Breakfast ideas!

Do you eat breakfast? If so, what is your favourite?

In the past, I've tried having only fruits, smoothies, juice or water for breakfast. Also, I had experimented with sometimes skipping breakfast and having a big lunch instead.

When I used to work in an industrial kitchen at 6 in the morning, it was challenging to have breakfast. I never felt like eating anything before heading to work at 5 am. I was ok with eating nothing till lunch break, but noticed I often had low energy and fatigue.

I didn't want to wake up 30 min. earlier at that time, especially in winter. So I was bringing hot tea and Onigiri (rice ball) or plant-based raw chocolate milk.

I don't work at 6 am any more. So I've done some experimentation for the breakfast. This winter, I've been enjoying porridges for breakfast. Do you know porridges? You might have seen Congée or 粥 in Chinatown or in Asian restaurants. In Japan, porridge is a comfort food people often have when they are feeling sick. Porridge is made with rice and dashi (Japanese bouillon). It stews until the rice gets broken down. I like to add seaweed or Ume plum on top. I don't live in Japan anymore, and I don't get sick very often. But porridge are definitely an excellent breakfast food.

Here are my winter breakfast bowl ideas:

Base

Grains: Buckwheat, quinoa, millet, rice (black, brown, red or white), oats (if you have a Celiac condition, I recommend you avoid even a gluten-free version)

Beans: Lentils, split peas, adzuki beans (I cook it in advance)

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Plant-based milk: almond, hemp, coconut, sesame

Toppings

Nuts, seeds: walnut, almond, hazelnut, cashew, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, sesame, chia seeds

Nut butter: almond, peanut, cashew, macadamia, walnut

Fresh fruits: berries (strawberry, blueberry, raspberry, blackberry), apples, pears

Dried fruits: dates, figs, cranberry, goji berry

Powdered superfoods: Maca, lucuma, spirulina, chlorella, maqui berry, açai berry, matcha, cacao

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Sweeteners : Maple syrup, raw honey

Basically, make the base porridge and sprinkle any of the above toppings you fancy.

Here are photos of my breakfast bowls :

Buckwheat quinoa porridge with steamed pears + superfoods

Adzuki beans soup with brown rice mochi + superfoods

Quinoa buckwheat porridge + superfoods

Ancient black rice porridge + superfoods

Buckwheat chia porridge + pomegranate and cacao nibs

You might think ''it takes too much time. It's not for me''.

My suggestion: how about preparing breakfast before go to bed?

Here is my favourite quick breakfast:

Chia pudding: plant-based milk, chia seeds, superfood powders, fruits

Overnight oats: plant-based milk, oats, sweeteners, superfood powders, fruits

Pumpkin or Yam Purée bowl: replace grains and beans with pumpkin or yam purée.

Some beans and root vegetables take time to cook till tender. So I usually cook a big batch of adzuki or Kabocha. It lasts 4-5 days in an air tight container in the fridge.

What you need to do is put all the ingredients in a mason jar and shake it. It's ready a few hours later. How convenient!

You can carry it to school, work, meetings...

These could be a good lunch bowl or snack as well. I like chia puddings and overnight oats as an afternoon snack. I add some raw cacao powder or/and cinnamon, and a little extra maple syrup or raw honey.

What is your favourite breakfast? I would love to hear from you!

#glutenfree #wholefoods #vegan #plantbased #porridge #breakfast #superfoods