mmm, breakfast

June 8, 2007 9:11 AM

what should i eat for breakfast?

i find that i am really, really sensitive to sugar highs. my current breakfast is a decent-sized bowl of high-fiber ceral (not sugary) with plain soymilk. i eat this at 7:30 and i'm STARVING by 10:30.

i figure i probably just need to eat more breakfast--i also eat dinner early, so 12-14 hours pass between dinner and breakfast--and really slash the carbs. (i would like to keep the fiber, though--maybe with veggies?)

so what is a good, hearty, healthy, high-protein, no-sugar breakfast i can make quickly? bonus points for anything i can whip up the night before and reheat, or eat cold. thanks!

posted by thinkingwoman to food & drink (42 comments total)

The incredible edible egg! I've found that one or two hard boiled eggs in the morning for me really keep me full until lunch. I also find myself not gorging myself at lunch when I have my eggs in the morning. There are negative aspects to the egg, but I feel in my case, my lighter and healthier lunches are a net positive for me.
posted by AaRdVarK at 9:14 AM on June 8, 2007

Eggs.

anything i can whip up the night before and reheat, or eat cold.

Hard-boiled eggs.
posted by Partial Law at 9:14 AM on June 8, 2007 [1 favorite]

protein:

sugar free yogurt
eggs, or egg whites (for fiber make an omelette with fiber rich fillings)
meat
dried fish
edamame
cottage cheese
posted by caddis at 9:16 AM on June 8, 2007

Quinoa!

Make it the night before, since it takes a little while to cook. In the morning, add milk (cow or soy or almond or whatever) and some dried or frozen berries and nuke it. High protein and delicious. Or you could skip the milk and berries and add some salt, pepper, and grated cheese (after nuking it) for a savory breakfast.

It's also easy to transport in a tupperware container - bring it to work w/ some steamed veggies for snack/lunch.
posted by rtha at 9:16 AM on June 8, 2007

fruit
posted by caddis at 9:16 AM on June 8, 2007

oh, i should mention right now, i don't really like eggs. or, eggs don't like me. or my tummy. one is about as much as i can handle, and i don't know about every day.
posted by thinkingwoman at 9:17 AM on June 8, 2007

thirding hard-boiled eggs.

Also, the old-fashioned kind of oatmeal (not instant)- you can nuke it really fast in the microwave and it keeps you feeling full for a long time.
posted by ambrosia at 9:18 AM on June 8, 2007

Can you add a handful of nuts or seeds to your normal breakfast? The extra fat will help curb your hunger--and it's good fat so you should be getting it anyway.
posted by schroedinger at 9:19 AM on June 8, 2007

I buy small, single-serving (well, the label calls it 2 servings) tubs of lowfat cottage cheese with pineapple already mixed in. It's lightly sweet, has a lot of protein, very little fat, no prep time, and I can eat it in just a few minutes.

I eat this at 7:45 and I'm usually hungry for a snack around 11 (trail mix or crackers). Then again, I bike 6 miles to work.

I also like buying bottles of Kefir cultured-milk smoothie, which a local store is selling at the screamingly low price of $2.99 lately. One of those big bottles is basically two or three breakfasts.

Also, hard-boiled eggs are great but I can't face them so early in the morning. Gotsta have the sweet.
posted by hermitosis at 9:21 AM on June 8, 2007

Leftover dinner sounds unseemly, but I find it to be great. A piece of chicken with rice (or whatever is in there) is a fine way to start out. But you're right in thinking you need more protein for breakfast to keep you from feeling starved.
posted by Burhanistan at 9:22 AM on June 8, 2007

Hemp-flax granola! w/ vanilla soymilk or yogurt.

Smoothies in the blender with Acai
posted by jstef at 9:34 AM on June 8, 2007

A high protein cereal. I like Kashi GoLean. 13g protein and 10g fiber in one cup.

You might just need to have a small snack at 10:30. Try half a Cliff Bar if you are too busy for anything else.
posted by yohko at 9:35 AM on June 8, 2007

There are all sorts of crockpot Scottish oatmeal recipes (Alton Brown has one), and I've been meaning to try this, but haven't. I usually have regular long-cooking oatmeal.

