Tips on Increasing Protein

Suggestions for Increasing Protein Intake

Eggs
* Add chopped, hard-cooked eggs to salads, dressings, vegetables, casseroles, and creamed meats.
* Add extra eggs or egg whites to quiches and to pancake and French toast batter.
* Add extra egg whites to scrambled eggs and omelets.

Milk
* Use in beverages and in cooking when possible.
* Use in preparing hot cereal, soup, cocoa, and pudding.
* Add cream sauces to vegetables and other dishes.

Powdered Milk
* Add to regular milk and milk drinks such as milk shakes.
* Use in sauces, cream soups, casseroles, meat loaf, mashed potatoes, breads, muffins, puddings, and custards.

Ice Cream, Yogurt, Frozen Yogurt
* Add to cereals, fruits, gelatin desserts, and pies; blend or whip with soft or cooked fruit.
* Add to milk.

Hard or Semisoft Cheeses
* Melt on sandwiches, breads, muffins, tortillas, vegetables, eggs, or desserts such as stewed fruit or pie.
* Grate and add to soups, sauces, casseroles, meat loaf, rice, noodles, or mashed potatoes.Cottage Cheese or Ricotta
* Mix with or use to stuff fruits and vegetables.
* Add to casseroles.
* Stuff pasta such as manicotti or shells.

Meat and Fish
* Add chopped, cooked meat or fish to vegetables, salads, casseroles, and soups.
* Use in omelets, soufflés, quiches, sandwich fillings, and stuffings.

Beans or Legumes
* Cook and use dried peas, legumes, beans, and bean curd (tofu) in soups or ethnic and regional dishes. Add to casseroles, pastas, and grain dishes that also contain cheese or meat.

Peanut Butter
* Spread on sandwiches, toast, muffins, pancakes, waffles, or crackers.
* Use as dip for raw vegetables such as carrots, cauliflower, and celery.
* Spread on fresh fruits such as apples and bananas.

Nuts, Seeds, Wheat Germ, and Other Ideas
* Add to casseroles, breads, muffins, pancakes, waffles, and cookies.
* Sprinkle on fruit, cereal, ice cream, yogurt, vegetables, and salads.
* Blend herbs and cream with parsley, spinach, or basil for a pasta or vegetable sauce.

Geriatric nutrition handbook. New York: Chapman and Hall; 1998.