Breakfast Archives | Page 9 of 9

Strawberry Cinnamon Toast

May 29, 2009

Long before cinnamon toast became a popular breakfast cereal my mom was making her version of it for us. She likes to tell stories about how her older brother loved to make multiple pieces of it for himself while he was on babysitting duty and then refuse to share even one bit with the rest of the siblings.

We savored cinnamon toast as if it were a delicate baked good taking weeks to prepare. The truth is it couldn’t be simpler to make. The end result is toasted bread with a caramelized sugar top that is crisp on the top and soft and sweet in the middle.

I’ve made it numerous times myself and as my tastes and eating habits have changed over the years I find myself getting more creative with the process. This morning I headed out to the strawberry patch and was saddened to find that only a few remained. However, I had the perfect handful to create a Strawberry Cinnamon Toast.

I swapped the standard white sandwich bread for a hearty whole grain variety. While I left the white sugar along, I did change up the fat. Instead of butter I used organic extra virgin coconut oil. This is a product that I still need to do a post on and it is coming soon.

It turned out great and now I have the wheels turning out how I can use other fruits for this breakfast treat. It is such a simple thing with a flavor that far surpasses the effort put into making it.

Strawberry Cinnamon Toast

Slice of whole grain bread
¼ cup strawberries diced
Sugar and cinnamon
Extra virgin coconut oil

Toss the diced strawberries with about ¾ tsp of sugar and a few dashes of cinnamon. Set aside. Spread the bread with a light layer of coconut oil. Sprinkle a little more cinnamon on the bread. Top it with the strawberries. Give it one last sprinkle of sugar. Broil until browned and serve immediately.

#5 Croissants

May 7, 2009

I love a good croissant, almost as much as I love scones. A few years ago, I read the book French Women Don’t Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano. At that time I was just getting interested in real foods made from scratch and putting in the time and effort to make them.

I’m sure many of you have read the book and will remember that there is a croissant recipe featured. I was really intrigued when I came across the recipe. I guess I always knew you could make them at home, but a croissant was something I always associated with a bakery…as in for purchase.

I was motivated at how simple the recipe appeared and after reading the book I copied it and filed it away, knowing one day I would try my hand at making them. Well the day finally arrived a few weeks ago! The croissants made their appearance at our Easter breakfast this year.

I was pleased considering this was my first attempt. They came out flaky and buttery. I do need to adjust the baking time on the next batch as they got a little too brown on the bottom. That’s okay because it only means I get to make them again!

At first it appears to be a complex process, however, there really are very few ingredients involved. Although the steps are spread out, each one is fairly simple. It got a bit confusing while reading the original recipe because I wasn’t sure when to use what, so I’ll split it up according to the day.

The croissants take three days to make and are ideal for a weekend treat on Sunday morning. To do this you’ll need to start on Friday.

Croissants
Recipe from French Women Don’t Get Fat by Mireille Guiliano

Friday Night

1 cup milk
2 tsp active dry yeast
2 ¼ cups flour
2 Tbsp sugar
1 tsp salt

Dissolve yeast in 1/4 cup of warm milk. Measure out 2 ¼ cups flour and add 2 Tbsp of this flour to the milk and yeast. Whisk until smooth, and then cover with plastic wrap. Set aside for about 20 minutes or until it doubles in size.

Meanwhile, mix the sugar and salt with the remaining 2 1/8 cups of flour. Prepare you mixer by putting on the dough hook attachments.

Next, transfer the raised dough of milk, yeast and flour to the mixing bowl. Warm the remaining ¾ cup of milk and add it to the bowl. Turn the mixer to high and gradually add in dry ingredients of flour, sugar and salt. Reduce the speed to low and allow it to mix until the dough is sticky and soft. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Saturday Morning

12 Tbsp unsalted butter at room temperature
3 Tbsp flour

Using your hand and a plate or a clean surface, knead the flour into the softened butter until fully incorporated. Shape into a square.

Cover your work table with flour. Remove the dough from the fridge and begin to shape it into a 6 inch x 15 inch rectangle. Spread the butter on the top 2/3 of the rectangle of dough leaving a ½ inch border around the outside.

Fold the dough like a letter, folding the bottom 1/3 up first and then the top 1/3 down. Turn it counter clockwise so the open flap is to the right.

