Meat Substitutions

Some of my favorite things to eat are ribeye steaks, brisket, and BBQ of any kind.  But as much as I love these things, I definitely don't want to increase my risk of heart disease, and so I reserve my favorite high-cholesterol foods for special occasions.

So, during a regular (non-special occasion) week, I look to use meat substitutions as much as possible.

My absolute favorite is Boca Veggie Ground Crumbles.  (Top left hand corner.)  One bag is equivalent to 1 pound of ground beef, and comes already in beef crumble form.  The majority of your meat substitutions can be found in the freezer section, so I usually have at least six bags of the crumbles in my freezer at a time.  Any recipe that calls for ground beef, I always substitute with the veggie crumbles.  The best part is that it looks and tastes like seasoned ground beef, and has 90% less fat than traditional ground beef.

I also choose meat substitutions for our daily lunches.  Both of my boys, (13 months, and 2 years old), love to eat the following for lunch.

These are mini hamburgers, and the perfect portion size for them.  Meatless again, they look and taste just like hamburgers.  Well, they taste like a lean, healthy hamburger.

My favorite lunches are - 

These taste even better than traditional chicken nuggets!  They are soooo yummy!

And these are amazing!  Whenever I crave a corn dog, I can eat my veggie dog without the worry of what exactly is in the "hot dog" portion.

Even if you are not a vegetarian, you can take advantage of the benefits of eating meatless products!

And a side note... Some of my favorite snacks are yogurt with bananas, or hard boiled egg on toast.