5 Healthy Breakfast Recipes For Busy Women

Women are busier than ever these days so finding some healthy breakfast recipes that are delicious, filling, and simple to make are key to starting your day right. This article will share 5 of my healthy breakfast recipes I rotate through on a daily basis and how you can prep in less than 30 minutes for a healthy week. 

What Should I Be Eating At Breakfast?

I get asked this question a lot and I always have the same answer. No, I may not be a dietitian or health coach but I am a feeding therapist and researcher of all things gut health. I love learning about plant based eating and creating recipes that work for all women, men, kids, and all families to enjoy. I love finding and creating recipes that help you feel full, satisfied, and energetic.

It wasn’t always like that for me. I have always been health conscious and grew up in a family that ate pretty well and always moved our bodies. But I don’t think I ever ate enough calories (well except for college) and definitely not enough plants. Yeah, I had my salad weekly but that was about it. Now that I think about it I probably never really ate any fruit.

I think a lot of women are like I was. Not really eating enough calories or restricting trying to follow a fad diet or yo yo dieting. Some of you may be eating pretty healthy but lacking variety in plants. I don’t mean a salad here and there for the week. I’m talking about 5-10 different plants per day. Which is a lot easier than you think.

So, you’re probably wondering “what is the best answer then”. Well, the answer I give is to find 5 plant based healthy breakfast recipes that you enjoy and rotate through those to start. Starting with one meal a day that is plant based was the best way I found to keep my energy up and my cravings for fresh food going strong.

How To Incorporate Plant Foods Into Healthy Breakfast Recipes.

Plant based eating is a lifestyle. It incorporates eating a variety of plant foods into your diet. Plant based foods include:

• Vegetables
• Fruits
• Nuts/Seeds
• Beans/Legumes
• Whole Grains
• It basically means to eat real, whole food. Less animal food, dairy, eggs, and processed foods.

What’s cool about this lifestyle is you can go all in or you can dip your toes and start with one meal. Either way, your body will respond nicely and you will start to feel amazing. You can also eat whatever you want from the foods above.

Sure, we are all built different and our body responds differently to different foods. The cool thing is your body will tell you what it likes and doesn’t and you can modify from there. I always love when people transition to eating more plants because they start to become more mindful  and start listening to their body!

I recommended picking 3-5 fruits/veggies to start with and making breakfast meals out of those.

Why Eat More Plant Based Meals?

There are so many health benefits to eating more plants. The more colors you eat in your diet the less inflammation you will have. Inflammation is the root to what causes disease. Remember, heart disease doesn’t just happen one day, it’s takes months to years to develop heart disease just like diabetes, other cardiovascular diseases, other autoimmune diseases, respiratory diseases, dementia, etc.

Plants provide our body with exactly the nutrients it needs. They are low in calories but super nutritionally dense. Full of antioxidants, vitamins, and minerals that our body can recognize and when eaten together it allows your body to work towards preventing disease.

Some benefits include but are not limited to:

• More energy
• Better sleep
• Clearer skin
• Decrease in anxiety/depression
• Only diet to be found in research to reverse heart disease and diabetes. For type 1 diabetes it can dramatically help too.
• Lowers cholesterol levels
• Improves chronic fatigue
• Improves migraines and headaches
• Better bowel movements
• Helps relieve GI issues like IBS, Crohns, constipation, diarrhea, etc
• Can improve attention, mental clarity, and brain fog
• Improving Arthritis
• Ability to lose weight and keep off (no more yo yo dieting)
• Improves whole body systems and decreases overall inflammation

For more information on benefits and to read about true health stories visit the site Forks Over Knives.

How Do You Want To Feel During The Day?

For me, starting my day off with a plant based meal or simply by adding in more fruits/veggies to my breakfast totally turned my day around in the health department. Once I changed my breakfast I immediately had more energy, mental clarity, headaches decreased, and I stayed full longer. I also begin craving more fruits/veggies and healthier options for snacks, lunch, and dinner.

I want you to feel the same way. Imagine yourself waking up, chugging coffee, skipping breakfast or running by Chick-Fil-A for that biscuit, and off to do your daily grind. Then lunch roles around and you are starving. You haven’t prepared anything so you fly by the drive thru. Around 3 you get your usual sleepiness and possibly a headache. At dinner you may be starving again but either

1. don’t have the taste for anything fresh and homemade

2.You don’t make the best choice.

Learning To Listen To Your Body

How does this make you feel on the inside? If you aren’t sure you can go back and look at the headache you may get midday or the sleepiness you get around 3PM. Or what about the feeling of irritation or just kinda feeling blah. Diet impacts your mood and happiness too.

Did you know that 90% of serotonin “the happy hormone” is produced in your gut? I guess “you are what you eat” is pretty true. When you feel these emotions and physical symptoms this is your body’s way of saying it’s not getting what it needs. If you are dieting and restricting foods then your body will tell you how it feels too.

Now, imagine this. You wake up, have your cup of water then coffee. Make a smoothie filled with fruits/veggies and head out to start your day. You fill light but full and satisfied. You head to lunch craving a salad or veggie filled sandwich.