Roll it out again to a 6 inch x 15 inch rectangle and fold again. Transfer to a baking pan, cover tightly with plastic wrap and put back in the fridge for about 6 hours.

Saturday Afternoon

Remove the dough from the fridge, place on a floured work surface. Roll out the dough and fold just like during the morning. Do this two times, wrap it again and refrigerate it overnight.

Sunday Morning (You’re almost done!)

2 Tbsp milk for brushing
1 egg yolk + 1 Tbsp milk for glaze

Plan to start this process about 2 hours before you want to eat the croissants. Transfer the dough to a floured work surface. Roll it out to a 16 inch circle. Cut the dough into quarters and each quarter into 3 triangles.

To make each croissant, roll the wide base of triangle toward the corner. Transfer each one to a baking sheet. Brush with milk and then let them stand for about 45 minutes. They should double in size.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Brush each croissant with the egg, milk glaze. Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. If they brown to quickly lay a piece of foil over the top during baking. Let them cool 20 minutes before serving.

Croissants also just happen to be #5 on my 30 Foods List!

Bread Success!

March 26, 2009

Despite my past work in bread bakeries I rarely have bread success at home. I’m not sure what it is – atmosphere, yeast, lack of talent. My mom makes amazing bread and I’ve always strived to develop a similar skill at making it.

Good news! I think I finally had a bread success.

I will admit it came after a few failures, though. I had a simple baguette recipe I found in a book a long while back that I play with occasionally. It has never turned out well. One reason is that it has too much salt. I never could get used to the flavor. I decided, however, that the recipe had potential if adjusted it enough and if I set my sites on more of a loaf as opposed to a baguette.

I had some golden raisins left from my scones and a bread from my past came to mind today – Cinnamon Raisin Walnut. It has been forever since I’ve had it so I decided to give my base recipe one last attempt at being successful.

I am so happy about the loaf I ended up with. It has a hard, crusty outside and a soft inside just the way I like my bread. The cinnamon and raisins add just a touch of sweetness without being too overwhelming. I had to wrap it up and push it to the corner of the kitchen after two pieces for fear it would be gone before the end of the day.

I will warn you in advance that this is an all-day kind of bread, or at least all morning. It might be a good idea to leave this one for a relaxing weekend. My next mission will be to increase the whole wheat flour (I was almost out) and incorporate some different grains.

Cinnamon Raisin Nut Bread

1 ¼ cups warm water
1 tsp instant dry yeast
1 ½ cups white flour
1 ½ cups whole wheat flour
¾ tsp salt
1 ½ tsp cinnamon
½ cup golden raisins
1/3 cup walnuts

Mix the yeast with water and let it sit while you mix the other ingredients. Combine the flour, salt, cinnamon, raisins and walnuts in a mixing bowl. Pour in yeast and mix with a spoonula until combined. Turn the dough out on a floured surface and knead for five to eight minutes. Form the dough into a round loaf and place in a greased bowl. Let rise for about one hour or until it has doubled in size.

Punch down the dough and form it into a long loaf. Place it in a greased loaf pan. It will look something like this.

Let it rise for 2 more hours at which point it will look more like this.

Bake at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 25 minutes or until the loaf is nicely browned on the outside. Remove from oven and use a knife to loosen the sides and de-pan immediately. Let cool on a wire rack.

#9 Irish Fruit Scones

March 16, 2009

While I’ve been known to enjoy a full, hearty breakfast, my usual daily selection is a bowl of oats or a simple omelet. Truth-be-told, however, without a concern for health or calories a pastry and coffee would be my favorite way to start a day. Yes, I would be sure to run out of energy in a few hours, but there is something incredibly enjoyable about a sweet treat and a strong cup of coffee.

Breakfast pastries come in many varieties and while others may go for the cinnamon roll, cheese Danish or muffin, I reserve this special breakfast spot for the scone. Put me in a bakery with an assortment of sweets and 9 times out of 10 the scone will be mine.

My love of scones started when I began working in a bakery. We used to make the most amazing blackberry, cream cheese scones you have every put in your mouth. As I’ve traveled more and tested more scones, I now realize that what we made there really wasn’t much of a scone at all. They were too sweet and cake like.

It is only after traveling to Ireland that I think I have experienced a true scone. I have found I love them just the way they are, as well. That dry crust with a bit of moist goodness in the center, just a touch of sweet flavor making jam and clotted cream the perfect addition.

