Tag: recipes

New Ways to Use Whey Protein Powder

by Monica Reinagel, MS, LDN

imagesAfter writing about the benefits of distributing your protein intake more evenly throughout the day, I heard from many of you that you were struggling to figure out how to get the recommended 25 – 30 grams of protein at breakfast and lunch–without eating meat at every meal!

So, when National Dairy Council challenged me to come up with some novel ways to incorporate whey protein powder into familiar meals and recipes, I jumped at the chance.

Why Whey?

Although there are lots of options, each with pros and cons, my protein powder of choice has always been unflavored whey protein. It’s a high-quality protein, neutral in flavor, versatile, relatively inexpensive and–unlike some of the legume based protein powders I’ve tried–doesn’t cause digestive issues (read: gas!).  I keep a big container of it in the pantry but until recently I only used it in smoothies.

As I’ve discovered, there are so many other ways to use whey protein powder to increase protein intake throughout the day. Getting the recommended amount of protein should be a snap. Continue reading “New Ways to Use Whey Protein Powder” >

This week: cricket tacos, manuka honey, unusual veggie recipes, garcinia cambogia, and more

by Monica Reinagel, MS, LDN

cricket tacosMy column in this Style Magazine has tips for stashing vegetables in places neither your kids (nor your dinner guests) will ever suspect. All’s fair in love and vegetables, I like to say.

If, however, you decide to jump on the bandwagon and feature “micro-livestock” at your next dinner party, I advise against secrecy. Your friends may be able to forgive undisclosed cauliflower but might not feel the same about insects. I discussed the nutritional, ecological, and culinary arguments for eating bugs with (a rather squeamish) Tom Hall of WYPR as well as in this article for Food and Nutrition Magazine.

Mealworms on the menu too gross for you? My extended conversation with Jonathan Bailor of the Smarter Science of Slim focused on more conventional crops (!) and the role of urban gardens, the farm bill, and schoolyard vegetable patches in bringing communities closer and obesity rates down.

One thing that probably won’t be all that much help in the fight against obesity is garcinia cambogia. Despite its popularity, a review of the science suggests that any advantage might be more mental than anything else. I’m afraid the news on manuka honey wasn’t much better.

For those who enjoy cooking, here are two somewhat unconventional ways to cook two very conventional items that are in abundance at the the farmer’s market right now.   And, while I hate to take sides in a mother/daughter nutrition spat, I’m afraid I had to side with Mom on this one.

Keep those questions coming! (What would I write about otherwise??)

Nutrition Round-Up: carbs and weight gain, prebiotics, sports nutrition tips, and your questions answered

by Monica Reinagel, MS, LDN
Almonds lower in calories than previously thought
An almond tree in bloom

This week’s round-up is turbo-charged with two weeks’ worth of nutrition advice and commentary (due to the fact that I failed to post a round-up last week)!

Let’s start with the headliners: In last week’s Nutrition Diva podcast, I took a closer look at all the media buzz around the latest study on carbs and weight gain. As usual, there’s a little more to the story than the sound-bytes would suggest.   Also in the news, almonds turn out to be less caloric than we thought.

Speaking of nuts (and no, I am not referring to my dear readers!), a fan wrote in with a question about PB2, the new low-fat peanut butter(like) product taking calorie-counters by storm. Sometimes, less really is less. While we’re on the subject of calories, here’s a quick and dirty tip for a reader who wondered whether it makes more sense to focus on fat or calories when selecting non-dairy milk.

Over on the What’s Cooking blog, I have a post on selenium, what it does for you, and where you get it,  including some yum recipes.  You’ll find more great recipes in this post on starting the day off right with a vegetable-packed breakfast.

Wondering about the difference between prebiotics and probiotics? Check out this recent  episode of the Nutrition Diva podcast (which features a special guest appearance from Everyday Einstein!).   I got to pull out more fancy scientific terminology–words like ‘convective’ and ‘evaporative’–in this post on whether  drinking hot tea cools you down faster than a cold beverage.

And, finally(whew!), this month’s Smart Nutrition segment with Tom Hall on WYPR-FM in Baltimore focuses on sports nutrition tips for serious athletes as well as weekend warriors.

That should keep you busy until next week!