5 deliciously healthy recipes to up your protein.

 

Protein is not just for bodybuilders, it is of utmost importance to any diet as it is used to build and repair muscle tissue. Off course athletes needs more protein in their diet than regular people as they break down muscle tissue at a faster rate due their intense workouts. Keep in mind though, not all athletes or bodybuilders need the same amount, the gender and type of training should be taken into account as well.

We should be consuming close to 30 / 40 %  of this essential macro nutrient, however most diets only provides us with 15% . The RDA’s suggested maximum protein intake is 0.08 – 1.8 grams per kilo of body weight per day.

A great source of protein is whole eggs, they are probably one of the most nutritious foods on the planet loaded with vitamins, minerals, healthy fats, eye-protecting antioxidants and brain nutrients. One whole egg yields 13 g of protein, not too shabby!

But take it from fitness freak, you can only eat so many eggs before you want to barf! It is important to keep things “eggciting” in your diet. That’s why I love eggs as my protein source, you can basicaly eat it as a fruit (hardboiled and peeled), fried, poached and my favorite, as a liquid that can be mixed to your heart’s content with other ingredients to make your breakfast an “eggstraordinary” one!

Upgrade your diet with this 5 super healthy protein rich dishes, thats low in carbs and high in protein.

Egg rolls

Recipe

Serves 4 

Preparation time 5 min

Cooking time: 20 min

8 large eggs

Spring onions chopped (to own taste)

Salt and pepper to taste

Olive oil or coconut oil for frying

Whisk the eggs, salt & pepper and spring onions together.

Heat a little olive oil or coconut oil in a pan on moderate heat.

Pour 60 ml of the mixture in the pan and swirl so that the mixture thinly coats the pan. A 60 ml measuring cups works wonderful here. The idea is to get them as thin as possible so adjust your liquid eggs according to the size of your pan.

Cook for a minute or two until the mixture has set and turn out onto a plate, roll.

To roll fold opposite sides to meet in the middle and roll up like a pancake from the other side.

Egg Ramekins

Recipe

Serve 6

Ingredients

250 g ( 1 x pack) bacon 

6 x eggs

1 Tomato ( cut into 6 slices)

Garlic and parsley butter

Garlic chives (optional)

60 g of grated cheese (optional)

salt and pepper to taste

Pre heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius. Grease 6 x ramekins with garlic and parsley butter. Place Bacon in Ramekins. Add the tomato at the bottom of the ramekins. Break egg open over the tomato, sprinkle with salt and pepper and top with chopped garlic chives and cheese. Bake for +- 10 – 15 minutes depending on how you like your eggs done. Switch your oven to grill and grill for a minute.

Egg muffins

Recipe

8 Large Eggs

1/2 onion (finely chopped)

1/2 red pepper (finely chopped)

1/2 green pepper (finely chopped)

1/4 (+- 75 g)  punnet mushrooms (sliced)

Olive oil

125 g Turkey Rashers / bacon or any left over meats (cut into smaller pieces)

1/2 cup Cheddar cheese

2,5 ml  dried mixed herbs or any other seasoning of choice

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius.

Use a silicone muffin pan or grease a muffin pan.

Braise the onions, peppers, mushrooms and Turkey rashers in a pan in a little olive oil, set aside and allow to cool.

Whisk the eggs in a separate bowl, add the seasoning, cheese and the onion mixture.

Spoon into muffin pan and bake for +- 15 – 20 minutes.

 

Breakfast spinach Quiche

Recipes

Serves 4

1 x bunch of spinach, washed and chopped

1 onion, diced

1 punnet (250g)  mushrooms, chopped

200 g bacon, diced

Olive oil/ butter  for frying

1 cup cheddar cheese

Egg Custard

100 ml pouring cream (half and half) / full cream milk

2 eggs

15 ml mustard powder

1/2 tsp pink Himalayan salt

1/4 tsp white pepper

1/4 tsp paprika

 

Preheat oven to 180 degrees Celsius and grease a small pie dish.

Fry the onions until translucent, add the mushrooms and brown. Transfer the onions and mushrooms to pie dish. Fry the bacon until done and crispy and add the spinach. Fry for 3 minutes until the spinach has wilted and any liquid has cooked away.

Add the spinach and bacon to the onions and mushrooms in the pie dish.

Mix all the ingredients for the egg custard in a small bowl and whisk with a fork.  Add the cheese to the custard mix and pour over the rest of the ingredients in the pie dish.

Bake for 30-35 minutes or until set.

Caramelized onion and Feta omelette

Recipe

12 large eggs

2 onions sliced

Extra virgin olive oil

100 g Full fat Feta cheese cubed

Salt and pepper to taste

Cube your Feta cheese and set aside. Caramelize the onions and set aside.

For the omelette 

The secret to a fluffy omelette is the water added to the egg mixture.

Place 3 eggs, 2 tbsp water with salt and pepper to taste in a bowl. Use a fork to lightly whisk until well combined.

Add enough olive oil to a frying pan and heat over medium high heat.

Pour the egg mixture into the pan and tilt slightly from side to side allowing the mixture to cover the base of your pan.

As soon as the omelette sets gently stir and lift the egg mixture with a wooden spoon or spatula allowing the uncooked egg to run underneath, this will make your omelette more airy.

Cook for 1-2 minutes until set and golden underneath. The top should still be slightly runny, add 1/4 of the feta and 1/4 of the onion mixture to full the one half side of the omelette. Once you’ve added the fillings, lift one side of the omelette and fold it over to enclose the filling. Slide onto a serving plate and serve immediately.