“How can I have a brain healthy breakfast, while keeping the ‘breakfast calories’ off?” has got to be one of the most asked questions. But it shouldn’t be anything complicated, really.
Did you know that when Olympians plan what they eat in the morning, they rarely call it breakfast? They look at it as a pre-training meal or pre-competition meal.
Here’s the thing about breakfast: it doesn’t necessarily have to be “breakfast food.” What you normally eat for dinner can be eaten for breakfast. That is, if you have the right combination to start your day off right. Think outside the (cereal) box.
It can be a simple unorthodox meal of warm quinoa with almond milk and walnuts, and a bowl of steamed kale with a splash of apple cider vinegar or a squeeze of lemon over it, and a couple ounces of turkey breast.
Or it can be veggies cut in sticks with almond butter or all-natural cashew butter spread over them, with a salmon wrap using romaine lettuce leaves or a paleo wrap. Then head out the door with a piece of fruit some cut veggies, and a hardboiled egg to eat on your way to work.
Or maybe it’s a mixture of scrambled eggs and your favorite (Omni Diet) additions wrapped inside romaine leaves.
Of course there’s my favorite go-to fast food: smoothies. If I know I’m going to be rushing in the morning, I put all of the dry ingredients in the blender the night before and set all of the wet ingredients aside in the refrigerator, pre-measured and ready to dump in the blender. It takes about two minutes. I love smoothies because they are the perfect blend of protein, fat, fiber and hydrating water. Make sure to only use about a half cup of frozen fruit and about two cups of green leafy vegetables. Add protein powder and a little coconut butter or almond butter. I have recipes for morning smoothies available at tanaamen.com.
Keep it simple and quick, so you are out the door for you and your brain to face another day.
Here is a list of brain foods that you can choose from to create your next morning meal (obviously making sure you have adequate amounts of protein and fiber):
Almond milk, unsweetened
Almonds, raw
Apples
Asparagus
Avocados
Bananas
Beans (red or white)
Beets
Bell peppers
Blackberries
Blueberries
Bok choy
Broccoli
Brussels sprouts
Cherries
Chicken, skinless
Coconut
Coconut oil
Cashew butter
Eggs (grain feed)
Goji berries
Grapefruit
Green tea
Herring
Kale (folate)
Kiwi
Lemons
Lentils
Limes
Steel-cut oatmeal
Olive oil
Oranges
Peaches
Pears
Peas
Plums
Pomegranates
Quinoa
Raspberries
Red grapes
Salmon, wild
Spinach
Strawberries
Tomatoes
Tuna
Turkey, skinless
Walnuts
Yams/sweet potatoes
But, if you want to have the traditional egg breakfast, and you have a few minutes to spare to prep and cook, below is a recipe from The Omni Diet you may enjoy.