I have the same problem you do, but I simply can't eat more at breakfast. My breakfast is healthy and about 300 calories, including coffee with milk. If I eat more than that, I feel bloated and overfull, even if it's healthy and packed with protein, etc.

So I eat my normal breakfast and then have a snack (yogurt or cottage cheese) about 45 - 60 minutes before my 11:30 workout. Then I workout, then I eat lunch. This schedule has been working very well for me.
posted by peep at 9:38 AM on June 8, 2007

It might sound bad, but a can of sardines (in olive oil) helps me feel great in the morning. It's got the protein of the egg, but also has fat to help keep me satisfied. Not to mention those yummy omega-3 oils.

With this I also have a small glass of OJ and a bowl of oats/raisins/milk. (about 1/2 to 1 cup of raw old-fashioned oats, a handful of raisins to sweeten it up, and enough milk to cover it. Let it sit a minute to soften the oats.)

If sardines are beyond the pale for you, then seconding the eggs/cottage cheese. Try the oats though, they should be pretty low glycemic index, even with the raisins.
posted by DarkForest at 9:40 AM on June 8, 2007

nope, this even happens with oatmeal (and artificial sweetner, not sugar or honey). i know, weird, huh?
posted by thinkingwoman at 9:48 AM on June 8, 2007

It's because it's all carbs....you need protein to stay full in the a.m. It sucks you don't like eggs - try a bit of some kind of meat (if you eat meat, of course) like a bit of cold chicken or pork with the usual breakfast.
posted by tristeza at 9:53 AM on June 8, 2007

What's wrong with the mid-morning banana option?
posted by handee at 9:53 AM on June 8, 2007

I've read somewhere that artificial sweeteners can provoke an insulin response (ianad, so take your chances) so you might want to give it a try it without that.
posted by DarkForest at 9:55 AM on June 8, 2007

i eat this at 7:30 and i'm STARVING by 10:30. i figure i probably just need to eat more breakfast

The first sentence does not logically compel the second. Pushing yourself to eat more food in a given sitting will just put you on a bigger glycemic roller coaster and make you even hungrier later. Don't feel bad about eating again at 10:30; just keep some high fiber/protein, low-carb snacks in your workplace. All the suggestions above are good for that, too.
posted by rkent at 9:57 AM on June 8, 2007

I have the same experience, where I'm usually hungry again just a couple hours after breakfast. Protein is the only thing that seems to help. I'll n-th the cottage cheese, and also the high-protein, high-fiber cereal. Even Kashi GoLean doesn't quite keep me satisfied, but I found some stuff in the natural-foods section that is almost all protein and fiber, no added sugar at all. The taste is, as you'd imagine, pretty lacking, but I've grown to enjoy it because it's so nice to actually feel full after breakfast!

The best solution I've found, however, is to stir a teaspoon or so of protein powder into my oatmeal. I buy the bulk instant oatmeal, very plain (no added sugar!) and stir in some salt and the protein powder after the oatmeal is cooked. Maybe some dried fruit if I feel extravagant. This honestly fills me up so much that I don't even want lunch until 2 or 3 in the afternoon, while plain oatmeal (protein-powder free) leaves me craving lunch by 10. It's like magic.
posted by vytae at 9:59 AM on June 8, 2007

My roomate swears by eating a hunk of cheese with her breakfast (whether the breakfast is eggy or cerealy or leftovery) to keep her satisfied until lunch.

Her favourite is Oka (which is kind of harsh first thing in the morning) but you can use any kind...
posted by elkerette at 10:00 AM on June 8, 2007

For breakfast I have 2 Food Doctor Bran & Seed Bagles with low fat cream cheese and smoked salmon.
I've never been able to stick to a breakfast food before but I've been having this every day for 2 months. It keeps me full even after my mid-morning workout and its yummy. If you dont like smoked salmon you could try some other meat or just the cream cheese on its own.
Its a good balance of high-fibre complex carbs and protein, but I guess its not *that* quick to make.
The way I make them you could prepare in advance and then just toast them in the morning - I found that toasting the bagles and then adding the filling it was cold and pretty grim by the time I got to eat it, so I put the fillings in first and put them in the sandwich toaster.

