March 2010 Gluten Freedom

Breakfast! Are you starting your day right??

We’ve all been told breakfast is our most important meal of day. Eating a balanced breakfast can help regulate your energy, mood and blood sugar throughout the day. Studies show eating breakfast, especially a breakfast rich in protein, results in fewer sugar cravings as well as fewer overall calories consumed. It has also been noted that children who eat breakfast show increased concentration and attentiveness in school over those who go without.

Many common breakfast options are unfortunately laden with gluten and as we all know can make it more difficult to make this important meal a part of your day. Here are a few tips on making sure you start your day right!

Plan ahead - It is especially difficult to eat gluten free on the run. But if you find yourself running out the door and on the hunt for a quick breakfast consider these options:

• Fruit smoothie with protein powder

BASIC RECIPE
1-1 1/2 cups milk (Blue Diamond almond milk, coconut milk, or milk of choice)
1/2- 1 cup fresh or frozen fruit
1-2 scoops protein powder (Manitoba Harvest Hemp, Nutiva Hemp, Nutribiotic Rice or Biochem Whey Protein are few gluten free options)

Place all ingredients in blender and blend. Add more milk or fruit for desired consistancy. This is also a great place to sneak any supplements or super foods

• Van's gluten free waffles (bump up the protein and top with peanut butter, almond butter or my new favorite, sunflower seed butter)
• Applegate Farms cooked chicken sausage
• Kinnickinnick English Muffin toasted with nut or seed butter
• A piece of fresh fruit and small handful of nuts or seeds
• Yogurt (Brown Cow, Nancy's, Redwood Hill Farms Goat, So Delicious Coconut Yogurt are all great gluten free options) with nuts/seeds and/or Perky's Nutty Rice Cereal stirred in for a little crunch.
• Hard boiled eggs
• Ants on a log! Go back to your childhood and fill those celery sticks with peanut butter and top with raisins. Get creative and try other nut and seed butters and top with dried blueberries, shredded coconut and/or hemp seeds.

Take A Little More Time - Set that alarm clock a little earlier and prepare yourself a delicious hearty breakfast

Coconut Quinoa Slam! Did you know quinoa offers twice the amount of protein over oatmeal? This is one of my favorites and just takes 15 minutes.

1 1/2 cups lite coconut milk
1 cup quinoa (rinsed twice)
1/2 cup fresh papaya (optional)
1 Tbsp hemp seeds (optional)

In medium sauce pan, bring coconut milk and quinoa to a boil. Cover and reduce to a simmer. Cook until liquid is absorbed approximately 15 minutes. Top with papaya and hemp seeds or a fruit and/or nut/seed of your choice.
** Save even more time and try this delicious recipe in your rice cooker.
** Don't have time to rinse?? Try Ancient Harvest boxed quinoa.... they've done the rinsing for you!
**Stretch your food dollars and make your own lite coconut milk by diluting 1 can of full fat coconut milk with 2 cans of water. Use the remainder for quick smoothies or freeze left over milk in ice cube trays for future use or an extra slushy smoothie

Other options to try:
• Bob's Red Mill Gluten Free Pancake Mix - It's hard to believe these are really gluten free!
• Veggie omelett with homemade breakfast potatoes
• Bob's Red Mill certified gluten free oats
• Shelton's turkey breakfast sausage

Think outside the cereal box ??
• Last nights leftovers
• Soup - Split Pea, Lentil, Butternut Squash or even Miso can make a great warm breakfast

This month's guest author is Mana Foods' own Christi Lynn Reed.

Gluten Freedom archives:
2010
Gluten Freedom February 2010
Gluten Freedom January 2010

2009
Gluten Freedom: December 2009
Gluten Freedom: Novemeber 2009
Gluten Freedom, October 2009
Gluten Freedom, September 2009
Gluten Freedom, August 2009