If you are reading this post in the morning, a cuppa and doughnut at your fingertips, you may want to check out this blog by Cole Mellino that appeared in EcoWatch.
We’ve all heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and the research certainly backs up that claim. Regularly eating breakfast jumpstarts your metabolism and provides you with the energy and nutrients you need to have a happy, healthy day. So, forgo those heavily-sweetened and over-fortified cereals that put your health and your kids’ health at risk.
Here are five healthy breakfasts to help you start your day off right:
1. Steel-Cut Oatmeal with Fruit
This recipe, courtesy of the New York Times‘ Recipes for Health, is great if you are looking for a hot breakfast. These oats can take 25 to 30 minutes to make, so if you’re pressed for time, it’s recommended that you make a batch that will last a few days. You can store it in the refrigerator and heat up smaller portions on the stove each morning.
Ingredients
2 cups water
2 cups low-fat milk
1/4 teaspoon salt (or to taste)
1 cup steel-cut oats
1 teaspoon unsalted butter (optional)
2 to 4 tablespoons dried fruit, such as raisins, chopped dried apricots, dried cranberries
1 to 2 teaspoons maple syrup, agave syrup, honey or brown sugar (more to taste)
Fresh fruit (such as diced apples and pears, optional)
Instructions
Combine the water, milk and salt in a large, heavy saucepan, and bring to a boil. Slowly add the oats, stirring constantly. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer 15 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon. Stir in the butter, dried fruit and sweetener. Cover, and continue to simmer for another 10 to 15 minutes, stirring often to prevent the cereal from sticking to the bottom of the pan, until the oats are soft and the mixture is creamy. Serve, with added fruit stirred in if desired, or refrigerate and reheat as desired. Or freeze as follows:
Line ice cube trays with plastic wrap. Fill each cube with oatmeal, cover with plastic wrap and freeze. Once frozen solid, remove the cubes from the ice tray and freeze in a plastic bag. For each portion, thaw three or four cubes in a microwave on the defrost setting. Add additional warm milk if desired.
Serves four.
Advance preparation: Cooked steel-cut oats will keep for five days in the refrigerator and can be reheated atop the stove or in the microwave.
Note: Although my steel-cut oats come in a container with directions for cooking them in the microwave, I don’t find the results satisfactory. The oatmeal doesn’t have the time it needs to swell and release its starch into the liquid, so the liquid never gets creamy and the oatmeal doesn’t soften properly. A better way to save time is to soak the oats overnight. Bring 2 cups water to a boil. Combine the oats and salt in a bowl, and pour on the water. Leave overnight. In the morning, bring the milk to a simmer in a large saucepan, and stir in the oats and any liquid remaining in the bowl. Add the remaining ingredients, and simmer 15 minutes, until creamy, stirring often.
Sorry, the comment form is closed at this time.