How much protein do you really eat?

I have teetered on the edge of veganism for quite some time now,  I’ve committed to a total plant based diet for a month in 2019, but my biggest challenge is losing weight as I get older and keeping it off, and without eggs I think I struggle getting enough protein into my body.  The longer I don’t eat any meat, the more I want to cut all animal products from my diet, so as more and more plant based foods hit the shelves in our grocery stores here in NJ, and more and more restaurants are giving us vegan options, I am ready to commit fully.

I think it is time to really revamp my diet, I need to be adding more protein rich plant based foods into every meal that I eat, so it is time to do some more research and add a few essential protein rich foods to my grocery list.

If you are considering a more plant based diet, or you want to be totally vegan, this is what I have learned about eating more protein without eating any animal products.

Protein is vitally important for our bodies, if you do not eat enough our health and body composition suffers immensely. It is usually recommended that an average sedentary man needs 56 grams of protein a day, and an average sedentary woman needs 46 grams of protein a day, which when you eat animal product this is easy to achieve, but when eating plant based foods this can be more difficult to achieve, especially if you are like me and avoid all soy based foods.

I have never in my life struggled with weight loss, I consider myself to have been very lucky, but as I have aged and my metabolism has changed I have noticed my weight creeping up, and despite calorie counting and eating a very clean healthy diet I still yo yo from day to day or week to week, but what I have noticed is that the weight difference can be attributed to how much food I have eaten that day, and most importantly how much protein I have eaten too.

So with all this in mind I am setting about changing my eating habits yet again. I have always struggled to eat large meals, but as I age I find I need to eat a good amount of healthy calories a day, but what I need to think about is the make up of the calories, how can I add more protein into every meal I eat.  Eating avocado on sourdough toast is not enough protein in that meal, if I average out 46 grams of protein for each day, each of the three meals I eat needs to have approximately 15 grams of protein in. If I eat two meals a day I have to add a whopping 23 grams of protein to each meal.

So lets look at some plant based foods that can give us a healthy amount of protein for each meal…

Of course soy foods are one of the highest protein plant based foods, I avoid soy for personal reasons, so I never include them in my meals but they can give you a whopping 10 – 19 grams of protein per 3.5 oz, pretty good for adding that 15 grams into every meal.

Now I do love me some lentils, green, red or French, I love lentils in everything. Lentils not only provide you with 18 grams of protein per cooked cup, they also provide you with a type of fiber that has been shown to feed the good bacteria in your colon.  I can see many more lentils appearing in my meals in the very near future.

Garbanzo beans, chickpeas or whatever you want to call them, they are delicious and provide 15 grams of protein per cooked cup, I love, love, love them, hummus, roasted or ground into a flour to make pancakes, thicken sauces or make into a totally gluten free pizza base. Chickpeas and all other beans are most definitely a must pantry supply for adding a punch of nutrition to your meals.

Now I have been using nutritional yeast for many years now, not to be confused with yeast we use for baking.  Nutritional yeast adds some nice cheesy flavor to many meals, it is delicious in mashed potatoes and it is delicious sprinkled over pasta.  From my research I discovered that using nutritional yeast on or in my meals can add 14 grams of protein per ounce, it will also give me 7 grams of fiber… I need to be buying this in bulk and using it on everything.

I do love to sprinkle hemp seeds on many of my dishes, they not only look pretty but they add some great nutrition to your meal. Now what I did not realize was the amount of protein these tiny little seeds could add to my food, 10 grams per ounce of completely digestible protein… I may just have to sprinkle a few more into each meal now.

When I was a child I hated green peas, I used to hate the fact my Mom put them on my plate with what seemed like every meal… Now I just love green peas with everything, how our tastes change, I love them mashed with some salt and pepper, I love them in casseroles, I love them in salads, it is fair to say that I really do love some green peas with everything these days.  Not only do these little round green peas provide you with 25% of your daily fiber and vitamin A,C and K, they are a great source of protein weighing in with 9 grams of protein per cooked cup, making them a great addition to every meal.

