Tips for getting more protein?

[bluebug32]

I've been tracking my diet lately on fitday.com to see how my nutrition is shaking out every day. I think I'm eating too many carbs to fill up and not enough protein (which causes me to eat too many calories a day). I don't really enjoy eating a lot of meat. I like turkey and chicken and the occasional burger or piece of pork. How do you get enough protein (without eating meat at every meal)?

[michelem]

Try these links:

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=26752

http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?t=26576


Personally, I eat fish every day. Wild salmon, wild cod, sardines, tuna (only on occasion since it is higher in mercury and stuff) . . . Costco carries a really yummy, reasonably priced canned wild salmon that you can use the way you would use canned tuna. Just beware, the Kirkland (Costco brand) is MUCH pricier than the other brand they carry (Bear and something?) and in my opinion there isn't a difference in taste that I could discern.

Also, several times a week I have omega-3 eggs. Usually one egg with the yolk (which is where the omega 3's are) and a couple of whites as well (which is where all the protein is).

I eat soy as well, but definitely not every day as it is a controversial food, especially for women. But, I do like tofu and soymilk. I get the organic unsweetened soymilk and like to put it in my hot chocoloate (organic unsweetened cocoa powder, a few drops of stevia [which, yes I know is controversial as well and probably not the greatest to us fake sugar], hot water and soy milk -- yummy). Nut butters are awesome -- almond butter and macadamia nut butter are my favs.

I really like quinoa as well, and it is a complete protein!

I do eat chicken on occasion (once a week at the very most) and red meats even further and farther between (special occasions, like a fancy restaurant, which happens MAYBE two or three times a year?). Oh, and around Thanksgiving and Christmas, lots and lots of turkey! My dh buys turkeys the day after Thanksgiving and Christmas and gets awesome deals on organic, free-range turkeys.

Well, of course, there is more out there, but you get the idea. You really don't have to rely solely on meat to get protein.

Good luck to you! :)

[OakLeaf]

Like you, I really struggle to get enough protein unless I eat fish 2-3 days a week, and sometimes I even crave meat. :( That's especially the case since I've had to start restricting my soy intake. I'll be interested to watch the other answers here, but my body really feels the difference. (I'm always careful about combining proteins, eating plenty of beans and vegies, so it's not a careless diet.)

One thing that helps cut down on carbs is to snack on raw nuts. They have a good dose of protein, lots of healthy fatty acids, and most importantly high satiety (unlike carb-rich snacks, nuts actually satisfy you and don't leave you craving another snack half an hour later). OT, but DH has lost 12 pounds over the summer making no changes other than snacking on pistachios instead of cereal and Clif bars.

[Kalidurga]

Beans. Nuts. Peas (http://www.weightlossforall.com/protein-peas.htm) have protein, though they need a boost for it to be complete. Oatmeal has protein.

Check this (http://www.vrg.org/nutrition/protein.htm) out.

[Over50Newbie]

I do all of the above and I also drink protein shakes.

My favorite protein powder is Beverly's Chocolate Muscle Provider.

Lynette

[tulip]

I have not seen Fitday before, but it sounds like it's giving you some valuable information. Turkey and chicken are great, and if you get a good cookbook, you can find lots of different ways to prepare delicious recipes. I eat red meat about once a week, fish once a week, and chicken about 3 times a week. That leaves me with a couple of days of beans and rice. I love black beans and rice with salsa, avocado and a bit of cheese. If you combine legumes (beans) with grains (like rice), you end up with a complete protein.

For me, the key is to get a good cookbook and spend time learning how to cook a variety of dishes with adequate protein. You might also want to take a cooking class.

[Crankin]

I eat beans and rice regularly and a couple of years ago I started eating nuts (walnuts or almonds) for snacks. Sometimes, I combine the nuts with a few dried cranberries. I like meat, but I would say i only have steak maybe once every two weeks or more. I eat lots of chicken, fish, ground turkey, occasional tofu, along with very thinly sliced pork. Also, I started buying some of the low fat string cheese to eat as snacks.
I feel better when i eat more protein. For years I lived on carbs (even though they were low glycemic ones) and it just wasn't working as I got older.

