My good friend Sarah asked me to write a post giving some suggestions for healthy breakfasts. Since Sarah is my only reader one of my most loyal readers, I am more than happy to oblige.
Breakfast can be a challenge. We all know we’re supposed to eat breakfast, but mornings are rushed, and it’s easy to hustle out the door without eating (actually, I never do that. I’m starving in the mornings) or grab a PopTart or a doughnut. But breakfast doesn’t have to be challenging; with a little bit of forethought, it’s easy to eat a quick meal full of nutrition to start your day on the right foot.
Breakfast should contain carbs, fats, and proteins to keep you full and energized through the morning, and all these breakfasts fit the bill. I’ll split them into two categories: those that you can make ahead of time and those that require a (very) little bit of preparation in the morning.
Make-Ahead Breakfasts
Egg muffins. These little guys are basically a frtitata in an easy-to-grab format. The beauty of these is that you can throw in whatever veggies you like; just dice them up, put them in a muffin tin (either use liners or grease the tin really well), and pour beaten eggs or egg whites on top until the muffin cups are nearly full. (You can also just break an egg on top of your veggies). Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes, until they’re set, and ta-da! breakfast for the week. In the morning, pop a couple of muffins in the microwave, wrap in a whole-wheat tortilla (if desired), add a piece of fruit on the side, and you’re good to go!
(I ran out of egg whites, hence the two whole eggs).
Overnight oats. Are these still trendy in the healthy-living blog world? En vogue or not, this is another easy grab-and-go breakfast (as long as you can eat it at work. No spooning while driving). In a jar, stir together oats, milk (dairy or non) or yogurt, protein powder (optional — if you’re using a low-protein milk like almond, I’d definitely throw in protein powder), nuts or peanut butter, and a banana or blueberries. Screw on the lid, and put it in the fridge. In the morning, stir it again and eat it.
(Image source, because my overnight oats are not even close to being this pretty. Mine are usually in an old cottage cheese container.)
Muffins/quick breads. Google “healthy muffin recipe” and you’ll get millions of results. Whip up a batch on Sunday, and for the rest of the week, just slather one or two with peanut butter and add a side of fruit.
Morning-Of Breakfasts
Egg sandwich. Beat two eggs in a microwave-safe bowl. Throw in a handful of spinach. Microwave for about a minute, stir, and microwave for about 30 more seconds. Place eggs between two pieces of whole-grain toast. Eat.
Oatmeal. This time of year, cold overnight oats just don’t do it for me. Luckily, hot oatmeal takes only a couple of minutes. I use old-fashioned oats, add fruit or pumpkin; egg whites or protein powder; and walnuts, flaxseed or peanut butter for some healthy fats. If J and I are carpooling, I eat in the car; otherwise, I make these in a Tupperware (or a cottage cheese container), toss it in my lunch bag, and eat it when I get to work.
Smoothies. Green smoothies are definitely still trendy, and for good reason — they’re quick, easy, and portable, and they give you a serving of veggies without tasting like a serving of veggies. My go-to mix is almond milk, spinach, frozen mixed fruit, egg whites or protein powder, and flax or chia seeds.
(Again, not my picture. Source. Apparently my food is unusually ugly.)
Cottage cheese, banana, nuts, and cinnamon. Mix it up. Eat it. Thank me later. (This is where I get all the cottage cheese containers.)
None of these breakfasts are exactly earth-shattering, but they’re simple, tasty, and healthy.
What are some of your go-to weekday breakfasts?
Are you a weekend food-prepper, or do you make everything as you go?
Rural Running Redhead 
You don’t make ugly food! Thank you for the post! I am going to have to try all of these! Who would have thought that some of these would be so easy! I make things harder than they need to be. I’ll keep you posted on how it goes.
Love your face!
Overnight oats are such a blogger-y food lol 😉 I haven’t made them in a while but yours looks delicious!!! Makes me want.
I wish those were mine! I borrowed that picture because mine never look like that.
I have never understood the overnight oat thing. I only ever heard of them on blogs. But how are the better than just taking 2 min in the morning and warming up your oatmeal in the microwave? (this is not a rhetorical question, I really don’t get it!)
If I run, I have either shredded wheat or special k protein plus cereal. I love cereal and it fills me up. Egg sandwiches are also an option but of course take more time. If I lift, it is chicken and cheerios for breakfast! (not mixed together…)
I almost added something in here about your chicken-eating. 🙂 I don’t think overnight oats are better than regular — just different. I ate a lot of them when school first started this year and it was still 95 degrees and eating hot food sounded terrible.
I’m laughing about your cottage cheese containers…My go-to breakfast is low sugar peach oatmeal (warm) topped with blueberries and milk. I think I’ll try the egg muffins. Thanks!
Peach oatmeal sounds yummy! I hope you like the egg muffins.
Interesting post about food. Here in Italy we have a different behavior: breakfast is very light, usually cappuccino (milk and coffee) and cornetto (a little cake with marmalade), lunch is the main meal and the dinner is lighter.
Anyway I love muffins.
I wish lunch could be my main meal instead of a bit of food shoveled in my mouth as quickly as possible. 🙂
I eat greek yogurt with peanut butter and berries and one egg every single morning. One of these days, I will get sick of it and change it up, but right now it works and keeps me full until about 1:30 when I finally get around to eating lunch.
I tend to get in breakfast ruts, too, and eat the same thing for a long time. No breakfast really holds me over until lunch — I always have a mid-morning snack and am still ravenous by 1:00!
I find it really difficult to take pretty pictures of food:) I love making egg cups, and have recently been making a big ‘egg bake’ with veggies that gets me through the entire week. I’ve been wanting to try the overnight oats for a while now, but have yet to make them!
I like to make egg casserole-type dishes, too! They’re just more time-consuming and I’m lazy. 🙂
I eat oatmeal just about every morning of my life, but these are some good options to switch it up a bit. I’m with you-I NEVER skip breakfast! In fact, I’m truly baffled by people who do.
I eat breakfast and am still starving mid-morning… I could never go without.
I love breakfast! Easiest meal of the day haha 🙂
– Oatmeal with cinnamon, banana, and some berries, or pb2.
– Proteinbar and a banana.
– Yoghurt and a banana.
I’m a fan of things that doesn’t take forever to make, as you probably see haha.
I like meal prepping, even though I haven’t done it in a while.
I’m also all about the speedy breakfasts!