In honor, of the upcoming Irish holiday I decided to make my own batch of scones. While I have tried them in the past I’ve never made the Irish Fruit Scones that I’ve enjoyed so often on our trips to the Dublin area. It also helps that this is item #9 on my list of 30 foods. I’m slowly but surely making my way through my 30th b-day list.

I used the recipe from greatfood.ie and you can find the recipe here. I had to make my own buttermilk using 1 tablespoon of white vinegar to a little less than a cup of milk. I also used golden raisins in my recipe.

While the result was not quite as perfect as those I’ve had in Ireland, I was quite pleased with the results. They make a great St. Patrick’s Day breakfast.

Tomorrow, I plan to share my Brazilian St. Patrick’s Day dinner, a traditional Irish favorite with a Brazilian twist. See you then!

Trying Some New Bars

January 27, 2009

I should probably clarify that I mean the eatin’ kind, not the drinkin’ kind. And this time they were not purchased but made by yours truly.

My husband is training for a marathon type event here in Brazil. The Volta is 100 km race around the island of Florianopolis in Santa Catarina state. It is a relay with 24 stage. Most people participate in teams where each team member runs about 3 legs of the race. Some of it is on the road, some on rough terrain and some on the beach. Needless to say he is running a lot.

He had been asking me if I could make him some kind of bars for part of his breakfast. The bar selection in the supermarket where we live is practically non-existent. You basically have a few choices of breakfast granola bars filled with preservatives.

Now, I’ve tried making my own energy bars before, but I usually end up incorporating so many ingredients that they have way to many calories and fat to be considered nutritional. However, considering how much he is running this isn’t really a problem for him so I gave them another try.

I found this recipe for Chocolate Cinnamon Energy Bars and used part of it as my base and then went on from there. Warning: these have quite a bit of brown sugar. They were almost too sweet with the fruit so next time I’ll be cutting that back. Other than that I thought they turned out pretty good and he likes them too.

However, I’ll be having them in moderation for sure. They fall into more of the meal replacement category than a snack.

Energy Breakfast Bars

2 ½ cups rolled oats
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 cup whole wheat flour
¼ tsp baking soda
½ tsp salt
½ cup honey
½ cup vegetable oil (I used soy)
1 tsp vanilla
½ cup prunes, chopped
½ cup soy nuts
1/3 cup unsweetened, flaked coconut

Line a small cookie sheet with foil and grease well. In a bowl combine oats, brown sugar, flour, baking soda and salt. Pour in honey, oil and vanilla; mix well until all dry ingredients are coated. Stir in prunes, nuts and coconut. Press into greased pan. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes. Cool and cut into bars.

Different Way to Get Your Chocolate

January 13, 2009

In case you haven’t noticed, I haven’t been cooking a lot lately. I’m eating at home, but I really didn’t think you would get excited about the same ol’ oatmeal, scrambled eggs and all the other boring stuff I’ve been having. So I’m entertaining you with my travels and finds until I get back into the kitchen more, probably next week.

I visited a friend in Louisville, KY last week and found myself a Whole Foods. As I think I’ve mentioned before, I could never do all my grocery shopping at that store, but I love browsing the aisles for the unique. I ended up buying a few things to take back to Brazil with me including some bars so I’m not stuck paying $5 for a mini can of Pringles if I get hungry on my domestic flights.

Traveling is just about the only time I purchase bars, mainly due to their convenience. I will have to say the major bar-making companies are doing a good job of putting less and less ingredients in their products. While, I don’t consider them completely off the fake food list for me, many are getting darn close.

This time I decided to try a Clif Nectar Cacao bar in Dark Chocolate Raspberry. It looks like these officially came out in 07, but they are new to me. Along with the ingredient list, I was mainly convinced to buy it because it was decent size for the 160 calories it offers. I just can’t get into a tiny 1 inch bar that has 200 calories in it. Also, it was about $1.19 a bar. Not cheap, but nowhere near the most expensive in the bar aisle.

All the ingredients in the bar are organic. This isn’t of huge concern to me, but it may be to you. The list was short and included dates, cashews, unsweetened chocolate, cocoa and raspberries.

It was definitely a winning combination if you are looking for a sweet snack. I do wish they would take the “2 servings of fruit” off the front. Sure, it may equal that in some random way, but let’s get our fruit servings from fruit and not focus on getting them from bars. You know me though, there is always something.

