Well, really, eat a better breakfast.
I’ve already written about my need for slow mornings. I’m not a hop-out-of-bed-and-sit-down-for-breakfast kind of person. I need a slow cup of coffee, and more than a few bleary eyed blinks before I’m ready to face the day, let alone feed myself.
The past month has seen a lot of shifting habits for our family. Both little guys are out of the house and in school during the day now, so our morning routine has been crunched into something that’s a bit more harried for all of us. We’re out the door by 7:30, which feels great for getting an early and productive start to the day, but also like we endure something of a tornado between waking and hearing the door slam behind us. I don’t want to misrepresent anything: Mostly this has been great. Faye and Silas are still both so eager to set off for school that getting them dressed and out the door has been, dare I say, easy. We don’t usually have to beg them to brush their teeth or put on their shoes and both James and I are home in the early hours to tag team the general bits of housekeeping that crop up in the morning. 
The trouble comes with breakfast for me. James eats breakfast with the kids first thing, but we need to leave the house before I feel like I’m really ready to eat anything. And then, by the time I’m done finishing the loop of school drop-offs, I’m about ready to keel over.
For the first few weeks of school, I fell into the habit of stopping by one coffee shop or another for a refill on coffee and a treat to boot. A donut, maybe, or a tempting scone. A bagel with cream cheese. I don’t have enough fingers on my hands to list off all of the possible tempting stops. I’m not here to condemn any of those breakfast choices. I’m a big believer generally in stopping for treats and I’ve never met a donut I didn’t like. But the habit of an every-morning out-of-the-house breakfast is expensive and very often, my sweet tooth meant I was picking a breakfast that was very satisfying in the short term, but leaving me still hungry shortly after.
The week before last, I made myself a simple vow not to buy breakfast on the walk back to my desk and I’m very much taken with my new habit. When I come home, I move my work table to the window so I get all the best light while I work and then I take a few minutes to make myself a simple but intentional breakfast. A big bowl of oatmeal topped with nuts or fruit. Or a bowl of yogurt topped with granola. (I’ve been making batches of peanut butter maple granola from Jessica Lewis Stevens’ Sugarhouse Workshop zine. It’s the perfect amount of sweet and salty.) I eat breakfast as I hammer out my morning emails, or make final edits to blog posts.
What about you guys? What do you do for breakfast? I’m gave up my office lease after my kids started out-of-the-house childcare, so now I have the luxury of sitting down for a late breakfast while I work from home, but I’m curious about breakfast routines for folks who work out of the house. Do you eat breakfast before you leave or once you get to work? Most important: what’s in your bowl?
67 Comments
I used to be really bad at eating breakfast and would stop at my local shop to buy things like butteries (you must google, local “delicacy” for North East Scotland and harden your arteries jut by looking at them!) or a bacon or sausage roll. Not great for my bank balance and not great for my heart. It took until the year I went on Maternity leave (2012) to get into a good habit of eating breakfast. Then I bought a machine that poaches eggs and my life changed forever. Now most mornings I can have eggs and avo toast if I want. Sometimes I have overnight oats, sometimes my favourite branflakes and banannas but I definitely have something. I normally sit down at 8am to have something (with my daughter) and we leave the house at 820. Not the most relaxed breakfast but certainly a good time to get in the right mindset for the day!
Breakfast has become a super important part of my day this year. For 2018, I resolved to lose weight and spend less money, and breakfast as played a major part of that. I also don’t eat breakfast first thing, because I’m on a medication that I have to take on an empty stomach and then wait ~an hour to eat. I definitely don’t leave enough time in the morning to wake up, take the medicine, wait an hour, make and eat breakfast, and then leave the house. So, every day I pack instant oatmeal in my lunch bag. When I get to work I pour hot water over the oats and have a filling breakfast. It’s definitely save me $$ from my previous treat-stops, and having reliable calorie counts every day has helped me lose weight!
Thanks for sharing about your coffee shop habit! The beans, the baking…. it’s all so tempting, and I’ve never met a scone I didn’t like either. 🙂
My mama is a dietitian, and her mantra to my siblings and me as children was that, “Breakfast is the most important meal of the day!” I simply cannot function without something to eat in the mornings. When I was living alone, I would build enough time into my schedule for a sit down breakfast: Usually peanut butter on toast, but sometimes cereal, yogurt, grits, banana bread, etc. Pro tip: oatmeal is like salad–don’t be afraid to be creative with your toppings!
