You’ve probably heard the saying that breakfast is the most important meal of the day which we believe to be true.  Some recent research has even shown that those who do not eat breakfast have an increased risk of cardiovascular disease.  We like to recommend a balanced breakfast where you have at least 1-2 servings of fruit or vegetables to start the day.  Balance means having protein, carbs and fat – which is what we try to have with most of our breakfasts.

Here are some of our typical breakfasts:

·         Homemade granola with fresh fruit and homemade almond milk. 

o   This one is quick and we tend to make large batches of granola.  (See the one of our previous blog posts for how to make your own.)

·         Steel cut oatmeal with fresh fruit, nuts and seeds. 

o   This is a variation of the granola above and we like to have this more in the winter.

o   Cook your steel cut oatmeal as recommended.  Add sliced banana, apple, strawberries ect., nuts (raw almonds, pecans, walnuts), seeds (pumpkin, hemp hearts, flax), cinnamon, unsulphured coconut.  We tend to not add anything to sweeten it but some 100% maple syrup could be added if desired.

·         Smoothies – lots of fruit, protein (either Harmonized Vegan Protein, hemp hearts or Organic goat whey), greens, homemade almond milk.

o   This is more of a summer breakfast.  You can add all sorts of things to smoothies like flax seeds, turmeric, cacoa powder, nut butter etc.   

·         Omelette or Veggie Scramble – 2 local eggs, greens, veggies, goat cheese, honey sweetened ketchup or salsa. 

o   We love omelettes or veggie scrambles.  They are a great way to get vegetables in the morning.  (See one of our previous blog posts for more ideas.) 

·         Omelette To Go – we have adapted an Alive magazine recipe for a quick omelette to go.

·         Mexican Veggie Scramble bowl – 2 local eggs, raw organic greens like spinach or kale, salsa, avocado, green onion, black beans, local hot sauce, goat or sheep cheese.

o   Keep all your veggies raw and scramble your eggs or leave the yolks runny whatever you prefer, heat up your beans in a pan and serve it over your veggies.

o   We have also stir fried a bunch of vegetables like mushroom, pepper, zucchini, onion and mixed this in as well.

·         Huevos Rancheros – corn tortilla, local egg, avocado, salsa, greens, homemade refried beans, tomato, green onion, homemade guacamole.

o   Cook your egg sunny side up and prepare your corn tortilla.  Place egg on corn tortilla and top with goat or sheep cheese if desired.

o   Bake for 5 min. at 350 F.  Top with vegetables.

·         Egg and Toast – 1 local egg, honey sweetened ketchup, homemade gluten free bread spread with coconut oil, bowl of fruit.

o   Simple but balanced.  We don’t eat that much bread even gluten free bread but once and a while this is a quick easy breakfast that we enjoy.

·         Teff Banana Pancakes or Brown Rice Flour Blueberry Pancakes – Both recipes from Nourishing Meals cookbook which we use quite frequently and recommend it as a healthy allergen free cookbook.  Although not as balanced as other breakfasts we tend to eat pancakes two times per month served with 100% maple syrup and a fruit bowl.

You can use left over roasted veggies from the previous blog post (Easy Roasted Vegetables) or you can start with fresh veggies.  We like veggie scramble on the weekends for breakfast as they are quick, easy and delicious.  This is a balanced breakfast containing both protein and carbs which helps with blood sugar regulation.  It also starts the day with 1-2 servings of veggies which most people miss later in the day!  Serve with a bowl of fresh fruit or a smoothie.



Vegetable Scramble

·         3/4 cup vegetables: broccoli, mushrooms, pepper, spinach, green onions, tomatoes

·         2-3 local eggs

·         Freshly ground pepper, spices (turmeric, chili powder, garlic powder) and goat feta optional      
Heat small pan over low to medium heat and add a small amount of coconut oil enough to coat the pan.  Stir fry all vegetables except green onion and tomato.  Scramble eggs in a bowl.  Add green onion and tomatoes when vegetables are warm (if using left over roasted veggies) or desired consistency.  Add scrambled eggs and pepper, spices and cheese if desired.  Scramble eggs till cooked.  Serve with bowl of fruit (mixed berries, apple, pear, banana, mango sliced) with a pinch of cinnamon or a fruit smoothie.

There are very few brands out there that make a clean, wholesome granola.  If you don’t want to spend the time reading label after label then why not make your own? (Although, you should check some of the labels out there for granola as you wouldn’t believe what kind of additives end up in there).  Granola is very simple and easy to make and can be done in roughly 30 minutes.  It’s nice to be able to make large batches so you don’t have to keep on making it even though I’m sure you will want to.

You can enjoy the granola as a snack or breakfast cereal.  It’s a great way to get in nuts and seeds that have many nutrients, protein, fiber and are a source of healthy fats.  You also get to control the type of sweetener and the amount that is used.  As well you get the benefits of one of my favourite oils-coconut oil which will be discussed in a future post.  Overall, granola (when made properly) is a wholesome cereal that is high in fiber, healthy fats and many vitamins and minerals.

Granola Recipe

·         6 cups rolled oats (Gluten free use Bob’s Red Mill Oats)

·         1 cup raw pumpkin seeds

·         1/2 cup raw sunflower seeds

·         2 cups nuts chopped (or can use food processor to grind up) or can leave whole or buy pieces

                    -   raw almonds, hazelnuts, walnuts, pecans

·         Pinch of fine sea salt (about 1/8 tsp)

·         1 cup dried fruit

                    -   non-sulfured raisins, dates, gogi berries or combination

·         2 tsp cinnamon

·         ½ cup coconut oil melted

·         1/2 cup 100% pure maple syrup or honey or 1/4 cup 100% maple syrup or honey and 1/4 cup unsweetened applesauce

·         1 tsp pure vanilla extract or vanilla powder

Preheat oven 250 F.  Mix oats, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, nuts and salt together in a medium sized mixing bowl.  Measure dried fruit, but set aside.  In a large mixing bowl, stir together coconut oil, syrup or honey (and applesauce if using), cinnamon and vanilla extract.  Mix dry ingredients into wet ingredients stirring with a large wooden spoon.  Line 2 large baking sheets with unbleached parchment paper and transfer mixture in a layer (about ½ inch).  Ensure mixture is in a thick enough layer otherwise it may burn.  Bake 10-15 minutes until top is slightly browned.  Mix and stir around and bake 10-15 more minutes.  Mix and stir around again and bake for the last 5-10 more minutes until browned or until cooked to your liking.  Put back into large bowl and mix in dried fruit.  Cool and store in container.  Enjoy!