[redrhodie]

Cottage cheese has 16g of protein per half cup serving. I eat it with fresh fruit as a snack, or put a scoop on a tossed salad.

[bluebug32]

Thanks, everyone.

In the one link, it said seitan is very high in protein. Does anyone have a good recommendation for cooking with it? I was a vegetarian for a few years and remember having it, but haven't touched it since.

I love nuts, but they seem really high in calories (or perhaps I'm just bad at restricting how many I eat!). One thing I have discovered is greek yogurt, which has between 15 and 20 grams of protein.

[spokewench]

Peanut Butter has protein; beans and rice together is a complete protein

[Smilie]

I have a protein queston-not meaning to hijack the thread, but didn't want to start another thread on protein!

I have always craved 'meat', stemming from very heavy periods is my guess, but since I have had a hysterectomy, I no longer have that issue. But I still crave protein and I assume my body needs it. So I think I am eating adequate protein. I donate plasma and have never had low protein counts. I have a friend that eats what I eat, is a hard core cyclist, donates plasma, but he always gets low protein counts.

We do the same workouts, I think I eat a little more protein than he does, I donate plasma several months in a row with never an issue with low protein levels. He cannot donate more than like 3 or 4 times in a row without lower protein counts. Why is this?

I think it is because he has such large muscles, and really works hard in our training classes, his muscles require more protein so metabolizes it faster than I do. That is my guess, is this accurate?

I don't know how donating plasma would cause lower protein, since you get your red blood cells back, so we are at a loss of why this is always happening. Any input would be greatly appreciated.

I am planning on changing our diets so he will eat more protein rich foods. He already drinks a LOT of milk, cheese, and meat. So I will just increase the beans, rice and yogurt and eggs. Hopefully this will help.

[michelem]

Good suggestion, redrhodie! I always forget to recommend dairy because I'm allergic to it. :(

[badger]

I may be wrong on this, but I understood that there's no such thing as an "incomplete" protein. All foods have protein, and nobody's ever lacking protein in the developing countries.

[OakLeaf]

I love nuts, but they seem really high in calories (or perhaps I'm just bad at restricting how many I eat!).

By "seem," do you mean you're going by some book, or did you actually try snacking only on nuts and find that you gained weight? If it's the former, really, try it. The satiety level is so much higher than with high-carb snacks that you wind up eating fewer calories; and because they're so high in healthy fats, they'll actually help you lose weight provided your total calorie intake is reasonable.

I started looking up protein contents in formulating this reply, and I guess the key is to eat beans with EVERY meal. Because when I looked it up, it turns out that two cups of cooked kidney beans, a cup of cooked long grain brown rice and a medium stalk of broccoli gives you about 35-40 g protein in only 700 calories, which is plenty reasonable. I'm used to a breakfast of cereal, fruit, rice/hemp/soy milk and 3-4 tbsp of nuts, and loading my protein very heavily toward dinner. So I guess maybe I have to start looking harder at getting more protein earlier in the day and I won't be so reliant on animal products.

[OakLeaf]

nobody's ever lacking protein in the developing countries.

you're not serious, are you?!


As for "complete" protein, what that means is that the human body needs eight amino acids in a certain balance to be able to repair tissues. Those are called "essential" amino acids. Only meat contains all those amino acids in that balance (because basically, our bodies need to be able to make meat out of our food). The concept of complementary proteins means combining foods like beans and grains which together provide all eight amino acids in roughly the balance the human body needs. That's why historically people learned to combine those foods in traditional diets.

In traditional cultures, where people are able to raise and hunt the food they've learned to eat for millennia, it's true that they don't usually have a protein deficit without a corresponding calorie deficit (but crops do fail and hunger is very common). In "developing" countries, where people have been forced out of subsistence farming and into either cash-cropping or non-agricultural work, protein deficits are EXTREMELY common.

[gnat23]

I may be wrong on this, but I understood that there's no such thing as an "incomplete" protein. All foods have protein, and nobody's ever lacking protein in the developing countries.

