It kind of seems like food producers in the US want to cram protein into everything.

[monkeyninja@10base2.dev]

It kind of seems like food producers in the US want to cram protein into everything. I've seen protein sodas of all things. I think I even saw a protein-infused liquor recently...maybe that was a fever dream...I hope it was a fever dream.

Anyway, for me, I've been eating smaller meals lately and getting enough protein has become a bit of a problem as I tried to eat less meat - especially with my digestion issues. Unfortunately with my GI problems, many of the #vegan go-to options for protein can be problematic for me.

There being protein crammed into everything finally played in my favor for once though and I've been having pretty good luck with the Barilla Protein+ stuff. I made a pasta salad with it that's been quite nice to have in the fridge for a quick meal so I thought I'd share the #recipe:

First thing first, you're going to quick pickle a red onion:

3/4 cup / 175 ml red wine vinegar
1/4 cup / 60 ml water
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp of sugar

Mix above ingredients together, then add a very thinly sliced red onion to the mixture and let sit for 30 minutes while you prep everything else.

Ingredients
---
411 grams / 14.5 ounce (whole box) Barilla Protein+ Penne (cooked in well-salted water, drained, and rinsed in cold water to cool off)
1 whole English cucumber chopoped
340 grams grape tomatoes (a pint container) chopped
100 grams / 3.5 ounces kalamata olives (either buy sliced to save time or slice them yourself here)
170 grams / 6 oz. crumbled feta or vegan feta substitute if going for the vegan version

1. Drain the quick-pickled onions, retaining the liquid to use in the dressing
2. To a bowl, add the pasta, cucumber, tomatoes, and olives.
3. In a small bowl add 1/2 cup / 120 ml of your vinegar mixture, 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard (just confirm yours is vegan if you're making this for someone who is, as not all Dijon is produced in a way that is 100% vegan), 1 teaspoon oregano, and 2 cloves of garlic smashed and chopped, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper (you can likely omit the salt if you salted your pasta with a heavy hand when you cooked it).
4. Whisk the mixture and then while whisking, slowly drizzle in 1/2 cup of olive oil to make an emulsion.
5. Add the feta crumbles to the dressing and stir, then pour entire bowl of dressing over the pasta salad in the other bowl.
6. Taste test, add more salt and pepper as needed, would recommend waiting until it has sat overnight before doing so though as the blending flavors might make you think it needs more salt than it actually does.

It's pretty good to eat as-is but tastes even better if you let it sit in the refrigerator overnight so the flavors can blend together.

It has a decent amount of protein and fiber and works well as a quick meal or as a side-dish in smaller quantities.