Its a hearty breakfast at around 600 calories for 2 bagles but most people eat upside down anyway (small breakfast, mid-sized lunch and large evening meal) It simply makes no sense to have your smallest meal to start your day of work and your largest meal when you're sitting on your ass watching TV all evening. Even the most sendentary workers use more calories at their jobs than they do reaching for the remote. Ideally all your meals should be of a similar size and evenly spaced. But if haivng 1/3rd of your daily calories at breakfast is too much or still leaving you hungry, grab some fruit mid-morning.
posted by missmagenta at 10:09 AM on June 8, 2007

Two suggestions: first, breakfast. Part of a salad bag with a bit of cheese and a very small amount of dressing. A bit of pre-sliced deli meat, with or without cheese. Cottage Cheese. Peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

Second, about that being really hungry by 10:30. If you have had a reasonable breakfast (under 400 calories), don't feel bad about having a healthy snack (100-200 calories): an apple or banana; a packet of nuts; a granola or fruit/grain bar; even one of those diet shakes. Please notice that "candy bar" and "bag of chips" and "oreos" did not appear in that suggested list.
posted by ilsa at 10:16 AM on June 8, 2007

Eggs, eggs and more eggs.
posted by unSane at 10:22 AM on June 8, 2007

Why don't you eat a snack at 10:30? It's three hours later, and a piece of fruit or some nuts or something will keep you full til lunch.
posted by Packy_1962 at 10:32 AM on June 8, 2007

I have bags of walnuts and dried apricots in my desk, keeps me pleasantly full all day long.
posted by ORthey at 10:41 AM on June 8, 2007

Peanut butter. Seriously, how do people live without it? It will keep you full longer than cereal. Get a nice multigrain bread. Toast it. Jam is optional if you want to skip the sugar. Or eat it straight out of the jar with a spoon. Maybe that's just me.

Also, but the natural kind and skip the added transfats.

Eggs, like others have mentioned, are good. Also bacon. Mmmm. Bacon. But peanut butter in the one ring of the breakfast food world. It rules them all.
posted by GuyZero at 10:46 AM on June 8, 2007

I have exactly this problem, except I like eggs. Smoothies made with protein powder fit the short-prep-time bill - what really did the trick for me was making them with soy milk (instead of water) for a little *more* extra protein. Also peanut butter or cream cheese on whole grain bagels, and how would you feel about scrambled tofu for roughly the staying power of an omelet without the egginess?
posted by clavicle at 11:07 AM on June 8, 2007

I am assuming from the way you phrased your question that you are already aware of the Glycemic Index, but just in case you are not, it can help you avoid foods which will spike your sugar and leave you famished a few hours later.
posted by caddis at 11:16 AM on June 8, 2007

Turkey bacon. Personally, I'd just call it smoked turkey. I'm not eating it because I'm watching my fat. I'm eating it because I like it. Of course, I'm not talking about the formed, filler diluted mystery meat turkey bacon. Whole Foods has one brand that I like. A local supermarket has that one and another with little more fat that I don't like as much but get sometimes for the sake of variety.

Smoked or pickled fish. Smoked salmon, pickled herring, smoked sable, smoked sturgeon, kippered salmon. They're expensive but they make a nice treat. They're high in fat but it's the good kind.

If you're eating all that low saturated fat protein food on a regular basis then I think you can mix in other meats every once in a while. Ham, cottage ham, Romanian pastrami. I eat bacon occasionally but it's my least favorite of all the things I've mentioned.

Frying up whatever meat you're working with is relatively quick and while you're at it add a nice tomato or some mushrooms.
posted by stuart_s at 11:32 AM on June 8, 2007

I am always starving in the morning. I find that I don't crave sugary things, especially in the morning.

Bacon, sausage, chicken, or some other source of protein usually keeps me happy and full until lunch. These are all things you can make the night before easily.

