Ways to Upgrade Your Breakfast & 6 Healthy Recipes

Walking through the breakfast isle in the store, I can’t help but think, this is what America is serving our youth…breakfast cereals laden with sugar, artificial flavors and colors, and highly processed white flour with virtually no nutritional value aside from the vitamins and minerals added back in after the fact. Unfortunately even those are minimally beneficial as fortified vitamins and minerals are rarely added in a form our body can easily digest.

Granola bars, toaster waffles, brown sugar and cinnamon instant oatmeal — these are all in the same category. They are highly processed “franken-foods” (thanks Dr. Mark Hyman) with little to no fiber, healthy fats, or protein. When protein, fat and fiber is removed, foods become less filling, resulting in a higher than desirable intake. This process also increases the speed of digestion, resulting in higher blood glucose levels.

Growing up I would live off these foods for breakfast (though add toaster strudel into the mix). Now, with the obesity rates rising and over 52% of the U.S. adult population having either prediabetes or type 2 diabetes, I am here to provide you some better options!

2 Ingredient Banana Pancakes

Over the years, as I started paying more attention to food labels and limiting processed foods, pancakes were on of the foods I started making homemade rather than buying a mix. Unfortunately, top brands are most often made with highly processed white flour, sugar, dextrose (aka more sugar), unhealthy oils (soybean, palm, canola),  and have very little, if any, fiber.

My favorite part about these pancakes is that they only have two main ingredients and can be made in a matter of minutes! They are also very easy to customize by adding blueberries, chia seeds, nuts, cinnamon, cacao powder or dried coconut. Additionally, since the banana gives them a natural sweetness, minimal syrup is needed.

INGREDIENTS

INSTRUCTIONS

-2 eggs
– 1 banana (I typically make this recipe when my bananas are about to go bad as that is when they are the most sweet!)
– Optional ingredients to add to batter: cinnamon, cacao powder, coconut flakes, chia seeds.

– Top with: berries, nuts
– Drizzle with: honey, pure maple syrup

1. Mash banana in a bowl using a fork.
2. Add 2 eggs and scramble together with the banana.
3. Add optional ingredients and mix together.
4. Cook pancakes on preheated griddle or large pan for 2-3 minutes or until bubbles form.
5. Flip and cook and additional 2-3 minutes until they are done in the center.
6. Enjoy!

NOTE: I prefer to use coconut oil on the pan as it is stable at high temperatures and adds great flavor to the pancakes.