Now that I’m married, my husband and I sit and enjoy breakfast before heading to work. Whoever makes it downstairs first starts the eggs or sets out yogurt or pours milk. It’s become such a lovely way to start the day, even if we’re still waking up as we eat.
I have a similar scenario (getting 2 kids up and out the door by 7:30), but I’m always famished (and busy) in that early morning time. So, lately I’ve taken to scarfing a piece of peanut butter toast before leaving the house, then eating something more (usually oatmeal or a granola bar) once I get to the office.
I used to eat breakfast at home, before leaving for work, but several months ago I started a form of intermittent fasting. I make my coffee and breakfast at home, and take them to work with me. I enjoy a cup of coffee within the first hour of work, and then have my breakfast – siggi’s touch of honey yogurt with homemade granola (in the summer, I added fresh peaches). This has been my routine for months now and I am loving it.
Hot lemon water first thing and overnight oats with warm berries and cacao nibs after my shower. It took some getting used to prepping the oats in the evening. I microwave the berries so they are hot and a little bubbly which takes the cold edge off the oats and then sprinkle a 1/2 tbsp of nibs. (I recently stopped drinking coffee and the nibs give that little bit of rich, bitterness I miss so dearly)
Yes, the cafe breakfast sounds familiar! I have started making a smoothie and bringing it to work in a mason jar! Takes 5 mins to throw together including washing the holding mixer. Works nicely and stays fresh for atleast one hour. Always add a few seeds for some crunchyness. 🙂
Yum! Yes, we’re big on smoothies around here, too. But I always find as the season shifts to fall I want something different!
I love smoothies, but I don’t like taking them to work with me, because I find they always separate a bit by the time I go to drink them. That kind of weirds me out.
I’ve just accepted I’m not a breakfast person and I don’t beat myself up over it anymore. I’m never hungry and eating anything substantial before 10am makes me feel sick. I put whole milk or half & half in my coffee and have a big spoonful of PB on lazy weeks. On weeks where I’m better prepared I make some kind of pureed vegetable soup and have a small savory smoothie all week. (This is an interesting one: https://www.101cookbooks.com/green-soup/) If I’m going to eat when I’m not hungry I might as well get some veggies in.
Oh! Savory smoothie. Do you drink it cold, then?
It depends a bit on the soup (and how lazy I am.) That green soup as written is delicious cold. But I’ve adapted the recipe to make it a one-blender-only cooking effort and with more coconut milk I need to heat it to room temp so it’s smooth. Butternut/winter squash soups I like cold or heated, other vegetable soups probably much better heated a bit.
I love this idea! Planning to make some veggie soups for breakfast now.
I’ve learned to take the time for breakfast in the past few years… Most days I do soy yogurt with fruits and almonds, or oatmeal with fresh fruits, dried fruits, almonds, grated ginger and a tiny bit of maple syrup. My friend Cerise showed me how to make oatmeal this way, and it’s super quick and amazing : Heat some oats in a spoonful of coconut oil in a sauce pan, then add the same amount of boiling water than oats. Turn off the heat and cover. The water is absorbed in a few minutes, it’s delivious and you can add whatever you like.
Like you, I need a slow morning too, so after my shower I make breakfast for my partner and I before I go to the office ( he works from home). Lately, it’s been an egg scramble, with chicken sausage, spinach and maybe leftover roasted sweet potatoes, topped with fresh chives, avocado and everything but the bagel seasoning; or Bob’s Red Mill gluten free rolled oats, unsweetened vanilla almond milk, a little almond butter, coconut manna, apples and cinnamon. Also enjoying the So Delicious unsweetened plain coconut milk yogurt and Purely Elizabeth pumpkin granola. I love our morning time together before Brooklyn wakes up.
I’m a horrible breakfast person. I prefer breakfast for dinner! Every morning I have two slices of Pepperidge Farm Brown Sugar Cinnamon Bread (Thick Sliced!) as I drive to the office. When I get to work, I make a cup of tea, then I’m set for the day. This has been my routine for at least 5 or 6 years, I’m such a creature of habit!
I have time to eat breakfast at home but when I do I find myself hungry long before lunch time. I’ve been packing a smoothie or something to eat after the school run, once I get to work. Today it was the last of some homemade applesauce with yogurt and walnuts (using up leftovers for bonus points).
