Ricotta with blueberries and flaxseed

Why it is filling

Ricotta is soft and creamy, needs almost no chewing, and gives you protein in a small volume. Blueberries add water, fiber, and a little tartness, and ground flaxseed adds more fiber; whole seeds tend to pass through mostly undigested. It is a cold snack that takes a minute to make and is usually well tolerated.

In numbers, each serving has 15.4 g of protein and 3.4 g of fiber, with an energy density of 127 kcal per 100 g of the dish. In the satiety index by Holt and colleagues (1995), the foods that were most filling per calorie were those with more protein, fiber, and water and less fat.

High in protein

At least 15 g of protein per serving and 6 g per 100 kcal.

Easy to digest

A soft dish with little fat (20 g or less per serving) and no large amounts of ingredients that often cause gas or nausea. This is an editorial call, not a measurement.

Nutritious in small servings

A serving of 300 g (about 10.5 oz) or less with at least 10 g of protein: a lot of nutrition in a small volume.

If your appetite is small

• Grind a week’s worth of flaxseed and keep it in a sealed jar in the fridge.
• If you fill up quickly, serve half and keep the rest covered in the fridge until the next day.