Making a better breakfast each morning
Posted by kathryn in Breakfast
While it can be tempting to just bolt down a bowl of cereal before dashing out the door in the morning. Or even to forget breakfast altogether. Having a decent, low GI, nutritionally complex breakfast really does set you up for the day.
Whatever your normal breakfast, there are a few simple strategies you can use to make it a better meal.
What is a good breakfast?
Breakfast is your first meal of the day.
And number one – you should all be eating it.
Going without breakfast means you’re playing nutritional catch-up for the rest of the day. It means you’re not topping up your blood sugar levels until late morning or lunch-time. Which means you’re going to be more tired than you should be during the morning. And in my experience most people who don’t eat breakfast over-eat at their other meals.
The breakfast you eat should last you at least three hours. Which means choosing something low GI, with a bit of protein. And the more nutritional variety you can get the better.
If you’re a cereal eater
Cereal can be an excellent breakfast choice. A good cereal is low GI and contains plenty of fibre. However many cereals are high in sugar and contain an ingredients list as long as your arm.
If you’re a cereal eater, here’s how to make your breakfast better:
- Choose a better cereal: The best cereals are high in fibre (at least 8%) and low in sugar and salt. Try to avoid cereals which have more than 10% fat and keep away from kid’s cereals – as they’re invariably chockablock full of sugar. Many contain more than 40% sugar, which is about 3 teaspoons in a small 30g serve. A good cereal will include a variety of grains, with maybe some dried fruit. There’s quite a bit of information about cereals on the Choice website.
- Add some nuts or seeds: Whatever cereal you use, by adding a few extra bits and pieces you can really bump up the variety and nutritional goodness of what you’re eating. Sprinkling over a spoonful of nut and seed mix, or LSA is a quick and easy way to add more fibre, minerals, protein and antioxidants.
- Top with some fruit & yoghurt: A spoonful of yoghurt and a bit of fruit are brilliant on cereal. They can make a bland cereal interesting. Plus they’ll add vitamins, minerals, fibre and antioxidants to even the most basic mix.
How to make this easy:
- Pouring some cereal into a bowl and then adding a couple of spoonfuls of extra goodies doesn’t take a lot of time in the morning. Put all your breakfast ingredients in one part of the cupboard so they can be grabbed together.
- You can make it even easier by pre-mixing nuts and seeds into your cereal. If you take breakfast to work, portion out the cereal into ziplock bags on the weekend. Add a spoonful of nuts and seeds to each, then you’re ready to go each morning, no effort required.
- Rather than splitting small tubs of yoghurt, I tend to buy large containers and just use a spoonful at a time. It’s a cheaper way of using yoghurt too.
- If you don’t want to chop fruit up in the morning, use tinned.
If you’re a toast eater
Toast is a popular breakfast choice. It’s quick, easy and tasty. Many workplaces have toasters, so you can also make it at the office. If you’re a toast eater, here’s how to make your breakfast better:
- Choose a low GI bread: White fluffy bread just doesn’t cut it for breakfast. You’ll stay fuller for longer (and also be getting important fibre) if you choose a multigrain, wholegrain or sourdough loaf.
- Spread with protein: Instead of jam or honey, use a spread which contains a bit of protein. Hummous, peanut butter or a bean mash all make great breakfast toppings. These contain protein, minerals, antioxidants and more fibre. They’re much more nutritionally dense than traditional toast toppings.
- Top with some vegetables: Add some slices of tomato or cucumber, plus a few lettuce or rocket leaves and you’ll be making headway with your five serves of vegetables. You’ll also be adding vitamins, fibre, antioxidants and minerals to your breakfast.
How to make this easy:
- Freeze hummous or white bean mash in small portions. I’ve spread it into ice-cube trays in the past and then popped out into a bag once they’re frozen. You can get a couple of cubes out at a time, which saves wastage.
- Prewash lettuce and rocket leaves. You can also place a few days worth of leaves into ziplock bags, so they’re ready to go for for breakfast.
If you have a cooked breakfast
A cooked breakfast can be a substantial and filling way to start the day. However it’s easy to overload on the fat and eat too much. If you’re a cooked breakfast eater, then here’s how to make it better:
- Cut down the fat: Trim fat off bacon and use a non-stick pan for cooking, so you don’t have to add any fat. And lose the butter on the toast – you don’t really need it.
- Add some vegetables: By adding vegetables you’re improving the nutritional content of your cooked breakfast. It’s another good way of ensuring you get a vegetable serve with breakfast.
