Parents, cereal companies and Jimmy Dean have been telling the public that a balanced breakfast is the most important meal of the day for decades, but do people actually listen?
AT A GLANCE
Better Foods For Breakfast
Oatmeal — It’s super food and can be jazzed up according to taste.
Turkey Bacon — It’s not the same, but it gets pretty close for 40 calories less.
Spray Butter — Zero calories and does the same thing when it comes to cooking.
Egg Whites — Three egg whites equal about one-third of the calories of two whole eggs.
Wheat Bread — This has about the same amount of calories than the same amount of white bread, but has more nutritional value because it is less processed.
AT A GLANCE
Healthy Sooners supplies students with a healthful cookbook online at http://www.ou.edu.... This is a good compilation, but it lacks recipes for morning, which is what inspired the compilation of these breakfast recipes.
According to a poll taken by ABC News the younger a person is, the less likely they are to eat breakfast. Perhaps after reading some of the following statistics and trying the recipes, those of you who consistently skip breakfast will reconsider.
The literal meaning of the word “breakfast” means to break a fast, which is what happens while you are sleeping according to a 2008 article from Vanderbilt. Kala Dickerson, the author of the article, said that while a person sleeps, they lose about 450 calories and the point of breakfast is to restore that.
A 1998 study at Harvard showed that students did better on math tests and had higher attendance rates when they ate breakfast than those who did not, according to Sarah Dray at livestrong.com.
There are more benefits than just better grades and being more alert. Lifespan.org says eating breakfast everyday can help people be more successful at losing weight and staying with a diet.
But, eating Cocoa Puffs and a Little Debbie’s Snack Cake or a heaping pile of pancakes with stacks of bacon and sausage are not necessarily the best way to start of your day. If you lose 450 calories when you sleep, then going over that when you eat breakfast is probably not the best option.
I developed the following recipes in my own effort to start the day off right. These recipes are mostly high in protein, which is great for those who work out in the morning and need to rebuild muscle throughout the day. They’re a good start for anyone though, not just the 5:00 a.m. workout crowd.
Chilaquiles (Not Vegan)
Things You’ll Need:
3 Egg Whites
Small Handful of Fresh Spinach or Kale (Optional)
Salsa
Milk
Shredded Low Fat Cheese
Tortilla Chips
Butter Spray
Salt
Pepper
Steps:
Separate egg whites into a bowl and add a splash of milk. Then, add a spoonful of salsa and a pinch of salt and pepper. Beat the eggs with a fork and set aside. Take a medium nonstick skillet and heat on medium heat. Spray the pan with butter spray and line the bottom with spinach. Once spinach reduces down about half, crumble in tortillas chips. Immediately pour in egg mixture and begin to stir it all together. Once the eggs are cooked to likeness, sprinkle in cheese and plate.
Strawberry Vanilla Oatmeal (Maybe Vegan)
Things You’ll Need:
Quick Oats
Water
Vanilla Whey Powder (take this out to make vegan)
Spray Butter (use a little Earth Balance instead to make vegan)
Cinnamon
Agave (optional)
1-2 Strawberries
5-8 Pecan Halves
Steps:
First, make the Quick Oats with water as directed on the canister or however you usually make them (some people like it watery).
Once oatmeal is made, take one-third of a scoop of the vanilla whey powder (the containers come with a scoop, but if you don’t have one, it is about a teaspoon) and add the powder to the oatmeal. Also add a teaspoon of cinnamon and add a teaspoon of agave if you like a sweeter breakfast. Mix all these things into the oatmeal until it is well blended (i.e. no chunks of whey, because that’s not good at all).
Next, break up the pecans and sprinkle in. Then, take the strawberries and slice them into the bowl. Mix it all up, and you have a super food (oatmeal) with lots of protein to warm and fill you up.
