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Part of a trend - I hate being "trendy." Reveiw of Aldi's Protein Burger

      **I actually wrote this piece a few days ago, but recently found that I'm part of a growing trend towards a more "Plant based" diet.  You can learn more about this trend here.**

 

    Thanksgiving came and went and we have one major food holiday coming up soon...and my scale was showing me going the opposite way of where I wanted to be.   Due to inactivity and snacks I had gained back about half of what I worked so hard to lose over the last several months.  

    Part of my plan for losing weight was changing my diet and trying to eat a bit healthier and greener.  I've already written about some of the vegetarian and vegan dishes I had tried.  "Meatless Monday's" were just part of the calendar now, and I often found myself having a salad, or trying a vegetarian or vegan item when out to dinner.  Recently I tried Seitan "chicken wings" for example at a bar and restaurant in Pittsburgh.  
 
An example of Seitan wings

    I took the daughter-in-law out one night for Indian food just so I could have paneer tikka masala.  We went out because I was hungry for a vegetarian meal. 

    So while I can honestly say that I'm not going to go fully vegetarian or vegan anytime soon, it has opened up a whole world of new flavors and tastes to me.   As well as taught me how my previous eating habits were affecting the world around me. 

    So FAIR WARNING to anyone who reads this blog.   I still eat and enjoy meat and I know that some will take offense at that, however I am on a journey where I do not know the destination yet.   That's part of the fun.

    With the holidays however I faced a dilemma...too much meat and sweets.  While I could certainly try to watch what I ate, I also knew that my very traditional family would stick to the classics. So no Tofurky for me this year.

    So the concept of having anything greener than a green bean casserole on the table was pretty much off the table.    

    I was already buying some vegan and vegetarian items at the various grocery stores near me, so I thought if I'm going to be doing that anyway, why not write a little review up of each item?  .

    For the record, I am not endorsing or receiving compensation from anyone.  These just happen to be foods that I can buy near me.   Some, I've tried already; some I am trying for the first time.  This may or may not become a series of blog posts; it frankly depends on the feedback I get.

    Aldi’s Markets has their "Earth Grown" brand found in the frozen food section.   So I thought I would start there.  Audi’s is also not going to break the proverbial budget.  In fact the first review I have from them is their Earth Grown Protein burger.   THIS IS NOT A VEGAN ITEM, because although it is soy based it does contain milk and cheddar cheese  

    For me, it is all about the taste!  I understand that it's not a beef patty and therefore you not going to get the "juice" that you would expect from a traditional patty.  Nor is going to taste like a traditional burger.   They are very easy to cook though.  You can easily cook them on the grill, a skillet or in the oven.  

    One thing that I have learned in my slow move to a greener diet is that protein can be lacking in some plant based dishes.  That's the reason I bought this particular item in that each burger is only 100 calories (4 burgers in a box) and has 16 grams of protein.   For an average diet of 2000 calories a day that's 32% of much need protein.  It also has zero sugars.

    These burgers are also surprising low in fat and contain no Saturated fats or Cholesterol.   Which, given my family's history of heart and blood pressure issues, is perfect.   

    However for me, it's sort of a bland taste.  In fact, it sort of reminds me of a burger you get at McDonald's and I don't mean that in a good way.   

    It would go very well with the creamy tahini garlic mayo I made earlier in the year, because that's a very flavorful topping.  The burger is just lacking in any sort of seasoning and frankly I want and crave flavor when I eat.   I don't like covering up what should be the star of the dish in a bunch of pre-made toppings.

    I tried them as a "traditional" burger and as an addition to some leftover homemade bread and veggie stuffing mix.  They got "lost" in the stuffing mix but served as a nice little addition at least. 

    I'm really looking forward to getting a herb and small garden going in the coming spring.  It can't get here soon enough.  I might even try to make my own plant based burger one day, but that's another adventure for another day.

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