Quinoa breakfast

I'm planning out a detox and got this idea from the March issue of Yoga Journal. Before this, I had only used quinoa as substitute for rice, but now I know it's also a great substitute for oatmeal during a detox. 1 cup of quinoa cooked is good for at least 3-4 servings

Ingredients

1 cup quinoa
2 cups water
handful golden raisins
handful raw almonds
1 tbsp. flax oil

Instructions

Rinse the quinoa using a strainer. Bring the water to a boil. Add the quinoa and cook until all the water is absorbed. Put some quinoa in a bowl and stir in the flax oil. Add the golden raisins and almonds and mix.

Veggie Egg White Scramble

Egg whites sound really boring, don't they? They are so healthy though! In the past, I would make my egg whites with just spinach and salt and pepper, which is fine, but can get really boring. I decided to mix it up a bit using all the veggies in my refrigerator at the moment and come up with this great breakfast!

Ingredients

1 small carton of Egg whites
1 zucchini, choped into small pieces
2 green onions, diced
1/2 bell pepper (any color), diced
1/2 cup white mushrooms, sliced
3/4 cup black beans
1/2 cup canned diced tomatoes, drained
Olive oil
Sea salt and black pepper
Pinch of basil
Pinch of thyme

Instructions

Heat the olive oil over medium heat and add the green onion, zucchini, and bell pepper. Cook for 2 minutes and add the mushrooms. Continue cooking until the zucchini and bell pepper are soft, about another 3 minutes. Add the egg whites just until they cover the veggies. Add salt, pepper, basil, and thyme. Cook for about 2 minutes, scrambling everything together. Add the black beans and tomatoes and cook for another 3 minutes or until the egg whites are completely done. This should serve 3-4.

Berry Protein Smoothie

This is a typical breakfast smoothie for me after a run. Very easy and very fast. Bananas add a nice consistency to protein shakes. I find them too watery without the banana. You can always substitute the strawberries for other berries--blueberries and rasberries are good choices. A good blender is a plus for one serving, but a higher quality blender is probably necessary if you make several servings at a time on a regular basis. I am so excited b/c I just ordered the Braun PowerMax blender from amazon.com, so it should arrive in next week.

Ingredients

8 oz. water
1 scoop vanilla or unflavored protein powder (18 grams of protein)
1 banana, chopped into 5 pieces
3 strawberries, sliced and green tops removed
1 tbsp ground flax seeds

Instructions

Pour water into the blender jug and add the protein powder, strawberries, and flax seeds. Blend at medium speed and add the banana pieces one by one. I usually add a few ice cubes to my cup before pouring the smoothie b/c I take it with me to work.

Pancakes

I love breakfast and pancakes are always a treat. If you prepare your dry ingredients ahead of time and store you can save the environment the packaging of a store bought mix.

Ingredients

1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1 1/2 tbsp sugar
2 eggs
2 cups milk
2 tbsp melted butter

Instructions

Mix all the ingredients ina bowl. Pour the batter onto a hot griddle and heat until small bubles cover the entire surface of the pancake, then flip the pancake over and continue heating for a few minutes until golden brown.