Green Smoothie (Maybe Vegan)
Things You’ll Need:
A Big Handful of Spinach or Kale
1 Golden Delicious Apple (or any kind you like, but sweeter apples work best)
About a cup of frozen berries (I like raspberries)
Milk (soy, low-fat, almond)
Peanut butter
Steps:
Put the peanut butter, the spinach or kale and berries in a blender.
Cut the apple into cubes and add to the blender.
Now, add the milk. Pour it in slowly and fill the blender up until the milk reaches about three-fourths of the way up the other ingredients.
Blend this well, and if it begins to get too thick, add a little more milk to it until it is the texture desired. Pour in a glass or to-go container and enjoy a great way to get your fruits, veggies and protein whether you’re a carnivore, vegan or vegetarian.
Breakfast Potatoes (Maybe Vegan)
Things You’ll Need:
2-3 Red Skin Potatoes
Spray Butter (or Earth Balance)
3 Egg Whites (or tofu)
One-fourth of a Red Onion Diced
Salt
Pepper
Cayenne
Paprika
Steps:
First, you have to boil the potatoes. Take a pot, fill it up about three-fourths of the way, and put it on the stove on high. Add a pinch or two of salt, cut up the potatoes after rinsing thoroughly, and place them in the water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and let the potatoes simmer for about 15-20 minutes or until they are fork tender.
Next, drain the potatoes and get a large skillet out. Place the skillet on a burner at medium high heat and spray liberally with the butter or take about a tablespoon of Earth Balance and let it melt in the skillet. Next, add the red onion and a pinch of salt to the skillet and cook until the onions are translucent. Now add the potatoes, a pinch of pepper, cayenne and paprika. Let the potatoes brown on one side and then flip them over with a spatula to brown the other side. Once the potatoes are browned put, in the three egg whites (or crumble up tofu) and scramble with the potatoes.
This is a great way to eat a healthful breakfast that still feels like your grandma made it.
Think you don’t have time to cook breakfast for yourself? Crossroads in the Oklahoma Memorial Union and other restaurants on campus do offer lighter options for breakfast, but be weary that the food might be low fat or have fewer calories, but the cooking techniques could compromise the calorie count with high fat oils. The light breakfast items are around 300 calories each.
The average person needs to consume about 1,500 calories a day in order to maintain a healthy weight. So, take these numbers into consideration when you are starting off your day.
OU offers many resources in order to continue eating healthful options throughout the day. Healthy Sooners provides tips, recipes and sessions that are free and can boost your eating/living habits.
Westlee Parsons is an English literature junior
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ohyou9033 3 months, 2 weeks ago
You might consider eating the whole egg. By tossing the yolk, you're forfeiting most of the powerful powerful omega 3 fatty acid. Eating just the whites provides more of omega 6 fatty acids, which we get too much of from eating too many processed foods. Egg yolks also have considerable amounts of protein, fat (which you DO need to metabolize fat-soluble vitamins A,D,E, and K), calcium, and many other nutrients.
Also, that "0 calorie" spray butter is only zero calorie if you go by the serving size, which is about 1 and a quarter sprays. "Spray[ing] liberally with butter" is going to yield calories and fat. A source I found online cites that one teaspoon is 20 calories and 2 grams of fat. No biggie, but it adds up. The food industry is very quick to deceive, even on it's food labels.
(As a side note, many "diet" foods like spray butter often claim to contain "30-40% fewer calories/grams of fat, etc because they cut the portion sizes by 30-40%. It's tough to remain on the defensive when these companies are trying to market to us).
Be careful, too Many different types of spray butter claim to contain 0 grams trans fats, but if you look in the ingredients, "hydrogenated oils" are listed in some way, shape, or form. The company can claim that a SERVING has "0 grams" if a serving contains less than a gram. This is entirely ridiculous.
you may find this site helpful: http://www.scientificpsychic.com/fitness/labels2.html
Certainly, eating the above is better than not eating at all. One must discern, though, when choosing ingredients and one must be careful with portions.