Nothing really beats that first meal of the day; the meal that quite literally ‘breaks-the-fast’, the meal that kick-starts your fabulous self into gear and engages those all-important ‘creative juices’. Be it a drawn out affair in the form of a lazy weekend brunch or a special occasion indulgence or a quick, ‘re-fuelling’ at the start of a busy day; there is a certain satisfaction, a comfort if you like, surrounding the age old convention of breakfast.
The options are never ending; whether you have a sweet or savoury tooth, lavish or frugal tastes, a student budget or that of a millionaire’s: breakfast has something to offer everyone. What’s more the health benefits are many. Studies have shown that those accustomed to eating breakfast were as much as one third less likely to be obese than those who chose to skip it and as breakfast helps to stabilize blood sugar levels, regulating appetite and boosting energy levels, the chances of developing diabetes or having high cholesterol are reduced by half.
Still not convinced of the joys that breakfast has to offer? Then consider the sociability aspects, and I don’t just restrict ‘sociable’ breakfasts to the occasional weekend. Indeed the weekday breakfast needn’t be a solitary affair. Often I find that our lives get so frenetic, with the balancing act over our ever increasing work load with various commitments to societies and jobs, that we can find ourselves living in a bubble, looking back on the week and realising that we have only seen our housemates or family fleetingly between rushing from one place to the next. The very nature of university life dictates that many social events are restricted to evenings, thus a casual evening meal is often out of the question. Instead choose half an hour in the morning to sit around the table, re-fuel, and have a gossip with you nearest and dearest before entering the ‘rat race’.
So why miss it ladies? We all do it, our excuses ranging from too little time, to ‘calorie saving’ missions, to ‘I’m just not hungry when I wake up’…but that stops now! From this moment forward no excuse justifies missing the single most important meal of the day. The following recipes and ideas have something to offer for every taste and are bursting with goodness and versatility.
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Health and vitality breakfast for those ‘zen’ days
Feeling virtuous? Looking forward to a relaxed day of detox and reflection? Think berries, think green tea, think lemon, think colour!
My initial reaction to the term ‘detox’ is an overwhelming desire to run for the hills and bury myself in comfort foods. The concept of a detox is boring, hard and, let’s be honest, often pointless. BUT this need not be the case. A ‘detox’ day, or two, can be an opportunity to explore new ingredients and experiment with new recipe ideas that don’t have to be boring and tasteless. Why not try my ridiculously healthy lemon, beetroot and blueberry breakfast cupcakes (adapted from womanandhome.com) with a mug of green tea, yes ladies in my world you can detox and eat cake simultaneously…
Ingredients:
· 70g Wholemeal flour
· 70g Plain flour
· ½ tsp baking powder
· ½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
· ½ tsp mixed spice
· ½ tsp cinnamon
· Pinch of salt
· 120g soft brown sugar
· 2 large eggs
· ½ tsp vanilla extract
· 150ml rapeseed oil
· 50 ml low fat natural or blueberry yoghurt
· 150g raw beetroot, peeled and grated (2 medium beetroot)
· Zest of a lemon
· 75g blueberries
Method:
1. Heat oven to 180C/160C fan
2. Pop muffin cases into a 12 hole muffin pan
3. In a large bowl mix the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda, spices and salt
4. Add the sugars to the bowl
5. In a separate bowl beat the eggs, vanilla extract and oil then mix in the yoghurt
6. Pour the egg mixture over the flour and combine until smooth
7. Add the beetroot and lemon zest and combine thoroughly
8. Fold in the blueberries
9. Then fill the muffin cases until about ¾ full and bake for about 20 minutes, then turn the oven down to about 170C or 150C if using a fan oven and bake for a further 10 minutes – check to see if they are cooked with a skewer; if it comes out clean they are done , if not bake for a further 5 minutes
10. Place to cool on a wire rack
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Breakfast ‘en route’
There are those days when there simply isn’t time to sit down and enjoy a leisurely breakfast but it is still no excuse to skip that all important meal of the day. Here are simple ideas that involve very little preparation but certainly ‘pack a punch’ and ensure that you hit the ground running…
1. A couple of slices of wholemeal or granary toast spread with peanut butter (the brands with no added sugar are the best) and a piece of fruit is a great option for something to pick up as you run out of the door.
2. Any left-over ‘detox’ cupcakes (see recipe above) are a great quick and portable breakfast
3. Try blitzing together a smoothie the night before, using a banana, a handful of blueberries, a handful of oats, a sprig of fresh mint, a cup of semi-skimmed milk and a couple of tablespoons of low fat yoghurt.
4. I have an obsession with boiled eggs (well any type of eggs really). Packed full of protein and vitamins that keep you going throughout the morning the egg is the godfather of breakfast foods. What’s more if you are too busy of a morning to prepare anything substantial an egg boiled and then stored in the fridge overnight is the perfect quick and fuss free breakfast. Coupled with a slice of toast and a piece of fruit you can’t go wrong.
5. If you are a morning granola person there are lots of companies which make pots specifically designed to carry yoghurt, granola and fruit separately so that you can prepare your breakfast the night before, grab it on your way to campus and eat it when you get a moment’s breathing space, without worrying about soggy granola fiascos.
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Hangover binge breakfast with a healthy ‘re-vamp’
I’m taking nothing away from the hero worshipped Great British ‘fry up’ and its magical hangover curing qualities however no one can pretend that it is the healthiest option going. I’ve heard so many girls, following a night out , claim that they will be making up for any of the preceding night’s extravagances by not eating breakfast and “saving the calories”. But this is the worst thing you can do as alcohol drains blood sugar levels and causes the body to lose electrolytes and potassium, what’s more the likelihood of you waking up more around the lunch time mark means that you have missed breakfast and must thus eat accordingly. Here is my idea of a hangover ‘binge breakfast’ with a healthy twist.
Ingredients
· 2 eggs
· Slice of granary toast
· Handful of cherry tomatoes – cut in half
· ½ a small avocado
· Handful of button mushrooms cut in half
· ½ tsp mixed herbs
· Splash of balsamic vinegar
· Splash of olive oil
· A few drops of tabasco sauce
Method:
1. Pre-heat the oven to 180C
2. On a roasting tray mix the mushrooms, tomatoes, mixed herbs, oil, balsamic vinegar and tabasco sauce together and put in the oven for about 15 minutes
3. Crack the eggs into a non-stick pan, place over a heated hob and lightly break up with a plastic fork or whisk.
4. Continue to move the eggs around so that they don’t just form an omelette and instead form a scrambled texture
5. Remove the eggs from the heat and spoon onto the toast
6. Finally top with the roasted tomato mixture and some slices of avocado
Enjoy the benefits breakfast can bring and take the time out of your busy day for what many argue is the most important meal of the day!
Image Credits: Pinterest.com