Proteins are made up of amino acids. 23 of 'em. When your body breaks down food, it splits up the protein into the individual amino acids which are then available for your body to use to rebuild muscles, enzymes, etc.

"Complete" proteins contain all 23 in varying concentrations. "Incomplete" are missing one or more.

When the body is rebuilding, the enzymatic factory uses a recipe (DNA), and it adds the amino acids back in a very specific order and cannot deviate. If, in the soup of free amino acids, it can't find the one amino acid it needs, it stops and won't complete the instructions until that amino acid comes along.

For most of us, this isn't really an issue unless you have NO variety in your diet. But rice and beans don't even have to be eaten in the same meal to get the complementary benefits.

-- gnat! (For me, I feel like I ride better the day after a steak dinner...)

[Tuckervill]

I think she meant "developED" countries. I've heard that, too, that Americans get way more protein than they need, even vegetarians.

Karen

[OakLeaf]

I've heard that, too, that Americans get way more protein than they need, even vegetarians.

Karen

There's "need" and there's "need." I know that a person can survive and be healthy on less than 1 g protein per kg bodyweight per day. But if I'm not getting at least 1.75 g of quality protein per kg, I'm sore and tired all the time and I can't build muscle. That's not something I read or a conclusion that I reached when I was thinking about protein; it's something I discovered accidentally one day when I ate a tuna sandwich at lunch and miraculously wasn't sore for the rest of that day and the next day. Any time I did that, the soreness stayed away and I got stronger.

As I mentioned, it's really been a struggle for me to get that much protein in my diet without a lot of animal products (and by "a lot" I mean more than 3 meals per week, which counts as a lot for almost the entire world), but now that I've added it up, I can see what my problem is (low-protein breakfasts and lunches) and start to remedy it. Mmmm, chickpeas for breakfast! :D

[michelem]

There's "need" and there's "need." I know that a person can survive and be healthy on less than 1 g protein per kg bodyweight per day. But if I'm not getting at least 1.75 g of quality protein per kg, I'm sore and tired all the time and I can't build muscle. That's not something I read or a conclusion that I reached when I was thinking about protein; it's something I discovered accidentally one day when I ate a tuna sandwich at lunch and miraculously wasn't sore for the rest of that day and the next day. Any time I did that, the soreness stayed away and I got stronger.


Another thing I learned is that if I'm not eating adequate calories in a day, it doesn't matter if I eat protein only (yes, an exaggeration, because there is no such thing!), I will not build muscle. All that protein will go toward fulfilling my base caloric needs and not be used for muscle-building purposes. In order for the protein (or any other nutrients for that matter) to do that work, I have to be fulfilling my base caloric needs first and foremost. Just learned that from my doc a couple months ago . . .

[PamNY]

Kefir is good; I purchase plain and flavor it myself. Sometimes I add whey protein powder.

Pam

[GLC1968]

Quinoa and Aramanth are grains that are high in protien and do have all the essential amino acids humans need. I haven't tried Aramanth yet, but Quinoa is delicious and extremely versatile.

Nuts are great, but if you have a tendency to overeat them, it's probably better to not snack on them exclusively (meaning that your whole snack is just nuts). Use them to supplement other foods (like on a salad or as a topping) so that they aren't your sole source of calories at that particular meal/feeding. I find this makes it easier to include them in the plan without the danger of over-eating them (an issue for me).

Ricotta, cottage cheese, yogurt, milk and many types of cheeses are great ways to increase your protien, too. While dairy is not an essential part of the diet, it is an easy way to add variety.

[Crankin]

I have used seitan like tofu. There's some recipes in the Moosewood vegetarian cookbook that uses it.
A funny story about seitan...
When my younger son was in HS he worked at the natural foods grocery store. I called him one day while he was working, to see if the store had it, because I had never heard of it and I wanted to make one of the recipes in the Moosewood book.
All I heard was him yelling was, "Hey, my mom wants to know if you have Satan here."

[michelem]

Quinoa and Aramanth are grains that are high in protien and do have all the essential amino acids humans need. I haven't tried Aramanth yet, but Quinoa is delicious and extremely versatile.