- Serve with wholegrain toast: Cut back on your toast, but make it a good bread: a wholegrain or sourdough. If you’re having eggs and some cooked vegetables, then one slice of toast is enough for most people.
- Have baked beans: Beans are legumes, and there are many nutritional benefits to including this food group in your diet. Baked beans are a good way of doing this. They’re convenient, tasty and you can add a spoonful to whatever else you’re eating.
How to make this easy:
- Trim the fat off bacon with a pair of scissors and then add straight to the pan. The fat that’s left will lubricate the pan. Alternatively you could grill the bacon, allowing the fat to drip off.
- There are some easy ways to add vegetables. Mix tomatoes and fresh herbs through scrambled eggs. Cook spinach and mushrooms in the same pan as your bacon. Or add slices of tomato and rocket to an omelette, while it’s cooking.
How are you going to make your breakfast better?
Skribit
I added this topic to Skribit and it’s top of the voting. So there’s obviously a few of you interested in breakfast. If you want to suggest another topic, or vote on what you’d like me to write about, take a look at the Skribit widget in the sidebar. Or for more information about Skribit and why I’m using it click here.
Muesli photograph by 3liz4, omelette photograph by roboppy, toast photograph by Wei.
18 November, 2008
Comments
What an excellent post, Kathryn!! I voted for this topic and am thrilled with the suggestions. So many that I want to try. Can’t wait for breakfast!
You forgot another great toast topping – avocado. So much tastier than butter/margarine, and much more nutritious as well.
My mother taught me a great, simply avocado dip recipe which makes it even better – saute some red onion in a little bit of olive oil, and mix it up with an avocado and chopped hardboiled egg. Add a squeeze of lemon juice, and a bit of pepper.
Great post! I’ve been thinking about this quite a bit lately. I eat Bircher Muesli just about every day – just oats and fruit. Great stuff, but I need to change it up. I’ll occasionally do poached eggs on toast or polenta. I’ve also been toying with boiled eggs with avocado and toast. I also think I might keep pre-steamed spinach in the fridge for a quick veg to go with my eggs.
Jeremy: yum, your mum’s avocado dip sounds great. I like the addition of boiled egg – so there’s that little bit of protein in there too.
Monica: you could also add some more goodness to your bircher. A few nuts and seeds, maybe a different grain as well? In one of my local shops you can buy a five-grain porridge. It has oats, wheat, rye, barley & triticale – all in rolled form. So it’s a lovely muesli base, with just that bit more nutritional goodness than straight oats.
Ann: if you do try any suggestions – then let me know. It’s always good finding out what works for people.
Really fabulous post Kathryn – I particularly love your “make it easy” tips.
I’ve never thought of freezing bean mash but I bet that would work well. Must buy some new ice-cube trays!
I’m on a really tight schedule in the mornings at the moment and would have to get up at 5.30am to eat breakfast before leaving the house. But I’m still not ready to give up my usual winter porridge routine without a fight :-) I’ve found that a good way to save time in the morning is to measure out the oats and milk the night before and leave them together in the fridge to soak overnight. This way there is one less thing to do on the morning and the oats take slightly less time to cook. In the morning it goes into the microwave then into a food flask for the train, plus chopped fresh or dried fruit.
Jeremy – your avo idea is great! I often put avo on my toast instead of butter to go with eggs. It’s incredible! I am having poached eggs for lunch today and might have to go buy an avocado to go with it. !!
kathryn – just saw your comment. I put mixed nuts in the bircher and have thought about adding a different grain such as barley flakes or bulgar wheat. I’ve also been adding greek yogurt which is just so amazing!
Interesting post – I am one of those people who cannot leave the house without something for breakfast (even if we are going out for brunch – we believe in second breakfast in our household!). I usually have toast or cereal but my main concern is if I get in a rut I get bored – have been having muesli a lot lately which has been great but having toast for a change at the moment – I especially like tasty cheese or cream cheese on my toast.
One of my breakfast habits is that I try and eat fruit with breakfast most days – and have been making smoothies more often when I can’t find fresh fruit that enthuses me – especially on weekends!
Cereal always seems like such a waste to me. The standard serving never fills me up. Though I do like it summer coz of the cold milk.
Toast on the other hand! Yum! Vegemite avocado, tomato. Hummus, mushrooms, rocket. Cheese, tomato and chutney. Endless! And a good way to start that veggie count for the day.
Great ideas!
From personal experience, I know that eating a good breakfast fends off the compulsion to grab a jelly doughnut at 10:30 in the morning.
