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Help Me Save Breakfast 3

Filed under yum food
Written by Annie on 16th Jan -10

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I really don’t like cooking breakfast. I really don’t like eating breakfast. I love food, but the only thing I really want to eat in the morning is some sort of sweet, starchy item (think pastry) that goes with my coffee. Before 8, that’s the only thing that sounds appetizing and, alas, it is extremely bad about expanding the love handles.

My usual morning breakfast routine is something gourmet and exciting like Raisin Bran. I am in awe of these Moms who offer all these morning food choices to their kids. Eggs? Omelet? Egg white omelet with shaved asparagus and prosciutto curls? Cheese toast? Scone with marmalade? No problem, I’ll just whip up a batch. French toast? Bacon? Oatmeal?

That doesn’t really happen in our house, like, ever. I keep going on kicks where I try to cook us up a nice hot breakfast before my husband leaves for work, and I usually do a nice job for one morning. Or two, on a good stretch. Then it’s back to bowls of cold cereal or a granola bar and a banana. (That’s my other morning standby. )

I usually make myself eat something just because I know it’s important for my metabolism and all that, but I don’t really like it. I’d actually like to change this and really, I want to get better at preparing an appetizing morning breakfast option for us all. The problem is, I have too many criteria and since I can’t find something that meets them all, I just give up and we go back to default.
eggs1

My Perfect Breakfast Critera:

1. Something low carb. Sugary sweet baked goods really don’t seem like a healthy way to start the day, even though muffins do go great with coffee.
2. Something not uber high fat, like delicious bacon or sausage or cheesy omelets. Again, since the point is to start your day on a healthy note, this seems kind of like shooting yourself in the foot. Or the stomach, so to speak. I’m not opposed to eggs, as in plain ole scrambled, so maybe there’s something there…
3. Something quick. Did I mention I have 3 kids? Every moment counts in the morning. Every moment is worth its weight in gold. I do not have time for stirring pots of bubbling breakfasty foods.
4. Something easy to eat, so that my 2 kids who are sitting at the bar feeding themselves won’t end up wearing most of their breakfast. It also needs to be
5. Something they’ll like, because I just am not ready for an “Oh Yes You WILL Eat Your Food” showdown in the morning.  They’re not very picky but, you know, they’re kids.

So far, like I said, the best options seem to be a semi-healthy cold cereal (like Whole Grain Cheerios or Raisin Bran) or a banana with a granola bar or piece of whole wheat toast.

But that’s all so, so boring and blech and frankly I’m just tired of it. I’d like to serve my family something a little more warm and comforting on these cold winter mornings, but I’m at a loss. So I’m polling the crowd. I am desperate for ideas, recipes, make-ahead breakfast ideas, or anything that comes close to meeting my criteria.

Or, alternately, if any of ya’ll want to show up around 7:30 or so with a batch of fresh-baked anything, I’ll drop critera #1 in an instant and pour you a cup of coffee.

Help? Please? Share? I’m dying here…and we’re almost out of Raisin Bran.

Images courtesy of D Sharon Pruitt.

Simple Living: Breakfast Comments Off

Filed under the home, yum food
Written by Annie on 26th Mar -08

The Tools of Simple Breakfasts

To-go breakfast edibles
Options: non-cook, quick-cook, make-ahead
A well-stocked freezer
A specific breakfast time

Using the Tools

To-Go Breakfast Edibles
Every now and then, or perhaps more often than that, you’re going to have a morning that just won’t come together. It’s best to be prepared and keep a supply of breakfast items that can be eaten en route. Granola bars, protein bars, bananas or apples, or any of the multitude of breakfast bars are all good options. Except for the fruit, all of those options are rather over-processed to be a healthy choice for every day. But when you’re in a pinch and you know it, it is better to eat something processed than nothing at all. Combine a banana or apple with a protein bar and you won’t be doubling over from hunger at mid-morning.

Options: Non-Cook, Quick-Cook, and Make-Ahead
Non-cook options include cereal and milk, yogurt and granola, fresh fruit of any kind, bagels, and smoothies.
Quick-cook options include oatmeal, cream of wheat type cereals, toast, and eggs.
Make-ahead options include breakfast casseroles and any baked goods you make yourself: muffins, scones, biscuits, etc.
The idea is not to have all of the options listed above and pick your way through them each morning. We’re going for simple. Knowing your morning schedule and approximately how much time you have both to prepare, eat, and clean up breakfast, you need to choose the options that best fit. If you’re looking at ten minutes, go for the non-cook options, preferably those with little or no cleaning needed, like fruit and bagels. Add a glass of milk to get some protein. If you have twenty to thirty minutes, you could opt for one of the quick-cook options. Twenty minutes is enough time to make toast, scramble an egg, eat, and put your dishes in the dishwasher. Thirty minutes is enough time to make oatmeal, cream of wheat, or an omelet, eat, and clean up.
The make-ahead options could work for shorter or longer time periods, if you have the time and desire to make breakfast the night before. You can put together a breakfast casserole while you’re cleaning up dinner (or during your extended weekly prep time) and keep it in the refrigerator. In the morning, simply pop it in the oven while you shower and dress, then take fifteen minutes to sit and eat. Or if you enjoy baking, make up a batch of muffins or scones. You can go ahead and cook them so they’re ready to grab on your way out the door, or you can get the batter from the refrigerator, cook them while you get ready, and enjoy them warm and fresh.
What you don’t want to do is take on more than your morning can accomodate. Don’t try to make an omelet if you have to leave in ten minutes. Save those labor-intensive, more elaborate breakfasts for the weekends. Waffles, pancakes, and the like are great as a Saturday morning brunch or a Sunday evening meal. continue reading…

Day 6: Life Without a To Do List Comments Off

Filed under monthly challenges
Written by Annie on 7th Mar -08

Challenge Update: Day 6 was a bit choppy but good, overall. I checked off items on my Master Task List this morning and was amazed at how many I have gone through. March Madness, truly.

We are on a somewhat self-imposed deadline right now to get lots of things done around the house. My family (Dad, Sister, Sister’s two kids, Sister’s boyfriend) is coming to visit next week. How many of you can give me an Amen on the powerful motivation of family coming to visit? Somehow, even though I know these are the people who know all my strangeness and love me anyway, I want to make things perfect for them. Maybe it’s because they are the people who know all my strangeness and love me anyway.

So we have been spending every night working on the basement bathroom remodel or making trip to Home Depot or both. I’ve been cranking through lots of organizational stuff: cleaning, decluttering, rearranging. It is all stuff that needs to be done and I am excited to see it happening. I do long, however, for an evening when we come home, take more than twenty minutes to eat dinner, and then just relax. Ah. You don’t know what you got till it’s gone.

I am enjoying the fruits of our labor. The kitchen looks great. I should say, also, that lest you think I am Superwoman for cleaning and organizing all my kitchen cabinets in one day, be aware that I have a petite kitchen. 3 full cabinets. 1 drawer. Organizing my kitchen is a continual necessity.

What I Did:
Made scones for breakfast
Rode into town with Joe
Errands (Deals, Schnucks, Library, Bank)
Cleaned off Joe’s desk
Attempted (unsuccessfully) to install a new OS on the computer
Cleaned the upstairs

Better Life Tip: Eat breakfast. If you don’t have time to cook something for breakfast, keep easy options on hand: bananas, yogurt, granola, muffins, bagels. Something healthy and good in the morning will make your day better.

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