I have a recipe at home for amaranth porridge. Unfortunately, it didn't turn out too well when I made it. Not sure if it was me, or this is how amaranth is supposed to turn out, but mind was very sticky and gooey. I did NOT like the texture at all! :eek: Anyway, if you are interested I'll post the recipe.

[badger]

you're not serious, are you?!




sorry, I had meant to say "developed", not "developing".

[OakLeaf]

I prefer amaranth plain if I'm going to have it, just because it is so gooey. It doesn't seem to play well with other ingredients IMO. I do like the flavor, but it's a PITA to clean up. :p

[kjay]

I must share a product that I've found to be perfect for me, especially since I have weight to lose. I checked with Whole Foods about a good meal replacement drink because I didn't want only whey protein by itself; I wanted a drink that would not only provide protein but as much nutrition as possible. More bang for the buck, so to speak.

Well, I found "Vega — Complete Whole Food Health Optimizer" that is an "all-in-one, natural plant-based formula" made by Sequel. You wouldn't believe how many nutrients it contains, plus 15 grams of fiber and 26 grams of protein (in one serving). With the optimum amount of fiber being roughly 35 grams/day, this goes a long way toward fulfilling that.

I'm not affiliated with this product in any way; am simply a consumer.

Web site is www.myvega.com

[derailed]

I had dietary issues and went to a registered dietician/RN nutritionist.
Her information helped me tremendously. If it's possible to consider a nutritionist for assistance, I suggest it.

If you have a specific need, and can find a cultural diet which addresses it, that helps take the sting out of the changes. I have found that for myself eating a lot of Japanese style food, within my understanding of it, has allowed me to eat within my restricted parameters but not feel deprived. A friend chose to eat more of an Indian diet, being more dairy oriented and meatless.

Be careful of the protein powders out there, some of them have strange additives.
If you eat eggs, hard boil a dozen once a week, just to have available to you.

I hope you find a great solution for your system.

[kacie tri-ing]

How does that wonder vegan drink taste? Which flavor do you drink?

[kjay]

kacie, the Vega drink is actually not all that bad. Our Whole Foods carries only the chocolate and berry flavors, so they're the only ones I've tried. I prefer the berry flavor because I can add lemon-flavored Omega oil and other fruit like blueberries, etc, which don't taste all that great to me in a chocolate drink. .

[GLC1968]

kjay - is the protien content in that drink from soy?

Oh, and yeah - it's amaranth - I have a HUGE mental block about that one. I always type it aramanth! :o

michelem - I would love the recipe!

[kjay]

GLC, the protein is a blend of "organic hemp protein, yellow pea protein, organic brown rice protein, and whole flax seed."

Generally I'm one who likes whey protein but being that this is an all-plant-based formula, there's no whey. There's even a dairy-free probiotic blend of L. Acidophilus and B. Bifidum. :-)

[OakLeaf]

Yum, that sounds great! I'll see if I can get my local natural foods store to order some in.


Edit: :eek: nevermind I just saw the price :eek:

[cylegoddess]

Im a vegetarian who is allergic to soy,nuts, egg whites, most beans and grain so I get protein from ;
spirulina( tastes yuck to me so I take tablets but partner loves the taste)
whey protein drinks
broccoli
cheese

You need to be spare with animal proteins, as they are ACIDIC( as are soy, sugars, meats, dairy and alcohol). This can leach your body of calcium, as your blood becomes acid and takes it from you, to make up. A good tablespoon of apple cider vinegar , in warm water in mornings is good for this!

I started taking more calcium once I reintroduced dairy into diet. I know it sound s odd, as we are told dairy is a good source of calcium from day one, but Ive done extensive study's on this, over the years.
Ill try to find the book it came from!

[Drtgirl]

I am a diehard potato chip fan, and yesterday my coworker challenged me to eat some dry roasted edamame (soybeans?). After a few samples I'm hooked...I even went out bought a small bag today at the grocery store. 14 grams of protein per serving and a ton of fiber.

