Fresh breakfast ideas
Holidays over: Life has already resumed its normal pace. Mornings come earlier. So do breakfasts! The most important meal of the day so often defies imagination and ends up in toast and coffee. Result? Tedium sets in and you more or less skip the first meal of the day.
Following are a few tricks to brighten your mornings along with some very good reasons why you should not forget breakfast.
Imagine going 17 hours without eating. Unthinkable? Yet that’s what happens if you skip breakfast. Do the math: Say you have supper around 7 p.m. and eat at noon the next day... No wonder batteries run low by mid-morning!
A balanced breakfast provides the lift needed to start the day. Fuel for neurons as well as the body, it fosters concentration and boosts learning. For a youngster just entering school, a morning in class without breakfast can seem like an eternity!
Breakfast ought to account for 25% of your daily energy intake. It needs to be balanced and include foods from at least 3 of the 4 following groups:
- Whole grain cereal products: bread, a bagel, oats, cereals rich in fibre or homemade muffins.
- Keep in the pantry: cereal bars
- Fruits: Put sunshine on your plate. Whole or pressed oranges, mandarins, kiwis, apples and bananas are high in fibre, vitamins and antioxidants.
- Lifesavers: Dried fruit, frozen berries, fruit juices
- Milk products: Yogurt, milk or cheese. They deliver calcium along with high quality proteins. Soymilk makes a great choice: Certain types supply up to 30% of the daily recommended need in calcium.
- Always have on hand: Yogurt in individual formats, cheese, milk.
- Meats and substitutes: an egg, a few nuts, peanut butter, tofu spread, veggie-pâté.
- In a pinch: Keep hard boiled eggs handy
 Fruity Cottage Cheese |
 Bagel Breakfast for Champions |
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 English Muffins with Brie and Mixed Berries |
 Strawberry Bran Muffins |
 Citrus Fruits Crêpes |
Apple-orange Bread: makes a complete breakfast with apple sauce or jam and a small yogurt.
Buckwheat Pancakes: spread flapjacks with cream cheese and add some chopped pineapple or pear for a delicious variation on a traditional breakfast.
Crunchy French Toast: country bread, raspberry muesli and fresh fruit. Serve with a glass of milk for a complete breakfast.
Eggy Bagels: bagel, eggs, sweet pepper, mozzarella.
Five-Fruit Health Drink: vanilla soymilk, yogurt, raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, banana, orange. Grab a handful of nuts for a quick breakfast to go.
Fruit Brochettes: pieces of cheese and various fruits. With a homemade muffin, these make a complete breakfast that kids love.
Kiwi and Orange Rainbow: yogurt, kiwi, orange, rolled oats, toasted coconut and walnuts.
Raisin French Toast: raisin bread French toast with fresh fruit and cheese.
Sunshine Crêpes: crêpes rolled around a citrus-fruit filling. Add a small bowl of cottage cheese for a complete, nutritious breakfast.
Up ‘n at ‘Em Fruity Cottage Cheese: cottage cheese, fresh fruit, honey and almonds.
Choosing breakfast cereal wisely isn’t always easy given the numerous brightly packaged var
ieties, each
more tempting than the other. An important fact to keep in mind is
that most cereals contain iron and B complex vitamins. Add milk and
you get calcium, protein and vitamins A, D and B12. So you get
these nutrients at least, whatever your favourite cereal, even a
sweetened one. Click here to find a good breakfast cereal.