The BEST Macro-Friendly Cookbooks

You might know– my passion is creating (and eating) food that not only tastes good, but is good for you. Food that’s not only good or you, but good for you even in LARGE QUANTITIES. Because when I say I love to eat. I mean it.

That’s what got me started on Instagram. I started counting macros, loved how I felt but REFUSED to eat boring food OR go hungry. Understanding the math behind macro-counting just totally changed how I saw a meal, and helped me see how I could stretch the same macros over a bigger, yummier, more satisfying meal! In my opinion, that satisfaction is the key to making any lifestyle or habit sustainable. After a couple of years of creating recipes, I had to write an actual cookbook and get these recipes in your KITCHEN. And since then I’ve written four more.

Clearly, I’m biased, but these are the BEST macro-friendly cookbooks. There– I said it. It’s braggy and so obnoxious. But I said it.

Lillie Eats and Tells

The Lillie Eats and Tells cookbook is the OG of all my cookbooks. If you’ve ever caught me talking about LEAT on social media, this is what I’m talking about. Honestly, I guess I didn’t realize I’d write more and might need a different name, than– my name! It’s fine.

Lillie Eats and Tells is a macro-friendly cookbook that makes preparing healthy dinners a breeze by prepping a handful of lean proteins (this is what makes this one special) that can be used in a ton of different ways. There are recipes for over 40 DIFFERENT MEALS, so you can simplify dinnertime in your home without sacrificing taste, macros, or quantity.  Some of the recipes are tried and true favorites from the blog, like Instant Pot Creamy Buffalo Chicken, while others are exclusively in this cookbook.  

Some of the Recipes You’ll Find in Lillie Eats and Tells (aka LEAT):

• Greek Instant Pot Pork
• Coconut Curried Turkey-Mushroom Meatballs Over Zoodles
• Chicken Enchilada Spaghetti Squash Bake
• Korean BBQ Pork Tacos
• Mediterranean Chicken Flatbreads

Beyond the awesome recipes, you’ll also find helpful information about macro counting and how to set appropriate numbers for yourself. Plus, there’s grocery lists (organized by store) with all of our favorite macro-friendly staples!

CRUNCH WRAPS

This one’s different; a little niche book of my favorite wraps. CRUNCH WRAPS is dedicated to healthy, macro-friendly crunch wraps. These are my ALL-TIME favorite things to have for lunch, like the Turkey Arugula Crunch Wrap. They’re so light and healthy, without lacking in size or flavor.  But of course, they are amazing any time of day! This book is filled with 27 macro-friendly crunch wrap recipes covering breakfast, lunch, dinner, and even a couple of dessert variations. 

Some of the Recipes You’ll Find in Crunch Wraps:

• Fajita Chicken Crunch Wrap
• Italian Meatball Crunch Wrap
• Zesty Tuna Salad Crunch Wrap
• Italian Stallion Crunch Wrap
• Blistered Tomato Basil Crunch Wrap
• Fresh Thai Chicken Crunch Wrap
• Berries and Cream Cobbler Crunch Wrap
• Apple Pie, Cream Cheese Crunch Wrap

With CRUNCH WRAPS, you’ll also find tricks for preparing your crunch wraps, thoughts on packing crunch wraps to go, and possible gluten-free variations. Plus, I’ve included all of the macros pre-loaded in MY FITNESS PAL so you can just follow the recipe and quickly log your wrap. You can decide if you’d like to build yours with MY favorite wrap, your favorite wrap, or no wrap at all! The flavor combinations will make excellent bowls, salads, or lettuce wraps.  The original crunch wrap has my whole heart. But if you’re willing to use a fork and knife, anything can happen.

ONE

ONE is my third macro-friendly cookbook. It focuses on delicious, comforting, yet still healthy one-dish meals. You’ll find a handful of favorite lightened-up sauces and dressings, plus 56 recipes that are ideal for feeding the whole family, but also perfect for meal prep! 

A handful of the recipes are tried and true favorites from the blog, some have been leaked here and there for thorough testing and perfecting (like Skinny White Chicken Chili), and several others are exclusively here in the cookbook.

Some of the Recipes You’ll Find in ONE:

• White Chicken Chili
• Philly Cheesesteak Skillet
• Egg Roll Bowl
• Chicken Pot Pie Soup
• Creamy Cauliflower Spaghetti Squash Casserole
• Crustless Quiche
• Stacked Chicken and Cauliflower Enchiladas
• Creamy Spinach Artichoke Chicken Bake
• Greek Chicken Souvlaki and Roasted Red Peppers
• Blackened Salmon and Veggies
• Bruschetta-Topped Tilapia with Roasted Cauliflower
• Almost Classic Cottage Cheese Chicken Salad
• Shrimp Ceviche Salad
• Jalapeño-Avocado Dressing
• Creamy Chimichurri

Just like the Lillie Eats and Tells cookbook and the CRUNCH WRAP Book, every recipe has the macronutrients not only included in the book but pre-loaded into both the My Fitness Pal, Macros First, and Lose It apps to simplify your macro-counting experience.

PLANNED Cookbook

PLANNED is the FOURTH of my cookbooks! So many people asked for a cookbook format that combines recipes with meal prep along with a shopping list, and I listened! This book is meant to help us get the hang of our PLANNING, so inside these pages, you’ll also find a detailed six-week meal plan equipped with grocery lists.  

