Programs and Services

Nutrition Services

Increasing Calories for Weight Gain

• Protein Powder (such as whey or soy): Use to make shakes and smoothies:
  • Mix 1 scoop powder with 1/2 cup 2% milk; 1/2 cup ice cream, yogurt, or Boost® supplement; and fruit or flavorings (such as peanut butter or Hershey's syrup).
• Grated or Sliced Cheese: Add to soups, sandwiches, mashed potatoes, egg dishes, or main entrées such as casseroles, noodles, meatloaf, and sauces.
• Powdered Milk: Add to cream soups, oatmeal, smoothies and shakes, casseroles, breads, puddings and custards, and desserts.
  • High Protein Milk Recipe: Mix 1 cup dry powdered milk with 1 quart of milk. Stir and refrigerate over night. Use in place of regular milk.
• Peanut Butter: Mix into oatmeal, smoothies or shakes; melt onto ice cream, add to vanilla or chocolate pudding. Make peanut butter sandwiches or spread on crackers, toast or muffins.
• Nuts: Eat as a snack or mix into salads, breads, pancakes or waffles; sprinkle on ice cream and puddings. Grind them up and add to foods if unable to chew them.
  • Roll a banana in peanut butter or chocolate and then roll in nuts – freeze and eat frozen.
• Wheat Germ: Mix into oatmeal and cereal, smoothies, puddings and custards, or yogurt. Sprinkle on ice cream, toast with peanut butter, or pasta dishes. Mix into meatloaf, stuffings, or bread recipes.
• Eggs: Add chopped eggs to salads and casseroles. Beat eggs into mashed potatoes. Add extra eggs to bread and pancake recipes.
• Milk/Cream: Use in place of water in making oatmeal and soups.
• Cottage Cheese: Eat as a snack mixed with fruit, nuts or salsa. Add to casseroles or egg dishes such as quiches, scrambled eggs and soufflés. Add to spaghetti or noodles. Add to pudding or yogurt.
• Meat or Fish: Add to soups (such as adding canned tuna to vegetable soup, or chopped meat to chicken or beef soup), and casseroles. Use in omelets, quiches, sandwich fillings. Add to stuffed baked potatoes.
• Canola or Olive Oil: Drizzle onto your dinner vegetables and meats AFTER you plate them to eat. Mix 1 tablespoon into your serving of smoothies, cottage cheese, yogurt, mashed potatoes, oatmeal, grits, rice, noodles/pasta. Toast bread with olive oil.
  • Use canola oil for sweet foods because it does not add flavor. Use olive oil for savory foods.
• Dried Fruit and Granola: Eat as a snack or sprinkle onto yogurt, oatmeal, salads, cottage cheese, puddings, sweet potatoes, and squash. Add to muffin and bread recipes.