Last year I offered up some breakfast and lunch food prep ideas based on what I’d been eating at the time. Appetites change, work from home has replaced “the office” for many of us, and I wondered if it might be time for another set of recipes. Today, a few more ideas for make-ahead breakfasts. I know we’re reaching the end of the “pumpkin spice” season, but I find these flavors wonderful and soothing as long as the weather is cold.
Marjorie’s Homemade Granola–Master Recipe
I’ve been working on a good homemade granola recipe for probably a decade now. I like to have some sprinkled over fruit and Greek yogurt. I eat it for an afternoon snack fairly often as well. I will first provide the master recipe, in which you can switch things up as much as you prefer. Then, I will give my go-to version, for those of you who don’t want to make so many decisions.
one. Preheat the oven to 300 oF.
two. Stir together in a baking dish or large glass casserole:
2 cups old-fashioned oats, quick oats, buckwheat groats, other flaked grains, or a mixture of any of these
1 cup unsweetened flaked coconut (you can use sweetened, if you can’t find it unsweetened, but obviously, the final result will be sweeter)
1.5 cups coarsely chopped nuts, pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds, or a mixture of these
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp powdered ginger
three. Heat briefly in a microwave and stir together:
2 tbs nut butter or coconut oil
2 tbs honey or maple syrup
four. Add 1 mashed very ripe banana to the honey mixture
And maybe ½ tsp almond extract or 1 tsp vanilla extract
five. Pour the wet ingredients over the dry and stir until everything is evenly moistened.
six. Bake until completely dried, stirring every half hour or so. If it starts to toast too quickly, lower the temperature to 250oF. Takes about 1 ½ hours.
seven. Allow to cool completely before packing into containers with tight-sealing lids. Stays good, at room temperature, for several weeks.
My Go-to: Coconut Buckwheat Granola
Ingredients:
1 cup buckwheat groats (also called kasha)
1 cup quick oats (these seem to make the best, crunchy oat clusters in my experience)
1 cup unsweetened, flaked coconut
2 tbs all-natural crunchy peanut butter
2 tbs honey (really delicious with a strong-tasting honey like blackberry honey)
1 cup slivered almonds
½ cup chopped walnuts
1 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp powdered ginger
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 very ripe banana, mashed
Harvest Egg Bake
This custard is like a less-sweet pumpkin pie for breakfast. In parts of the world where you are sadly without copious quantities of canned, winter squash puree, you could substitute mashed, roasted sweet potatoes. One final note, if you want to substitute another milk, keep in mind that fats serve an important purpose in custards, keeping the proteins happy as they reach temperature. A less fatty “milk” like almond milk or skim may split and create a less favorable texture.
one. Preheat the oven to 350oF.
two. Butter a large, 9×13 baking dish.
three. Whisk together:
12 whole eggs, or 6 whole eggs plus 2 cups egg whites
1.5 cups whole or 2% milk or soy milk
15 oz can (about 1 3/4 cups) pumpkin puree
½-1 tsp cinnamon (honestly, I don’t actually measure this, I use a lot)
A few shakes of ground nutmeg
¼ cup brown sugar (or more, to taste)
1 tsp vanilla extract
Zest of 1 orange (optional but delicious)
four. Pour the custard into the prepared baking dish. Then sprinkle evenly with:
2-3 finely chopped, good baking apples
⅓ cup raisins, dried cranberries, cherries, or a combination thereof
Maybe a few tangerines or a naval orange, finely chopped
five. Bake until just set in the middle, about 1 hour.
six. Allow to sit 10 minutes before serving. Makes 6 servings.
Variation: Harvest Oatmeal Bake
Follow the recipe, adding 1/2 cup additional milk or water to the custard and evenly spreading 2 cups of old-fashioned oats with the apples and fruit, gently pushing the oats down into the custard with a spoon.
Serve warm with a scoop of plain Greek yogurt, maybe a little maple syrup, and a tablespoon or two of chopped walnuts, for a satisfying, balanced breakfast.
Bonus “recipe:” Spiced Coffee
I make my coffee in a pour-over, but I would think this would work in a French press, too, you will just get a little more spice powder circulating in the cup. But hey, the sludge is part of the charm of French press coffee, right?
Add to the filter with your coffee grounds:
A generous shake or two each of cinnamon and ground turmeric
A little nutmeg
Maybe a dash of cardamom
Sweeten and cream your coffee, if you like, as you like
Marjorie Hundtoft is a middle school science and health teacher. She can be found buying cinnamon in bulk, picking up heavy things and putting them back down again in Portland, Oregon. You can now read her at Progressive-Strength.com .
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