This granola has been a staple for me! It’s so delicious I could eat it everyday (and do!) with milk or granola or sometimes right out of the jar. It’s a little expensive to make with the pistachios and sour cherries, but you can always swap out something else in it’s place.
The NY Times wrote a recipe here:
https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1014304-eleven-madison-park-granola
It’s kind of similar to Early Bird granola, but the nice thing about making it yourself is that you can adjust the level of sugar, olive oil and salt to your taste.
Yum! I’ve just gotten into making my own granola recently. This sounds so delicious.
Many countries don’t differentiate their meals too much. I grew up often having soup for breakfast, my kids love a bowl of bone broth with rice in the morning. I tend to eat whatever I’m packing for their lunch. Today was organic frozen pizza, yesterday was homemade tomato and chicken sauce with spaghetti. Crackers with olives, marinated artichokes, and some turkey is nice, too. I make them a quick separate breakfast like toast, oats or breakfast taco but sometimes they eat what’s for lunch as well. I’m getting better about prepping the night before. Love your blog!
Yes! I love breakfasts-around-the-world projects. So fascinating to see how different people do it!
I eat breakfast at work every day – usually some sort of hot oatmeal or overnight oats! Here’s my go to overnight oats recipe:
1 /2 cup uncooked rolled oats
1/2 cup milk of your choice (almond, soy, and regular cow ‘s milk all work great)
Dash of cinnamon
Dash of vanilla extract
Combine all of the above in a mason jar, seal and shake. Refrigerate overnight. In the AM, add any fresh fruit / nuts / nut butter your heart desires
I tend to rotate through breakfast foods–yogurt for a month, eggs the next, smoothie after that, etc. I love a hearty breakfast, but sometimes it’s hard to make that much food in the am. One of my favorite things is roasting enough vegetables (whatever is in season) to have some in the mornings (reheated) with a fried egg on top OR making some type of veggie cake (corn cakes, sweet potato cakes) that I can have with a fried egg. Clearly, I’m very into fried eggs….haha.
I’m also a late breakfast person – every morning while I drink my coffee I layer a mason jar with frozen berries, Greek yogurt, walnuts, flaxseeds or chia seeds, and granola, in that order. The berries defrost by the time I get to the office and the layer of nuts keep the granola separated from the yogurt so it stays (mostly) crisp. I have been eating this breakfast nearly every day for three years and it’s wonderful to have put that part of my morning on autopilot!
Love this!
My daughter loves breakfast—she asks for two or three dishes each morning and even decided (at two) to add nuts and fruit to her cereal, inspired by the picture on the box (). I love that she loves this meal but it means I spend my morning chopping and fetching and frequently only manage to steal a bite of whatever I’m preparing before I need to clean up and get her off to school. And then I’m starving. To avoid hitting a cafe, I’ve recently started a tradition of giving my dad a call on the walk home and stay on the line as I prep my own oatmeal and coffee breakfast. It’s actually changed the whole tone of my day and my dad jokes he should advertise his conversation as a new diet plan, he manages to distract me so completely. Lovely post!
I start by making a cup of coffee then drink it while I make breakfast. I’ve been in the habit of warming up some leftover roasted veggies in a pan (sweet potato, any squash, cauliflower, even leftover sautéed kale) and when they’re almost warm I add a glug of olive oil in the corner, fry an egg, and topple them all into a bowl with a few flakes of salt. If I don’t have leftover veggies I’ll top leftover rice with my fried egg, or a toasted piece of stale bread rubbed with garlic. For some reason I can’t have sweets in the morning and my egg fried in olive oil (hot! the way deb perelman taught us!) seems to be all I crave, regardless of what is underneath to catch its drips. If I have herbs in the fridge or just outside the kitchen door, those get tossed on at the last minute. This entire process takes only a few minutes and I can usually empty half the dishwasher in the 2 minutes the egg is frying.
ha, the old empty the dishwasher while frying an egg trick!
Ooo! I’m excited to try the granola recipes!
