Guidelines for a healthy breakfast

I got a text message this morning from a good friend asking me what he should eat for a healthy breakfast. His current breakfast consisted of Greek yogurt, 32oz of water with lemon and some chia seeds. While eating something for breakfast is better than no breakfast at all, this light breakfast is probably not nearly enough calories for breakfast.

The guidelines for each meal from ChooseMyPlate.gov outline that half your meal should be fruits and veggies, half whole grains, a lean protein, and low fat dairy. It can be a struggle to fit these requirements in if we tend to eat on-the-go, but it can be done. Here are a few suggestions for each category:

Fruits & Veggies:

Banana, apple, an orange, or grapefruit are all good options for breakfast. It you want to combine your dairy with fruit, I like to put mixed berries (blueberries, raspberries, and blackberries – you can get a frozen bag of mixed berries at the grocery store) into low fat Greek yogurt. For veggies, mix peppers and onions into an egg omelet.

Whole grains:

Whole wheat toast, whole wheat tortillas, steel cut oats, and yellow grits are all good options for a whole grain choice.

Lean proteins:

Eggs always come to the top of the list. One whole egg only costs about 15 cents and is packed with protein. While eggs whites are lower calorie and high protein, one whole egg a day in most people will not significantly raise cholesterol. Try one whole egg with 3 egg whites in an omelet.

Dairy:

Lowfat Greek yogurt, low fat milk (1% or less), low fat cheese like mozzarella are all good choices.

You can mix and match these options to come up with a meal that works for you for breakfast. As I mentioned above, try combining these items into a meal, such as fruit into yogurt and peppers into eggs. Below is good recipe for a breakfast burrito you can eat on the go. Note: this recipe yields 4 servings. Click here to view the nutrients and calories per serving.

Breakfast burrito with salsa:

Ingredients:

4 large eggs

2 tablespoons low-sodium canned corn, drained (or 2 tablespoons frozen corn)

1 tablespoon 1% fat milk

2 tablespoons green peppers (diced)

1/4 cup onions (chopped)

1 teaspoon mustard

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

nonstick cooking spray

4 flour tortillas, large size

1/4 cup salsa

Directions

1. In a large mixing bowl, blend eggs, corn, milk, green peppers, onions, mustard, and garlic for 1 minute with a fork until eggs are smooth.

2. Heat a skillet over medium heat. Coat with nonstick cooking spray.

3. Cook egg mixture, stirring from time to time, until eggs are firm and cooked through.

4. Wrap tortillas in a paper towel and microwave for 20 seconds until warm. Be careful when unwrapping the tortillas since they may be hot. Tortillas can also be placed in a skillet over low heat for 20-30 seconds or until warmed.

5. Spoon cooked eggs evenly into the tortillas.

6. Serve each burrito topped with 2 tablespoons of salsa.