Clean eating breakfast ideas

  • Ali

When you start trying to eat clean or stick to a wholefoods programme, it can initially be tricky when you’re looking for foods that you enjoy eating and will still keep you full up until lunch time.

Especially when you’re in a rush to get to work or drop the kids of at school, breakfast can take a back seat. Throughout my four year journey of clean eating, I’ve developed some delicious breakfast options that I go back to time and time again so today I thought I’d let you all in on my breakfast secrets!

I used to love wheat based cereal and would often have a bowl midmorning, or even before supper or bed. Now I know I’m gluten intolerant I realise what damage that was doing to me.

I opt now for a homemade granola made using rolled oats, and ring the changes by adding different mixes of dried fruit, seeds and nuts. I try and keep it seasonal too by adding fresh berries in the summer or apples in the autumn as a finishing touch.

The other temptations I succumbed to were endless. Packaged waffles which may seem like a fun breakfast staple, but these are packed with sugar and preservatives to give them a long shelf life. Cereal breakfast bar are similar too. Laden with sugar and preservatives - when you think about it a bar can’t have a 12 month shelf life without a serious amount of chemical to keep it from going mouldy. Yuck what a thought!

I now make my own American pancakes with gluten free flours and blueberries, perhaps a splash of lemon or maple syrup. Yum! They’ve become my weekend breakfast treat, when you want something even more delicious just because it’s the weekend. I’ve replaced cereal bars with something that still has all the lovely taste of dried fruit and nuts but it much healthier and better for you - Banana sliced and spread with wholefood peanut butter teamed with a handful of blueberries or other berries depending on what’s in season.

Having breakfast when you’re out and about or meeting a friend used to mean picking up a shop brought blueberry muffin or flapjack, but not anymore! I know I didn’t honestly think they were healthy but they were better than a doughnut! But only just! If you look at the sugar content of a flapjack that you’d pick up at a local coffee shop, it’s amazing, I know they contain oats but really that much sugar too!

I now make my own healthy flapjack and even add a plant based protein to it to give me an extra protein boost. It can be great with some fruit for breakfast on the go or in a rush!

And remember, it’s not just about what we eat but we need to be mindful of ours drinks too. Substitute your coffee with a green tea or herbal tea, it will hydrate you far better than a coffee. Or even swap it for water – it is free after all!

It may seem tricky to step away from sugary cereal or pre-packaged foods but it’s easy to do once you notice how much better you feel, and I hope this has given you some inspiration. Breakfast is the most important meal of the day after all, so make sure you’re starting your day right.

Yours,
Ali