Lunch rich in protein and fiber from the influencer “Tradwife” Ballerina Farm

Hannah Neeleman, the face of lifestyle brand Ballerina Farm and a “tradwife” influencer known for cooking made-from-scratch meals, doesn’t think too much about lunch.

“It’s super simple,” Neeleman told Business Insider. That might come as a surprise to her more than 21 million social media followers, who have seen her prepare intricate dishes like fresh buttermilk pie or asparagus pie.

Most days, the 35-year-old entrepreneur and farm owner prepares a simple, balanced meal of carbs, lean protein and a few vegetables for herself, her husband, Daniel Neeleman, and their eight home-schooled children. It’s a custom they picked up in Brazil, where the couple lived for four years after college.

Dietitians and nutrition researchers have previously told Business Insider the importance of eating a balance of high-fiber products, lean proteins, and healthy fats, while minimizing ultra-processed foods when possible. This whole food diet is of course easier to follow if you live on a farm than, say, in a small city apartment.

Homemade bread, steak and fresh vegetables are on the lunch menu

For carbs, Neeleman tends to make potatoes, pasta, rice or quinoa. “I make bread several times a week, so if it’s bread day, we have bread too,” she said.

For protein, it’s usually a steak or roast – living on a livestock farm, there’s no shortage of frozen meat – and the vegetables come from their garden.

Protein is essential for building and maintaining muscle mass, which not only keeps us strong and mobile, but also plays a key role in metabolic health.

Meanwhile, fiber – found in fresh produce, whole grains and beans – aids digestion. Research has also linked eating a variety of fiber-rich plants to a more diverse community of gut microbes, a marker of good gut health. Fiber feeds those “good” gut microbes.

The family washes down their minimally processed meal with a glass of water kefir, a fermented drink made from water and water kefir grains, which contains probiotics, or gut-beneficial microbes.

Neeleman’s Simple Diet Includes Sweet Treats

Neeleman’s breakfast is also very simple. She has homemade yogurt and a scoop of maple cinnamon protein powder from Ballerina Farm.

Dinner is more flexible because kids have different extracurricular activities and schedules. She is used to preparing quick meals with the ingredients she has on hand.

“If you’re just making pasta with meat sauce, we always have ground beef in the fridge, we boil the pasta and put in your marinara sauce. It takes 15 minutes,” she said.

The majority of what they eat is homemade, but every now and then she throws a frozen sourdough pizza from the Ballerina Farm farm stand in the oven.

Neeleman doesn’t like junk food because she says it hurts her stomach, but she prefers a chocolate croissant or good quality chocolate ice cream.

“Strauss has a really good Dutch cocoa ice cream that I always buy at Whole Foods when we go there. It’s so good and I hide it in the freezer,” she said.