My breakfast is usually oatmeal (real oatmeal) that cooks while the coffee is working. I add some blueberries and wheat germ and a bit of soy milk. No sugar.
Sometimes I swap the oatmeal for a whole wheat English muffin with blueberry or blackberry jam. No butter.
If I’m really hungry, I’ll add a banana to the mix.
I always eat breakfast and when I have time, I go for a hot egg breakfast. I love your ideas about adding vegetables and beans. I would drop the bacon entirely and add nitrate-free deli turkey instead. It tastes amazing with eggs. I also wouldn’t use a nonstick pan. See this post about Teflon Flu: http://www.ewg.org/reports/toxicteflon
I use a stainless steel pan and lightly coat the pan with heart-healthy olive oil. It adds a great flavor to your eggs and it’s the good fat our body needs.
There is about 2 cereals in my grocery store that are 100% whole grain and have zero added sugar. Not sure if you have them in Australia but they are Uncle Sam and Kashi 7 Whole Grain Nuggets. That’s what I buy when I’m in a pinch! Otherwise, I take the time each morning to cook up whole grains and slice fresh fruit.
Since getting Marco I’ve been getting up at 6am every morning in order to spend a couple of hours with him in the house and taking him a walk. One of the added benefits of this is that I’ve had time to make a proper breakfast each morning and I’ve discovered the wonder of eggs for the first meal of the day. Two poached or boiled eggs on a slice of wholegrain toast sets me up until lunchtime with only an orange or an apple for a mid-morning snack. Previously, when I was wolfing down cereal or driving and eating toast, I’d be starving by breaktime and be on the lookout for choccy biscuits in the staffroom or more toast in the canteen.
Sophie, your comment reminds me of some posts I’ve seen where people have cooked porridge in their thermos. Now let me think . . . ah yes it was on Veggie Meal Plans
i love this post because i love breakfast! this morning i had GF banana pancakes with maple syrup and plain yoghurt. usually we’d top that with blueberries but didn’t have any available today :(
but usually i am a toast girl. vegemite + cucumber, always! or maybe one with peanut butter too.
on weekends it’s usually omelets which we stuff with veggies and lots of fresh herbs. yum!
Great post Kathryn!
I know you are a big fan of muesli (as am I) but are there any supermarket brand cereals that could specifically recommend? Sometimes I like to have a back up option to muesli :)
I am a massive fan of breakfast! I love having a big healthy breakfast at home on weekends (poached eggs, baked beans, tomatoes, av, spinach, Sonoma bread). Yum!
I made a big fritatta every Sunday and then cut it up into 5 weekday portions. I can eat it cold on the train or microwave it before I leave the house or at work. I mix up which vegies I put in, but I usually include a whole bunch of spinach, a grated zucchini, semi-dried tomatoes and a bit of proscuitto. To keep it low-fat I use 1:1 ratio of egg whites to yolks. Lining the bottom of my pan with par-cooked sweet potato and caremalised onion makes this more filling and replaces the carbs from toast.
Hi Kathryn. Thanks for these tasty, healthy, creative suggestions for starting the day off well.
Fiona: I always find it hard to choose a non-muesli cereal, as most of them are just so full of rubbish. There’s a good report on the Choice website which covers most of the popular brands.
Michelle: I do like your idea of making a frittata ahead of time – what a great quick breakfast that makes.
As someone who struggles to eat breakfast, these are great ideas, thanks Kathryn!
My question is: does timing matter? I can’t stomach eating at 7.30 in the morning, which is when I leave to ride my bike to work (30 min ride). Should I be eating breakky before I go, or is eating later ok too? What time is too late to call it breakfast and for it to be effective?
Lisa: timing does matter. I usually recommend people eat breakfast within an hour of getting up, but definitely within 2 hours. If you’re cycling to work and can’t stomach breakfast beforehand, what about having a small piece of fruit before you leave and then having your breakfast proper at work?
This way you are breaking the fast and taking in some kilojoules and nutrients, before your physical activity. But you’re not overloading yourself at a time when you’re not hungry.
Hi Kathryn, these are great suggestions!
A great nutritious quick breakfast is crockpot porridge. Before you go to bed, put 1/2 rolled oats, 1 cup water and your choices of dried fruit and spices in a bowl. Put the bowl in the crockpot and surround with water (like a water bath). turn the crockpot to low and in the morning you have your porridge waiting for you. So easy!
Billy, not having a crockpot I haven’t tried this, but it’s such a good idea. I bet having your hot porridge ready and waiting is lovely on a cold morning. Thanks for your comment.
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