High Protein Foods for Vegans

One of the biggest challenges of going vegan is ensuring you still get all the protein you need, since you're no longer eating meat and dairy. Here is a list of high-protein vegan foods. I used it to plan my meals and organize my grocery shopping - if you only have vegan foods on hand then it's much easier to stick to! Of course there are many other foods that are vegan, but if you focus on the highest-protein options you'll be able to get all your nutrients in less calories.

Top High Protein Foods

1. Nuts (peanut butter, trail mix)
2. Beans (all of them, especially soy and lentils, hummus, black bean soup, edamame, rice and beans)
3. Whole Grains (quinoa, brown rice, oatmeal)
4. Soy Products (soymilk, tofu, soy beans, soy yogurt, tofu in stir fry, tofu smoothies)
5. Meat Substitutes (veggie burgers, veggie dogs, veggie crumbles)
6. Veggies (broccoli, kale, spinach, squash, pumpkin)

Famous Vegans

For me it's been a bit hard to stick to a strict vegan diet, but these celebrities do it every day (in addition to our fave vegan celebs, Ellen and Portia):

1. Alicia Silverstone
2. Anthony Kiedis
3. Bryan Adams
4. Daryl Hannah
5. Joaquin Phoenix
6. Kevin Nealon
7. Moby
8. Pamela Anderson
9. Prince
10. Woody Harrelson

So if I'm drawing the correct conclusions, if I stick to the vegan diet I'll become rich and famous? Now there's some inspiration!

Day 5: Carrie Goes Vegan

I have to admit that this challenge is going a better than I expected. We're eating very healthy meals, the prep time is definitely manageable on my schedule and we actually feel a bit healthier and "lighter".

Tonight we had this fantastic salad for dinner, My Favorite Summer Salad. The eggplant makes it nice and hearty so it was even filling enough for the hubby.



Maybe a vegan diet isn't for everyone and maybe my husband needs a bit more protein, but this is DEFINITELY a challenge that everyone can do. It's a healthy lifestyle and great for the environment. Give it a whirl and let us know how it works out for you!

Day 5: Vicki Goes Vegan

Let's ignore what I had for dinner last night and focus on my breakfast and lunch:

Breakfast

• Espresso (always vegan - but this is a cheat because I never use cream or milk in my coffee. However, you can use Rich's Non-Dairy Creamer if you're looking for a vegan creamer).
• All Natural So Delicious Soy Yogurt, raspberry flavor. They've got a great line-up of flavors and you're not missing a thing when compared to "regular" yogurt.

Lunch

• BLT: Bread, Lightlife Smart Bacon, Vegenaise, lettuce, tomato.
• Water - it's important to drink loads of water no matter what diet/eating lifestyle you choose and I'm lucky that I love water. It really adds to the healthy feeling I get from watching what I eat.

OK, so can we all agree that I've taken major steps this week and therefore keep what I had for dinner between you and me? Thanks :)

Day 4: Carrie Goes Vegan!

I was so excited about making dinner tonight because it's a variation on one of the dishes my mom made all the time as a kid. She always made polish sausage and scalloped potatoes and I remember my brother and I both getting excited when we'd see her beginning to prepare it.

So, I attempted a modern version of Sausage and Smashed Cauliflower - vegan and low carb. Definitely not the same as mom used to make ... it was so much better!!! I used the Tofurky Italian Sausage - which has the perfect amount of heat for me and my family. And I made a vegan variation on the Smashed Cauliflower by using vegan cream cheese and spices instead of the Boursin cheese. It was a truly delicious meal and I think Ellen would've devoured it right along with us!

Day 4: Vicki Goes Vegan

My lunch yesterday was fab! I took Carrie's advice and got a little more creative, while still using up my leftovers (those bags of slaw last forever!). Check out my Vegan Nachos:





Now just don't ask about my dinner - I went out to an Italian restaurant and it was impossible to find something vegan. Well, more accurately, it was impossible once I smelled everyone else's food to find something vegan on the menu that looked appealing. I'm finding that when I eat at home it's not that hard to control - just only have vegan products on hand and then you'll be fine. But in a restaurant? That was too much for me to bear. Oh well, we can't all be perfect. But I'm trying!

Day 3: Carrie Goes Vegan (sort-of)...

Um ... screeching halt. The flu is attacking my house. Well, it's beating the crap out of me, but hopefully it'll stop there. I seriously don't want my little ones to get the 24-hour bug I just battled.

Anyway, I didn't eat at all yesterday so there's no fantastic meal or frightening fiasco to blog about. Wait, that's still considered a vegan diet, right? Yay! My challenge hasn't been disrupted! And I didn't even have to chant "What Would Ellen Eat?" yesterday for inspriation.

Wish me better luck for tonight's meal!

Day 3: Vicki Goes Vegan

Well, not much exciting to report but at least I stuck with it! Not one to waste leftovers, I had hummus and crackers for lunch, then a soy burger and cole slaw for dinner. Jealous? Vegan AND leftovers. But actually, it was all quite good, and again, easier than I thought it would be. Granted, it's only been 3 days but that's not too bad!

