Protein for vegan smoothies?
bookwormie
Posts: 32 Member
I was wondering if anyone has any ideas for protein in vegan smoothies that is NOT a protein powder? I stopped using protein powders a while ago when there were reports of vegan protein powders having high levels of heavy metals found in them, so I'd rather use real food. My thoughts so far are soy milk, tofu, or peanut butter. Or maybe lentils, if I could hide their taste? Does anyone have any other ideas/ advice? Thank you!
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I don't know why there would be risk of heavy metals in vegan protein powders. Most brands (like Orgain which I sometimes use) consist of pea protein so I don't get the heavy metals connection. In any case, I've used the following as protein sources: hemp hearts (10g per 3 tbsp), chia seeds (3g per 1 tbsp), flaxseeds (3g per 2 tbsp) and peanut powder(5 g per 2 tbsp). These all work quite nicely in a smoothie and don't impart any weird taste. Flaxseed and Hemp in particular have a number of additional benefits aside from their protein content.7
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Rice protein is a possible link. Most vegan oroteins are tested and data can be found. Personally I love them! I use Sun Warrior. I also use natural pea protein from NOW or Sprouts. Natural Zing is a small company that has raw foods and protein. I love thier sunflower protein. Its so good!
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I don't know why there would be risk of heavy metals in vegan protein powders. Most brands (like Orgain which I sometimes use) consist of pea protein so I don't get the heavy metals connection. In any case, I've used the following as protein sources: hemp hearts (10g per 3 tbsp), chia seeds (3g per 1 tbsp), flaxseeds (3g per 2 tbsp) and peanut powder(5 g per 2 tbsp). These all work quite nicely in a smoothie and don't impart any weird taste. Flaxseed and Hemp in particular have a number of additional benefits aside from their protein content.
Seconded. Flaxseed and hemp hearts have the benefit of not having to be made into a shake if you're not feeling it - they sprinkle onto most food easily. I've had them on stir Fries, roasted vegetables, salads, Porridge, ice cream...etc etc3 -
bookwormie wrote: »I was wondering if anyone has any ideas for protein in vegan smoothies that is NOT a protein powder? I stopped using protein powders a while ago when there were reports of vegan protein powders having high levels of heavy metals found in them, so I'd rather use real food. My thoughts so far are soy milk, tofu, or peanut butter. Or maybe lentils, if I could hide their taste? Does anyone have any other ideas/ advice? Thank you!
I wonder how black beans would work? My sister made black bean brownies and they were SO delicious and fudgy, never had a clue they contained black beans. Soy yogurt? Nutritional yeast?2 -
How about silken tofu? Or white beans, if the black beans coloring is off-putting? (I use those in soups as a "cream-ifying" add, sometimes.) Nutritional yeast (within reason
)? Peanut butter powder? 3 -
bookwormie wrote: »I was wondering if anyone has any ideas for protein in vegan smoothies that is NOT a protein powder? I stopped using protein powders a while ago when there were reports of vegan protein powders having high levels of heavy metals found in them, so I'd rather use real food. My thoughts so far are soy milk, tofu, or peanut butter. Or maybe lentils, if I could hide their taste? Does anyone have any other ideas/ advice? Thank you!
I wonder how black beans would work? My sister made black bean brownies and they were SO delicious and fudgy, never had a clue they contained black beans. Soy yogurt? Nutritional yeast?
i've made a chocolate protein shake with black beans and it definitely worked! i did use chocolate protein powder in mine but op you could probably get a similar result using a chocolate plant milk of choice.1 -
Re: protein boosters: Also chiming in with flaxseed and hemp hearts. I would also like to add chia and pea protein.
There is ready pea protein powder out there. You can make a booster by using dehydrated peas and pulverize them in blender for some added protein. 3oz is 6grams of protein and 60 calories. The taste is a touch sweet and earthy.2 -
bookwormie wrote: »I was wondering if anyone has any ideas for protein in vegan smoothies that is NOT a protein powder? I stopped using protein powders a while ago when there were reports of vegan protein powders having high levels of heavy metals found in them, so I'd rather use real food. My thoughts so far are soy milk, tofu, or peanut butter. Or maybe lentils, if I could hide their taste? Does anyone have any other ideas/ advice? Thank you!
I have used soy milk (but that doesn't add so much), nuts/seeds (or nut or seed butters), and especially tofu or white beans or chickpeas. I know the last two sound weird, but they add some creaminess and you can't really taste them as they are neutral enough.2 -
Interesting thread. I just got a jar of Soylent on a trial for my wife - in the hospital, as a nurse, lunch in this time of covid-19 is complicated by PPE removals/redressing and the time and exposure as a result. So, with TCM showing "Soylent Green" recently, I said, "worth a trial." If she doesn't like it, or it doesn't agree with her or doesn't work out, then I'll finish the tub. As the commercial says, "Mikey eats everything." Soylent is vegan, and definitely isn't "people" LOL.
Question: anyone have any experience with this stuff? I've just tried it (original powder). It's pretty bland. Anyone do anything with it to dress it up? I've heard of GI issues in some people, which is why I'm the guinea pig on first usage.
Thanks in advance. I'm going to also start a separate thread on this topic, FYI.
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I think something like silken tofu is going to be a good option (or like someone above said, white beans or chickpeas - only those might not get quite as smooth as the tofu would). I haven't personally tried it as I'm not a huge smoothie fan, but I've seen a good number of smoothie recipes that use silken tofu as a protein booster, and I've made a sour cream substitute with it so I know it gets really smooth really easy and the flavour hides without too much effort.0
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... I just got a jar of Soylent on a trial for my wife - in the hospital, as a nurse, lunch in this time of covid-19 is complicated by PPE removals/redressing and the time and exposure as a result.
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I'm just back online after being without power for 6 days following the storm last week. I did a Soylent experiment during this week, results reported back on the thread I opened for that topic, in case anyone's interested.
Quick summary: OK, but not a panacea. YMMV.0 -
Silk Nut Milk, Protein Blend (10 grams of protein per 8 ounces, if I'm remembering correctly).0
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Some of these have already been mentioned, I usually use tofu, hemp powder, Sesame (defatted) powder, pumpkin seed (defatted) powder, or almond butter in my smoothies. I try to get the organic versions so I hope (!) this means there aren't too many heavy metals / other nasties.1
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Some of these have already been mentioned, I usually use tofu, hemp powder, Sesame (defatted) powder, pumpkin seed (defatted) powder, or almond butter in my smoothies. I try to get the organic versions so I hope (!) this means there aren't too many heavy metals / other nasties.
Ooo- try Sunflower-!
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Maybe things like chick peas and tahini? I’ve had chick pea “cookie dough” before and it does not taste like humus with the other ingredients added (lol, probably loads of sugar). I imagine ground up chick pea would also add a nice smooth consistency.0
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Rice protein is a possible link. Most vegan oroteins are tested and data can be found. Personally I love them! I use Sun Warrior. I also use natural pea protein from NOW or Sprouts. Natural Zing is a small company that has raw foods and protein. I love thier sunflower protein. Its so good!
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Has anyone used Gorilla Formula 23?0
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