My Favorite Meal is Breakfast

I could never understand when people would tell me that they didn't eat breakfast - it's my favorite meal of the day!
I'm usually famished in the mornings and look forward to taking in some healthy and tasty nutrients to start my day. Since I've started eating with better intentions (healthier) this past year, I've tried to add some variety to my morning meals. Here is a list of my favorites:

Oatmeal

 
I dress it up with lots of healthy options. Above is banana oats with almond butter stirred in, some coconut shreds and cacao nibs on top.

 
This is non-cooked oatmeal called "overnite oats" where I mix raw oatmeal with yogurt, chia seeds, pumpkin (or banana or apple) and almond or coconut milk, then let it "soak" overnight in the fridge. In the morning I heat it for just a minute, add my toppings (here it's almond butter, almonds, and blueberries) and it's ready to eat! Saves a lot of time.
Other times I make steel cut oats in my rice cooker (my favorite way to make them now). I've experimented with additions to my oats - oat bran, ground flaxseed, or buckwheat groats. All of these raise the bar to a healthier breakfast.

 
Mixed in some fresh peaches, pecans, and peanut butter!

Sometimes I get fancy and make amaranth:
 
(yes, there's whole grains under all those yummy toppings!) I try to always add some kind of raw nuts or nut butter (sometimes both!) to my whole grain cereal - a great source of healthy fats and protein. Here I've also added a tiny scoop of coconut butter and some cranberries - this is a winning combination!

Smoothies

 
The green ones are my favorite! Simple recipe of a frozen banana, a couple handfuls of raw spinach, chia seeds, yogurt, other frozen fruit (like mango, strawberries, or peaches - although this is optional), and some almond or coconut milk. Lately, I've been adding a 1/2tsp of Matcha (green tea powder) to my green smoothies.

 
This is known as the Purple Slurple - same ingredients as above except add frozen or fresh blueberries as your other fruit option. I make a Cherry Banana Slammer, too, with frozen cherries. There are all kinds of options for great smoothies. You just have to be creative!

 
Besides adding the green tea and fun ingredients like the POM juice pictured above, I love to add pumpkin (1/3 cup) to my smoothies. What a great way to get some extra beta carotene in your diet!

Pancakes, Cookies, Muffins, and Bagels

 
Chocolate spelt pancakes with blueberries. I've even made them with fresh raspberries, too.

 
Skip the high calorie butter and syrup - add a mashed banana, some coconut shreds and some cacao nibs. These are amazingly filling at only about 500 calories for 3 medium pancakes. I love that these are made with spelt flour - a whole grain that is full of protein!

 
Whole grain muffins (blueberry flax) with a 1/2 cup of Greek yogurt and fresh fruit. Most of the time I eat yogurt as a snack (the Greek kind is higher in protein!), but for a heartier breakfast I'll have a small whole grain muffin with fruit and yogurt.

 
Mini wholegrain bagel with nut butter (almond - my fav!) and a sliced nectarine. This photo is from a few months back (archived). I like to eat fruit in season as much as possible as it's so much better tasting that way.

 
Sometimes something as simple as millet french toast with nut butter, sliced banana, and a few favorite toppings. I don't even miss the syrup anymore, but if I ever do eat it, I like to choose pure maple syrup (though it's very rich tasting).

 
Oatmeal breakfast cookie! If you're friends with me on Facebook, then you probably saw this posted on my page a few weeks ago. Here's the recipe -

Breakfast Oatmeal Cookie

1/4 c. quick oats
1 egg white (1/8 c.)
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp vanilla
1 T. dark chocolate chips
1 T. chopped nuts
1 T. dried cranberries
1.5 tsp raw sugar or honey
2 tsp flour (whole wheat, spelt, or your favorite)
(sometimes I add a couple tablespoons of pumpkin puree, too!)

Mash ingredients together to combine. Form into a cookie shape on a plate. Microwave for 45 seconds on high. Let cool. EAT!
*this cookie is great with a thin spread of nut butter spread on top!**

 

I hope I've given you some ideas for breakfast and that you will try these to add a healthy start to your day. As you can see, my morning meals are never boring. And every once in awhile I'll have a bowl of cereal - I love it when I find a great nutrient-loaded one like this:

 
What are some healthy choices you make for breakfast?

Comments

[Cindy]

Just plain boring oatmeal! I'll be going to our new Trader Joe's soon though and want to get some of the butters you use to add to it! Coconut butter sounds really good.

[sentimentsbydenise]

Cindy - Trader Joes has a new butter - Cranberry Apple - out now! I scooped some up when I was shopping these this morning! Can't wait to try it on some pumpkin pecan bread! (or in the morning oats!)

[Emilee Joy]

I had an orange for first breakfast and then an hour or so later, I had a bowl of Cascadian Farms multi-grain squares with almond milk. Very yummy! Usually when I have two breakfasts (because I'm leaving time for my fruit to digest), I'm not hungry for a morning snack. But sometimes I am. Depends on the morning and how early I eat. :)

My favorite breakfast, though, is a smoothie first and then for 2nd b-fast, some pancakes of a whole-grain bagel. Yummy!! :D