need protein ideas!

[*mama moose*]

Hi there,
My MW would like me to increase my protein intake during this pregnancy, sorta Brewer Diet style. During the last 2 pregnancies I had high blood pressure at the end, and last time had a borderline number come up on the GD test, not enough to call it an issue but close enough to take note of it, you know? I've been drinking Spiru-Tein (protein drink with spirulina, it's really good stuff! ) in the morning, to try to get some extra protein in there, but I've been having trouble getting more protein in my actual MEALS. One HUGE hurdle is that I can't eat any nuts or nut products. My 1 year old (who still nurses) is anaphylactic to peanuts/tree nuts and is contact reactive, so even if she were not nursing I couldn't eat them without an insane washing up afterwards...just not worth it, they're banned from the house. I do eat SunButter (sunflower seed butter made in a nut free facility) but I'm not really sure what to do with it other than SB&J sandwhiches, which is probably not the best "high protein" idea out there
I know lentils are good, tofu is good, we do some morningstar products like crumbles or "chicken" burgers, but I try to avoid overly relying on them because of the sodium and such....
I feel kinda lost in the whole thing, as I'm not even sure what IS a good source of protein and what isn't, and then the obvious things (lentils, tofu, eggs) I only have a few recipes for and those get boring. I need new ideas! I'm a vegetarian, not a vegan, so I can do eggs and cheese and such...are those actually good protein choices though? Are there any snacks you can think of that are not nuts that I could take to work with me? I tend to take fruit if anything at all because it's just easier.....

Anyways, thanks everyone in advance!

[mum21andtwins]

this link scroll down a bit.
beans though are great you can make pate and have it n toast salads so many many things with beans, burgers "meat"loaf

[caiesmommy]

I was vegan and needed to up my protein/calories so I started eating dairy my last pregnancy...wellwhat dairy I could handle(cheese was pretty much it)

Breakfast-smoothie w yogurt or soy yogurt/flax seeds/hemp seeds/berries
-omelette w eggs/cheese/veggies
-tofu scramble

Lunch-hummus w veggies
-miso soup w tofu chunks
-mixed bean salad
-grilled cheese

Dinner-refried bean buritoes/tacos w cheese/sour cream
-pasta w fake meat or beans w hemp seeds mixed in
-mixed bean soup with garlic bread and cheese
-quinoa and beans(like rice and beans but quinoa has a lot more protein)

Drinks-almond/hemp or soy milk-add chocolate for variety(almond breeze chocolate is fantastic!)

Snacks-homemade muffins using eggs, with flax seeds added. I just made a batch of whole wheat pumpkin flax the other day


Just throw extra proteinonto whatever meal your having. As in throw some seeds like hemp, flax, pumpkin onto your salad/soup/pasta/even your cereal

[Mother Cake]

If cooking beans takes too long for your family, try canned--much faster and not very expensive compared to most soy products. Make sure you season them. I think there was a thread about spices for manybean soup in this forum earlier this week. And don't forget the salt. Also, blending them can make them more palatable for some people. Black beans are my favorites, taste-wise. Very good with curry spices.

Hummus can be a good source of protein for snacks, but I make it thicker than you usually get in the store.

Easy recipe:
Equal parts chickpea (garbanzo bean) paste (grind/blend cooked/canned beans) and tahini (sesame seed butter)
Lemon or lime juice, salt, ground cumin and/or any other spices you like to taste.

If you mix the lemon juice with the tahini first, it can make stirring in the chickpeas easier.

The thicker it is, the easier it is to use as a spread on bread/crackers and get a substantial amount of protein from it.

For snacks at work, what about yogurt cups or yogurt/fruit smoothies?

[lisad1]

Quinoa is high in protein and a complete protein. Plus easy to make/add to recipes and delicious!