[cylegoddess]

I love those!! But I found out that eating them 24 -7 made me a little fat!( deep fried isnt a good constant snack!)

I eat quinoa, as its a non grain( it a berry) ,Im allergic to grain. Its a specific taste, nutty. I like it flaked in cookies, or for porridge. I also eat it whole, in boiled form,for winter porridge.

[cylegoddess]

whoops! I meant, broad beans! They are tasty too. Just dont eat raw soybeans, as they have nastys in them, that need tp be cooked out.

[Crankin]

No matter how many times I have tried, whenever I try to make a recipe with quinoa, it comes out terrible. The stuff just doesn't cook, it feels hard and kind of tasteless. am following all of the instructions.
What am I doing wrong?

[michelem]

Crankin,

Are you rinsing the quinoa first? Unless your package says it's pre-rinsed, you MUST do so. There is some kind of toxin on the outside of the grain that makes it taste bitter, and I wouldn't be surprised if that might be the problem with it staying gritty.

Anyway, I do one part quinoa to two parts water (or vegetable or chicken stock -- I like the organic low-sodium stuff that comes in cartons at TJ's). Bring it to a boil and then simmer until ALL the liquid is absorbed. I do stir occassionally so it doesn't stick to the sides of the pot. For flavor, add whatever you like -- lemon, pepper, garlic, herbs . . .

[spindizzy]

I, like kjay, use Vega. The taste does take getting used to. I find it is better mixed with cold, cold water. I prefer the chocolate. There is a new flavour out..Vanilla Chai, sweet but a nice flavour change.

[OakLeaf]

Do you really find that it's worth $5.00 a serving?

[spindizzy]

I usually only do 1/2 serving. And I use it only for when I am in the dilemma of needing to eat something, and I am scheduled for a hard workout and know I won't be eating a meal for awhile after (just can't eat post hard workouts).

I've been reading this book, "The China Study" and the links this researcher has made between animal protein and disease is quite startling so perhaps I will be drinking more Vega....Will save my comments for another thread.

[cylegoddess]

I rinse mine too or its awful . I find flakes are easier to cook, but are better as cereal/The whole grains need a good rinse( flakes dont do well with this!) and best use two parts water, simmering. If the grains arent transparent before water gets low, add a little more. Just takes practice.

I also eat lots of pea soup( great after ride in winter), green or yellow peas. I soak them overnight and rinse them Usually one half bag of peas to a big pot.
I boil it until peas dissolve into fine grains. Then I add a little salt, corinader and cumin,turmeric to taste( I add heaps but it gets spicy!)
Good reheated, for five days.

[OakLeaf]

Coincidentally, DH just added some quinoa to the last batch of pea soup he made. It was pretty good!

I think some brands of quinoa sold in the US are pre-rinsed. Eden brand (my favorite brand for staples) is not rinsed. It wouldn't be "tasteless" if it wasn't rinsed though, it would be very bitter.

I's not my favorite thing in general (too sweet IMO, with a flavor that doesn't really blend with a lot of things, unlike the sweetness of rice), but it's pretty good in bean salads; a vinaigrette dressing offsets the sweetness. In the pea soup, the flavor pretty much disappeared, and it just left a little bit of a crunch.

[bluebug32]

Do you know if there's a faster way to make quinoa? Is it possible to make it in the microwave?

[OakLeaf]

Everything you always wanted to know about protein, from the World Health Organization (over 200 pages). http://whqlibdoc.who.int/trs/WHO_TRS_935_eng.pdf

There's a flaked quinoa hot cereal available that ought to be pretty quick cooking. Microwaving grains doesn't decrease cooking times, because water has to penetrate the dried seeds.

Really, the 20-minute stovetop cooking time for quinoa is less than what it takes to prepare the rest of a meal - just start the quinoa before you start chopping veggies, the same as you would for rice or any other grain. But Lorna Sass (http://www.amazon.com/s/178-2077310-5224711?ie=UTF8&tag=mozilla-20&index=blended&link_code=qs&field-keywords=lorna%20sass&sourceid=Mozilla-search) (pretty much my favorite cookbook author) has several pressure cooker recipes with a 12-minute total cooking time.