Now this one surprised me, I have to be honest I bought spirulina quite some time ago, and I haven’t used it once, I am totally rethinking this, 2 tablespoons gives you 8 grams of protein, it is also an anti-inflammatory…  I may just have to add a little to our green juice in the mornings and sneak a little into casseroles here and there.

Quinoa has become a firm fave in our house, whenever I feel I need a little more protein in a meal I cook up some of this ancient grain that is totally protein packed giving us 8 – 9 grams of protein per cooked cup… definitely a staple pantry item in our house.

I am thinking I may need to add more oats and oatmeal into our diets, I love oat milk, but as for actual oats we very rarely have them… half a cup of dry oats gives you 6 grams of protein and 4 grams of fiber… oats can be added to everything from casseroles to veggie burgers and of course a good bowl of oatmeal anytime is the perfect comfort food to get you through a long cold winter.

Did you know that wild rice contains 1.5 times more protein than brown rice or basmati… now I did not, but now I do, guess what type of rice will be added to my grocery list.  One cooked cup of wild rice gives us 7 grams of protein… wow, who knew?

Who makes chia pudding… hands up, me, me, me! 1.25 ounces of chia seeds give us 6 grams of protein, and a huge 13 grams of fiber making them a great addition to any meal, go grab some and chia pudding away.

Now we all know about nuts, seeds and nut butters, one ounce can give us between 5 – 7 grams of protein depending on the nut or seed… I always try to buy raw nuts and seeds and the most natural nut and seed butters I can find, its always a bonus if you find an organic one too.

Finally there are protein rich fruits and vegetables, this is something I always forget, loading your plate up with them not only adds great protein but a host of other nutrition too.  Lets look at the vegetables that can give you between 4 – 5 grams of protein per cooked cup, broccoli, a firm favorite in our house, spinach, asparagus, artichokes, potatoes, sweet potatoes and brussel sprouts, these all make a regular appearance on our plates, but now I will be thinking of the protein I am adding to my plate.  Surprisingly fruits can be protein rich too giving us 2 – 4 grams of protein per cup, guava, blackberries, nectarines and bananas to name a few that can really pack a punch of nutrition.

Eating the rainbow is a must… but adding just the right of protein is just as important too, it keeps our bodies healthy and can really aid in weight loss when done correctly… now to work out the formula that is perfect for my body… wish me luck!

Vegan or plant based diet?

I recently read a post on Facebook about Steve Jobs, one thing that stuck in my mind was something he said, and something I whole heartedly believe in more and more recently… ‘we need to look at food as our medicine, or one day our food will be our medicine’.

Veganism is some thing that has become hugely trendy recently, but realistically how many of the Vegans out in the world are truly vegan, do they still wear leather shoes, do they still sit on giant leather couches, I think that maybe a few still do, so truthfully I think the real term should be plant based diet, but with that being said a plant based diet is not always healthy, there are many flavored chips out there that claim to be vegan, a quick trip to five guys for fries cooked in peanut oil, is that considered vegan too?  Not in my mind, when I think vegan or plant based diet I think vegetables, healthy grains and legumes… and that is exactly the way we have been eating for quite some time now.

In the last two weeks I have really cracked down on healthy eating vegan style… I am not going to say I have been totally a plant based diet eater as I have had a tiny amount of fish in some sushi, but I would say that 98% of my diet in 14 days has been healthy plant based gluten free foods, breakfast, lunch and dinner.

What have I discovered from plant based eating and gluten free dieting?  Well I am preparing food for a long time each day, vegan recipes can be very complex but extremely tasty, but most of all my body feels so much healthier… I have no bloating, my skin looks healthier, I can feel I have started to lose a little of the weight I have been trying so desperately to offload for quite some time now, not much but I can feel it in myself and my clothes and my mind feels clearer and more focused.

