Thread: Protien suggestions?

Now that Im pregnant, nothing I ate before seems right to me. I DO NOT want meat. Or if I do, only certain kinds, and its not predictable at all.

Now, I have wheat and dairy allergies so this makes it super hard for me, especially since Ive been craving things like sandwiches with french bread and raviolies. I've been trying out different soy cheeses and they are ok in an omlet (eggs work for me still). I have several kinds of nuts, and they are great too.

But if anyone has any other suggestions and recipes for dinner and snacks Id really appreciate it!

Congratulations! I'm so happy for you, and I understand the aversion to meat as I had it too. At the time I was pregnant with my kids I didn't know alot about meat alternatives but now I know that quinoa (yummy), rice and beans (together), tofu are good dairy/wheat free meat alternatives. Make sure you choose brown rice, and brown basmati is very tasty. It does take almost an hour to cook but it's worth it; if you make more than you need you can save it for a later snack. Edamame are very nice as a snack too.

Buying your grains in bulk is also cheaper if your markets there have a bulk food aisle. Vegan websites will have alot of other ideas too, especially if you research complete proteins. Don't forget to take your folic acid!

First of all, congrats on the little one on the way!

You'll most likely want to talk to your doc, but I'll take a stab at this.

As far as the wheat cravings go, have you tried any of the gluten free breads, pastas and baked goods? Those might satisfy your carb cravings without aggravating your allergies. Any health food store or Trader Joe's usually has an amazing selection - my sister even turned me on to gluten free brownies!

As far as the protein goes, if you're looking to go meatless, my suggestion would be to eat more beans, lentils and other legumes, and pair them with rice or some other type of grain. Combining a legume with a starch gives you a complete protein. Also, if meat bothers you, maybe you might want to try some of the soy-based meat substitutes - they make "faux" ground beef, burgers, and chicken. There really is some good vegetarian stuff out there. Maybe you can find some good protein shakes/bars to snack on, too. (I like Designer Whey for a shake, and Builder's Bars for a bar).

That's all I can think of for now....maybe you have a local health food store with nutrition consultants or naturopaths on-site to answer your questions? If so, I'd definitely take the trip - that's a great way to get professional advice for free!

rice and lentils worked wonders for me when i was preggo...i also liked sweet potatoes with black beans and cumin with vegan butter. Chick peas in a salad or mixed with rice rule..maybe you could try falafel? Hummus is yummie with veggies and sometimes i like to eat it with potato chips. Tempeh is super good!

pregnancy and its ups and downs - tribe.net

these ladies were super helpful when i was pregnant last winter : )

Im not good with GF diets, but check out Bolthouse Farms perfectly protein vanilla chai tea with soy protien. It is all natural, low fat and dairy free (and delicious!) You'll get 10g of protein per serving.

Nilaja

Folic Acid? I just threw up my prenatal vitamin. Blech. I keep trying to take them and my body keeps throwing them up no matter the brand.

Chick peas have great protein- so hummus would be great. As you can't have bread- maybe try a spelt bread to scoop it up with?
I'm also a fiend for Foul Medammus. Here's a link to a recipe
Foul Medammas Recipe - Calorie Count

It's often eaten with bread- but it's so flavorful I also just eat it with a fork.

One of my favorite things in the world is Spinach and Beans (iron and protein!) from my Italian mother in law. She calls it "Italian peasant food" because of it's ease and simplicity.
Saute 1 chopped onion in good olive oil until transparent.
Add one bag frozen chopped spinach. Heat through.
Add one can pink beans (not kidney beans). Add a bit of water too, to make it juicy.
Plenty of salt and pepper to taste.
This one is usually served with bread - but can be served over brown rice too.

this is a little random, not about protein, but we were just talking about this over lunch:
don't take too many calcium complements. it makes for big babies. my mom didn't know about this one for her first baby, my sister was 4kg400 at birth and my mom did NOT have a good time getting her out lol.

Raw almonds are a good protein source, two ounces equals one protein serving. I usually eat only one ounce at a time because of the high fat content. One ounce has about 1 1/2 tsp. fat. Almonds are the lowest in fat of the nuts.

Hummus is yummy with raw veggies.