Would I get this again – for sure! I was actually looking for them around my hometown, but didn’t find them. If you want to get some chocolate in a relatively healthy nutrition bar form I say go for it.

In fact, after looking at the ingredient list I’m wondering why I couldn’t throw that combination together and make these bars myself. I just might give it a try.

Irish Steel Cut Oats

November 24, 2008

First of all let me say the oatmeal craze among food and health bloggers has been off the charts lately. It is making me crave oatmeal like never before. Growing up oatmeal was always an “old person” food to me – something grandparents ate. I’m so glad the health benefits have come out and now it seems to be enjoyed by just about everyone.

Once I found out how good homemade whole oats were I left instant oatmeal behind a few years ago. All that artificial flavor just can’t compare. The time issue isn’t an argument either. It takes me 2 ½ minutes to make my oatmeal in the microwave and maybe an extra 5 to add ingredients and the flavor is 10 times better.

Before I go on, I have to tell you some very cool news I found out last week – I’m part Irish! As I’ve gotten older I’ve become a lot more interested in my roots especially regarding food. I’ve always known I was German and I’m very drawn to that culture and food. My recent trips to Ireland over the past two years have created similar feelings.

I have an uncle who has followed our family tree back and last week he shared some of the information with us. Apparently my grandfather’s family (not sure how far back yet) came over from Ireland to Virginia. I have to say I’m very proud of this. Bring on the brown bread, scones and Guinness pie!

So anyway, this really doesn’t have anything to do with my new family history finding, but I have always wanted to try Irish Steel Cut Oats. I’m pretty sure this is what I had in the form of porridge while in Dun Laoghaire this year, but I had never made them myself.

The difference in the steel cut oats isn’t really in the nutritional value, but as the name implies, in the way they are cut and processed. They are the whole grain groats cut into 2-3 pieces. Everything I read talked about the heartier texture and I agree. They have a bite to them; a chewiness. Boiling them also results in a creamy texture so there is no need to make them with milk.

I was worried I wouldn’t want to put in the time to cook them, but I have learned it is completely worth it. I may not always have time to make them during the week, but Irish Steel Cut Oats will definitely be a part of my regular weekend breakfast.

For this type of oat, ¼ cup dry is considered on serving. I prepared a ½ cup and it really made three small, but adequate servings. Combine ½ cup of the oats with 2 cups of water and boil stirring often. Watch them because they might boil over if the heat is too high. As they begin to thicken, stir constantly until they reach your desired thickness. The whole process took me about 30 minutes.

I topped mine with frozen blueberries, brown sugar and walnuts. If you’ve seen these oats in stores and haven’t tried them yet, I say go for it. They are one of my new favorite breakfasts.

PS. I also wanted to mention that I got my Larabar JamFrakas thanks to Megan’s Munchies! They were pretty good. I saved the banana chocolate one to the very last because I thought I wouldn’t like it, but it ended up being my favorite. I’ve eaten a lot of bars in the past when I worked in gyms from the ultra high protein to those filled with ephedrine (when it was allowed). I try to steer clear of them now and go for real food, but from time to time they are convenient. I did like the health profile for the Larabar. A good choice for traveling for me.

Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24: Country-Style U.S. Breakfast in Brazil

October 25, 2008

If there is one thing I’ve missed throughout my ex-pat experience it is waking up on a weekend morning to a table full of hearty breakfast treats. I’ve learned that few countries celebrate this meal the way we do in the US.

Most often breakfast in Brazil is bread with butter, coffee and maybe some fruit. Breakfast is a bigger deal to me. While I’ve been known to have toast now and then, eggs, oatmeal and yogurt usually join the mix. If it is a weekend, well, things get a little more extravagant.

After sharing stories of cozy weekends filling our stomachs with country breakfast favorites, we found that many of our new Brazilian friends wanted to experience it too.

With plans to have a breakfast party at some point the October Foodbuzz 24, 24, 24 event gave me the motivation to put things together and enter the idea.

Well, here we are! On October 25th we took part in this exciting event with a Country-style US Breakfast in Maringá-PR, Brazil.

Making your favorite foods in a new land is an interesting challenge. Not to mention the fact that when you are living in a place for only a short time (and can ship few things along) elegant dinnerware and serving platters are the first to go.

I made the best of it and along with my husband, a ½ size oven and some borrowed forks and knifes, we exposed our friends to some of our favorite foods from home.

