulletproof coffee so I was psyched to try it! They have 4 flavors and I tried the original as the others have added sugar or artificial sweeteners. I think I liked it, but not as much as I like Picnik butter coffee.
I snacked on some macadamia nuts with the bp coffee and felt super satisfied.
For dinner I’m having the leftover chicken thighs from last night and a small spinach salad.
Really feeling great about my choices today!
Make it a great day! You always have the power to make the rest of your day the best of your day!
You know what represents progress? The fact that this blog title, “Two Pigs & A Cow” isn’t an attempt at self-depricating humor! Yeah! Personal growth for the win! Haha.
Nope, two pigs & a cow is a recipe I want to share with you.
I’m not a cook, I’m not a recipe development expert & I don’t play one on the internet, but yesterday I decided to cook a legit meal AND create a new recipe.
For some strange reason, I wanted meatloaf. Actually, it started because I wanted mashed cauliflower & I was trying to decide what to make to go with it.
I wanted something more interesting than steak and I wasn’t in the mood for fish so I thought, “I’ll make meatloaf!”
With that said, I think most meatloaf is bland and boring so I spiced it up with ground pork and pancetta.
I wish I had a better picture for you but I snapped this one while it was still steaming hot!
Two Pigs & A Cow Paleo Meatloaf
Preheat the oven to 350.
Pre-cook the pancetta cubes. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the following:
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
Two finely chopped green onions (I only used the white bottom part, not the top green part)
1/4 sweet onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 lb ground beef
1 lb ground pork
2 tbsp pancetta (cooked)
1 egg
5-7 basil leaves, chopped
1 tsp salt
a tiny bit of pepper ( I don’t like pepper – use more if you like it)
1/2 tsp ground mustard
1/2 tsp paprika
1/3 cup coconut flour
Mix well and place in a loaf pan. I spread a little bit of tomato sauce over the top.
Bake for 70 minutes & let rest for 30 minutes.
It was super tasty and I’m psyched for leftovers! Unfortunately, the leftovers will have to wait until after my workout! I’m sure I’ll be good & hungry!
This means that you’ll do as many rounds as possible in 13 minutes.
Those 55 thrusters got SPICY. Instead of letting my mind run away from me, thinking about how I’m only on rep 7 and still have a million more to go, I stay focused on each rep.
Hard workouts are a great chance for me to practice staying in the moment. Don’t think about what’s ahead. Don’t think about how much time is left. Don’t talk yourself into a break or pacing.
Just this rep. Just this rep. I always have 1 more rep in me.
On the food front:
Knowing that a tough workout was ahead, I ate beforehand. I was hungry, in part because I didn’t get a ton of sleep last night.
Around 9:30am I had a Paleo Power Meals cobb salad with added cabbage.
Trying to capitalize on yesterday’s momentum, I worked from Starbucks after my workout and brought some grilled chicken with me. I had 4 grilled chicken strips & a couple cups of coffee.
The best part of the day was dinner! I completely enjoy leftovers from last night: mashed cauliflower & meatloaf!
If you try out the recipe, let me know what you think! Maybe I’ll play around with some more recipes if you dig it!