I have a good recipe for tofu if you are interested. My kids grew up on it and I still make it about once a week. The secret with tofu is getting the right texture. Start with firm or extra firm tofu. I slice it, lay the slices on a clean dishtowel and press out as much water as possible. Then I saute the slices in a hot pan for 5 min. on each side, until they are nice and brown. Garlic, Bragg's (or soy sauce) and nutritional yeast make great flavorings. You can just add those the last few min. in the pan, or you can follow the recipe idea below:

What I do is remove the slices from the pan and cut them into cubes about 3/4". I mince several garlic cloves (two or three for one pound of tofu). Reduce the pan to medium heat. Put the tofu cubes and the garlic back into the pan and stir them for a minute or two. Add Bragg's (a soy-based seasoning similar to soy sauce but better for you) to taste, then add nutritional yeast powder (also called Brewer's yeast, I like the large flake kind) and stir to coat. You can add additional spices like curry powder, chili powder, etc. but often I don't.

Serve the cubes on a bed of fresh greens and raw veggies and top with fresh raw salsa. Yumm.

I use Brewer's yeast in place of Parmesan Cheese on spaghetti sauce over brown rice, as an alternative to dairy and wheat but still with yummy spaghetti flavor.

Quinoa is a grain that has complete protein. The secret to cooking quinoa is to rinse it before cooking, this removes an unpleasant aftertaste from the grain. You need a fine wire mesh strainer to accomplish this, as the grains are tiny. Then cook like rice for 15 min. Cooked quinoa is good with sauteed veggies. I cook the veggies in the pan, then add the quinoa and stir-fry it a little bit to give a bit of crispy texture to it.

I forgot to say congratulations on your pregnancy! Sending you good thoughts for your health and for the baby's health!

Quick tip about prenatal vitamins - try taking with food. and if that doesn't work, try taking any kind of vitamins you can get your hands on. A friend of mine ended up taking children's vitamins through out her pregnancy. It worked.

{{{HUGS}}}

Congratulations on your pregnancy! When I was pregnant, and going meatless, the midwives had me drink smoothies with added protein powder. You can use soymilk and your favorite fruit!

Watch out for those "meat substitutes"... lots of them, one of the main ingredients is wheat gluten.

And spelt is just another kind of wheat, containing gluten, just like barley and rye.

Beans and rice will combine to make a nice protein, and legumes too. Lots of nice ways to combine them, since there are so many different kinds of beans, legumes, and rice!

Yes, try taking your vitamins with your meals, if you're not... I'd barf them up too!

iwouldnt dream of taking them without eating a meal!

I had a bad time with throwing up vitamins too. My doctor said to switch to taking them right before bed. It seemed to help me.

We use a lot of quinoa and love it - just make sure to rinse it Really well before cooking or it will have a really bitter taste.

I also make bread with oat flour, rice flour and flax seed. (soy milk if it needs it)

Take good care of yourself! :)

Originally Posted by rscramer

I had a bad time with throwing up vitamins too. My doctor said to switch to taking them right before bed. It seemed to help me.

By the way, I thought she was nuts when she said this because it would mean taking them without food but it seemed to work.

tuna, salmon, mackerel , peanut butter, hummus, legume and a starch is a complete protein. Egg are good too.

Edemame (roasted soybeans) is quite high in protein, and personally I could eat an entire bag of them in one sitting. YUM. They're really good sprinkled in a salad, too.

avocado! my favorite thing is chopped avocado and baby spinach mixed with basmati rice, a little bit of lime juice and salt... mmmmm

my favorite salad is romaine, avocado, mandarin oranges, walnuts or pecans and raspberry vinaigrette.

I made a soy yogurt salad with blackberries, pecans, and a sprinkle of soy protein (cherries jubilee). It was pretty good.

I do have gluten free breads but they just ARENT the same.

Almond butter and cashew butter are delicious (and esp good if you have any history of allergies), with apples or celery is a good snack. macadamias, sunflower seeds. fish - low mercury fish while preggers and breastfeeding.
and beans, beans! the magical fruit! in any form, excellent for you and Baby. :)

pumpkin seeds

If eggs are tolerable, I'd try to eat lots of eggs, especially egg whites and an occasional yolk. Hard-boiled eggs are an easy snack, and contain almost no fat or cholesterol if you don't eat the yolk. Maybe you could add them to salads and things?

I LOVE Muscle Milk Light shakes, loads of protein in there, but I think they're whey based so maybe that would affect your allergies? Same with the protein snack bars?

yeah, i can eat cliff bars tho...but they dont taste good to me at the moment..

my bf (who is marathon training) drinks protein shakes that are quite yummy when made with bananas and milk (you can sub in soy)---the brand he uses is CytoGainer (you can get it online for cheap) and it's made from whey protein....and comes in Rocky Road!!

my midwives told me that two eggs gives you enough protein for the day