I’ve organized each of the six weeks in a way that MY family would love to eat. Every meal feels fresh and new without starting from scratch each night. The weeks are planned for you, with repeat ingredients and meals that feed into each other to maximize your groceries and your efforts! Or, if it can simply serve as your next macro-friendly cookbook that contains over 60 tasty recipes. 

Some of the Recipes You’ll Find in PLANNED:

• Shaved Pork BLT with Herbed Yogurt
• Thai Quinoa Salad with Pork Tenderloin
• Avocado Egg White Breakfast Sandwich
• Salmon And Kale Tzatziki Tacos
• Green Chili Enchilada Skillet
• Spring Veggie Chicken Soup
• Bacon Cheeseburger with Special Sauce
• One-Pan Summer Veggie Chicken Bake
• Sweet Potato Salad Nachos
• High-Protein Lentil Dip Salad
• Fifteen-Minute Air-Fryer Fish Tacos
• Mediterranean Salmon Bowl
• The Nightly Chocolate Shake
• Brownie Baked Squash Oats
• Protein Berries and Cream
• Double Chocolate Protein Mug Cake
• Peanut Butter, Chia, and Berry Smoothie Bowl
• Banana Bread Baked Oats with Salted Peanut Butter Frosting

Similar to my first cookbook, Lillie Eats and Tells, this book is designed so that you’ll prep a protein, use it fresh in a dinner recipe that night, and then again in at least one other dinner that week. Sometimes, you’ll use that protein for lunch as well.

To keep things interesting, in the second half of the book, you’ll find a large selection of bonus “quick meals” that you can plug in as needed throughout the week. Between the recipes planned into six weeks, and the bonus section of sweets/breakfasts, lunches, and dinners, you’ll have more than enough to keep your menu as simple or varied as you’d like! Your meals will be balanced and full of nutrients.

ONE More Time: A Second Volume of Macro-friendly One Dish Meals

Whenever I take a poll of people’s favorite cookbooks, almost always it comes back as ONE. Not to say that there aren’t people who don’t LOVE the other ones too, because LEAT is also a super favorite.

But with how much people loved ONE, I decided to do a second volume of one-dish meals. This cookbook has over 70 recipes that are all calculated and loaded into My Fitness Pal, Lose It, and Macros First.

These meals, like ONE, are intended to help you feed your entire family out of one dish. No more making separate meals because you’re tracking.

Some of these recipes are on the blog or Instagram, but most of them are exclusive to the book!

Some of the Recipes You’ll Find in ONE More Time:

• Chicken Tikka Masala
• Ground Chicken Peanut Butter Curry
• Pumpkin Chicken Ragu
• Smoky Pulled Pork and Sweet Potato Chili
• Steak and Cabbage Stir-Fry
• Weeknight Lasagna
• Pan Seared Chicken in Spicy Tomato Sauce
• Sheet Pan Chicken Shawarma
• Hot-Honey Salmon Bites
• Elote Chicken Salad
• Cabbage Chicken Slaw with Peanut Dressing
• Buffalo Chicken Salad
• Grainy Mustard Vinaigrette
• Spicy Almond Butter Dressing

Healthy cookbooks, whether you are counting macros or not

IF YOU DON’T COUNT MACROS: Great! Just enjoy knowing your recipes and meal plan (if you choose to use them) are well balanced, lightened up, and TASTY.

IF YOU DO COUNT MACROS: Each recipe in this plan not only has the macros listed but is also pre-loaded into the My Fitness Pal (MFP), Macros First, and Lose It apps. Simply search “Lillie Eats and Tells” plus the name of the recipe, OR SCAN THE BARCODE provided! This is a new feature that I’ve added to this cookbook and I’m SO EXCITED about it. 

One of the other parts of the PLANNED cookbook that is so special, is that I wrote this book while I was eliminating gluten and dairy. That means every recipe is either written naturally GF and DF, or there are notes to make them so! You’ll see product suggestions and substitutions and a way to log both versions OR notes if the macro-variance is small. Because of this, I also wrote ONE More Time very gluten and dairy-free friendly. If you do NOT watch your gluten and dairy, don’t worry! These are not made with weird ingredients or lacking in flavor. You’ll see options to add cheese etc. This should make it super flexible for all of us!

And if you want something to make planning your meals a little easier, I love this Weekly Meal Planner that I just added to my website. With 52 sheets included, you’ll have enough to plan out your macro-friendly meals all year long!

Bonus Cookbook: FREE Appetizer E-book

I know that cookbooks can be an investment, so while you are checking things out, grab my appetizer E-book for FREE! Yep, you heard me right…FREE! My appetizer E-book has 7 quick and healthy appetizers that are great for any gathering. 

Recipes You’ll Find in the Appetizer E-book:

• Thai Chicken Tacos with Spicy Peanut Dressing
• Honey Cilantro Chicken Fillo Taco Cups with Avocado and Pomegranate
• Buffalo “Chicken” Meatballs
• Pear and Prosciutto Flatbread with Blue Cheese and Arugula
• Goat Cheese Stuffed Mushrooms with Red Pepper and Cilantro
• Grilled Bread with Ricotta, Roasted Grapes, and Thyme
• Fresh and Vibrant Greek Cucumber Salsa

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The BEST Macro-Friendly Cookbooks

I know that was a lot to cover, but I always get so many questions. So I figured it was time to break down my cookbooks). That way you can make the best choice for you and your family. From time to time I’ll leak a recipe or share modifications that I’ve made to dishes on Instagram and TikTok so make sure you are following along with me on social media to get all the insider info.

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