Creative Breakfast Ideas

Most of us know how to go about planning for our dinners each week. It is also equally important to plan ahead for breakfast, lunches, and snacks as well.  I recommend planning for 2 breakfast ideas, 4 snack ideas and 4 lunch/dinner ideas to complete the meal planning for an entire week.

This week entails several tasty breakfast combinations for you to experiment with. Most will make many servings-great for heating up quickly when you are rushing around in the morning.

Sweet and Salty Quesadilla
Brown rice tortillas with sliced bananas and peanut butter warmed up in the microwave.

Breakfast Samosas
Dough: 2 ½ c flour, ½ tsp salt, 1 c buttermilk or yogurt, extra flour as needed
Directions: Mix dry ingredients then wet ingredients, knead for 5 minutes, roll out (leave it a little thick), use a biscuit cutter or the top of a large glass and cut out as many circles as you can. Roll out each circle to make them flat. (Usually makes about 6.)
Filling: Cook 4-5 scrambled eggs (put a little raw egg white from one egg in a small dish and set aside for later) with 1-1 ½ cups of fresh spinach and which-ever seasonings you like. Add a little shredded cheese if you like. Fill ½ of each samosa. Fold the other half over and use the tines of a fork to pinch dough together. Brush tops of samosas with the reserved egg white. Baked at 425 degrees for 15 minutes.

Vegetable Hash with Turkey Sausage
Take whatever veggies you have in the fridge that you think you won’t eat up before they die, add to it a potato or two.  Dice and chop them up. Place on a baking sheet, drizzle 1-2 tsp of olive oil, season with salt and pepper then roast in the oven at 375 for 20-30 minutes or until veggies are cooked.

Meanwhile brown some bulk turkey sausage in a skillet. (You can also use bacon, chicken sausage, turkey kielbasa, or left over pre-made frozen meatballs.) When veggies are done, mix it all together. Taste for seasoning and enjoy.

Quick Oats Surprise
Ingredients you’ll need: instant regular oatmeal, ½ scoop vanilla or natural flavored protein powder, ½ cup low fat milk or milk alternative, ¼ cup of dried fruit, 1 tsp vanilla extract, 1/8 cup nuts or seeds, cinnamon and nutmeg to taste
Directions: Add everything but the nuts/seeds and protein powder to a bowl and microwave to cook the oats. Stir in the protein powder and top with the nuts. Enjoy.

Egg Muffins a la Mollie Katzen from Sunrise Café Cookbook
Ingredients: 8 eggs, leftover veggies, about ½ cup bread crumbs and 2 tbsp of canola or olive oil.
Directions: In a muffin pan, drizzle the bottom of each tin with a little oil. Sprinkle in bread crumbs. Let the crumbs absorb the oil while you scramble eggs in a bowl, add in chopped leftover veggies. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pour egg mixture into prepared tins. Bake at 350 for about 15 minutes or until eggs are cooked through. This is a great weekday treat when paired with a piece of toast and a small fruit.

Weekly Challenge: Try out ONE of these recipes within the next 2 weeks.