Breakfast at the wolf residence usually goes a little like this: try to wake up before at least one of the kids, get out of bed SO carefully so whoever is still sleeping doesn't wake up, sweet child wakes immediately from a deep sleep and demands to come with me, both babies cling to me for about 15 minutes so I usually just sit on the floor and let the love in. Austin is basically useless in the morning, babies only want me for the first 15-30 minutes of the day 🤷♀️.
One thing I absolutely look forward to in the morning is COFFEEEEE. I especially love French press but usually go for whatever is immediately available (with cream!). Lately I’ve been looking extra EXTRA forward to it because of PowerCreamer. You guys know about bullet proof coffee? I remember hearing about it during my short (but fun!) jaunt in the crossfit world: grassfed ghee and coconut oil stirred into coffee.
PowerCreamer mixes these two ingredients with MCT (medium chain triglyceride) oil, a derivative of coconut oil (MCT oil is a pretty unique form of fat, it's burned really efficiently). Power Creamer is melted-buttery in texture, so you mix a little into your coffee and blend or shake to distribute the fat. The result is a super frothy coffee drink similar to a latte that makes you feel full until snack time rolls around.
PowerCreamer generously provided me with product to check out (thanks, guys!) - all thoughts and opinions are my own.
OK so after coffee comes “uhhhh what’s for breakfast today?” If I had planned something out the night before, like overnight oats, I feel super accomplished but that doesn’t happen often. Here's a little internet smattering of the breakfasts we've been into lately. Pinterest breakfast ideas can be intimidating because they look perfect and amazing and like they took 300 years. I've learned to just take inspiration and recreate the recipes with what I've got goin' on at home. Keeps us from eating the same thing everyday and hopefully helps keep R + B on the path to becoming adventurous eaters.
1. OATMEAL. We eat some version of oatmeal 4 mornings out of 7. Oats are breast milk boosting, full of fiber, super cheap and couldn’t be easier to make. They're also easy to add chia and flax seeds to for an omega-3 boost that I'm always looking for (Chia seeds are a great source of Omega-3's - important for baby brain development, have to get them from food because our body doesn't make them, AND they end up in breast milk if you're nursing). I always include fat of some kid - butter, coconut oil, nut butter, coconut milk - to avoid feeling super hungry again 5 minutes later.
Coconut banana mango version omg.
Pistachio oatmeal with MINI CHOCOLATE CHIPS are you kidding meee.
Chia pudding and oats in one.
Baked oatmeal is my fave but and is awesome to make ahead: love this apple pie tastin' version.
Here is a baked quinoa version which, not gonna lie, tastes just as healthy as it sounds. But it is filling and beautiful and is a nice switcheroo (I used brown sugar instead of stevia and added a little molasses and it was A-OK).
AAAAAND an oatmeal latte. I dunno if this would be good but it is beautiful and I want to live in it.
2. Smoothies. I don’t make these all the time because I hate cleaning the blender (🤦🏼♀️) but I looove how easy they are and how I can cram spinach into them. I don't follow a recipe but I mentioned my "rules" here. I've accidentally made some really unattractively colored versions recently and - surprise surprise - brownish black smoothies are not super compatible with toddlers - so I keep that in mind now too. One of my fave non fruit or veggie versions is this creamy chocolate oatmeal smoothie.
Smoothie kid.
3. Toast. Topped with avocado or almond butter or butter butter or a fried egg. We’re also fans of PBJ for breakfast.
This is peanut butter toast topped with apples, you don't need a recipe but it just looks SO delicious.
You'll never regret putting ricotta cheese on your toast, I swear.
OR goat cheese and honey, omg.
Strawberry + avocado on one half, fried egg on the other half.
Leave it to Martha to have an entire party centered around toast.
4. Pancakes. OK more work than I am down for everyday but sometimes worth it cause they’re such a Ruthie fave. If I don't want to stand by the stove flipping, I make one big pancake in a skillet (so cutely known as a dutch baby). I've mentioned before that I like to find new recipes that look and taste like pancakes, but are packed with good stuff like whole grains, fruits, veggies, ETC.
My go-to, oat flour peach skillet cake (made with whatever fruit I have at the time).
Greek yogurt pancakes - a new weekend fave.
These flourless banana bread waffles (or pancakes) are amazing and simple to whip up.
A double batch of these flour free puppies so I can freeze half.
Basic dutch baby recipe.
5. Granola and milk. I'll only eat granola two ways: directly off the sheet pan with a shovel or in a bowl with milk. We are on a coconut milk kick lately after this insane smoked butterscotch coconut milk latte I had the other day (canned coconut milk is also amazing in oatmeal).
Chocolate granola of any kind is king, takes me back to cocoa crispy days. My chocolate chip cookie or PBJ versions.
This super chocolatey oil free version that I added coconut oil to because why not (1/2 cup melted).
A peppermint cocoa version (but be careful! Overdoing the peppermint resulted in toothpasty flavas).
This orange almond granola from Cookie & Kate might be one of my all time faves.
6. Eggs. A few mornings each week things seem to feel calmer than normal and on those mornings I make eggs. My weekend breakfast of choice is tacos or burritos with hash browns and hot sauce. Sometimes I make egg cups for the week just to make bfast burritos on the fly but they are TRULY the best with fresh, super fluff scrambled eggs.
I rarely follow a recipe when making egg muffins but here is a good one from Taste of Home (where the recipes are always tasty as hell and usually involve a lot of sausage and cheese). "Game changing" super fluffy scrambled egg tutorial in case you ever cook me breakfast.
Fried eggs on a bed of HERBED YOGURT with pita bread. Amazingly easy breakfast or dinner.
Eggs + panzanella forever. ORRR eggs + salad with croutons cause my computer doesn't recognize Panzanella as a word.
7. French toast. I go super basic here: bread + egg + milk + vanilla. BUT thank you internet for introducing me to 4,500 new ways to make it.
Like this version where you bake it with an EGG ON EACH SLICE.
Big fan of making french toast out of banana bread, pumpkin bread, or irish soda bread.
8. Fruit crisp. I've been eating fruit crisp/cobbler for breakfast since I was a kid. I mean, it's basically just fruit with oatmeal on top. Desserts are for chocolate not fruit with oatmeal on top - those are breakfasts. Here are a few recipes that breakfast-ify fruit crisp a little more by holding back on the added sugar and letting the fruit do the talkin'.
Summer berry crisp (it's vegan and grain free but I usually add oats).
This spiced pear crisp from my friend Alex is made on repeat in the fall.
Creamy, fluffy sweet potato breakfast crisp.
This easy berry version - just top frozen berries with granola and bake.
And finally, the latte I occasionally dream of and often recreate.