Like you, I work from home and am a sloooowwww morning person. Water and coffee first thing is non-negotiable. Then, late-morning it’s usually an egg: soft-boiled with toast soldiers and wilted spinach; an egg muffin (packed with whatever greens and veggies and cheese left in the fridge, baked in a muffin tin the night before); a poached egg on avo toast with chili flakes; a scrambled egg taco with leftover pico and green chilies or a hard-boiled egg with zaatar and olive oil on a warmed, puffy pita.
Salivating and I just finished lunch.
I just did a post about my breakfast which has changed my life. 🙂 It is here if you wanna go read. 🙂 http://www.emmelemzi.com/2018/10/todays-breakfast.html
I cook my oatmeal in the microwave. Cover oats with water and heat on high for 90 seconds. I put the nuts on a plate in the microwave for 60 seconds which toasts them nicely without burning. As for eggs, I hard boil to have them on hand. My favorite way is to use the pasta cooker and plunge them into boiling water for 11 minutes. I find they peel easiest with this method. Love all the suggestions.
Keeping a jar of oatmeal at work has changed everything for me! Like you, I prefer just coffee in the early morning, but need some nourishment once I make it to my desk. I now keep a jar of oatmeal (with cinnamon and chia seeds sprinkled in), and a jar of nut butter in my desk drawer. Most offices have mugs and microwaves which make quick work of my breakfast preparation. To top it off I usually slice an apple or pear which I just bring from home, works like a charm!
YES!!! I was never very good at eating breakfast – I have an incredibly slow metabolism (not sure which caused which), and I have horrible memories of feeling nauseated in the car on my way to school as a child, so as a teenager I just abandoned breakfast altogether, a habit I carried into adult life. Recently I’ve started going to the gym at 6:30am a few times a week, and on those days I manage to eat scrambled eggs before heading to work. On the other days I still skip it and go straight to lunch, and that’s where things get interesting: my work days can be unpredictable and I’ve had enough of having a bag of crisps as the first meal of the day (urgh!), so I now keep mixed oats, chia seeds and cinnamon, as well as a jar of peanut butter next to my instant coffee jar at my desk, and frozen berries (raspberries, or strawberries, or blueberries, sometimes pre-cut bananas – which are actually technically the only berries of the aforementioned group, but I diverge) at the office fridge/freezer. So much cheaper, healthier, and dare I say, tastier than crisps! On weekends I’m partial to an egg-based brunch, eaten a couple of hours after getting out of bed, and usually end up skipping lunch and having an early (er) dinner instead.
That granola sounds amazing–could you persuade Jessica to share the recipe?!
My hubs and I both work out of the house, and our three toddlers are home with us 3 days (Grammie days!) and out of the house at day care for 2 days. We generally eat oatmeal or yogurt early on, either before the kids (very, nearly unresonably, early), or with the kids (still too early for me).
There is, very generally speaking, a second breakfast to be had sometime after the school drop off/Grammie hand-over. We’re also embarking on a habit shift of sorts, away from a let’s-run-down-the-road-for-a-pastry habit and toward a what-kind-of-fruit/granola/energy ball-treat-do-we-have-in-the-kitchen? habit.
I do recommend having a go-to, no-bake, 4 ingredient energy ball recipe of some sort on hand.
(also, there is usually elevensies, followed by lunch. More or less, I’m a hobbit when it comes to eating.)
We like breakfast around here! But I prefer later and my husband earlier. So we usually sort of compromise, but eggs and toast, yogurt and fruit, bread and cheese and marmalade, oatmeal, avocado toast, simple things that we make together in the morning (or he makes for me ;)). I used to make my own granola and have been itching to start again. Where can I find that recipe you mentioned? I like the idea of peanut butter in granola!
Oh man, this is my ongoing struggle. I’m trying to be more mindful of my hunger cues, but I also know that I need to eat something with protein in the morning so I don’t want to collapse before lunch. I usually turn to yogurt with berries and homemade granola (big fan of Orangette and A Sweet Spoonful’s recipes), because it’s easy and I can gobble it down while reading books with my toddler, who doesn’t usually have an appetite that early. Every now and then I swap in oatmeal (especially comforting in the fall), and I’m trying to get more adventurous with my toppings, like leftover sauteed greens, some kind of crunchy nuts, maybe toasted pumpkin seeds. But I’m always looking for more ideas!
