Dear readers,

Thank you for subscribing to my blog. I will continue to post recipes as they are created and recreated for the purpose of sharing here and will also begin to add a little more depth to my page. I will like to include healthy information and helpful reminders of some of the things that I must keep in mind when maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

To begin I’d like to mention that although I’ve been a vegetarian my entire life, it’s taken some time to incorporate vegan lifestyle changes as well as to find ways to properly nourish my body while avoiding animal products. Through the process of eliminating or at least minimizing my consumption of animal products I ended up filling up on empty carbohydrates looking for protein wherever I could. I hadn’t taken the time to find my best options for protein, nor researched to see how much protein I should actually be consuming on a regular basis for my body type. And without the knowledge that I’ve since recently obtained I began to slowly but surely gain weight. Honestly it was a mystery to me. I felt I was eating healthy food,  exercising semi regularly and still I was gaining weight. Needless to say the frustrations that ensued started to take a toll on me, and I was able to reach out to a friend of mine. Fellow energy healer, and yoga teacher Nadia, sister to me shared a great deal of information with me including an amazing variety of proteins to be on the look out for. Her husband, an incredible personal trainer has helped me with exercise routines, and also helped me figure out the numbers I should be looking at when it comes to just how much protein and carbohydrates I should actually be consuming. What a difference to what  I’d been doing!

Over the last few months I’ve been able to loose and keep off 15 lbs, another 5-10 lbs and I’ll have reached my goal. Yet I feel as if I’ve already won. And what it really comes down to: movement, lots of it, and a high protein, high nutrient, low carb diet.

When it comes to vegan protein, variety is key to not getting bored and quitting altogether. If I fall off track, there is always a brand new day to start making healthy choices from the get go. I start with what I enjoy most, or what makes me feel best, satisfied the longest, intuitively I find the protein sources that I need.

While at the doctors office recently, I was asked on a questioner if I was on a diet, and I almost selected the ‘yes’ option, hearing my trainers words “diet hard” in my head, until I reconsidered and remembered that I am not actually on a “diet” with all it’s negative connotations but rather have completely changed my life style. I have no intentions of forgetting the information I’ve learned and regressing to previous habits that no longer serve me but rather continuing to remember the important information I’ve learned and to continue making healthy life style choices that serve me.

Let’s look at just some of the amazing vegan protein sources we have available together, so you can get some ideas of what foods to be on the look out for and what sources you may already be getting protein from with out even realizing.

Greens, greens greens! I cannot say enough good things about greens! Dark colored, leafy greens are an amazing source of protein and are a huge part of my vegan diet. Whenever possible I will add kale or spinach to my smoothies, and also to any dish as a little extra color, flavor and protein! Great by themselves, and also with rice and bean dishes, wonderful on lentils and even baked as kale chips. The sky really is the limit. Check out my Green Goddess smoothie recipe, and I’ll be sure to post some more great green recipes in the future.

Sprouts are a recent favorite of my, amplifying nutritional value even further. I’ve been buying and using a lot of broccoli sprouts for smoothies and salads mainly, and have begun to sprout things on my own, more information to come as well. I’ve got a great raw, sprouted hummus recipe I’d like to share. Lentils and chickpeas are just a few of the things that are fun and easy to sprout.

Nuts, of course a well known source for protein, and don’t forget to soak them.

Avocado a wonderful source of protein, along with seeds. Have you tried chia seeds? Check out my Chia Chiller, a refreshing, energizing protein filled drink to get you through your daily work out or as a great pick me up. I am not a coffee drinker, but find that chia seeds, either in water or chia pudding work just as well, actually better than any caffeinated beverage.

An amazing seed to have handy are hemp seeds! Their flavor is mild and they have a very nice texture. When used as a topping to salads, entree dishes etc. it’s almost like adding a bit of Parmesan cheese. For a nutritious cheesy flavor, try adding some Nutritional Yeast to any dish, and you’ll be in for a real treat.

Please be sure to give some of my recipes a try and let me know what you think! I love receiving feedback and will love to hear from you.

Thank you for taking the time to read my blog, and I continue to look forward to connecting with and sharing with you.

In Love and Light,

Brooke Ridgeway ~ Spiritual Foodie

Related articles

• Crunchy Raw Vegan Protein Balls (onegreenplanet.org)
• 12 Complete Proteins Vegetarians Need to Know About (greatist.com)