High Protein Mac & Cheese Arena Plate with Dan Turner | Macros & Makers Ep. 3

Macros & Makers · Episode 3

High Protein Mac & Cheese Arena Plate with Dan Turner

Pro wrestler Dan Turner makes his healthier take on arena food: split sausages loaded with Legendary Foods protein mac & cheese, two burger patties on top, no bun. Split two ways: 71g protein and 690 calories per serving.

  • 71gProtein
  • 690Calories
  • 41%Calories from protein
  • 7gFiber

Macros calculated with Legendary Mac & Cheese protein pasta made with its cheese sauce, 1 pork Italian sausage and 1 burger patty per serving.

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Dan Turner at the Macros & Makers set with his high-protein arena plate, Episode 3
Dan Turner · @diabetesarmy

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Dan Turner and host Bruce Cardenas laughing during the taste test, Macros & Makers Episode 3 Arena Plate
Full episode · 13:49 · Watch on YouTube · Listen to the podcast
Dan Turner on the Macros & Makers set

This week's maker

Dan Turner

@diabetesarmy on Instagram

Dan Turner spent 12 years on the pro wrestling tour as "Dirty" Dan Denton, wrestling all over Mexico and doing up to 320 shows a year, which meant a lot of arena food. He went from 473 lbs to running the NYC Half Marathon, and now coaches people on food and mindset as @diabetesarmy. His Think Big Foundation provides Christmas for families in need, and he's a Legendary Foods ambassador.

“I wanted two burgers, you know why? The protein.”
More from Dan →

Recipe

High Protein Mac & Cheese Arena Plate

By Dan Turner
@diabetesarmy

Healthy arena food: Italian sausages split down the center, loaded with Legendary Foods protein mac & cheese and topped with a burger patty. No bun.

Prep
5 min
Cook
15 min
Total
20 min
Yield
Serves 2
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Dan Turner's high-protein arena plate: split sausages, Legendary mac & cheese and two burger patties

Macros per serving

  • 71gProtein
  • 690Calories
  • 41%Calories from protein
  • 7gFiber

Whole plate: 143g protein · 1,380 calories. Macros calculated with Legendary Mac & Cheese protein pasta made with its cheese sauce (1 cup per serving), 1 pork Italian sausage and 1 burger patty (4 oz raw, 85/15 beef) per serving. Sausage and patty sizes are our estimates, so numbers can move a little with what you use.

Ingredients (serves 2)

  • 2 cups Legendary Foods Mac & Cheese Protein Pasta (made with its cheese sauce)
  • 2 Italian sausages (macros calculated with pork, about 4 per lb, cooked)
  • 2 burger patties (4 oz raw each, 85/15 beef, cooked)
  • optional sliced jalapeño (Dan's pick if you like it spicy)

Instructions

  1. Make the mac & cheese. Cook the Legendary protein mac & cheese and stir in its cheese sauce. The pasta cooks in about 3 minutes, so Bruce mixes the cheese in while it's hot. Watch at 2:28
  2. Split the sausages. Slice the cooked sausages down the center, lengthwise, so they open up like a hot dog bun. Watch at 4:48
  3. Load the mac. Spoon the mac & cheese down the middle of each sausage, all the way to the bottom. Dan calls it coming off the top rope. Watch at 5:49
  4. Skip the bun. At the arena this comes on a bun. At home, Dan leaves it off. Watch at 6:37
  5. Burgers on top. Set a burger patty right on top of each one. Dan goes with two burgers for the protein. Watch at 7:30
  6. Add a side of mac. Spoon a little extra mac & cheese on the side and serve. Ring the bell. Watch at 7:39

Dan's tips

  • The protein pasta cooks in about 3 minutes, so mix the cheese sauce in while it's hot.
  • Go with two burgers instead of one for the extra protein.
  • Like it spicy? Dan adds sliced jalapeño on top. He learned to love spicy food wrestling in Mexico.
  • Don't worry about neat. In Dan's words, "we're not coloring in between the lines."
  • Chicken or turkey sausage instead of pork saves about 100 calories per serving.

Make it a meal: pour an ice-cold Perfy alongside.

Key takeaways

  • Dan's healthier arena food: split sausages loaded with Legendary Foods protein mac & cheese, burger patties on top, no bun.
  • Split two ways it's 71g protein and 690 calories per serving, with 41% of calories from protein.
  • The Legendary protein pasta cooks in about 3 minutes.
  • Two burgers instead of one, for the protein.
  • The verdict at the table: "This is insane. This is really where it's at."

Chapters

  1. 0:00 Cold open
  2. 0:08 Welcome to Macros & Makers
  3. 1:28 Today's recipe: healthy arena food
  4. 2:28 The build: Legendary protein mac & cheese
  5. 2:52 Burgers and sausages
  6. 3:05 Favorite arena food
  7. 3:23 Why this matters to Dan
  8. 4:14 Let's cook
  9. 4:48 Splitting the sausages
  10. 5:34 Legendary at the Olympia
  11. 6:40 Stage names, masks and riot police
  12. 8:09 Ring the bell: the plate
  13. 8:26 The taste test
  14. 9:02 One food forever
  15. 9:13 How Dan coaches: track for a week
  16. 10:02 Rapid fire
  17. 10:47 Growing up and the Think Big Foundation
  18. 11:44 From pro athlete to business
  19. 12:07 What's next: half marathons
  20. 12:56 Working with Legendary
  21. 13:25 Outro

FAQ

How much protein is in Dan's arena plate?

About 71g of protein per serving. The recipe serves 2, so the whole plate has about 143g. That's with Legendary Mac & Cheese protein pasta, 1 pork Italian sausage and 1 burger patty per serving.

How many calories are in a serving?

About 690 calories per serving (about 1,380 for the whole plate). Roughly 41% of those calories come from protein, and each serving has about 7g of fiber.

Which Legendary Foods product is it made with?

Legendary Foods Mac & Cheese Protein Pasta, made with its cheese sauce.

How long does it take to make?

The protein pasta cooks in about 3 minutes. With the sausages and burgers already cooked, the build takes just a few minutes more.

Where can I watch the full episode?

The full episode (about 14 minutes) is on Perfy's YouTube channel and embedded on this page, and every episode is also a podcast. Macros & Makers is presented by Perfy and Legendary Foods.

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From Perfy

Caffeine-free soda with 2–4g sugar and 20 calories per can, made with real fruit juice.