Give a plant-based diet a try with these 2 easy recipes
With the plethora of “diets” across the internet and social media, it can be hard to understand what people are actually promoting. When it comes to the field of nutrition, plant-based diets have been backed by research as helping to prevent against many chronic diseases. But in the public eye, the lines are often blurred between vegetarian and plant-based diets.
To put things simply, “plant-based” diets do not eliminate animal products from the menu. They encourage alternative options to help maintain proper nutrition. While this diet does closely resemble a vegetarian diet, you are not limited to only plant products. Instead, consider opting for a smaller portion of chicken with your burrito bowl and adding extra beans! Simple solutions like that can often go a long way in improving your diet.
Below are a couple recipes to help get you started with a plant-based diet that are also great sources of protein.
No-Bake Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Bites
Ingredients:
- 1 ½ cup oats
- 1 cup peanut butter
- 1/4 cup honey
- 2 scoops chocolate protein powder
- 2 tbsp chocolate chips
Instructions:
- Place oats, peanut butter, honey, protein powder and chocolate chips in a large bowl and stir to combine.
- Using your hands, mix all ingredients together – mixture may seem too thick at first but will come together with continued mixing.
- Once combined, use a small cookie scoop to scoop and form the dough into balls.
- Store in a covered container in the fridge or freezer.
Chipotle Black Bean Burrito Bowl
Ingredients:
- 1 cup brown rice
- Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 (15-ounce) can black beans, drained and rinsed
- 1 (15.25-ounce) can whole kernel corn, drained
- 3 roma tomatoes
- 1 bunch cilantro
- 1/4 cup small red onion (finely chopped)
- 1 tbsp lime juice (optional)
For the chipotle cream sauce:
- 1/2 cup plain nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1 Chipotle pepper in adobo sauce, minced
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp freshly squeezed lime juice
Instructions:
- To make the chipotle cream sauce, whisk together Greek yogurt, chipotle pepper, garlic and lime juice. Set this aside for now.
- In a large saucepan of two cups water, cook rice according to package instructions; set aside.
- To make pico de gallo, dice tomatoes and red onion to desired size and add to small mixing bowl. Roughly chop cilantro and add to bowl. If desired, add lime juice and mix together.
- To serve, add one cup cooked brown rice to bowl. Top with black beans, corn and pico de gallo, drizzled with chipotle cream sauce. Enjoy!
*Leftover cilantro leaves and lime wedges make a great garnish if serving to friends or family.
For additional information regarding diet and nutrition for cancer patients at Markey Cancer Center, please call 859-323-2798 and ask to speak with a registered dietitian.
