Warm Breakfast Parade

A few months back I went on and on about my love of the breakfast smoothie. But truth be told, I haven’t had one for breakfast since the very first morning in late September when it officially felt like fall. As soon as the temperatures drop, eating and drinking things that are cold just doesn’t make sense to me anymore (although admittedly, I did make exception for the Dairy Queen Pumpkin Pie blizzard).

While it’s hard to find something warm with the same nutritional value, ease and portability of a smoothie, I have certainly had fun finding reasonable replacements. Breakfast has always been my favorite meal of the day, and I like to enjoy it whether I have fifteen minutes or an hour to prepare. So, here’s what’s been in my repertoire as of late:

For most weekday mornings:

cream of wheat w/soy milk, maple syrup & almonds

I buy the store brand instant because gosh, it’s just so economical. I can buy a box that lasts me two weeks for just under $3.00. This is a nice way to ease into the day – not too heavy, only slightly sweet and oh-so quick to prepare. 

For slightly leisurely mornings:

broiled grapefruit w/toast

Have you done this yet? Grapefruit isn’t typically my favorite of the citrus family, but adding some cane syrup, brown sugar and nuts completely transforms this almost bitterly sour fruit into a perfectly balanced breakfast. I like to be thorough about segmenting the grapefruit so that it’s easy to eat, and I like it accompanied by a thick slice of toast and coffee. If I could do this every single morning, I would.

For very leisurely mornings:

fried potato & apple hash w/egg & orange

Who doesn’t love a good breakfast potato? My favorite way to make them is cut into small chunks and fried for a good long while in a mixture of butter and olive oil, rather heavily salted. The apples add just the right touch of sweetness. 

For dinner:

whole grain blueberry waffles w/meatless sausage

For those nights when you just don’t feel like cooking (or in my case, nights when you’re feeling under the weather and can’t be bothered to open a disgusting can of canned soup), breakfast freezer staples are a must. No joke, I ate this three nights in a row recently and didn’t regret it in the slightest.

If you're into the idea of the grapefruit, I used a slightly adapted version of the one shown here, and added some chopped hazlenuts for the last minute or so. Just make sure you de-seed! (Otherwise you may confuse grapefruit seeds for hazlenut. :) Have a great Wednesday!