Breakfast

I get a lot of questions about what I eat for breakfast on busy weekday mornings.  While I believe that breakfast truly is the most important meal of the day, I usually don't eat it the way I know I should.  I’m simply not willing to get up any earlier than I already do (4:45 am most weekdays) in order to sit down and savor every bite of a freshly prepared breakfast.  So I eat on the run most mornings.  But, I still eat a clean and healthy breakfast on those busy weekday mornings.  I just feel like the right breakfast sets me up for a better day.

I found an oatmeal recipe on He and She Eat Clean that is made in the crock pot, making enough for a whole week for two people.  I’ve adapted it somewhat to suit mine and my husband’s tastes.

2 ½ cups Bob’s Red Mill Organic Steel Cut Oats

½ cup puffed millet

1 cup no-sugar-added organic applesauce

1/3 cup 100% pure maple syrup

1 tsp Kosher salt

2 tblsp cinnamon

1 tsp nutmeg

1 ½ tsp vanilla

3 cups unsweetened vanilla almond milk

10 cups water

Add all ingredients to crock pot, stir to mix, and cook on low for eight hours. Once cooking has finished, I let it cool for a while, then transfer to a large container with a lid and store in the fridge.

  

This feeds my husband and me for a full seven days.  Most mornings we stir in a handful of blueberries.  Some mornings, I opt for about 1/3 of a banana diced really small and a spoonful of (homemade) almond butter.

I usually eat my breakfast while packing mine and my daughter’s lunches, but some mornings I’m just way too rushed, so I take a small bowl to work with me to heat and eat at my desk.  And some mornings, I just don’t want oatmeal, so I’ll throw together a quick egg sandwich – melt a little coconut oil in a pan, crack and egg into it, stir around to break the yolk, toss in a little cheese and a handful of spinach leaves, cook until egg is done, and slide into half of a (homemade) whole wheat pita.  If there’s no time to eat, I just wrap it in aluminum foil to keep it warm and eat it when I get to work.

Now, on the weekends, we slow down for breakfast and enjoy whole wheat pancakes or waffles, or something new I may find on Pinterest.  There are so many clean, healthy, yummy options out there -  I’d love to hear some of your favorites!