Let’s start with the menu. I’ll warn you, it is a bit carb-loaded, but then again what great US breakfast isn’t. I wanted to give our guests a taste of many things without making a ton of separate dishes.

Ham and Cheese Brunch Bake
Ham and cheese sandwiches turn into a breakfast casserole in this recipe my mom received from a friend a few years ago.

Oven Home Fries
Potatoes, onions, and peppers baked topped with grill seasoning.

Pancakes with Maple Syrup
Pancakes made from scratch, topped with syrup brought to us by coworkers visiting from the US.

Homemade Cinnamon Rolls
Cinnamon sweetness adapted from a recipe at The Salty Cod.

Fresh Fruit Salad
In an effort to offer a healthy option, fruit salad in a watermelon boat made from fruits popular both in the US and Brazil – watermelon, pineapple, kiwi and bananas.

Mimosas
Orange juice and champagne to cool us from the summer heat.
(I think these were for me. Entertaining can be stressful!)

One thing we didn’t have is coffee.

I know, I know – breakfast without coffee?! I started thinking about this though and there was no way to make it like what I used to have back home. The coffee here is much stronger and taken in smaller does. Warm milk is added instead of any variety of cream. So I decided to nix it.

As a substitute we made spiced apple cider. No apple cider here either, but the nectar of apple sold as apple juice is much closer to apple cider than the clear juice available in the US. I added some cinnamon and pumpkin pie spice, warmed it up and it turned out to be pretty tasty.

Considering the fact that we would have some guests who only spoke Portuguese, I made some little signs for each food with both languages to clear up confusion and keep me from having to explain multiple times.

Prep started the night before with the breakfast casserole and cinnamon rolls, both of which rested in the fridge overnight giving me a lot less to do in the wee hours of Saturday morning.

The Ham and Cheese Brunch combines 4 favorite breakfast items into one dish – ham, cheese, bread and eggs. Unfortunately we had to make due with processed cheese. Good cheddar doesn’t exist around here. It wasn’t my first choice for keeping things focused on real foods, but what can you do?

Ham and Cheese Brunch Bake

16 slices bread (any variety would work, but I used plain ol’ white)
8 slices deli-sliced ham
8 slices sharp cheddar cheese
6 eggs
3 cups milk
1 tsp. brown mustard
½ cup butter, melted
1 cup corn flakes, crushed
1 small can sliced mushrooms, drained

Layer a large casserole dish with 8 bread slices. Top the bread with the ham and then the cheese. Layer the 8 remaining slices of bread on top. Mix eggs, milk and mustard. Pour over casserole, cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

The next morning add crushed cereal to the melted butter. Stir in the mushrooms and spread over the casserole. Bake at 350 degrees F for 45 minutes. Makes 8, main course servings.

I adapted the cinnamon rolls from a recipe by The Salty Cod. For the inside of the rolls I used what I had available here – brown sugar, white sugar, cinnamon and some pumpkin pie spice (brought from home). I also took my chances cutting them with a serrated knife instead of floss.

Saturday morning was a frenzy of baking off the rolls and casserole, cutting fruit, chopping potatoes and pancake making. I am the worst pancake-maker you will ever meet, so this is where my husband came in and saved the day.

The original plan was to make pecan pancakes and while I promise I saw them around the holidays last year, they are no where to be found in supermarkets around here at the current moment.

Pancakes
from the Betty Crocker’s Cookbook Bridal Edition

1 large egg
1 cup all-purpose flour
¾ cup milk
1 tbsp granulated sugar
2 tbsp vegetable oil
3 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp salt
Butter for the pan, if needed

Beat egg in medium bowl until fluffy. Beat in remaining ingredients (except butter) until smooth. For thinner pancakes, stir in additional 1 to 2 tablespoons of milk.

Makes nine 4-inch pancakes. We doubled the recipe and made small, silver-dollar pancakes.

Guests arrived at 10:00 am and included friends I have made during my time here (one who found me through my blog) and my husband’s coworkers/friends and their loved ones.

My first surprise was all the pictures. Everyone had their camera out to snap photos of the food. Next came the eatin’ and I have to say I was certainly happy with the response. I think enough was said in the fact that many of them went back for seconds and even thirds.

“Muito bom (very good)” and “delicioso (delicious)” were repeated many times.

