A 34 year old woman with Alport's syndrome (congenital glomerulonephritis) has developed renal failure. She is placed on dialysis and three months later is found to be quite anemic with a Hgb of 7.5 g/dl (nl = 12 - 14 g/dl) and a Hct of 23 % (nl = 36 - 42%) . She is mildly symptomatic with complaints of fatigue, dyspnea on extreme exertion and markedly decreased exercise tolerance. Which of the following would be most useful in increasing her Hgb?