Then you have a big glass of water throughout the day and notice you are still going strong at 3PM when usually you’d be tired or have a headache. Dinner comes around and you want something “fresh”. Once you eat you fill satisfied, full, and don’t have the bloating or “I’m so stuffed I may pop” feeling. Plus, you sleep better that night.

I’m hoping this second scenario is the way you’d like to picture yourself feeling. Well, friends, I’m here with 5 of my favorite healthy breakfast recipes to start your day.

5 Healthy Breakfast Recipes To Start Your Day Feeling Fabulous

Healthy Breakfast Recipe #1: Smoothies

• Great because everyone in the family can drink one
• Great way to add in fruits/veggies that may not be your fav (bluberries hide a lot of flavor when mixed with kale)
• Smoothies are packed full of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, omegas (hello flax/chia/hemp seeds)
• Can make them higher calorie for breakfast and lower calorie for lunch or snack.
•  Start with flavors you love. For example, if you love chocolate, start with a chocolate one. If peanut butter is your thing, add peanut butter to them.

For some smoothie recipes see my latest smoothie post HERE.

 

Healthy Breakfast Recipe #2: Tofu Scramble 

I love to make this instead of eggs. If eggs is your thing then start with eggs and I’ll teach you how to add veggies to it. But, be open minded to trying new things because tofu taste a lot like eggs when seasoned nicely.

Take tofu and drain it. Make sure to pat it with a paper towel to get all of the juice out. Then place some olive oil or earth balance butter in a pan. Heat on medium to med-high. Then break apart tofu and add to the pan. Pick out what veggies you want and add the pan as well. Season with seasoning of your choice. I love Everything But The Bagel seasoning.

 

Ways to Eat Tofu Scramble

In a bowl topped with salsa

In a wrap top with spinach, kale, or lettuce. Add chopped tomatoes and salsa. Chipolte hot sauce or sriracha is always good

Seasoned with everything but the bagel seasoning. Then placed on a 100% whole wheat bagel, english muffin, or gluten free option

In a bowl and top with black beans, sauteed bell peppers, and salsa

Saute with spinach, feta, and artichokes

Saute with spinach, artichokes, smoked sundried tomatoes, and feta

If dairy free, leave off feta or use nutritional yeast

 

Healthy Breakfast Recipe #3: Oatmeal 

Oatmeal can be just like the package tells you to make it. The amazing thing about oatmeal is that you can add all sorts of yummy ingredients to it. Oatmeal is great to make a big pot on Sunday and then heat up throughout the week.

 

Oatmeal Ideas:

Oatmeal with 100% maple syrup, pecans, and cinnamon

Oatmeal with matchstick carrots, 100% maple syrup, walnuts, and sprinkles of cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves. Make sure to cook carrots and seasoning in with oatmeal on stove.

Oatmeal with chopped pears, walnuts, 100% pure maple syrup, cinnamon, and dash of vanilla extract

Oatmeal with cinnamon, chopped apples, pecans, pumpkin seeds, walnuts, coconut flakes, and 100% pure maple syrup

I also love to make overnight oats. I take a small mason jar. Place ingredients into mason jar in this order: 1 mashed banana, about 1/2-1 cup oats, vanilla or chocolate plant protein powder, 1 tsp chia seeds, 1 tbsp ground flax, nuts of choice, and plant milk to cover the top. Shake and keep in fridge. Can reheat or eat cold.

 

Healthy Breakfast Recipe #4: Texas Toast Done Right

Pick a great bread such as sourdough, 100% whole wheat, sprouted Ezekiel bread, pumpernickel bread, or gluten free bread.

 

Toast Ideas:

mashed avocado with sliced radish chips, sea salt, pepper

mashed avocado with sea salt, pepper, red pepper flakes

mashed avocado with broccoli sprouts, sea salt, pepper

peanut butter (no hydrogenated oils or sugars) with sliced bananas and chia seeds

peanut butter with sprinkles of ground flax, blueberries

peanut butter with ground flax, chia, banana, and honey

Roasted Sweet potato slices with peanut butter, honey, and sliced bananas

 

Healthy Breakfast Recipe #5: Yogurt Parfait

I love the following dairy free brands of yogurt: So Delicious, Kite Hill, Chobani, and Silk. All are creamy and not tart like some others I’ve tried. My daughter loves the Kite Hill yogurt tubes from Whole Foods. We like to mix in our vanilla plant protein powder in our yogurt too for extra fiber, plant protein, and 15 super foods.

 

Toppings for Yogurt: 

Oats

Homemade Granola

Ground flax, chia, and hemp seeds. This gives you added protein, fiber, and omegas (great for kids heading to school to focus)

berries

bananas

strawberries

chopped apples, peaches, or pears

nuts

nut butters or sunbutter if nut allergy present

coconut flakes

lemon juice (think blueberries, lemon juice, slivered almonds, granola)

 

If you loved these and want more CLICK HERE to get your free printable of my mega list of healthy snacks for you and your family.