One in ten Americans skip breakfast every morning. This means that over 30 million people aren’t giving their body the proper nutrition it needs to get through the day. We’ve all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but lots of people would rather sleep a few minutes longer than wake up to cook.
Preparing breakfast doesn’t have to be difficult or time-consuming. If you try any of these 6 healthy breakfast ideas, you’re guaranteed to become a morning person.
1. Overnight Oats
Oatmeal is as close to magic as any food could get. Eating oatmeal can help lower your blood pressure, regulate your bowel movements, help you lose weight, and give your body a mighty punch of nutrients.
Unfortunately, oatmeal has a bad reputation because of its bland flavor. You can do many things to oatmeal to make it taste delicious. If you’re someone who needs portable healthy breakfasts, you need to know about overnight oats.
All you need to do is combine one part liquid of your choice with one part oats in a container before bed and let it sit overnight. When you wake up, you can reach into the fridge and have a nutritious meal ready to go. Since it’s already in a sealed container, you don’t even need to spend time packaging it.
If you’re someone who enjoys hot oatmeal, feel free to pop it into the microwave for a minute. Make sure that the container is microwave safe.
Some possible additions to amplify the health benefits and flavor could include any of the following:
- Fruits
- Jams
- Nuts
- Nut butters
- Spices (like cinnamon and nutmeg)
- Seeds (like chia and flax)
- Cocoa
- Protein powder
Oatmeal breakfast ideas are endless! If you’re daring, you can even experiment with savory oats.
2. Frittata Cups
Eggs are a popular breakfast food, but making them each morning can take a lot of time. If you’re looking for easy breakfast ideas for your morning eggs, look no further than frittata cups.
The beauty of this meal is that you can prepare it months in advance since these cups freeze well. If you don’t want to freeze them, making them on Sunday before your busy work week is great, too. You’ll have yummy, portable breakfast cups waiting for you when you wake up.
All you have to do is spray a muffin tin with nonstick spray, heat the oven to 350 degrees, and prepare all the ingredients of your choice. Frittatas are a great way to sneak in all kinds of healthy vegetables like bell peppers, spinach, and potatoes.
Scramble a dozen eggs in a bowl and ladle them into the muffin tin until 3/4 full. Chop and sprinkle in your choice of spices and vegetables. Do note that if you choose to include diced potatoes, you should cook them in the microwave first to ensure they get tender. Pop the cups into the oven for around 12 minutes or until firm.
3. Healthy Breakfast Ideas to Makeover Your Toast
When you think of healthy breakfast recipes, toast doesn’t come to mind. That’s because most Americans choose to buy white bread stripped of any nutrients. Toast can be wonderful for your health if you opt for the whole grain variety.
There are a lot of sweet and savory combinations you can use on your toast to make it taste more exciting.
For healthy sweet toast, spread on some nut butter, sprinkle some cinnamon and slice up a banana. If you want a little extra kick, drizzle a few drops of honey or maple syrup on top.
For healthy savory toast, you can’t go wrong with adding sliced or mashed avocados. Adding slices of a hardboiled egg can add extra protein. If you plan on making toast each morning, save yourself some time in the mornings by boiling a big batch of eggs ahead of time and keeping them in the fridge.
4. Smoothies
Many Americans are deficient in at least one nutrient. If you drink hearty smoothies every morning, you could meet your daily recommended value for fruits and vegetables in one glass. Smoothies are one of the healthiest breakfast foods because they are rich in essential vitamins and minerals.
We all know how fast fresh produce can spoil. Buying frozen fruit and vegetable blends can make meal prep even easier. All you have to do is toss in a few handfuls of fruits and vegetables with a liquid of your choice and let your blender do all the work.
Feel free to get creative with your ingredients. You can add protein powder, nut butters, spices, seeds, yogurt, or whatever else you’d like to your smoothies. Pour it in a portable cup and you’ve got a meal ready to go!
5. Breakfast Burritos
Who doesn’t love a hefty burrito? Burritos can be healthy and enjoyed at any time of the day.
Once again, you can get as creative as you want with what you include in your burritos. Scrambled eggs, beans, fresh tomato salsa, avocado, and corn wrapped up in a whole wheat tortilla is a great combination. Wrap your burrito in some tinfoil and you’re good to go!
If you don’t have the time to make fresh burritos, you can prepare them in advance and grab them from the fridge each morning. You can also freeze most burritos.
6. Homemade Granola Bars
Oats are coming back in a new disguise to keep you full and fueled with tons of nutrients. Granola bars are a convenient idea, but too many store-bought bars contain preservatives and sugar.
Try any of these healthy granola bar recipes for your next breakfast. You can freeze many of these bars, which means you could stock up on breakfast for months in advance.
Want More Healthy Tips?
In the modern day, life never seems to stop. Your health shouldn’t get neglected because you’re busy. Now that you know these 6 healthy breakfast ideas, you can fuel your body while you’re on the go.
Meritage Medical Network is here to give you easy tricks on how to stay healthy. For more healthy lifestyle news, check out our blog.