Day 2: Carrie Goes Vegan!

So far, so good.

Breakfast and lunch aren't difficult for me since I'm usually on my own for those meals. Today for breakfast I had toast with peanut butter (one of my faves!) and for lunch I had a nice, healthy green salad. It was a little hard not to reach for the ranch dressing, but I happily had the Balsamic Vinegarette.

For dinner we had Summer Mediterranean Pasta and it was fantastic. The hubby didn't miss the meat in the dish because the Barilla Plus Pasta is packed with protein. And again, simple clean-up with a one dish meal like this. Ahh ... everyone is happy! (I sound really lazy and like I hate doing dishes, don't I? Well ... it's true!)

Day 2: Vicki Goes Vegan

I had already planned a girl's night happy hour at my house for Tuesday so I was a little worried about how that would coincide with my Vicki Goes Vegan plan. But I realized this was a great opportunity to get rid of all the stuff in my house I shouldn't be eating! Let my friends sleep with the guilt of cheesy goodness. Mmm, cheese. Yummy cheese. Oh crap. Getting sidetracked.

So, I offloaded some of my dairy products into Crab Rangoon Dip and Striped Cheese Triangles while I happily dipped orange and green peppers into some fabulous hummus. Just please don't tell me wine isn't vegan!

Day 1: Vicki Goes Vegan

I thought this challenge was going to be hard but so far it's been alright. Very easy for me to say, though, since it's only been a few hours! By the end of the week you might catch me in the corner unwrapping sticks of butter and eating them like candy bars, but for now I feel like I've found some healthy alternatives to meat and dairy.

I highlighted these two recipes on the FunnyScoop blog as part of our FunnySpoon Challenge:

Teriyaki Salmon Burgers



Yogurt Poppy Slaw



It was easier than I thought to go vegan - I just substituted the following ingredients in the recipes:

MorningStar Farms Grillers Vegan Burger

Silk Plain Soy Yogurt

Vegenaise Vegan Mayonnaise

Delish! I really didn't feel like I was missing out on anything, plus I got that "feel-good" feeling that I was being more eco-friendly and eating a little healthier. (Plus I was thinking this is "what Ellen would eat" and got a little excited that she might give me a gold star or a pat on the back. Fingers crossed!)

Day 1: Carrie Goes Vegan!

I'm thinking it won't be too hard to do this vegan thing. I mean, I was a strict vegetarian for 10+ years so this should be easy, right? Right. Sure, I'll miss my rich, creamy cheese & dairy products, but I won't miss the meat. I really only eat meat now because a) my husband nags me to eat it ALL THE TIME and b) I really do feel more satisfied salads, pasta, rice and pretzels by the pound.

So, for the first night of my challenge I'm making tacos. Since this isn't an entire household challenge I'm making Tacos Two Ways: Meatless Tacos for me and my 1 year old daughter and Turkey Tacos for my hubby and 3 year old son. Tacos are a favorite around my house for a host of reasons: they're simple, everyone can have them 'their way', I can make them spicy for me and mild for the husband and kids, very minimal clean up. That's a perfect meal in my book. And these vegan tacos were absolutely delicious!



Day 1's a success. Whew!

What's this WWEE thing?

We have to admit it - WE LOVE ELLEN!! We think she's incredibly cool, funny, generous, interesting and savvy. Did we mention that we love her?! She's just so darn loveable!

Anyway, we think FunnySpoon is right up her ally. The FunnySpoon no-nonsense, no-pretense approach to cooking seems very "Ellen" and we think it would really appeal to her audience. So we're on a mission to get her familiar with our website, our cooking style and our brand.

To help us acomplish this we've embarked on a little experiment. We've learned that Ellen eats a vegan diet so we're going vegan for a week. We're calling it the "What Would Ellen Eat" Challenge. I was a vegetarian for many years, but now incorporate fish into my diet. It's not a huge stretch for me (although I'm sure I'm going to miss all my dairy products!!). However, Vicki is a meat-loving, cheese-loving, bacon-loving carnivore. This is going to be one difficult challenge for her!

The cool things about this challenge:

1. We are challenging ourselves to eat a healthy diet for a week. Vegan diets are known to be low in fat, low in cholesterol and high in fiber.
2. We're creating a ton of healthy, fun recipes for FunnySpoon.
3. We hope Ellen (and Portia) will try at least a few of the recipes we're developing for them.

So, about 20 times a day over the next week we'll be saying to ourselves "WWEE!" or "What Would Ellen Eat?" every time we open the fridge, look in the pantry, try to figure out how to skip the yummy, delicious butter and every time we hear our tummy grumble for cheese!
You want to join us in the challenge? We'll chronicle our ups and downs on this blog, share our recipes and our hints for how to incorporate some vegan meals into your diet. Vegan may not be the answer for your (or for us) forever, but it's always good to try new things, right? Right! Say it with me. WWEE!!