Cooking does not need to be complicated. What is important for any meal is for it to be balanced. I am not a cook book kind of girl, I have no interest in following long complicated recipes as life is too short and, while it seems that lot of my life revolves around food because I talk about it, help people with it, cook it, take pretty photographs of it (as photography is my second passion) and then talk more about it – I actually do not enjoy it when process is too lengthy. I cook completely the opposite way most people do. Most people might think what they will have or what meal they would like to cook after they see a recipe, get ingredients and then cook. I, instead, buy food making sure I have dairy, meat, meat free options, grains, fruit and vegetables (so, all major food groups)… I open up a fridge and it almost as if talks to me: “Have this!”, “Try this”, “Have that!”. I like my meals to be delicious, I strive for balance and high nutritional content, but also I aim for as little cooking time as possible. In my world – this is a true WIN WIN.
So, what gives meal a balance?
- Optimum amount of protein, minimum 20 grams per meal, I prefer 30 grams and no more than 35/40 grams (otherwise protein might not be assimilated as efficiently, i.e. body like to deal with optimum amount between 25-35 grams at a time)
- Optimum amount of fibre. I would say, if daily target is MINIMUM 25 grams per day, I would say that you have to get 5 or more grams of fibre per meal. Easier said than done, so, I usually make sure that my morning Formula 1 smoothies has minimum 10 grams to start the day right and gain some good fibre traction. I also supplement with fibre. And, I make sure that my meal has lots of vegetables and, for those of you who can handle grains/ beans, they are a great addition to your lean protein and vegetables as they are a complex carbohydrates and increase both fibre as well as protein content of your meal (I use usually bulgur wheat, quinoa, lentils, brown rice, steamed from frozen soya beans… not more than 1/2 a cup.
- Optimum of amount of fats: please do not worry about adding some olive oil or coconut oil to your dishes or salads and using avocados or oily fish. Fats are important and necessary part of your diet and should be 30% of your diet.
- Optimum amount of Vitamins and Minerals. Well, easier said that done. Most people do not have nutritional knowledge to know what is in each vegetable or fruit and, even if you did – you do not know if you are getting an orange with 0 or an orange with 100+ mg of Vitamins C… or Spinach that has no iron or spinach that has a good amount. So, the best you can do is eat lots of it and then choose pharmaceutical grade Multivitamin and Mineral, like our Formula 2, for an absolute insurance. That is how you reach optimum nutrition.
So, if I am going to have a chicken for lunch or dinner, it is simply made (roasted or grilled or lightly pan friend) and just add vegetables – whatever there is in the fridge. No unique recipe, but hope some of the pictures will capture your imagination. I hope they do and I hope you enjoy simple cooking from now on as beauty is sometimes in the simplicity. Of course, it does not need to be chicken, choose any lean meat and add complex carbohydrates of your choice to it!
Bon Apetit! 🙂