 

I have always been a menu planner, so cooking plant based meals has not changed this, the only change is that my cart is filled with much more fresh organic produce and unprocessed foods than ever before.  My shopping list always includes lentils, all varieties of beans, gluten free flours from garbanzo bean flour to tapioca flour, and all the flours in between, lots and lots of fresh veggies and fruits, frozen veggies and fruit and lots of herbs and spices, fresh and frozen… it’s never cheap to eat healthily but it is definitely rewarding.

I challenged my husband to a one week vegetarian diet a few months ago, he not only accepted my challenge, but he knocked it out of the park and became a full time Vegetarian, he doesn’t want to become a fully plant based diet eater as he says he would miss cheese and eggs, and I am good with that, but in all truthfulness because I plan all his meals, breakfast, lunch and dinner including when he is at work, I would say he is 90% a plant based eater… pretty good for someone who has eaten a lot of meat his whole life.

How does he feel after a few months of his new diet… well he has started to lose weight, slowly but he is down two holes on his belt and shorts he couldn’t wear last year now fit him.  He had health issues, which prompted my challenge, and he says he feels much healthier.  Every day I make him breakfast, lunch and dinner and to be honest he eats it all, he does not like products that pretend to be meat so it can be a challenge for me at times, I’ve made black bean burgers, walnut and mushroom meatballs, and to be fair he has eaten them but they are not his favorite… BBQ’s are my biggest challenge with him, but he recently saw a recipe for beer can cabbage cooked on the grill on Facebook that he fancied, so that is on my list to make when we get back from vacation.

Talking about vacation, what happens when you become a plant based eater and you are out and about, especially on vacation staying in a hotel.   South Carolina is famous for fried chicken and waffles, biscuits and gravy, lots of seafood and meat dishes… this will be the challenge, to keep on the healthy eating plan, it will be hard but I am setting myself the challenge, let’s see if I can do it.

So what have I been cooking… the list is long as I like to change it up all the time otherwise I would get bored with cooking day in day out… now remember I live in a house of 10 people most of the time, 12 right now as my parents are visiting, not everyone is vegetarian or plant based, so how do I manage to juggle meals for everyone?  That was my dilemma, but I came up with a solution that seems to be working, although it is a lot of work for the chef, namely me.  I always select a vegan meal then think how can I adapt it, what meat could I add in for the meat eaters, it quite often ends up being two big skillets of food, one with meat and one without.

Here are some of my favorite recipes so far…

Low fat vegan mac n cheese

Crunchy Thai noodle salad

Vegan lentil enchiladas

Indian Frankie’s

Mid week mash and beans

Quinoa and cannellini bean soup

Vegan skillet lasagne

Vegan buffalo cauliflower tacos

Socca

Chickpea scramble

Magic green sauce

Vegan one pot Asian style pasta

Unfortunately I haven’t taken any food photos recently, but I promise going forward I will include photos of our meals.

Vegan cookbooks I recommend…

The new vegan by Aine Carlin

Mindful vegan meals by Maria Koutsogiannis

A while ago a friend of mine suggested that I create a blog of what we eat… I am hugely into nutrition and I try my hardest to cook a balanced meal plan each week, so that got me thinking, especially as we have just started this healthy plant based diet… I thought maybe I could share our journey with you, I’ll give you ideas for meal planning for your healthy week ahead, shopping lists of foods I like to include in my refrigerator and pantry, also I can let you know what is happening and how we are feeling as the weeks go on with our diet based mainly around plants… I really hope you will all join me on this adventure and come along for the ride… but first let’s see how I handle the hurdle of a vacation in the south staying in a hotel… Happy Summer everyone.

 

Naturally delicious…

Is it just me or has this world become just a little bit crazier than when we were children? It’s getting back to our roots that is important… Do we really need all the convenience of modern living… I think not in many cases!