[Karma007]

Being veg, I get asked this all the time. Other sources of protien (excluding the obvious soymilk and tofu)-
edamame
almond milk
beans
lentils
quinoa
textured vegetable protien
nuts
broccoli (add sesame seeds!)
spinach
poatoes
almond butter
tempeh

[Karma007]

oh! And Vega is really good mixed in smoothies (I use 2c spinach, 1c kale, 1c blueberries, I banana and Ic soymilk or almond milk. I use a dark glass b/c the color is a little much, but it's yummy!

[Pedal Wench]

Does almond milk contain all that much protein? I thought it was pretty low.

[Karma007]

The almond milk isn't loaded with it, but I've found that small amounts add up by the end of the day. I think the key to it is variety. You can easily limit soy and meat and dairy, and still get plenty of protien.

This info is taken straight from the Vegetarian Resouce Group.

FOOD AMOUNT PROTEIN(gm) PROTEIN(gm/100 cal)
Tempeh 1 cup 41 9.3
Seitan 3 ounces 31 22.1
Soybeans, cooked 1 cup 29 9.6
Lentils, cooked 1 cup 18 7.8
Black beans, cooked 1 cup 15 6.7
Kidney beans, cooked 1 cup 13 6.4
Veggie burger 1 patty 13 13.0
Chickpeas, cooked 1 cup 12 4.2
Veggie baked beans 1 cup 12 5.0
Pinto beans, cooked 1 cup 12 5.7
Black-eyed peas, cooked 1 cup 11 6.2
Tofu, firm 4 ounces 11 11.7
Lima beans, cooked 1 cup 10 5.7
Quinoa, cooked 1 cup 9 3.5
Tofu, regular 4 ounces 9 10.6
Bagel 1 med.
(3 oz) 9 3.9
Peas, cooked 1 cup 9 6.4
Textured Vegetable Protein (TVP), cooked 1/2 cup 8 8.4
Peanut butter 2 Tbsp 8 4.3
Veggie dog 1 link 8 13.3
Spaghetti, cooked 1 cup 8 3.7
Almonds 1/4 cup 8 3.7
Soy milk, commercial, plain 1 cup 7 7.0
Soy yogurt, plain 6 ounces 6 4.0
Bulgur, cooked 1 cup 6 3.7
Sunflower seeds 1/4 cup 6 3.3
Whole wheat bread 2 slices 5 3.9
Cashews 1/4 cup 5 2.7
Almond butter 2 Tbsp 5 2.4
Brown rice, cooked 1 cup 5 2.1
Spinach, cooked 1 cup 5 13.0
Broccoli, cooked 1 cup 4 6.8
Potato 1 med.
(6 oz) 4 2.7
Sources: USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference, Release 18, 2005 and manufacturers' information.

The recommendation for protein for adult males vegans is around 56-70 grams per day; for adult female vegans it is around 46-58 grams per day (see text).



It is very easy for a vegan diet to meet the recommendations for protein. Nearly all vegetables, beans, grains, nuts, and seeds contain some, and often much, protein. Fruits, sugars, fats, and alcohol do not provide much protein, so a diet based only on these foods would have a good chance of being too low in protein. However, not many vegans we know live on only bananas, hard candy, margarine, and beer. Vegans eating varied diets containing vegetables, beans, grains, nuts, and seeds rarely have any difficulty getting enough protein as long as their diet contains enough energy (calories) to maintain weight. [See the sections on Pregnancy, Lactation, and Infants and Children (pages 176-197 in Simply Vegan, 4th edition) for details about protein needs during these special times.]

What about combining or complementing protein? Doesn't that make the protein issue much more complex? Let's look at a little background on the myth of complementing proteins. Protein is made up of amino acids, often described as its building blocks. We actually have a biological requirement for amino acids, not for protein. Humans cannot make nine of the twenty common amino acids, so these amino acids are considered to be essential. In other words, we must get these amino acids from our diets. We need all nine of these amino acids for our body to make protein.

