3 Breakfast Hacks to Boost Your Morning (And Make Your Whole Day Better!)

by Julia Rigal

Are you (literally) tired of the same old oatmeal or cheese on bread for breakfast? Of feeling hangry before you’ve even arrived at work? Of hasty snacks on-the-go? There is ample evidence that having a balanced, nutritious breakfast sets us up for a good day in all the right ways, but it can be difficult to integrate into a busy lifestyle.

Here are a few ways I enjoy a great breakfast when I’m short on time in the mornings.

Make It Bite-Sized

Almost anything you love for breakfast, sweet or savory, can find its way into a … muffin! Start an internet search and you’ll soon find yourself down a recipe rabbit hole from which you can dig up anything from egg cups to chocolate-chip muffins. To save you some time on research, how about trying this basic, no-flour Oatmeal Muffins recipe first?

For 12-16 muffins:

• Mash a precooked, medium-sized sweet potato or 1-2 ripe bananas so you’ll have about 1 cup of mash. Heat your oven to 350 ̊ F (180 ̊ C).
• Mix 3 cups of oats, 2 teaspoons of baking powder, 1-2 teaspoons of cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of ground nutmeg, and a pinch of salt in a bowl. These are your dry ingredients.
• Put your mashed potato or banana into a separate bowl. Add 1 1/2 cups of milk (any kind you like) and 2 eggs. Stir everything together. These are your wet ingredients. You can also experiment with Greek yogurt and/or softened peanut butter here for extra protein. If you want a sweeter muffin, add honey or maple syrup.
• Gently tip the dry ingredients into the bowl with the wet ingredients and combine them.
• Then add the fun stuff! This can be: dried fruit (dates, cranberries …), fresh or frozen berries, seeds (flax, sunflower, pumpkin …), cocoa nibs, chocolate chips or whatever else you like; think about 4-6 tablespoons overall.
• Grease a muffin tin or cupcake cups and add the mixture. Bake in the oven for 25-30 minutes or until a toothpick inserted into a muffin comes out clean.

Grab a couple of muffins to go (they also make a great pre- or post-workout snack!), or enjoy them with some peanut butter and jam or fresh fruit and yogurt.

Boost Your Avocado Toast

If you love avocado toast, but tend to go hungry again quite soon, you may not be getting enough protein. Here are two easy ways to fix that:

• Add beans: In a food processor, combine 1 ripe avocado, 1 can of white beans (washed and drained), and a handful of baby spinach leaves. Add 2-3 tablespoons of olive oil, 2 tablespoons of Greek yogurt, 2-3 tablespoons of lemon or lime juice, 1-2 crushed garlic cloves, and some salt. This yields about 2 cups of cream that you can keep in the fridge for several days. Spread it on a piece of wholegrain bread and enjoy!
• Add nut butter: If you haven’t had time to prepare your meal, mash your avocado with a bit of honey. Spread a nice helping of peanut or almond butter on a piece of bread, and top it with the avocado-honey “jam”. Easy-peasy and so delicious!

Prep Your Porridge

This last one is actually based on a traditional Finnish Christmas dessert. Stick this in the oven on a weekend morning, let it do its thing and you’ll have breakfast (or dessert) ready for several days.

For 6-8 servings:

• Preheat your oven to 350 ̊ F (175 ̊ C). Grease a casserole.
• Add 1 cup of short-grain rice to the casserole, spreading it out.
• Add 3 cups of milk (any kind you like) and 1/4 cup of water.
• Add a pinch of salt and (if you want) 1-2 cinnamon sticks or some vanilla extract. Sweeten to taste.
• Stir carefully, then place in the oven and bake for about 75 to 90 minutes until set.

Take it to go in a box with a handful of berries, or – if you happen to have a slow morning – enjoy it warm, with orange slices, roasted cashew nuts, and a trickle of maple syrup. Yum!