Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Auuugghh...Morning Again....

I don't know about you all but mornings are a bit of a nightmare around here. My goal* is to be at work by 7:30 or 7:45; often I have to be at work by 6:45 or 7am for early meetings. I am a big fan of the snooze and I have a lot of hair to fix. This combination alone is a recipe for disaster. But when you add in a husband who has lost his glasses, needs a breakfast/lunch, needs x form signed before you leave, its simply beyond disaster. Something must be cut and usually for me that's breakfast. But inevitably if I skip breakfast I'm starving by 10 am and since I can't eat wheat running down to the coffee shop for a muffin is not an option. Do you all have this problem? Well lately I have found some creative ways to still make it to work on time and not skip breakfast all together.

If money and time allow there are some really good grab and go options that are much better than the usual scone, muffin and bagel you usually see. Both Starbucks and Jamba Juice have hot oatmeal for just a few bucks. The Jamba Juice oatmeal is a lot better than the Starbucks but our Jamba is sans drive through. Also I usually ride the bus downtown and our Jamba is not downtown. However if you can make it to a Jamba try the oatmeal. They slow cook steel cut oats with soy milk and then top it with brown sugar, bananas and pecans. Its wonderful. Paired with fresh squeezed orange juice its even better. Starbucks also has yogurt/granola parfaits with fruit. In Eugene we have a wonderful local coffee shop called Full City, they serve homemade granola with yogurt or steamed milk, toast with butter and jam, and even gluten free quiche. This quiche is made with a brown rice crust rather than the standard pie shell making it lighter, healthier morning meal.

As convenient as it is to stop and grab breakfast it is not really in our budget. So I'm a fan of breakfasts I can pack and take. Yogurt and granola is great for this, a dish of yogurt and a Ziploc full of granola and you are good to go. I take toast and peanut butter to the bus stop many days. But if I have time my favorite is polenta or grits to go. Polenta and grits can both be cooked in 5 minutes. Pour hot creamy polenta or grits into a pint mason jar, top with butter, cheese and some salt, throw in your bag and at work you have a hot, wholesome breakfast to eat at your desk. Best of all both polenta and grits are dirt cheap which is always a plus!

*the last couple of weeks i have been failing miserably at this goal but there is always tomorrow, right...

1 comment:

  1. When I had trouble with getting out the door on time, I tried to get every single thing ready for the next day before I went to bed. I even put some stuff in the car so it would be ready to go. In not in the car, then at least my purse, etc... by the front door. If I thought I would not have time for breakfast, I would pour dry cereal in a container and milk in another the night before and bring both with me to work in the AM - I waited until I got to work to pour on my milk so it was not soggy. Bonus if I brough a banana! - Sarah, www.sarahrosemary.com

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