Oatmeal all the way! I’m about halfway through my first pregnancy, and while I haven’t had any cravings, this is all little bean and I have been wanting for breakfast lately. I like to toss in almond butter, frozen berries or orchard apple slices, and a little honey. Savoring both the oats and the gift of still-slow mornings in this pre-babe season. 🙂
I’m up between 5 and 5:30 every morning so I can spend 20 minutes on the yoga mat (bliss!) and enjoy a slow breakfast and a cup of coffee. Breakfast is a couple generous scoops of Skyr yogurt with local honey, fruit (usually blueberries), and sliced almonds. I almost always eat while reading the NYT and Washington Post. Breakfast keeps me full until about 10:30, when I have a banana as a snack or a few almonds.
How about toasting a slice of hubby’s homemade sourdough and eating it with smashed avocado and soft boiled egg, or a schmear of cream cheese and a little smoked salmon and/or a slice of tomato?
That’s on the menu for lunch!
After studying abroad in Sweden during college I came home wanting to recreate my host mom’s muesli and the filmjölk, or pourable yogurt, that goes with it. Turned out Cultures For Health had a version of the culture and I’m still working off batch I purchased in about 2014. The great thing about it is that it’s very mild, and it’s a mesophilic culture, so a little of my last batch gets mixed in a quart jar with milk and sits out on the counter for 12-24 hours to do its magic. It’s not exactly the same as the kind you get in the grocery store in Sweden, which is much thicker, but its cheap and easy to keep going. I’ve been eating it almost daily for the last four years with raw muesli (rye and oat flakes, a nut, dried apricots and craisins and sunflower seeds) and frozen wild blueberries (either that I picked up north in Minnesota or from the co-op freezer section) and I’m still surprised that I’m not tired of it. I eat it before work with a mug of Earl Grey tea and usually a little piece of toast and it keeps me full till lunch.
Lately, I just take a banana to work, and eat it late morning around 10. When it gets colder, and if I have more time,I will alternate this with oatmeal in mw, and halfway thru cook an egg on top of it. Top w nuts or chia seeds, pinch of salt, dash of honey, and almond milk.
Also out of the house by 7:45 with my son, but instead of a walk, we have a 45 minute drive to school! Eek. When our son was born, my husband took over breakfast since I generally handle the other meals of the day. He makes the same thing for me every day, and I never tire of it: full fat yogurt with walnuts, seeds, and whatever fruit or raisins we have in the house. Of course I’m usually eating it in the car while driving my son to school, and then I go to work across the street from his school. But that’s how it goes 🙂
Aeropress coffee and home made bread with almond butter or oat muffins. My daughter is hooked on grape nuts in yogurt.
I’m a monster if I don’t eat breakfast but, like many, I too prefer a very leisurely cup of coffee first. A few nights ago my husband was setting the coffee before we went to bed and said, “Is it bad that I’m already excited for tomorrow’s coffee?” A perfect reminder that he is an excellent choice on the daily and that the simplest pleasures bring the greatest joys.
I love oatmeal. It used to be my go-to-breakfast every day of the week (yes, weekends included). But now I’m trying to figure out what my gut tolerates and doesn’t, so oatmeal are out. Now, I usually start my day with scrambled eggs, smoked ham, melon and a soy cappuccino. Mornings are sacred in this house, so I make a point to get out of bed early enough (5.45 am) to make breakfast for Chris and myself. Chris prepares the bunnies’ litter boxes. And then we sit down and talk or watch some random television while we eat. Pause for coffee. Prepare for Chris leaving for work. And then he leaves, and I sit down to work (or, let’s face it, sometimes I sleep an hour extra when he leaves…ahem..).
Having grown up in Switzerland I have re-discovered Birchermuesli again. Or a version of “overnight oats” . The beauty of this is that I can make it the evening before and it is ready in the morning!
I will try to make that granola you are talking about, it sounds delicious.
Oh, I love this reminder of how breakfast can help you ease into your day, even after the morning rush. I, like many others commenting, have come to accept breakfast first thing doesn’t help me start the day either. But I always need my decaf tea – but like you, prefer it once the kids have been dropped off and I have a chance to sit down, figure out what needs to be done that day.. My boys on the other hand breakfast like princes on yoghurt and granola or avocado on toast or runny eggs (always runny). My husband spoils them with sourdough and they can’t get enough.
Hi Erin, great topic.