We had a wide variety of guests – some had spent time living in the US, others had visited before on business or vacation and others had never been there before.

For some this breakfast brought back memories of their travels and for others it was a completely new experience. We’ve experienced so many new things especially regarding food since moving to Brazil and it was nice to be able to provide this opportunity to our new friends.

The Pumpkin Coconut Bread Experiment

October 7, 2008

Last night presented the perfect opportunity for some experimentation. I was in the mood to bake and I had two main ingredients to use up – puree from a pumpkin I roasted over the weekend and light coconut milk left over from vegetable curry recipe.

I’d made a pumpkin bread recipe in the past that used a package of coconut pudding mix, but considering my issue with that these days I thought I’d try to get the flavor with real ingredients.

I modified some recipes I have for pumpkin bread, adding and eliminating a few ingredients. I also adjusted the amount because I only wanted one loaf.

I was very pleased with how it turned out. The coconut flavor is subtle, but it keeps the bread incredibly moist. Next time I might try it with some whole wheat flour mixed in for the health benefit.

We can get finely ground coconut around here and I think it is best for this recipe because it only adds a little texture without making it chewy. If you can only find flaked, try chopping it up before adding it to the batter.

Pumpkin Coconut Bread

Makes 1 loaf (9.25×5.25×2.75 in)

8oz of fresh pumpkin, roasted, strained and pureed (or ½ of a 15oz can)
2 eggs
½ cup vegetable oil (I used soy)
½ cup light coconut milk
1 ½ cups white sugar
1 ¾ cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
¾ tsp salt
1 tsp cinnamon
½ tsp pumpkin pie spice
½ cup unsweetened flake coconut, chopped until very fine

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Grease and flour loaf pan.
In a mixer combine pumpkin, eggs, oil and coconut milk. Add sugar and mix until smooth. In a separate bowl combine remaining ingredients. Stir into pumpkin mixture until combined. Pour into loaf pan and bake about 50 minutes or until a tooth pick inserted in the middle comes out clean. Let cool 10 to 15 minutes and remove from pan. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Breakfast Fan?

June 24, 2008

Are you a fan of breakfast? I will admit I love most breakfast foods, but occasionally I get in a rut where all I have is coffee until lunchtime rolls around.

Yesterday there was some research results released about the benefits of a big breakfast when it comes to weight loss. Study participants who ate a larger breakfast over an 8 month period, not changing anything else in their diet, lost more weight than those who ate a smaller breakfast.

It is important to note the small breakfast was high protein and the larger one had carbs in the form of 2 slices of wheat bread.

There were two things that came to mind after hearing about this study.

The first thing was that the types of foods in the big breakfast were very similar to those popular in other countries. It consisted of a slice of cheese, lunch meat (I think it was turkey), 2 slices of wheat bread, 2 cups of milk and coffee with cream.

If you’ve every visited another country you’ve probably seen a meat and cheese tray at a hotel’s continental breakfast. These are less common in the US. We typically stick to sausage and bacon.

The second thing is that eliminating fake foods at breakfast time can be a challenge. This isn’t due to availability. There are so many great items that are fresh and healthy – eggs, oatmeal, fruit, coffee, some yogurts, breads, potatoes, and lean meats to name a few. Even homemade waffles and pancakes can be an option if made from scratch with quality ingredients.

When it comes to our early morning meals it is more an issue of time. When I was working in an office outside home, I barely had time to get dressed in the mornings, let alone make breakfast. I’m not a morning person and have a hard time getting up. Many people have other commitments like children to take care of, emails to answer or morning workouts.

With this lack of time, it is so easy to grab breakfast convenience foods. Granola bars were always my food of choice, but even a frozen waffle, toasted and taken along in the car was an option from time to time. Then there were those days when I left hungry and then someone would bring in donuts to the office.

The problem is this started my day with processed foods, preservatives, unhealthy carbs and I’m sure there is some high fructose corn syrup in there somewhere.

I began to switch to cereal mixes I put together myself consisting of whole grain bran cereal, dried cranberries and walnuts. I also hard boiled eggs and took string cheese.

Making yourself eat a real, fresh breakfast can be difficult. Now, even though I work at home, it still takes a conscious effort to make myself something instead of grabbing a cereal bar and sitting back down at the computer.

I just have to remember that it will be worth it in the long run though. According to that study, it might even help us lose a few pounds.

Photo by ppdigital, morguefile.com

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