Anabolic Cooking: Why You Don’t Have to Gag to Eat Healthy
Written on January 22, 2012 at 11:59 pm, by Eric Cressey
One of the coolest parts of my job is that I get a lot of free stuff sent my way to review. My staff and I go through everything that crosses my desk, but to be very candid, the overwhelming majority of it just isn’t impressive…at all. As such, it can also be one of the most frustrating parts of my job.
Fortunately, though, there are exceptions to this trend; I also get some outstanding stuff sent my way, and that’s the stuff that I share in this blog for the benefit of my readers. One such example was Metabolic Cooking from Dave Ruel. This is a healthy cookbook that absolutely blew me (and my wife, Anna, the ultimate judge) away. If you’re interested, you can read my review of it here. While this blog was posted almost a year ago, I still get emails from people thanking me for recommending it. And, Anna and I utilize these recipes all the time.
More specific to today’s post, though, is that Dave just put it’s “sister product,” Anabolic Cooking, on sale for $40 off (more than half off) for this week only.
This e-book has over 200 recipes from a variety of categories: breakfast, chicken/poultry, beef/pork, seafood, salads/soups/sides, snacks/bars, and desserts. It comes in an easy-to-navigate format, and all the recipes utilize ingredients that you can buy conveniently at any grocery store. And, of course, because it’s all about creating health food options, the nutrition information is presented for each recipe.
What excites me above all else, though, is it has a meatloaf recipe!
With Dave’s permission, I’ve reprinted the healthy meatloaf recipe below. I’ve already made it dozens of times, and it’s fantastic.
Dave’s Famous Turkey Meatloaf
Makes 6 Servings
Ingredients
• 2 lbs ground turkey
• 1 tsp olive oil
• 1 diced onion
• 1 tsp garlic (optional)
• 1⁄3 cup dried tomatoes
• 1 cup whole wheat bread crumbs
• 1 whole egg
• 1⁄2 cup parsley
• 1⁄4 cup low fat parmesan
• 1⁄4 cup skim milk
• Salt and pepper
• 1 tsp oregano
Directions
1. Cook the onion with olive oil separately
2. Mix everything together in a big bowl, add the cooked onions
3. Put the mix in a big baking pan
4. Bake at 375-400°F for about 30 minutes.
For 200 healthy recipes along these lines, I’d encourage you to check out Anabolic Cooking while it’s on sale at this great price. If you’re anything like me, you’ll use it a ton.
Sign-up Today for our FREE Newsletter and receive a four-part video series on how to deadlift!
You’re post couldn’t have come at a better time. My wife recently had a baby and we are both looking to get lean for the summer. I have been debating between this book and JB’s PN, especially after your endorsement on T-Nation. Which one do you feel is a better body recomp product?
Eric- this post was fate! I have been toying around with the idea of competing in figure competitions until last night. I faced my fear and decided it’s a go. The only thing was, was that with three kids, I wasn’t sure how much of a mother I could be on boiled chicken and broccoli. This seems like a perfect solution. Thanks for sharing!!!
Low fat parm? Skim milk (I’m assuming pasteurized, homogenized, grocery store purchased)? Not eaten prior to the last century or so. Not exactly healthy.
I am just one person (single) and also like a lot of things quick and easy. The fewer ingredients the better. From the meatloaf recipe, I don\’t think I would have the patience to make it. Is this typical for the book? Or is there a more simplistic one out there? Thanks. Jon
Anabolic Cooking is “technically” more geared toward muscle gain, whereas Metabolic Cooking focuses more on fat loss recipes. Keep portion control in mind, though, and they can both be used for either goal.
Just made this for dinner!! Added some chopped Celery, diced fresh tomatos, mushrooms and a little BBQ sauce for some extra spice! Minus the cheese..lactose intolerant…so used some vegan non dairy veggie shreds. Still really good!!
January 23rd, 2012 at 2:21 am
You’re post couldn’t have come at a better time. My wife recently had a baby and we are both looking to get lean for the summer. I have been debating between this book and JB’s PN, especially after your endorsement on T-Nation. Which one do you feel is a better body recomp product?
January 23rd, 2012 at 6:00 am
Eric,
Judging form the meatloaf recipe, Anabolic Cooking looks like it will be just as good as Metabolic Cooking. Thanks for the recommendation!
Jeremy
January 23rd, 2012 at 7:58 am
I would highly recommend Dr.John Berardi’s PN manual and way of doing things. Definitely a smart choice.
J.L CAT(c), CSCS, NSCA-CPT, B.HK, Dip SIM
January 23rd, 2012 at 8:16 am
I have had this for about a year, love it! I have had to modify some of the recipes but it loaded with great stuff!
January 23rd, 2012 at 10:01 am
I’ve taken a peak through that book before and there’s some great stuff it in. Well worth it.
January 23rd, 2012 at 10:43 am
Eric- this post was fate! I have been toying around with the idea of competing in figure competitions until last night. I faced my fear and decided it’s a go. The only thing was, was that with three kids, I wasn’t sure how much of a mother I could be on boiled chicken and broccoli. This seems like a perfect solution. Thanks for sharing!!!
January 23rd, 2012 at 11:06 am
Great timing, Eric. I was just thinking it was getting time to mix up the nutrition a little bit and although I get by new ideas are always welcome.
January 23rd, 2012 at 12:16 pm
Low fat parm? Skim milk (I’m assuming pasteurized, homogenized, grocery store purchased)? Not eaten prior to the last century or so. Not exactly healthy.
January 23rd, 2012 at 2:00 pm
I am just one person (single) and also like a lot of things quick and easy. The fewer ingredients the better. From the meatloaf recipe, I don\’t think I would have the patience to make it. Is this typical for the book? Or is there a more simplistic one out there? Thanks. Jon
January 23rd, 2012 at 3:32 pm
So what is the main difference in the Anabolic Cooking and the Metabolic Cooking books?
January 23rd, 2012 at 7:30 pm
Josh,
Anabolic Cooking is “technically” more geared toward muscle gain, whereas Metabolic Cooking focuses more on fat loss recipes. Keep portion control in mind, though, and they can both be used for either goal.
January 23rd, 2012 at 9:21 pm
Just made this for dinner!! Added some chopped Celery, diced fresh tomatos, mushrooms and a little BBQ sauce for some extra spice! Minus the cheese..lactose intolerant…so used some vegan non dairy veggie shreds. Still really good!!
January 24th, 2012 at 10:15 am
Thanks Eric. That’s the simple answer I was looking for 😉
January 24th, 2012 at 3:00 pm
Great looking recipe. Going to try this out with my girlfriend this weekend. Do you brown the turkey before putting it in the pan?
Thanks!
January 24th, 2012 at 5:51 pm
Yes, Eugene, we pre-cook it.
January 30th, 2012 at 8:09 am
@ Marc
The difference between the two is day and night.
I like Dave’s recipes and use them all the time but with PN you get many more recipes and the best nutrition information around.
August 19th, 2012 at 6:02 pm
Only thing I would subsitute here is high fat everything and no wheat. Then it would be perfect!
September 4th, 2012 at 9:04 pm
Have u ever seen lean body lifestyle on YouTube? They have some really good recipes that are healthy too.