Don’t get me wrong there are many modern conveniences I could not live without… the internet, what would we do without that these days, my trusty Kitchen-aid mixer, a must have in my kitchen and air conditioning, on those hot, hot humid days when you need to just cool off, but the convenience of pre packed food is fast becoming a nightmare, why oh why do companies feel it is perfectly ok to fill our food with chemicals and dyes! What happened to good old fashioned healthy food products? Farmed salmon is full of horrible dyes and chemicals, simple products like a loaf of bread has potential cancer producing chemicals added, canola oil is advertised as a healthy oil… Well guess what? it really is not, I try to avoid this oil at all costs, I always like to use an oil that is actually derived from a plant not something that is man made… It’s all a horrible maze that has become very scarey!

In our house I have stepped up home baking, Bread making, muffins, cookies and my ultimate favorite, Brownies all get baked and disappear as fast as they come out of the oven.
My favorite recipes…
chocolate chip muffins
This is my go to muffin recipe, I adjust it to the muffins I want to make, strawberry, apple, coconut… The options are endless!
brownies
This is my ultimate brownie recipe… To this I add whatever I feel like I fancy, a caramel swirl topping, chunks of chocolate and crispy salt… Or just as they come… Delicious!
the Pioneer Woman’s brown sugar oatmeal cookies
I recently found this recipe… Now my favorite cookie recipe ever!
Ina Garten’s shortbread cookies
With or without the chocolate these cookies are oh so good, they don’t usually make it into the tin in our house!

I want to thank another Mom of a large family of 7 children for my new found love of easy bread baking, I do not personally know her but I follow her on Instagram and she has her own blog that I have been using for my bread recipes… A Farmhouse full … She has made me realize how easy bread making really is, especially with my Kitchen Aid mixer! Her pizza dough recipe is not only easy but delicious too!

With Fall just around the corner, the long summer days are now numbered, I really need to get back to menu planning too, these days I seem to buy less and less pre-packaged foods and when I do just for convenience I try to buy the more natural options when I can! Yesterday I planned my menu for the week and shopped too, so here is what we are having for dinner this week, bare in mind I have two Birthdays next week, so Mabel has asked for a Pioneer Woman’s Pasta bar and Blu can’t decide between steak or ribs on the grill…

Flatbread sandwiches … This turned into chicken curry, rice and naan bread
Homemade pizzas
Pasta bar and grilled lemon chicken
Ribs… Garlic bread sticks and wedges (or steak)
Polenta brats and salad
Cous cous chicken salad
Left overs

Whatever you are cooking this week… Have fun!

Help… The laundry basket is sucking me in!

I am becoming a crafting blog addict, so I wanted to share with you all my latest blog find love this link…, I love all her ideas, it inspires me to get my sewing machine out and perfect my skills… Now all I need is more hours in my day to make my ideas into actual creations!

This week menu plan is on a new board on my Pinterest, for all of you Pinterest lovers out there… I am using the food network website this week, after entering twice daily to win the dream home on HGTV, I am now getting sent daily recipe emails from food network so I thought why not plan a menu around them so here it is…

Orecchiette with Mini Chicken Meatballs
Dumpling Soup
Cheese Tortellini in Light Broth
Broccoli-Cheddar Potatoes
Beef and Cheddar Casserole

Add to that a stir fry noodle a pot sticker home creation meal and a tortellini pesto and rotisserie chicken meal and that is what we will be eating for the next 7 days… What yummy dinner ideas have you got planned for next week?

My washing machine is once again working, for how long I’m not really sure, but for now Karen’s Chinese laundry is open and in service… I washed all day yesterday and I still have mounds of washing left to go… Bed linen from my parents stay, clothes from all 7 of my children, towels and of course Paul and my own pile of dirty clothes… I’m not sure I’m loving the machine working again, sorting, washing, drying, folding and putting it all away, that is how I will be spending my next couple of days… If you don’t hear from me again I’m lost under a huge pile of dirty laundry… Please send help!