Protein Dilemma: To eat fried chicken or not? ;)

My students are appalled that I don't eat fried chicken so I thought that was a suitable title. ;)

"Are you going to start eating meat again now that you're pregnant?"  Yup.  Someone had the nerve to actually ask that question.  REALLY?!?!?!  Yes, you do have to make sure that you are getting enough protein, especially while pregnant, but do people STILL believe that you can only get protein from meat sources?  I will admit that it does take some research and careful planning to ensure that you are getting enough to meet both your needs and the babies' needs.
Plant or grain sources of protein take longer to add up as they don't have as much protein as oh let's say, a bucket of fried chicken, but I have found that if you are eating a well balanced diet you meet the requirements naturally and very rarely need to supplement.

Let me illustrate with a typical daily menu of mine;

BREAKFAST
Main course:
Better Oats oatmeal (best oatmeal ever! http://www.betteroats.com/) = 4 grams protein
add some walnuts/pecans = 3ish grams of protein
add banana=1 gram of protein
cinnamon raisin whole grain english muffin or bagel= 5ish grams of protein
glass of orange juice or 100% fruit juice=1 gram of protein  (my favorite juice is Santa Cruz Organic: http://scojuice.com/)

**other favorite main course breakfast go-to's of mine:
Van's waffles http://www.vansfoods.com/The_Goods/#/Waffles or Nature's Path Organic waffles or cereal(http://www.naturespath.com/products/waffles?tid=9&brand=All&nutri=All) = 2-8 grams of protein

Paired with Morning Star sausage patties=10 grams for one patty!
add fruit or nuts too!

Glass of  chocolate soy milk (Pearl soy milk is the best as it has MORE protein and is organic...8 grams of protein for one glass!)

GRAND TOTAL: 14-25 grams of protein (might I add no cholesterol or heavy fats either :) )

LUNCH
Our favorite bread-Dave's Killer Bread (it really is KILLER and so good for you! http://www.daveskillerbread.com/) = 6 grams, 12 grams for 2 slices!

Tofurkey deli slices (http://www.tofurky.com/tofurkyproducts/deli_slices.html)=13 grams (for 5 slices which is a good amount for sandwich)

add a slice of cheese= 7 grams
add spring mix, tomato, condiments of choice

I usually have an apple, orange, or strawberries and a bag of carrots (these have minimal amounts of protein--like 1ish grams--but I often have hummus or peanut butter with them to add some protein)

GRAND TOTAL: 34-40 grams of protein

mid-day snack: fruit/nut/protein bar = 9 + grams of protein
Luna bar (http://www.lunabar.com/products/bars/)
Mrs. Mays (http://www.mrsmays.com/)
Pro bars (http://theprobar.com/products/)
KIND bars--some of these seriously taste like candy bars! (http://www.kindsnacks.com/kind-store/buy-kind-bars)

DINNER
lots of dinner options but I'll throw out a few of our staples

Pasta (whole grain spaghetti or lasagna, cheese rainbow tortellini's) = 10ish grams of protein
Brown rice/quinoa (aaron makes an awesome kale and quinoa soup)=6-10ish grams of protein
add veggies and sauce to any of these and VOILA...
you can add beans for protein too!

veggie burgers/veggie dogs
My personal favorite for chicken patties or chicken "tenders" for cooking/baking (http://www.quorn.us/Home/)= =10+ grams of protein

GRAND TOTAL: 20-40 grams of protein

As you can see, vegetarians can get PLENTY of healthy protein from whole grains, dairy and/or plant sources.
So it turns out I do not need to head to the nearest KFC in order to meet my daily requirements of protein!
My students will be so disappointed. ;)