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On a quest to boost her protein intake, Merle O’Neal, known for her popular vegan YouTube channel, recreated three trending high-protein recipes in a recent video. The goal: to boost protein without sacrificing flavor (or sanity in the kitchen).
“There are so many incredibly talented creators out there,” she says. “When I see them pop up on TikTok, I think that looks really good – but is there any way that it tastes as good as it looks?” In this video, she puts that question to the test, recreating three viral recipes from creators PlantYou and Soph’s Plant Kitchen. The result is a mix of satisfying wins, lots of leftovers, and quite a few dirty dishes.
Here’s how each recipe turned out.
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Lentil walnut bolognese
O’Neal starts strong with a protein-packed take on Bolognese from Soph’s Plant Kitchen. The recipe uses lentils, walnuts, mushrooms, and tomato for a rich, textured vegan meat sauce.
She boosts the protein content even further with high-protein pasta and nutritional yeast. “That right there – let’s see. Half a cup of nutritional yeast…that’s 20 grams of protein,” she says, adding it to fix a sauce that came out thinner than expected after she “definitely” added too much pasta water.
Despite the mess and multitasking – “It did take a lot of work,” she admits – the final result impresses. “This is really delicious. Highly recommend you try.”
The dish delivers around 37 grams of protein per serving and offers a satisfying mix of soft lentils, meaty mushrooms, and slightly chewy walnuts. “You’re getting some carbs from the lentils and the pasta. Boom boom boom.”
Rainbow grain bowl with high-protein tofu dressing
Next up is a vibrant salad from PlantYou that O’Neal adapts into more of a grain bowl. “Is this a grain bowl or a salad?” she asks. “As far as salads go, this is delicious.”
The bowl includes roasted sweet potato, chickpeas, quinoa, pickled onions, cucumber, avocado, and a high-protein tofu pesto dressing. “I’m going to be aggressive with the dressing,” she says, piling it on generously.
Even though she’s “not a big grain bowl-slash-salad person,” O’Neal rates the flavor 8.7/10.
Despite the chopping and roasting, she calls it a strong meal prep option and even considers adding chopped dates next time to amplify the sweetness.
Sweet potato, tofu, and chickpea curry
The final recipe, another from Soph’s Plant Kitchen, turns out to be the most labor-intensive – but also the most rewarding.
“This took me like two hours minimum, maybe two and a half,” she says. “My sink is full, my stove is full, my blender is full, this pan is full.”
The curry includes roasted butternut squash, cauliflower, sweet potatoes, marinated tofu, and chickpeas, all tied together with a creamy spiced tomato sauce. The tofu marinade – with curry powder, lemon juice, and nutritional yeast – was a highlight. “That tofu marinade is fantastic.”
Despite the chaos, the payoff is worth it. “This is deluxe mode. It’s creamy, it’s got nice acidity to it, it’s got some really nice sweetness from the cinnamon and the sweet potato, a nice bite to it from the cauliflower and chickpeas.”
While she jokes it falls under the “special occasion dish category,” O’Neal’s verdict is clear: “The flavor on this is fantastic. Nutrient-packed, protein-packed, delicious.”
O’Neal closes the video with gratitude towards the creators: “Soph’s Plant Kitchen and PlantYou, thank you so much. I appreciate you.”
You can find more of Merle O’Neal’s recipes and videos on her YouTube channel.
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