I guess it is about time to cut the carbs a bit. My normal breakfast of 1/2 cup of grape nuts and 1/2 cup of soymilk is doable and delicious but grape nuts isn't exactly the best calorie wise. I also would like a little more protein to start the morning.

I was looking at the recipe thread and found 1 additional idea but I'd like more. A visit to Target on the weekend got me a new blender.

I think I'll re-discover cottage cheese/oatmeal pancakes. I also saw a recipe for pumpkin muffins on the recipe thread. Does anyone have any other good, quick breakfast ideas? I don't mind making something ahead of time but I have no time to cook in the morning.

One of my favorite breakfasts is a Fiber One muffin (the recipe Mel posted, I believe) and hard boiled egg whites with a bit of hummus stuff in the cavity plus a sliced green olive. The muffin is a little extra carb, but it has fiber in it, and I need a bit more carb before a workout.

Then there's the whole wheat mini bagel spread with Laughing Cow Light and an ounce of Healthy Choice (or whatever) ham or turkey.

And the old standby of cottage cheese with berries.

I also like an egg and two whites scrambled with veggie sausage and stuffed into a whole wheat low carb tortilla (like La Tortilla) and topped with salsa. It's not as quick as the others, though, but great on those days when you are at home.

How about a whole wheat mini pita stuffed with some pre-made tuna salad with celery and apple chunks?

I precook those oatmeal-cottage cheese pancakes on the weekend and freeze them in ziploc bags, then top them with a few blueberries and pop them in the microwave for about 20 seconds.

Other quick breakfasts: 1/2 c dry oatmeal cooked for 2 minutes with 1 cup water in the microwave, add 1/2c cottage cheese, a few frozen (they thaw quickly) berries and sf pancake syrup. Stir it lightly- sounds gross but it's really good.

1/2 c. oatmeal cooked as above with a little extra water, then add a scoop of protein powder after it cools just a bit. Chocolate is best

I make egg white omelletes on hurried mornings, but I cut and precook the vegies, and seperate the eggs and store them in a gladlock container. Add 1/2 whole wheat English muffin or wrap it all up in a whole wheat tortilla. Whole thing takes about 4 minutes.

Peanut Butter cottage cheese: (only try this if you can trust yourself with an open container of natural peanut butter): 1/2-2/3c. cottage cheese, 1 tablespoon crunchy natural peanut butter. Stir. Add 1/4 or 1/2 cup fiber One cereal and stir lightly.

Mmmmmmm....breakfast!

Mel

I love breakfast; it may be my favorite meal of the day!

For the past couple of months, I've been downing a protein shake (1 scoop protein powder, 1 cup nonfat milk, about 1/3 cup of cottage cheese and ice) for breakfast, and then making my second meal (mid-morning) oatmeal with more cottage cheese and a dollop of milk. When summer fruits arrive, I may switch to cottage cheese and fruit. Sometimes, when I'm really starving in the morning, I'll add half of an Ezekial-bread English muffin.

My other fave is an eggwhite omelet with shredded 2% sharp cheddar cheese. No, it's not the greatest cheese in the world, but it's OK in omelets and it melts fast.

The great thing about shakes is that it takes less than a minute to run them through the blender, and not much longer to drink. It a pinch, you can dump them into some kind of a container and drink them in the car. Bon appetit.