healthy breakfast tips

Healthy breakfast tips 1 INF-069-C

Healthy breakfast tips You ve probably heard people say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Eating a nutritious breakfast can help to reduce your risk of coronary heart disease (CHD) and diabetes. It also contributes to a healthier diet overall by adding important vitamins and minerals, such as thiamine, riboflavin, calcium, magnesium and iron. However, about 23% of adults and 10% of children skip breakfast, so miss out on this nutritional advantage.

To help you start your day right, we have developed some easy ideas for healthier breakfasts for home, work and meetings. We ve even included some recipes to get you started!

What is a nutritious breakfast? A nutritious breakfast includes a variety of foods, such as high-fibre wholegrain breads and cereals, vegetables, fruit, eggs, and reduced, low or no fat milk and dairy foods.

The Dietary Guidelines for Australian Adults* encourage us to eat a variety of bread and cereals, preferably wholegrain. Wholegrain foods contain all parts of the grain. Eating them can help to lower your risk of chronic diseases, such as CHD, obesity, type 2 diabetes and some cancers. They are also easy-to-prepare, nutritious and perfect for breakfast.

Eating two serves of fruit and five serves of vegetables every day contributes to good health. Breakfast is a great time to include fruit and vegetables in your diet to help you reach this goal.

Eggs are also an ideal breakfast food. A healthy balanced diet can include a serve of eggs (two eggs) in two to three meals a week. Remember that how you cook them is important. The healthiest cooking methods are scrambled (using reduced, low or no fat milk), poached and boiled. Dairy foods contain calcium, which is essential for strong bones and teeth. They also include protein, vitamins A, D and B2. There is a wide range of dairy foods that you can include in your breakfast, such as milk, yoghurt and cheese. Choose healthier reduced, low or no fat varieties.

*

National Health and Medical Research Council. Dietary guidelines for Australian adults. Canberra: National Health and Medical Research Council, 2003. Available at: www.nhmrc.gov.au/_files_nhmrc/file/publications/synopses/n33.pdf. Last accessed 24 December 2010.

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Breakfast ideas for home Quick fixes for people on the go

Keep a supply of healthy wholegrain cereals and reduced, low or no fat milk in the house.

Prepare breakfast the night before by setting the table and getting out bowls, plates, cutlery and cereals.

Have a back-up plan of fast, inexpensive options. For example, fresh fruit; reduced, low or no fat yoghurt; a handful of plain, unsalted nuts and/or seeds; small boxes of sultanas; and cereal bars that have earned the Heart Foundation Tick.

Pre-cook a batch of savoury muffins, for example with carrot, onion, zucchini and cheese, and eat one for breakfast.

Bread, crisp breads and rice cakes

Spread margarine onto spicy fruit loaf or fruit muffin and top with sliced banana and a sprinkle of cinnamon.

Toast wholegrain bread and grill with melted reduced fat cheddar or mozzarella cheese.

Halve a wholemeal pita bread or flat bread and fill with berries (or other seasonal soft fruit) and reduced, low or no fat yoghurt. Roll up and serve as a wrap.

Spread 100% fruit jam on wholemeal toast and top with ricotta cheese.

Top wholemeal toast with salt-reduced baked beans and a splash of Worcestershire sauce.

Cut wholegrain toast in thin slices and serve with a soft boiled egg or scrambled eggs made with reduced, low or no fat milk.

Add a healthy savoury topping, such as avocado or hummus and tomato, to crispbread.

Top rice crackers with a spread of margarine, sliced tomato and black pepper.

Cereal

Serve layered wholegrain cereal, reduced, low or no fat yoghurt and fresh fruit pieces in a bowl or drinking glass.


Serve wholegrain cereal with slices of fresh seasonal fruit or fruit canned in natural or unsweetened juice.

Cook porridge with a touch of cinnamon and add stewed fruits, such as apple, quince or rhubarb.

Fish and eggs

Try canned fish, such as tuna, salmon or sardines, on wholegrain toast with a touch of reduced, low or no fat mayonnaise and ground black pepper. Choose fish canned in spring water or oil, or look for the Heart Foundation Tick on the label.

Scramble eggs with a little olive oil, red and green capsicums, onions and black pepper. Serve with wholegrain toast.

Make an omelette with tomato and mushrooms, or add some pieces of smoked salmon and chives.

Fruit

Serve fresh fruit salad in a tall glass and top with reduced, low or no fat fruit yoghurt and crunchy untoasted muesli.

Try half a grapefruit with a light sprinkle of sugar.

Milk

Make a smoothie using reduced, low or no fat milk and yoghurt, fresh or frozen fruit, ground flaxseeds and a touch of raw cocoa powder* and cinnamon.

