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Each week we cut through the noise to bring you smart, practical recommendations on how to live better \u2013 from what is worth buying to the tools, habits and ideas that actually last.<\/em><\/p>\n Not a day goes by that I don\u2019t eat a protein bar.<\/p>\n I keep my desk stocked with Aloha or GoMacro bars, and never leave the house without popping one in my purse.<\/p>\n There\u2019s no denying a bar\u2019s convenience, but when we held an in-office taste test to find the best-tasting ones on the market, our testers had strong feelings about many of their \u201cchalky\u201d textures and \u201cbitter\u201d aftertastes.<\/p>\n <\/span> Photograph: Tracy Allison\/The Guardian$7.88 for a pack of 4 at Walmart<\/span>$29.99 for a pack of 12 at Amazon<\/span>$9.98 for a pack of 4 at Walmart <\/span>$22.88 for a pack of 12 at Amazon<\/span><\/p>\n Read the full story here: \u2018Tastes like compacted dust\u2019: the best (and worst) protein bars in the US \u2013 taste tested<\/strong><\/p>\n Part of the reason I rely on protein bars is that I\u2019m a pescatarian. I was curious about easy non-bar options for people who don\u2019t eat meat. So, I asked a registered plant-based dietician (who also happens to dislike protein bars), Desiree Nielsen, to recommend alternatives. She shared creative strategies to meet your protein goals, including ideas for plant-based diets and picky eaters.<\/p>\n <\/span> Photograph: Courtesy of Biena Snacks<\/p>\n Biena Chickpeas<\/strong><\/p>\n $17.96 for a variety pack of 4 at Amazon<\/span>$17.96 for a pack of 4 at Biena Snacks<\/span><\/p>\n Nielsen recommended a slew of travel-friendly snacks that contain as many grams of protein as bars.<\/p>\n If you\u2019d like something more adventurous than trail mix, she loves Biena\u2019s dried chickpeas, which contain about 12g of protein per handful.<\/p>\n Near a microwave? Nielsen also suggested pouches of edamame topped with salt or tamari.<\/p>\n <\/span> Photograph: Zoonar GmbH\/Alamy<\/p>\n When you picture a high protein meal, does your mind go straight to steak and eggs? There are plenty of less expensive (and plant-based) options. Nielsen reminded me that \u201call foods contain protein to varying degrees\u201d.<\/p>\n She recommended preparing simple snacks, including my childhood favorite: toast and peanut butter.<\/p>\n <\/span> Photograph: Food and Drink Photos\/Alamy<\/p>\n For picky eaters, Nielsen advised mixing cottage cheese into a smoothie or overnight oats.<\/p>\n \u201cThe hack on cottage cheese is that you can blend it into anything and it gives everything a cheese flavor, which is really delicious,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re dairy-free, she has a recipe for a Snickers-flavored smoothie with the sneaky addition of blended tofu that jacks up its protein content.<\/p>\n <\/span> Photograph: Courtesy of Rebbl<\/p>\n Rebbl protein shake<\/strong><\/p>\n $4.49 at Rebbl<\/span>$5.19 at Amazon<\/span><\/p>\n Koia protein shake<\/strong><\/p>\n $4.69 at Amazon<\/span><\/p>\n A protein shake is just as portable as a bar, but doesn\u2019t require you to risk the \u201cweirdly spongey\u201d texture one of our testers noted.<\/p>\n Nielsen loves Koia and Rebbl, which are both free of artificial sweeteners and contain between 20g and 30g of protein.<\/p>\n Each week we cut through the noise to bring you smart, practical recommendations on how to live better \u2013 from what is worth buying to the tools, habits and ideas that actually last. Not a day goes by that I don\u2019t eat a protein bar. I keep my desk stocked with Aloha or GoMacro bars,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":43836,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[51],"tags":[22863,1547,8934,337,19385,891,22862],"class_list":{"0":"post-43835","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-health","8":"tag-dietician","9":"tag-good","10":"tag-highprotein","11":"tag-life","12":"tag-snacks","13":"tag-style","14":"tag-vegetarians"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43835","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=43835"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/43835\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/43836"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=43835"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=43835"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/naijaglobalnews.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=43835"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}Experiment with plant-based snacks<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Go back to the basics<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Blend it into your breakfast<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Drink it<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Read more of our food and beverage coverage:<\/strong><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"