Post Modern Breakfast
This recipe is dedicated to a wonderful client of mine who hated breakfast. She explained that she didn’t eat breakfast as nothing appealed to her. She hated eggs, dairy, cereals (not that they are really of much value) or any thing that resembled milk.
Many people can claim that they do not enjoy breakfast or are happy to skip it. I know that there is nothing in the rules of evolution that state that we always ate 3 meals a day plus snacks. However, for many people not having any breakfast can really derail their sugar cravings for the rest of the day. Depending on their metabolism it can often reduce their ability to lose weight.
I know that intermittent fasting has become very popular and it does have its nutritional benefits. Consider though that if you have dinner at 7:00pm and you have breakfast at 8:00am that is 13 hours of fasting. That is enough in my books, any more can cause hypoglycemia in many people.
If you are fasting please consider how you are really managing? If you are having long blacks, pre-workouts or sugar free energy drinks you have to question if you are truly coping with the fasting challenge.
Navigating around the best choices for breakfast can really cause confusion amongst consumers. This is a brief summary of the choices I would advise you to avoid:
Breakfast bars: they are full of sugar and offer little sustenance.
Pop tarts: put them in the bin
Brioche, crumpets, croissants and waffles: really high in saturated fat and high GI. Don’t confuse treats as regular meals.
Yoghurt and granola combos: they are often really high in sugar, not as healthy as they appear to be.
Breakfast drinks/flavoured milks: unless you are making your own smoothie don’t opt for breakfast with a straw.
Sugary cereals: when you consider that most people will have twice the recommended serving of cereal, they are really packing in a huge hit of sugar in a bowl. Choose carefully, read labels and consider portions.
Drive through breakfast: its best to keep driving…
So back to my client who needed a solution to breakfast that didn’t include eggs, dairy or oats. I suggested a protein smoothie or making a delicious wholesome loaf. I often make this loaf for breakfast solution. Eggs are frequently enjoyed for lunch so I don’t want to have them twice in a day. I personally have to avoid grains due to Ceoliac’s disease so this loaf really fits the breakfast bill when you are craving carbs.
My pumpkin and date loaf are bursting with nutrient dense ingredients:
Pumpkin: rich in beta-carotene our best source of vitamin A. Foods that are rich in beta-carotene are protect the connective tissues, vision, immune and the gastrointestinal system.
Dates: good source of fibre and is a delicious unrefined alternative to sugar. So many diseases could simply be avoided by consuming adequate fibre.
Buckwheat: high in rutin. Rutin is good for arthritis, allergy sufferers and the immune system.
Almond meal and Macadamia nut oil: rich in vitamin E, which is a valuable antioxidant. Vitamin E protects the cardiovascular, skin and cognitive function.
Chia seeds: great plant source of EFA’s, they are also high in fibre and protein.
Pumpkin, date breakfast loaf
Ingredients:
2 cups grated pumpkin
1/2 cup macadamia oil (or olive oil)
3 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract or vanilla bean paste
2 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ginger
½ teaspoon nutmeg
¼ teaspoon of ground clove
2 tablespoons chia seeds
8 medjool dates, pitted and roughly chopped
1 cup almond meal
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/4 pepitas, to top
Directions:
Preheat oven to 150C and line a loaf tin with baking paper.
In a large mixing bowl whisk together the olive oil, eggs, bi carb, baking powder, cinnamon and chia seeds. Then stir through the pitted dates and grated pumpkin.
Next fold in the almond meal and buckwheat flour and mix to combine.
Bake in a preheated oven for one hour at 150 degrees
Serving suggestion: I love this loaf lightly toasted with fresh ricotta. You may wish to try it with cashew or almond butter.