Salads with meatless protein

It’s Meatless Monday! Meatless Monday is a non-profit campaign aimed at reducing meat consumption in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet. You can get plenty of protein in your diet without eating meat.

Last weekend I whipped up a great protein salad using two of my favorite protein sources: eggs and humus.

Fresh lettuce, orange pepper, and green onions (veggies that I had on hand), topped with hard boiled eggs (allowed to cool) and a big dollop of Mediterranean humus. Lunch! No dressing needed.

Minimal cost, maximum taste, minimal effort, and plenty of protein.

Here are some other protein ideas for salads:

• quinoa  (this looks good: Walnut-citrus spinach and quinoa salad)
• cheese
• nuts
• beans
• chickpeas
• bulgur
• cracked wheat
• tempeh
• black eyed peas (not the boom, boom, pow variety)
• baked tofu

Salads can be the main course and come packed with meatless-protein. Poke around the web and find a recipe that inspires you! You can post recipes or a link in a comment. Bon appétit!

Going Meatless on Monday

It’s Meatless Monday! Meatless Monday is a non-profit campaign aimed at reducing meat consumption in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.

But what about protein? 

No worries. You can get plenty of protein without eating meat. Check out Heather Levin’s excellent post: Frugal Ways to Get More Protein. 

What should I make? 

If you’re used to eating meaty meals, it can be difficult to make the shift to meatless. You may need some inspiration! Angela Barton has posted some great meatless ideas:

• Meatless Monday recipes
• More Meatless Monday recipes

If cutting back on your meat consumption seems impossible, try cutting back on your red meat consumption. Red meat has the biggest impact on your personal health and our environment.

Go Meatless on Monday (or any day) and post your results here. What did you make? Was it good? Please share.

The Meatrix (factoryfarm.org)

Meatless Monday, Dairyless Tuesday

I’m not much of a meat eater. I’m more of a nibbling rabbit. When I stumbled upon the Meatless Monday campaign, I joined right away. Meatless Monday is a non-profit campaign aimed at reducing meat consumption in order to improve personal health and the health of our planet.

Health of our planet? Yes, what we eat has an impact on our planet. But I’ve often wondered how much?

Recently I found a study (pdf file) from Carnegie-Mellon University that answered some of my questions. The study compared greenhouse gas emissions associated with food production and distribution in the United States. 

Red meat has the greatest impact on our environment, followed by my dear friend dairy.

Red meat and dairy production have far more climate impact than delivery. The study found that eliminating red meat and dairy products for one day each week could have the same climate impact as buying local food all year.

Now that I know the impact of dairy on the planet, I’ve decided to reduce my dairy consumption.

It’s easy enough to substitute in soy or hemp milk. Soy yogurt? Earth Balance natural buttery spread? I’ve been reading the Living Without Meat blog (sans ads on my Kindle) and collecting vegan recipes. I don’t think I’ll be vegan anytime soon (don’t worry Mom). I’ve always been more of a flexitarian; I occasionally eat meat. Still, I’m compelled to reduce my dairy consumption. Vegantarian?

For me, frugality is about treading lightly on our earth; consuming less meat and dairy.

Have you reduced your meat or dairy consumption? Use a Comment to add your wisdom.

Kim O’Donnel’s Mighty Appetite blog has meatless recipes that sound tasty.