There’s been a lot in the news this week about dairy and how it’s not as good for you as some people would lead you to believe. I’m often asked by people why this is the case, Dr McDougall has written a great article on it. You can read it by clicking here.
I’m also asked a lot about dairy alternatives, so in this weeks post I’m going to be looking at easy dairy alternatives for you to use instead of dairy milk, eggs and cheese, whether you’re using milk in tea and coffee or you’re using eggs in baking. There are easy alternatives that are much better for you. I bet you’ll be surprised by some of them!
Milk is great for calves and provides all the nutrition they need, but rubbish for us, humans. It’s loaded with fat to help the baby calf grow very quickly and most of the fat is saturated fat. Not great for us humans.
But that’s not all. Even if you take low fat versions you might think that’s a great idea, but believe it or not, what you’re left with is sugar! Lactose sugar.
Did you know that the protein in dairy can also trigger arthritis pain and migraines, and that there’s more cholesterol in a single egg than an entire eight-ounce steak?
So, what are the healthier choices rather than consuming dairy products?
What am I going to use in my tea, coffee instead of milk?
OK, we might not need milk, as humans all we really need is water, but if you like it in your tea or coffee or over your homemade muesli in the morning or with your oatmeal/porridge, then try these plant based milks for a change:
1. Brown rice milk
2. Almond milk
3. Soya milk
4. Hemp milk
5. Quinoa milk
6. Oat milk
I have a friend who makes a mean rice pudding using almond milk. It tastes much better than using dairy milk.
As you can see from the picture, you’ll find plant based milks in your local supermarket, just ask the assistant to point you in the right direction.
I love baking., so what am I going to use instead of eggs?
Not that I advocate lots of baking or sweet things, but if you’re looking for a sweet baking treat, don’t’ worry about not using eggs. They’re often used in recipes to bind ingredients together, when this is the case you can leave them out completely, but when they’re central to your baking recipe, try one of the following per egg required:
7. One half banana mashed for every egg that the recipe requires
8. Cornstarch or soy flour, one tablespoon mixed with two tablespoons of water
9. Silken tofu – the same size as an egg
I like scrambled eggs on a Sunday morning. What can I have instead?
Why don’t you try scrambled tofu? It’s easy to make and has a similar consistency. Just crumble firm or extra firm tofu into a pan and cook it like eggs. You can add whatever you want to it, cooked potatoes, cooked onions, cooked peppers, mushrooms, etc and add your own seasoning e.g. parsley, turmeric, chilli powder etc.
How about cheese? What am I going to use on my pizza?
There are a lot of plant-based cheeses out there that you can try. I’m not a great fan of these, I like my food whole and minimally processed. In most cases you can leave the cheese out, but if you’re making plant based lasagna, you can try tofu instead of the cheese. If you’re looking for a Parmesan substitute for sprinkling over your wholewheat, plant based pasta dish, you can try nutritional yeast. If you’re looking for a base for your pizza, try using tomato paste, or tomato sauce with herbs and chilli. This makes a great and better pizza – in my humble opinion!
But where am I going to get my calcium?
Don’t worry about not getting enough calcium; beans and greens are your best plant source.
Brussels sprouts, kale, collards and broccoli (the brilliant cruciferous veg, check out my blog post of them here) are all loaded with calcium, plus your body will absorb it better from these greens rather than milk. It might surprise you to learn that “gram for gram watercress can boast…. more calcium than whole milk…!” [1]
[1] http://watercress.co.uk/healthy-stuff/original-superfood/
Join Our Community
Sign-up today for free and be the first to find out when there’s new updates.
Up above, I shared with you 9 Dairy Alternatives for Drinking, Eating and Baking With. If you found this post helpful, please take a moment to SHARE this post with people you think will find it valuable. You can use the buttons to share this post with your social networks. Hopefully you will and so I’ll give you a big THANK YOU in anticipation.