Cure Breakfast Boredom With 3 Simple Healthy ‘Boosts’
Breakfast can get boring when you’re short on time and default to a bowl of cereal every day. Pretty soon, you’re avoiding the most important meal of the day, and by mid-morning, you’re feeling it in low energy levels.
But fear not. These healthy breakfast ‘boosts’ can quickly turn mundane breakfast foods into more flavorful, nutritious meals that start your day off right.
Three Simple Breakfast Boosts
1. Grind It Up
Put your coffee grinder to the test by using it to grind seeds and nuts. These nutrition powerhouses provide protein, good-for-you fats and antioxidants.
For an easy grind-it-yourself boost, try flax seeds. They’re a good source of alpha-linolenic acid, a healthy omega-3 fatty acid found in some nuts and seeds, which may help ward off inflammation. Flax seeds actually need to be ground for your body to use those healthy fats.
Almonds can also boost your meal by providing riboflavin, a B vitamin that works with other B vitamins to help metabolize carbohydrates, protein and fat, and that helps the body use oxygen for energy. Even freeze-dried fruits like blueberries, which are loaded with antioxidants and other compounds that can fight muscles soreness, can be quickly pulsed into powder and thrown into your bowl of oatmeal or cereal, or eaten as a topping on your toast or bagel.
2. Spice It Up
Boost the palatability of your morning meal by adding spices and herbs to your foods. Sprinkle cinnamon, nutmeg, coriander or even pumpkin pie spice into your next batch of oatmeal, or add it to your yogurt parfait. You’ll be amazed at the taste difference.
Elevate simple scrambled eggs with spice blends like curry powder, jerk seasoning or Chinese five-spice powder. Fresh herbs such as basil, cilantro and mint can be added to smoothies or breakfast bowls.
Besides exciting your palate, herbs and spices have nutritional benefits. Many spices are loaded with antioxidants that ward off free radicals, which can damage healthy cells. Fresh herbs assist with everything from aiding digestion to boosting immunity.
Learn more about how to cook with spices.
3. Whirl It Up
Use your blender or food processor for more than soups or smoothies. Create healthy breakfast recipes for dips or make your own nut or seed butter. If you make it yourself, you control the ingredients, avoiding high levels of salt or unhealthy hydrogenated fats, which are added as stabilizers to some commercial products.
If you make nut or seed butter, maximize its nutrient density by adding “boosts” that can also increase palatability. Try a little chili powder mixed into a small batch of almond butter. Or swirl freeze-dried powdered strawberries into sunflower seed butter. Make savory breakfast spreads or dips using pureed white beans as a base. Whirl in fresh herbs like basil and oregano with garlic and a little olive oil and use as a topping for toast or frittatas.
RELATED: 8 High Protein Breakfast Ideas
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Cure Breakfast Boredom With 3 Simple Healthy ‘Boosts’
Breakfast can get boring when you’re short on time and default to a bowl of cereal every day. Pretty soon, you’re avoiding the most important meal of the day, and by mid-morning, you’re feeling it in low energy levels.
But fear not. These healthy breakfast ‘boosts’ can quickly turn mundane breakfast foods into more flavorful, nutritious meals that start your day off right.
Three Simple Breakfast Boosts
1. Grind It Up
Put your coffee grinder to the test by using it to grind seeds and nuts. These nutrition powerhouses provide protein, good-for-you fats and antioxidants.
For an easy grind-it-yourself boost, try flax seeds. They’re a good source of alpha-linolenic acid, a healthy omega-3 fatty acid found in some nuts and seeds, which may help ward off inflammation. Flax seeds actually need to be ground for your body to use those healthy fats.
Almonds can also boost your meal by providing riboflavin, a B vitamin that works with other B vitamins to help metabolize carbohydrates, protein and fat, and that helps the body use oxygen for energy. Even freeze-dried fruits like blueberries, which are loaded with antioxidants and other compounds that can fight muscles soreness, can be quickly pulsed into powder and thrown into your bowl of oatmeal or cereal, or eaten as a topping on your toast or bagel.
2. Spice It Up
Boost the palatability of your morning meal by adding spices and herbs to your foods. Sprinkle cinnamon, nutmeg, coriander or even pumpkin pie spice into your next batch of oatmeal, or add it to your yogurt parfait. You’ll be amazed at the taste difference.
Elevate simple scrambled eggs with spice blends like curry powder, jerk seasoning or Chinese five-spice powder. Fresh herbs such as basil, cilantro and mint can be added to smoothies or breakfast bowls.
Besides exciting your palate, herbs and spices have nutritional benefits. Many spices are loaded with antioxidants that ward off free radicals, which can damage healthy cells. Fresh herbs assist with everything from aiding digestion to boosting immunity.
Learn more about how to cook with spices.
3. Whirl It Up
Use your blender or food processor for more than soups or smoothies. Create healthy breakfast recipes for dips or make your own nut or seed butter. If you make it yourself, you control the ingredients, avoiding high levels of salt or unhealthy hydrogenated fats, which are added as stabilizers to some commercial products.
If you make nut or seed butter, maximize its nutrient density by adding “boosts” that can also increase palatability. Try a little chili powder mixed into a small batch of almond butter. Or swirl freeze-dried powdered strawberries into sunflower seed butter. Make savory breakfast spreads or dips using pureed white beans as a base. Whirl in fresh herbs like basil and oregano with garlic and a little olive oil and use as a topping for toast or frittatas.
RELATED: 8 High Protein Breakfast Ideas
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