Tuesday June 23, 2009. I just posted some of my delicious, low fat vegetarian fake meats and substitutes I like at the Goddess Grub website. Here’s what I wrote:

GODDESS GRUB TIP: While I mostly eat and prefer natural, unprocessed foods, there are times I crave a burger or meatballs or a hot dog.  Many of them are made from TVP, or texturized vegetable protein.  MMM, sounds yummy, huh?  The flavoring comes from the spices and other ingredients.  The TVP supplies protein, nutrients and the meaty texture we Westerners (Americans) have all grown up on.

I don’t care for all vegetarian products.  But some I like enough to use even though they are processed.  I cook them all in a saute pan, I do not microwave anything, since that destroys the nutrients.  If my food is my medicine, I need all I can get from each bite.  Here are the low fat, non-meat alternatives I like the best.

60 grams of fat a day is ideal for health and energy.

NON-MEAT BURGERS.
I like the Boca brand of vegetarian products and especially the burgers.  My favorites are the Flame Grilled, the Garden Vegetable and Cheeseburger.  At only 80 to 120 calories – and 2 to 5 grams of fat – per burger.  I can still have my version of some old favorites.

I also like the Morningstar Farms Mushroom Lovers Burger and the Original Grillers, classic burger flavor, veggie-style.

VEGGIE HOT DOGS.
Morningstar Farms makes several hot dogs but I like the Italian Sausage, just 120 calories and 6 grams of fat.

My favorite is the Boca brand Italian Sausage.

FAKE CHICKEN PATTIES.
I really like the Boca brand Chik’n Patties Original.  No, they don’t taste like real chicken, but close enough.  They have a good flavor and I like the crispy breaded coating.  160 calories, 6 grams of fat.

FAKE RIBLETS.
In 2009 I discovered the Morningstar Farms Hickory BBQ Riblets and was surprised how much I liked them.  They had a smoky, BBQ flavor and a meaty texture, like a flavorful firm meatloaf.  Two servings per box, 220 calories and 3.5 grams of fat each.

I like these served with a baked potato (I’ve learned to love potatoes “neat” without butter or sour cream, with just salt and pepper) and a big salad.

FAKE MEATBALLS.
I discovered and like the Dominex frozen eggplant products, including eggplant cutlets,  burgers, Parm Bites and Meatballs.  The meatballs are my favorite.

Boca brand has a lot of products available, as does Morningstar Farms.  More and more I am finding these products at Publix, although of course your local health food store may have them as well.  They may also be found at any of the Whole Foods, Wild Oats, Nutrition S’Mart and Mother Earth Markets.

Let me know what your own favorites are.

And for relativity, here are some comparisons between the meat products and the vegetarian substitute:

Boca Burgers 80-120 calories per patty 2-5 fat grams per patty
Morningstar Farms Burgers 80-120 per patty 3-6 grams of fat
Real meat burgers 400-780 calories and 20-48 grams of fat

Morningstar Farms veggie hot dogs 50 calories 1 gram of fat
Real hot dogs made with meat 200-600 calories 15 grams fat

YOU DECIDE