There's no rules that say you can't have a BLT for breakfast!

Cottage cheese also has tons of protein...very good with tomatoes and/or avocado (sounds weird, but is good!)
posted by iamkimiam at 11:50 AM on June 8, 2007

You might want to add a little fat or carbohydrates. They are both nourrishing and you need some of each in your diet. Cheese or fruit may keep you you feeling full longer.

Personally, I need a mid morning snack. If I eat enough breakfast to keep me going at lunch, I'm slumped over the keyboard and find myself eating a huge lunch.
posted by gesamtkunstwerk at 12:04 PM on June 8, 2007

nthing protein. I used to feel really hungry, but when I combine something like oatmeal with some eggs, I'm good for a long time.
posted by synecdoche at 12:16 PM on June 8, 2007

Add some flax seed oil to your muesli or oatmeal. The grains will soak it up so it won't seem oily and the exta (healthy) fat will help keep you full.
posted by bluebird at 12:49 PM on June 8, 2007

wheat english muffin with peanut butter. peanut butter (of the type that says ingredients: peanuts) is awesome.
posted by dagnyscott at 2:33 PM on June 8, 2007

Protein shake. Protein, complex carb, and all of your vitamins together - just add your preferred liquid.

(Note: I pimp this site a lot but I have no affiliation with it whatsoever.)
posted by granted at 2:53 PM on June 8, 2007

I realize this is not for everyone, but a favorite of ours that easily keeps me full until lunchtime is something we call "breakfast lentils". If you like savory breakfasts, you might like them too. They're brown lentils cooked with peanuts and crispy onions, salt, pepper, and ground fenugreek (which you could do without, but it's a nice addition). Then you can eat them cold or reheated, alone or with toppings -- a drizzle of olive oil is very good (in fact, these days I often just stir some into the whole batch after cooking), as is a blob of yogurt, or cut up cherry tomatoes, or all of the above.
posted by redfoxtail at 2:53 PM on June 8, 2007 [1 favorite]

Echoing what has been said above, not a bad idea to snack/eat every 3-4 hrs. But, here's my usual breakfast:

oatmeal (dry) 1/2 cup
frozen blueberries 1/2 cup
-microwave this for 2:30s
add 1 oz almonds (reduce to your calorie requirement)
add 1/2 cup strawberries or 1/2 diced apple
cinnamon and/or Splenda if desired
posted by objdoc at 3:18 PM on June 8, 2007

oops... forgot to mention that I add a scoop of whey protein (vanilla) to the oatmeal when it gets out of the microwave
posted by objdoc at 3:21 PM on June 8, 2007

Another cottage cheese suggestion: add a big scoop of jam on top. Sounds a little suspect, I know, but it's fantastic. I can also second the Kashi Go Lean--I mix mine into applesauce along with a sliced banana and a bit of cinnamon.
posted by ethorson at 1:55 PM on June 9, 2007

I have 200g of natural greek yoghurt with a couple of spoonsful of a rye museli on top for breakfast. At around 10.30am I have a small handful of unsalted mixed nuts or a small wedge of soft cheese with wafer crackers.

I have found that no matter what I eat, smaller meals every 3 hours works better. And they must contain protein! otherwise I feel terrible and starving.
posted by ysabet at 6:48 AM on June 10, 2007

Super late here, but I've been making these Oatmeal Cottage Cheese Pancakes every weekend lately, and I'm addicted. I thought they were appropriate for the thread. I make them exactly per the recipe, but I halve it. I hate eggs, too, but the egg whites baked into the pancake don't bother me.

They are not sweet, and I don't like fake sugar, so I eat these with a fruit topping or jam so they aren't so bland. They aren't DELICIOUS (IMO), but are surprisingly good compared to how I thought they would be!

1/2 cup oatmeal
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 egg whites

1. Blend (I use my tiny food processor)
2. Pour & cook little pancakes a few at a time on a hot skillet.

For the whole recipe: 344 cals, 31.4 g carb, 4.0 g fiber, 34.0 g protein!
posted by peep at 5:11 PM on February 24