Top O' the Morning

So everyone knows already that breakfast is the most important meal of the day because it provides you with fuel to start your day and jump-starts your metabolism, blah blah blah. I will be honest with you, most mornings I have coffee for breakfast; but I realize that I need to change that habit. I have, however, been known to go all out for breakfast if I am with my nephews or have guests.

Now my older nephew is always eager to help me in the kitchen, but not always that eager to eat what we have made together; he has a follow-through problem, like most males. The rest of us have thoroughly enjoyed the following recipes even if my little angel, and I use that term loosely, only picked at them. Honestly if I filled his plate with just sausage he would devour it and ask for more; but who can live on sausage alone?

So let’s start off with some low-maintenance meals that I have made for the high-maintenance kid. (Okay so maybe he takes after his auntie). First are wafflewiches, these are basically breakfast sandwiches between frozen waffles. You can do these any way you want: egg, bacon, cheese, sausage, ham, peanut butter or bananas, the choices are infinite. Second are PB&J French Toast Sticks. Basically all you need to do is dip a peanut butter and jelly sandwich in a mixture of egg, milk and a dash of vanilla. Cook these in a buttered pan over medium heat until golden brown on both sides, and then cut into sticks. If you really want to start the day off on a sugar high dip the sticks into maple syrup. Finally there is my refrigerator clearing egg pie. For this dish just go through your refrigerator and sauté up whatever vegetables and meat you have available, let those cool slightly and than add them to a small container of egg substitute and cheese. Dump everything into a buttered pie plate and bake at 350 degrees until puffy and golden brown, about a half hour.

Now let’s move on to some recipes that take a little more effort and appeal to a little more mature palette. We will start with Orange French Toast, which you should prepare a bit before you plan on eating. Start by combining one cup of fresh orange juice, two tablespoons of orange zest, one tablespoon of frozen orange juice concentrate, five eggs and half a cup of plain low fat yogurt. The recommended bread for this dish is either a braided or brioche loaf, basically any dense loaf of bread that you can cut into one inch thick slices. Dip these slices into the egg mixture so that they are fully coated, then place them in a shallow baking dish with the remaining egg mixture poured over them and chill for at least two hours. Cook these in a buttered pan over medium-high heat until golden brown. To serve the French toast just dust them with powdered sugar and enjoy a breakfast that tastes like sunshine.

I used to work at one of the premier resorts in the Berkshires and they had a stuffed French toast that was out of this world; here is my version, Strawberry Banana Stuffed French Toast. Start by cutting a loaf of French bread into one and a half inch slices into which you need to cut nice deep pockets. Next combine two tablespoons of strawberry jam, four ounces of softened cream cheese, and a forth of a cup each of chopped fresh bananas and strawberries. (I omit the fresh berries for myself because I am allergic to them). Put a nice rounded spoonful of the filling into each pocket and gently close the halves. Dip each slice in a mixture of egg and milk and cook in a buttered medium-low heat until golden brown. You can serve this with a sauce made from pureeing one pint of fresh strawberries, two and a half tablespoons of sugar and one tablespoon of Grande Marnier liqueur.

I am a big fan of Breakfast Burritos, which are incredibly easy to make; just make an omelet with your favorite ingredients and pile it into the center of a soft tortilla, wrap and grill it to heat the wrap. Serve this with hot sauce, salsa, and sour cream. I also have started using egg substitutes because they contain less fat and cholesterol than real eggs, that’s not to say that I don’t eat real eggs, I just try to keep it to a minimum.

Finally here’s a dish that is a little off the beaten path, Breakfast Rice. Start by making one bag of Boil-in-Bag rice and let it cool. Once cooled stir in eight ounces of vanilla or apple low-fat yogurt, one teaspoon cinnamon, and a forth of a cup each of dried fruit and chopped nuts. I prefer dried cherries and almonds, because I am not a huge fan of the humiliated grapes, AKA raisins.

Personally I truly enjoy starting the day cooking with my nephews; being in the kitchen with them may be a challenge but it is worth it because they are always eager to help. Plus I am constantly hoping that one of them will eat what we cook because they had a hand in it, but as of yet I have been let down. Anyway, as I said breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and we all really need to get into the habit of fueling our bodies with healthy foods to start our day. You only get one body, treat it well and it will treat you well.


Orange French Toast
1 cup Fresh orange juice
2 Tlbsp Orange zest
1 Tlbsp Frozen orange juice concentrate
5 Eggs
½ cup Low fat plain yogurt
1 loaf Brioche or braided bread, 1 inch thick slices

Combine first five ingredients and dip the bread into it, place in a baking dish and pour the remaining egg mixture over the bread. Chill for at least two hours. Cook in a buttered pan over medium high heat until golden brown. Serve dusted with powdered sugar.


Strawberry-Banana Stuffed French Toast
1 loaf French bread, cut into 1 ½ inch slices
2 Tlbsp Strawberry jam
4 oz. Cream cheese, softened
¼ cup Fresh bananas & strawberries, chopped
3 Eggs
¼ cup milk
1 pint Fresh strawberries
2 ½ Tlbsp Sugar
1 Tlbsp Grand Marnier

Cut a pocket into each slice of bread making sure not to go through the other side. Combine the next three ingredients until well blended and spoon about a spoons worth into each pocket, gently close the halves. Combine the eggs and milk and dip the bread into the mixture before cooking in a buttered pan over medium high heat until golden brown. Puree the last three ingredients in a blender or food processor to make a sauce to serve over the finished French toast.


Breakfast Rice
1 bag Boil in bag rice
8 oz. Vanilla or apple low fat yogurt
1 tsp. Cinnamon
¼ cup Dried fruit
¼ cup Chopped nuts

Cook the rice according to the package directions, and pour into a bowl to cool slightly. Mix in the remaining ingredients and serve either warm or chilled.