I eat about four different breakfasts on rotation depending on how I feel and timing. The quickest is a green protein smoothie, then a bruschetta with tomato and pesto, then scrambled egg bruschetta, then a bowl of fruit with a handful of nuts, then a bowl of porridge with organic milk and brown sugar.
I never buy breakfasts or dinners, just lunches because it’s not too much of a financial loss, and I find lunches take the longest to make, and I like a soup or fresh salad or roasted vegetables for dinner. Given I eat so much soup (pumpkin, lentil, zucchini) and can freeze it, I don’t have to cook a whole meal every evening.
I really enjoy making breakfast too. It feels like a beautiful act of self care. One of the first daily self care rituals. I am trying to introduce more feminine energy into the kitchen, into my spaces, so I sit down next to some vases of flowers picked on the way back from my morning walk.
I usually have some sort of muffins in the freezer that the kids eat and I will often grab one for a quick snack before leaving the house in the morning. I also make a mixture in the morning (or night before) of rolled oats (about 3/4 cup), and then a Tbs each of chia seeds, Pepitas, shredded coconut, peanut butter and pinch of cinnamon. Then I add enough milk to saturate (but I prefer to add milk in the morning). Let it sit for 1-2 hours to soak up milk and then enjoy! If it’s too dry just add more milk or water.
We also do overnight steel cut oats. Toast one cup of steel cut oats while you bring 3 cups of water to a boil. Pour the toasted oats into the boiling water, turn off the stove and put the lid on the oatmeal and let sit over night. The next morning I add a little milk or water to the pot and reheat over low temp while I start to get dressed. Makes enough for a family of 4 to get a good bowl. I then add honey, almond butter, pepitas and coconut flakes to mine 🙂
I alternate brekkie in the mornings, some of it depends on whether or not my daughter wants to eat at home or at preschool. My husband’s office caters every meal imaginable (which is a great time/money saver but also encourages them to stay at their desks, which isn’t ideal). We work between porridge (winter) overnight oats (summer) and scrambled eggs on sourdough, or poached eggs on toast with avocado. My must have is a mug of steaming hot green tea. I never used to drink tea, but one day my stomach really hurt when I woke up and we were supposed to meet friends for dim sum, so when we arrived I tried some of the tea they bring to the table and within fifteen minutes, my stomach felt a million times better! Since then I mostly drink Jasmine, Dragonwell, or China Green but am always open to others 🙂
My morning starts with a slow cup of English Breakfast tea with milk. Low carb in this household so berries/fruit with some coconut milk, Greek yogurt, a mix of pumpkin, sunflower, sesame and flax seed plus a sprinkling of crushed pecans keeps us full till lunch. At the weekend it becomes brunch and we add eggs, bacon, avocado (and only one other meal that day!)…
A wintertime staple for us is steel cut oatmeal made in the rice cooker! I always poo-poohed a rice cooker as being a ridiculous single use appliance (what, don’t I have a pot?) but we were gifted one and it’s been a real game changer, mostly because it cooks rice or any other grain on its own time with no oversight and then keeps it warm until you’re ready for it. Especially useful for kiddoes whose sense of timing can be…less than exact. We put a cup of oats in there with a cup of almond milk, a cup of water, and a spoonful of coconut oil (to keep it from sticking to the bottom) the night before and whoever’s up first turns it on while they’re making coffee/smoothie whatever. By the time we’ve gotten babe wrangled it’s ready for all of us to eat with whatever accoutrements are to hand. If one of us is in some kind of hurry majeur, it’s still warm and waiting for us, literally, all day. We do overnight cold oats in the summer, but, honestly, they really aren’t as good.
I do best with protein at breakfast. I find my blood sugar stays a lot more stable throughout the day and my brain works better, as opposed to if I eat something very starchy (even though I adore oatmeal and toast/bread). When I first wake up, I drink a big glass of water, followed by coffee or matcha with coconut milk, and then I typically eat about an hour later.
I usually have eggs (I have many ways of preparing them) and I try to get some veggies in or maybe some berries, but sometimes I eat leftovers for breakfast (making a steak salad isn’t out of character for me). I do make smoothies with lots of greens and fiber, but I find I still need solid protein to not feel hungry an hour or two later, so I have my smoothie with some eggs, meat, or fish on the side. This morning, I had an egg scramble with veggies and pancetta and a slice of Trader Joe’s gluten free Norwegian crispbread (so good and full of seeds!) with some almond butter and TJ’s pumpkin butter.