Toasty breakfast treats

Use a sandwich maker to make toasted sandwiches, using wholegrain or wholemeal bread where possible. For sweet fillings, fruit loaf also works well. Experiment with different fillings, such as:

banana and sultanas

apple, cinnamon and sultanas

pineapple and banana

reduced fat cheese and tomato

lean ham and tomato

salt-reduced baked beans.

*

Raw cocoa powder is high in antioxidants and is found in health food stores.


Breakfast at work

Keep wholegrain cereal, wholegrain bread and reduced, low or no fat milk at work.

Try instant oat sachets and cook in the microwave. Add fruit, such as banana, sultanas or grated apple, nuts or seeds for variety.

Keep tubs or cans of fruit at your desk to eat by themselves or add to cereal. Choose varieties in natural or unsweetened juice.

Create a small snack pack of mixed dried fruit and plain unsalted nuts and seeds.

Look for cereal bars with the Heart Foundation Tick.

If you are having trouble bringing in suitable breakfast foods from home, walk to your local supermarket at lunchtime and buy some breakfast foods. Walking and carrying groceries is a good way to get some physical activity in your day.

Breakfast meetings

Serve a fruit platter of fresh seasonal fruits in bite-sized pieces.

Put glasses half-filled with plain reduced, low or no fat yoghurt next to dishes of fruit salad and muesli so guests can serve themselves.

Offer guests savoury or fruit mini muffins. Ask your caterer to make them using olive or canola oil, or with margarine instead of butter, and 50% wholemeal flour or added bran. Large muffins can be cut into halves or quarters.

Frittatas can be eaten at breakfast warm or cold. Choose one filled with vegetables.

Make turkey stacks by putting a cube of lean turkey meat, a cherry tomato and a cube of reduced fat cheese on a toothpick. Serve with a thick slice of rye bread or wholegrain rolls.

Serve fresh rye bread or wholegrain rolls with a platter of lean roast meats and slices of tomato and reduced fat cheddar cheese.

Offer guests individual containers of wholegrain cereals and reduced, low or no fat milk.

Serve pikelets with 100% fruit spread and reduced, low or no fat yoghurt or ricotta.

For busy sit-down meetings, start the morning by serving everyone a fruit smoothie in a tall glass with a straw.


At breakfast meetings, avoid serving:

fatty sausages and bacon

deli meats, such as salami and devon

croissants and pasties

sweet biscuits

full fat milk for tea and coffee or cereal, or in egg dishes, such as scrambled eggs or omelettes

use reduced, low or no fat milk instead

butter and salt use margarine, and herbs and spices instead.

Fast and fresh recipes These mouth-watering, yet heart-healthy, breakfast treats are from our cookbooks. To order a cookbook, contact our Health Information Service on 1300 36 27 87 or [email protected]. You can also order them through our online shop at www.heartfoundationshop.org.au.

For more recipe ideas, visit our website at www.heartfoundation.org.au/recipes.

Strawberry yoghurt cups

These tasty fruit and yoghurt cups make a filling breakfast.

Serves: 4 Preparation time: 15 minutes Cooking time: 8 minutes

Ingredients 1 cup reduced, low or no fat yoghurt* 1 cup Kellogg s All-Bran Wheat Flakes Honey Almond cereal* 375 g strawberries, hulled, sliced 375 g other seasonal fruits, sliced 1 tblsp honey

Instructions 1. Spoon cup yoghurt and cup cereal into the base of the four serving glasses. 2. Top with strawberries and fruits. 3. Drizzle with honey. Serve immediately.

* Products available with the Heart Foundation Tick. Remember: all fresh fruit and vegetables automatically qualify for the Tick.


Scrambled eggs with smoked salmon

This delicious and easy-to-make breakfast will keep you full of energy all morning.


Ingredients 2 eggs* 1 egg white 2 tblsp reduced, low or no fat milk* 2 tsp margarine* 2 slices wholegrain bread, toasted* 20 g spinach leaves 30 g smoked salmon, sliced 1 tblsp chives, chopped

Instructions 1. Beat eggs, egg white and milk together with a fork until well combined. 2. Heat a small non-stick frying pan over low to medium heat. Add the margarine. 3. When the margarine is almost melted, add the egg mixture and cook for 40 50

seconds 4. When the egg starts to set around edges of the pan, gently push the set egg

into centre and tilt the pan to let uncooked egg to run to edges. 5. Cook 10 15 seconds, then remove from the heat and push the set egg into

centre again. 6. Season cooked egg with freshly ground black pepper. 7. Place toast on serving plates and top with spinach leaves and smoked salmon. 8. Spoon the scrambled eggs over the toast and sprinkle it with chives. Serve

immediately.