Some people say that eggs, cow's milk, meat, and fish are high quality protein. This means that they have large amounts of all the essential amino acids. Soybeans, quinoa (a grain), and spinach also are considered high quality protein. Other protein sources of non-animal origin usually have all of the essential amino acids, but the amounts of one or two of these amino acids may be low. For example, grains are lower in lysine (an essential amino acid) and legumes are lower in methionine (another essential amino acid) than those protein sources designated as high quality protein.

Frances Moore Lappe, in her book Diet for a Small Planet 6 advocated the combining of a food low in one amino acid with another food containing large amounts of that amino acid. This got to be a very complicated process, with each meal having specific amounts of certain foods in order to be certain of getting a favorable amino acid mix. Many people got discouraged with the complexity of this approach. Actually, Lappe was being overly conservative to avoid criticism from the "Nutrition Establishment." She has since repudiated strict protein combining, saying, "In combating the myth that meat is the only way to get high quality protein, I reinforced another myth. I gave the impression that in order to get enough protein without meat, considerable care was needed in choosing foods. Actually it is much easier than I thought" 7.

[Miranda]

I love eggs! I was going to start a thread about it when I found a easy tip for cooking them and taking them on the go.

The South Beach Diet has some type of egg breakfast sandwich thing. That diet makes total sense to me, but way too much time in the kitchen.

To make a healthy home-made McD's egg muffin (that will fill you up, get protein, without mega empty carbs) do this...

small circle microwave dish spray with cooking spray
one large egg with a pinch of salt & pepper, dash of skim milk--stir/scramble
pour in micro dish, cook 1 minute (approx 80 cals for egg, good protein source)

Place cooked circle egg on Thompson's whole grain *MINI* size bagel (110 cals, 3grams fiber) viola...

add low fat slice of cheese for a dairy and more protein

add a bananna or fresh fruit... ya got all four food groups, and good protein "da egg"... yuuummm:D

Like posted, I also CRAVE red meat. Really bad at the period time (bleeding perimenpausal golf balls thank you very much Mother Nature). I love a big lean steak grilled out. Fresh mushrooms. Nice greens salad with pine nuts, and low fat cheese. Vinegrette dressing with real oils. NO BAKED POTATOE.

Also, I'm on the nut band wagon. They are my staple. If the nut has oil... leaves a lot of oil in your hand etc... then it's not a good nut choice (aka Planter's salted party cocktail peanuts--icky).

Almonds... walnuts... pine nuts... South Beach nut mix (a bit of grease, be careful on calories). Put the nuts in your mouth one at a time and enjoy each one slowly. Makes ya feel fuller by eating slower. I even have a special pretty small cup I eat mine out of... makes it a fancy treat:).

[OakLeaf]

The LA Times had another tasty sounding quinoa recipe (http://www.latimes.com/features/food/la-fo-grainsrec14-2009jan14,0,3943758.story) last week. I haven't tried it yet but usually love their recipes.

[malkin]

However, not many vegans we know live on only bananas, hard candy, margarine, and beer.


But substitute peanut butter for the margarine, and it would do for college students.

[michelem]

kjay - is the protien content in that drink from soy?

Oh, and yeah - it's amaranth - I have a HUGE mental block about that one. I always type it aramanth! :o

michelem - I would love the recipe!

Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry I missed this request. Here you go:

Amaranth Breakfast Porridge
1 cup amaranth
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 Tbsp. honey
1/4 c. dried cherries or cranberries
1/4 c. slivered almonds
rice milk

Combine amaranth w/3 cups water in medium pot. Bring to boil, reduce to a simmer and cook for 20 minutes. Stir in vanilla, honey, cherries/cranberries, and almonds. Stir in rice milk if desired.

I seem to recall this making a pretty good size batch, but I really can't remember how many servings . . . Good luck!

[Reesha]

I make edamame hummus with fresh lemon juice, tahini, splash of olive oil and garlic if i'm not going to be close to people ;)

High in protein + fiber and really delicious with celery sticks or green peppers!

[crazycanuck]

Thanks for the tips! I'm searching for more ways to get me protein & appreciate all the info.