At home: oatmeal with apple or pear slide. A dan of butter, a tiny bit of brown sugar and lots of cinnamon.
At work: skyr (the nordic healthy yoghurt) with granola and nuts.
On weekends: a soft boiled egg, waffles and grapefruit.
And tea. Always tea.
Now that the weather is colder , I’ve been making overnight oatmeal. Truly simple mixing of a few things before bed, I wake up and heat it in the morning with some milk , fresh/dried fruit and a little maple syrup and cinnamon. It travels well in a jelly jar to take to my work space. If I forget to do the prep work, it’s half a peanut butter and banana sandwich to go. I’d go broke if I stopped off each day for breakfast. I leave the weekends for the sweet mornings– those greenmarket apple cider donuts are delightful and just the right size !
quinoa, spelt, bulgur, rice or whatever cereal/grain you like
+
bananas
+
cottage cheese or yogurt
+
some fruit in season and/or frozen berries / nuts / chocolate chips/ honey / jam or whatever you have there
Mix it all in a salad bowl and you have breakfast ready for the next three days (or for ur family, I know mine loves it)
I usually eat with my kids or just do coffee and toast. BUT we’ve started doing a great fall smoothie – it’s pears, rolled oats, nut milk, cinnamon, and ice or a frozen banana. It’s filling and so delicious and quick. If I don’t have time to eat mine, I just pour it into a mason jar and take it with me.
Warm Sweet Potato Smoothie from Divya Alters “What to eat for how you feel”. Perfect for chilly mornings!
1c peeled and diced sweet potato, 1/2 tsp sweet masala, 1 or 2 dates pitted and chopped, 1c almond milk, 1/4tsp vanilla extract – add the first 3 ingredients to a pan, bring to a boil, reduce to low, cover and simmer 10 minutes or until sweet potato is cooked through, combine the boiled sweet potato mixture with the almond milk and vanilla in a blender, blend til very smooth, adding more milk or water if necessary. Enjoy warm or hot!!!
Oh, I forgot to add -in place of sweet masala, a pinch of cinnamon, cardamom, clove & nutmeg.
Also, you can add 1/4c rolled oats and an additional 1/2c water in step one for a more filling breakfast.
Thanks!
I never used to be a big breakfast person until I entered the workforce. I take time on Sundays to make a batch of savory muffins or loaf to have during the week, or I’ll make a quiche. Sometimes I eat at home, sometimes I bring my food to work. I also love a savory oatmeal too. I cook the oats in chicken or vegetable broth instead of water, mix in some veggies and a sprinkle of cheese.
I also like to make batches of waffles and pancakes on the weekends and freeze those as well. Easy to pop in the toaster and spread with nut butter or avocado. Also, I make a batch of savory granola as well, and I eat it with yogurt, sprinkle on salads, etc. I’ve recently given up the sweet stuff, so I’m all about the savory everything.
What a fun post, I love the little glimpse into everyone’s morning.
For all of my adult life I’ve been eating oatmeal for breakfast, every work day, and most weekends. I use plain instant oatmeal in the bin, pour boiling water over, let sit for a few minutes then microwave for a couple minutes, as a big spoonful of pb and half a banana and some almond milk. I get it all ready the night before.
Once in a while I eat leftovers, like mushroom barley soup, or enchiladas or rice and beans with scrambled eggs, or have homemade sourdough toast with a fried egg. On weekends, when my husband eats at home, we make breakfast potato burritos, sourdough or chocolate chip pancakes, French toast casserole with berries, homemade granola (my recipe has chocolate, PB and Maple syrup!!) and warm almond milk. It’s fun to have the treats, but honestly I just never get sick of oats PB and banana. I eat it for afternoon snack sometimes, and for lunch or dinner on occasion too.
As someone who aspires to a late-morning breakfast, but works (in five different school-based locations) and seeks something savory but not egg-based (they usually don’t agree with my tummy), I’m embarking on a miso-soup-with-veggies-and-tofu morning routine. I’m still working out the kinks, but it’s great for winter and I really just love how it sets me on the food straight-and-narrow for the day.
Yum! Let me know if you try the miso soup recipe I posted last week!
I’m the same way, I rarely wake up and immediately want to eat breakfast. It usually takes me a while until I get really hungry.
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