Protein challenge?

I saw my nutritionist again today (background info, in recovery from an eating disorder). Right now we're just working on a few little things at a time. One thing she noticed from my food logs is that I have a very limited variety of foods I'll eat, and tend to eat the same things. So one of my "assignments" for this week is to try a new food, one that I haven't had since my eating disorder. She said to try a new protein. I have no idea what to try. I'm not a vegetarian, but I don't enjoy the taste of pretty much any meat (that's not my eating disorder, I have always been like that). But here's a list of proteins I eat often.

• cottage cheese
• egg beaters
• protein powder
• milk
• edamame
• protein bars
• Soy/protein burgers (ex: boca)

I also have tofu on occasion, so I'd consider that a "safe food" as well, I just don't eat it often because I can never cook it right.

So any suggestions on new things I can try? I guess I've been so limited in what I eat, that I don't really know what other protein options there are.

Off the top of my head,

- whole eggs

- beans (aside from soybeans, obviously)

- yogurt

- cheese

Grains can be a good source of protein as well, like wheat germ and quinoa (although I don't think quinoa is a grain technically). Nuts and nut butters also have protein, as well as healthy fats.

You could scramble some whole eggs with black beans, and top with shredded cheese and salsa--three new protein sources in one dish! Or, scramble eggs with crumbled feta cheese and spinach. Yogurt can be eaten a million different ways, even as a substitute for sour cream. If you like to cook you could try making some vegetarian chili--for extra points, top it with a dollop of sour cream or yogurt and some shredded cheddar cheese.

Good luck!

I really like seitan! It's usually by the vegetarian cold cuts- high in protein and made from wheat gluten.

other ideas:

- tempeh

- ricotta cheese

- tofurkey slices (good in sandwiches, etc if you aren't a huge tofu fan)

- fish

I know you have cottage cheese, but have you tried Greek Yogurt, Fage? One full cup has 120 cals and 20g protein, so if you just add like 1/2 a cup with a bit of honey to each of your meals, that 30 more grams right there.

Also, sushi! So yummy-at some grocery stores, they sell "sushi grade" fish, and I just eat it raw, with a tiny bit of soy sauce, and its delish, and a lot of protein!

As suggested above + red lentils

 

Look at the nutritional info: http://caloriecount.about.com/calories-arrowh ead-mills-red-lentils-i82894

 

You can make soups or you can also eat it as it is as given below:

Wash some red lentils, (say 100 grams). Chop one medium onion. Slice 1-2 jalapeno peppers. Boil all of the above, with a pinch of salt, a pinch of turmeric, 1 TBS olive oil. Cook till the lentils are of smooth consistency and eats like a hearty soup.

 

You can add other stuff in it (vegetables/bacon/meat but no fish) if you wish.

I 2nd the greek yogurt and if you don't like the first brand you try, try another. The taste from brand to brand is very different to me. I didn't like Fage but did like Chobani, especially the peach. Stonyfield makes one called Oikos that was good and a bit thinner than the other greek yogurts I've tried. They tend to be thick, like sour cream consistency. Also, Trader Joe's makes some I like. Theirs are pre-mixed too so you don't have to stir to get the fruit mixed into the yogurt. The blueberry is good and pomegranite is ok but very tart. I also love their honey one, it's quite sweet and better than the Chobani one IMO.

Someone else mentioned ricotta cheese which reminded me of an egg dish that I have made. You beat 6 eggs (I suppose you could use egg beaters if you don't want the fat from the yolk) and add 1 cup of ricotta (part-skim is what I use), salt, pepper, and if you want to some herbs or sauteed veggies. Coat an 8x8 pan with oil spray and pour in the mixture. Bake for 30 min in a 350 oven, allow to cool for 10 mins slice and eat. Makes 6 servings, each with 120 cals and 10 g protein.

This seems like a perfect opportunity to see if you like fish/what fish you like!  Fresh, frozen, canned; poached, fried, seared, baked.  It could be something as simple as a tuna-cheese melt, or sardines on toast, or you could try something a little more complex like a fillet en papillote with veggies.  You could try experimenting with a salmon loaf type recipe, or make patties.  On that note, nut- or pulses-based burger recipes are out there if you look for them (I think user:finleysmummy has a pecan-based patty recipe), or can probably even be found in your grocery store.

I am currently hung up on EEL! I know, sounds really really weird... but it's OH SO GOOD! Delicious!!! :)

Hmm.... thanks for the suggestions!

I think maybe I'll try sushi. I don't know. i haven't had in years, but it's a food I used to love. It's not really a protein though, more of a carb....

There's a tiny itsy bitsy part of me that really wants pizza. But it scares the crap out of me. Like I can do frozen individual pizza's, but nothing compared to a real fresh baked pizza. I don't know.

Are you counting exchanges?

 

Oh, and tofu is a great protein. I'm not a vegetarian, but I love to make things with tofu. It's so versitile.

No, I'm going by calories. But She just wanted me to try a new protein, something that I'm not comfortable with, because I tend to go to the safe foods like cottage cheese and egg beaters for my protein.

I like tofu too... I just can never cook it to taste right.

What about quinoa?  It has all of the amino acids for building proteins and I think it tastes pretty darn good.  It is also really versatile. 

Check out this website: http://www.101cookbooks.com/index.html

It's the blog of a vegetarian chef/cookbook author.  She posts a few recipes a week, all with beautiful photographs that make me want to run to my kitchen and start cooking!  The recipes are always very easy.  Check out the section on high-protein recipes (http://www.101cookbooks.com/high_protein_rec ipes/).  There are a few ways to cook tofu in there, as well as beans, tempeh, quinoa...