Hello, Average Us readers! This is Dawn…

Do some foods affect your mood in weird ways?

It happens to me all the time. I, like others like me who struggle with depression and anxiety, have to be extra aware of how food choices make me feel.

While food can neither cause nor remove anxiety, I have discovered that certain foods aggravate my symptoms. For example, the sugar in a single doughnut or small bowl of ice cream causes my mood to rush from happy to jittery to nervous, and finally settling into a weird, uncomfortable feeling. During this swing it’s hard not to jiggle my legs and clench my teeth.

Protein, on the other hand, is a good mood stabilizer. I am not a Registered Dietician, so I’m not able to give you the details of how or why. But in my reading on the subject, and my own experience, I have found it to be so. (Learn more about how protein affects mood.)

In light of that, I am excited to share a delicious tofu recipe with you that helps me manage my mood.

Tofu is a great source of protein: It has up to five times more protein than carbohydrates in every bite. This tofu scramble is based on a breakfast dish I had at one of our favorite local restaurants, The Flying Biscuit Café, in Atlanta. It was so delicious I decided to make my own variation at home on a regular basis.

Tofu Scramble with Tamari Sauce

Ingredients

• Firm Tofu, one slice
• 2 T Tamari Sauce
• ¼ C Purple Cabbage, chopped
• 1 T Red Onion, diced
• 4 Baby Carrots, chopped
• ¼ C Bell Pepper (Red, Yellow or Orange), chopped
• 1 handful of Spinach

Preparation

1. Chop and dice all the vegetables.
2. Spray a cooking pan and heat over medium heat.
3. Add the cabbage, red onion, carrots, pepper, tamari sauce and lightly sauté.
4. Add the slice of tofu and scramble into the vegetables (you may need to add a little more tamari sauce).
5. Add the spinach and cook until slightly wilted.
6. Serve with your favorite bread, toasted.

I change up the vegetables form time to time for variation, and according to what I have on hand. But, the tofu and tamari are the foundation of this healthy, delicious, mood stabilizing breakfast.

I hope you’ll give it try, and add a comment below to let me know how you like it.

Dawn

P.S. Here’s some more tofu scramble recipes for you to enjoy.

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