Meal Makeover: Breakfast
PIN IT!Don’t worry readers, this is not another rant about how important breakfast is for our bodies and metabolism [because we already know that by now, right?!] Right. However friends, not all breakfasts are created equal. Some people are so happy that they are eating breakfast that they forget exactly what they are eating. Some breakfasts can contain up to 1000 calories and 50 grams of fat! Let me prove my point. Below is a picture of the famed Denny’s Grand Slam breakfast.
This breakfast looks harmless and healthy enough, right? WRONG. This popular breakfast has 785 calories, 50 grams of fat and 2237 m.g. of sodium! The Mayo Clinic recommends only having 2300 mg of sodium in a day, so this breakfast is a major salt-buster.
Let’s play this game with another popular breakfast. Below is the IHOP big steak omelete. Sure it sounds more gut blasting than the previous, but you think “it’s eggs and steak, how bad can it be?” Pretty bad. And I know people who eat the entire thing. In one sitting.
This giant omelete contains 1000 calories and 72 grams of fat. 72 GRAMS OF FAT. and 27 grams of saturated fat. That’s half the amount of calories a healthy adult is recommended to have, and 7 more grams of fat! Yikes!
These prove my point that all breakfast’s can not be created equal. Keep your breakfast’s simple, yet full of fiber, healthy fat and protein so you stay fuller longer without derailing your diet! Steel cut oatmeal, egg white omeletes, whole wheat pancakes, greek yogurt and fiber rich cereals [Fiber One and Kashi Go Lean] are perfect breakfast go-to’s for the healthy adult on the go.
For those of you with a little more time in the a.m., try this recipe [courtesy of Eating Well] below, which is full of fiber, whole grains, calcium and protein! [And um, how delicious does it look?!]
Blueberry Ricotta Pancakes
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup whole-wheat pastry flour
- 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/4 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
- 3/4 cup part-skim ricotta cheese
- 1 large egg
- 1 large egg white
- 1/2 cup nonfat buttermilk
- 1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 teaspoons canola oil, divided
- 3/4 cup fresh or frozen (not thawed) blueberries
Preparation:
- Whisk whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and nutmeg in a small bowl. Whisk ricotta, egg, egg white, buttermilk, lemon zest and juice in a large bowl until smooth. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until just combined.
- Brush a large nonstick skillet with 1/2 teaspoon oil and place over medium heat until hot. Using a generous 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake, pour the batter for 2 pancakes into the pan, sprinkle blueberries on each pancake and cook until the edges are dry and bubbles begin to form, about 2 minutes.
- Flip the pancakes and cook until golden brown, about 2 minutes more.
- Repeat with the remaining oil, batter and berries, adjusting the heat as necessary to prevent burning.
Nutritional Information: 238 calories, 8 g.m. fat, 12 g.m. protein
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