Oven roasted mushrooms on toast

This delicious roasted mushroom breakfast is a great way to start your day with a serve of vegetables.


Ingredients 4 large flat mushrooms, stems trimmed 1 lemon, rind finely grated, juiced 1 tblsp olive oil* cup flat leaf parsley, chopped 2 tblsp chives, chopped 2 slices wholegrain bread, toasted* 2 tsp margarine*

Instructions 1. Preheat oven to 220C (fan forced). 2. Place the mushrooms, stem side up, in a lightly greased roasting pan. 3. Combine 2 tblsp of the lemon juice and all of the oil in a small jug and whisk

to combine. 4. Drizzle lemon juice and oil mixture over the mushrooms and season them

with freshly ground pepper. 5. Roast the mushrooms for 10 15 minutes, or until tender. 6. While the mushrooms are roasting, mix the lemon rind and herbs together

in a small bowl. 7. Spread each slice of toast with 1 tsp margarine and put it onto a serving plate. 8. Top each slice of toast with two mushrooms and sprinkle over lemon rind and

herb mixture. 9. Season with freshly ground pepper. Serve immediately.



Healthier food choices for breakfast Breakfast food Healthier choices Nutritional value Handy tips Bread and bread rolls

Wholegrain, wholemeal multigrain, added fibre, soy and linseed, high-fibre white, focaccia, Lebanese, pita, pocket, mountain and fruit or raisin loaf, bagels, baps, wholemeal crumpets, hot cross buns

Contains dietary fibre, carbohydrate, minerals and B vitamins

Wholegrain or wholemeal breads are more nutritious because they contain all of the natural parts of the cereal grain, including the bran and germ

Cereal High-fibre, wholegrain, wholemeal flake or puffed cereals, porridge (rolled oats), wholewheat breakfast biscuits, untoasted muesli


Avoid toasted muesli because it is usually higher in energy

Margarine Margarine spreads made from canola, sunflower or olive oil, or dairy blends that have earned the Heart Foundation Tick

Source of vitamins A, D and E, and essential fatty acids

Use margarine or margarine spreads instead of butter

Muffins English-style, wholegrain or spicy fruit


Commercial cake-style muffins may be higher in energy and contain little dietary fibre

Savoury crispbreads

Wholemeal varieties of crispbreads, crackerbread, rice crackers and rice cakes


Choose no added salt and wholegrain varieties

Pikelets and scones

Wholemeal, savoury or fruit pikelets and fruit scones

Contains carbohydrate and dietary fibre

Try making your own using wholemeal flour

Fruit Any fresh fruit is a great choice. Canned or tubs of fruit in natural or unsweetened juice is also a good option. Dried fruit and 100% fruit juice (with no added sugar and served in small glasses) is another alternative

Contains water, dietary fibre, carbohydrate, vitamins and minerals

Dried fruit contains dietary fibre, but be careful how much you eat because it can also be high in natural sugars that contribute to energy intake

Drinks Tap water, plain mineral water, diet soft drinks, tea (black or green) and coffee (filtered, instant or caf style)

Water is essential for life and needed for sustained performance

Milk Reduced, low or no fat milk or added calcium soy beverages

Reduced, low or no fat milk is lower in saturated fat and often contains more calcium than full fat milk

Yoghurt Reduced, low or no fat yoghurt (plain or fruit flavoured)

Contains protein, riboflavin and calcium

Reduced, low or no fat yoghurt often contains more calcium than full fat yoghurt


Want to know more? For more information on healthy eating and drinking, call our Health Information Service on 1300 36 27 87 (for the cost of a local call) or email [email protected].

2011 National Heart Foundation of Australia ABN 98 008 419 761 INF-069-C

Terms of use: This material has been developed for general information and educational purposes only. It does not constitute medical advice. Please consult your healthcare provider if you have, or suspect you have, a health problem. The information contained in this material has been independently researched and developed by the National Heart Foundation of Australia and is based on the available scientific evidence at the time of writing. It is not an endorsement of any organisation, product or service. While care has been taken in preparing the content of this material, the National Heart Foundation of Australia and its employees cannot accept any liability, including for any loss or damage, resulting from the reliance on the content, or for its accuracy, currency and completeness. This material may be found in third parties programs or materials (including but not limited to show bags or advertising kits). This does not imply an endorsement or recommendation by the National Heart Foundation of Australia for such third parties organisations, products or services, including these parties materials or information. Any use of National Heart Foundation of Australia material by another person or organisation is done so at the user s own risk.

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