The most important meal of the day

Breakfast is by far my favorite meal of the day. My favorite quick breakfast is eggs and bacon. Mmm . . . love. But when I have the time I love pancakes, waffles and French toast. Don’t ask me which one is my favorite. It would be way too hard to decide.

Today’s tip for National Nutrition Month is to eat breakfast. Studies have shown that people who eat breakfast consume fewer calories during the day. It also boosts your metabolism and increases your energy levels. Today’s tip comes at a perfect time since I have two new breakfast recipes to share with you. They are both healthy, delicious, and a little indulgent as well.

The first recipe is one that I made this morning. It is decadent and I’m sure it’s healthy because it has blueberries in it. And who doesn’t like chocolate for breakfast?

Stuffed Blueberry and White Chocolate French Toast (serves 2)

4 slices whole grain bread
2 egg whites
1/3 c. nonfat milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon cinnamon
2 tablespoons low fat cream cheese
1/4 c. fresh or frozen blueberries
2 tablespoons white chocolate chips

In a large bowl, whisk together the egg whites, milk, vanilla, and cinnamon and set aside. Spread  1 tablespoon cream cheese on two of the slices of bread. On top of each of the cream cheese slices, top with 1/8 c. of blueberries and 1 tablespoon of white chocolate chips. Cover each with another piece of bread to make a sandwich. Spray a skillet with nonstick cooking spray. Dip each sandwich into the egg mixture and cook on medium heat about 2-3 minutes per side, or until bread is golden brown and chocolate is melted. Serve with maple syrup or any other toppings you may desire.

The second recipe includes one of my favorite foods: peanut butter. Peanut butter and waffles are a great combination. Trust me. And if you don’t trust me, trust the good people of the Peanut Butter and Company. 🙂

BTW: I’m sorry about the lack of pictures for these waffles. For some reason, the only pics are the waffles with hot apples on them. Trust me when I say they are light and fluffy.

Peanut Butter Waffles – adapted from The Peanut Butter & Co. cookbook

2 cups flour (I used half white and half wheat)
2 tablespoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 egg whites
1 3/4 cup nonfat milk
1/4 cup butter, melted
1/2 cup sugar
2/3 cup creamy peanut butter

Preheat waffle iron. In large bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. In another large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, melted butter, sugar and peanut butter. Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Pour 1/2 c. batter into center of each waffle iron and close. Bake for about 6 minutes, or until waffle is crisp and golden brown. Serve with maple syrup or other toppings of your choice. Makes 8 waffles.

I love these waffles topped with hot apples, cinnamon and a little maple syrup. Yummy!

What is your favorite breakfast?

Fueling Foods

I have mentioned before that my work schedule has gotten really busy over the past few weeks. On those days where I am really busy, food choices are even more important because my foods need to fuel me for a long day.

When you are working late, it can be easy to mindlessly snack all day. Sometimes I do feel like I get even hungrier on those days. So I like to bring foods that will keep me full for a while. This is what I ate yesterday to keep me full and energized.

I started the day with a peanut butter waffle (recipe coming soon!) topped with hot apples, cinnamon, and a little maple syrup.

The apple on the waffle added some extra fiber that kept me full for several hours.

On the way to work, I picked up my new favorite drink from Starbucks, a skinny White Chocolate Mocha. I also added some cinnamon and nutmeg to it to give it a little something special.

Granted, this was decaf so I didn’t exactly get a caffeine boost. But it still gave me a surge in energy.

Breakfast kept me full for a while so I had a late lunch. I had some chili that my husband and I prepared last week (leftover chili is the best). I added some brown rice and some kidney beans for a little added bulk.

Not a pretty picture, but it was delicious! And it kept me full for a while as well.

I had an afternoon/early evening snack of a couple of hard boiled eggs.

I think that eggs get a bad rap. They are a great source of protein!

A little while later, I was feeling a little snackish again. I brought out my little homemade snack mix that I made that morning.

In the tupperware container were some Barbara’s Peanut Butter Puffins, some Trader Joe’s peanut butter filled pretzels, and some honey roasted peanuts. Can you tell that I love peanut butter? 🙂 Because the eggs had done their job, I didn’t feel hungry enough to eat all of it. I just had the pretzels and about half of the cereal. Great munching material!

I did not get home until after 8:00 pm. I didn’t take a picture of my food, but my wonderful husband had prepared me a dinner of sweet potato fries and a lean hamburger patty. Yummy!

I will be honest and say that after dinner I was in the mood for something sweet, so I had a few of my husband’s Famous Amos vanilla sandwich cookies. They were so good!

The best thing about my busy schedule is that I stay very active at work. There are a couple of sets of stairs that I have to climb. The busier we are, the more times I have to climb the stairs. So I may not have had time for a workout, but it’s hard to feel guilty when my quads are feeling this sore! 🙂

What is your favorite snack or meal that keeps you full for a long period of time?

Pancakes or Waffles?

Sometimes there can be miscommunication in a marriage.

It happens. I don’t understand what he means by “early.” And somehow, when I tell him I am craving waffles, he thinks I want pancakes. Good thing I love him because this only bothered me for about ten minutes. 🙂

I did come up with a great recipe. And because my husband is so wonderful, he insists on cooking me breakfast every weekend. So I gave him the recipe and left him to work his magic.

I was disappointed that he made pancakes instead of waffles, but somehow I managed to eat three of them. Guess they were still pretty tasty. 🙂 Still . . . I can’t wait to make them as waffles. But if my husband is doing the cooking, I will make my instructions a lot more clear. 

Gingerbread Walnut Pancakes (0r Waffles)

1/2 c. white flour
1/2 c. wheat flour
1 T. brown sugar
1 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
2 eggs
1/2 c. nonfat milk
1/8 c. unsweetened applesauce
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. ginger
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 c. chopped walnuts

Combine all dry ingredients, except for the walnuts. In separate bowl, combine wet ingredients. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ones and fold together. Stir in chopped walnuts. Do not overbeat or they will be tough. Use 1/4 c. of batter per pancake (or waffle). Enjoy!