Anyone who knows me understands my love for breakfast. There’s just something about that first meal of the day as you rise with the sun, your stomach empty and your face freshly washed. As I fall asleep at night, I dream of breakfast. It’s the reason I go to bed early, simply so that I don’t have to wait so long for breakfast. I plan out in my head what I’ll eat the next morning as a good student would plan what homework they have due the next day. My mouth salivates at the thought of the taste of overnight oats, or my freshly fried omelet. Recently, breakfast is what I have been living for. Some say it’s an obsession, I say it’s the way I survive.
So without further adieu, with much experimentation and hard work, I have curated a list of my favorite breakfast recipes. Whether you spend 5 minutes or 5 hours on your breakfast, I hope you can find something here that works for you! And we’ll see, maybe by the end of this article you’ll love breakfast just as much as I do.
The Perfect (?) Omelet:
The best part about an omelet is that you can literally put anything in it. A traditional French omelet has an assortment of mixed herbs that are mixed into the egg before cooking, but the omelets I have experience with are stuffed with an assortment of vegetables and cheese. But hey, if you want to put chocolate and cranberries in it instead, I would commend you for your creativity.
Let me clarify, I do not always succeed in making omelets. In fact, 90% of the time, I fail. Many times has my omelet turned into a mush of brown egg and miscellaneous veggies, and most of the time I just allow my little egg baby to simply become another scramble. However, I am a committed journalist, so with much research, hard work, and dedication, I have concocted a few tips and tricks so that hopefully you will struggle a little less than I did.
Start by beating two or three or five hundred eggs (however hungry you are!) in a bowl, adding any herbs or seasoning your little chef’s heart desires. Then, melt butter on a pan on low heat. A mistake I commonly make is cooking the omelet on too high of heat, which only results in overcooked, brown, thick egg, tasting like egg jerky (I’m sure you can imagine).
When cooking an omelet, it should be in constant motion– by either moving around the pan itself constantly, or using a spatula if that is easier for you. Then, you can put whatever you fancy into your little egg taco! Something to note: omelets can only fit so much, so less is more when it comes to your fillings.
My current favorite omelet concoction: Eggs with herbs (I really couldn’t tell you which herbs to use, I simply throw whatever colors I think would look good into the mix and hope it works out), goat cheese (yum, yum, YUM!), mushrooms, basil, spinach and garlic. I’m sure that tomato and onion would make this recipe top tier, however those just happen to be the last foods I would want to eat in the morning so I’ll let you experiment with that yourself.
My Oma’s Buttermilk Pancakes:
Fluffy and with just the right amount of chew, these pancakes have become somewhat of a family tradition. They’re everything good about a pancake without any of the bad. They encapsulate the perfect amount of flavor and moisture, with a little crunch to top it off. I must say though, they turn out looking a little different from the traditional pancake, so don’t be alarmed if they don’t appear the way you thought they would. The taste will make up for it, I promise.
Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- 2 cups buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 tablespoons honey (optional)
- 1 cup flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
First mix together eggs, buttermilk, butter and honey. Then, in a separate bowl, mix together flour and baking soda.
Mix all ingredients together, but not too much. The mixture should still be slightly lumpy.
Then heat the pan with butter or your choice of cooking oil, and fry!
Enjoy your delicious pancakes! These are lovely when topped with fresh berries and whipped cream.
Overnight Oats:
It seems as if I was the only person in the world who hadn’t tried overnight oats before this little experiment. Or maybe all my friends are just vegans. Either one, this dish was one that I just couldn’t leave out. Miraculously simple and with a perfect creamy texture, overnight oats are the perfect meal for people who just need to get up and go in the morning. Out of all the recipes that I tried out, this one was my favorite. It’s the perfect spin on oatmeal, and it’s simply too easy to disregard. On top of that, it’s super healthy!
Ingredients:
- Old fashioned rolled oats
- Milk or non dairy milk (my favorite is oat milk)
Some of my favorite optional ingredients: blueberries, chia seeds, banana, nuts, coconut flakes, cinnamon, yogurt and anything else you desire!
Put oats and milk into a container (I use mason jars), and add ingredients such as banana, chia seeds, and coconut flakes. I like to leave the time sensitive food items for last, so that my oats aren’t too soggy by the morning.
Leave your jar in the fridge overnight, and wake up to a delicious and nutritious breakfast all ready to go! Add any fruits or additional ingredients, and enjoy.
Tamago Kake Gohan:
This popular Japanese breakfast has become one of my all time favorite dishes, although it can be eaten at any time of the day (including 3 AM, if you’re like me). Translated simply to “egg rice,” this dish takes like two minutes to make.
Ingredients:
- Rice
- Egg
- Nori and Soy Sauce (Optional, but recommended)
Simply reheat or make rice, fry up an egg, mix, and Voila! You have a yummy breakfast. I like to add shredded Nori and Soy Sauce, but you have all the creative freedom in the world to make this dish anything you like!
And here concludes my breakfast article, however my great enthusiasm for breakfast will never cease. I hope that these superb recipes will bring you inspiration and hope to get you through your day. Now I wait as my overnight oats marinate in the fridge, collecting delicious flavors and developing a silky smooth texture.
