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Hello 🙂
I’d like to talk a bit about breakfast. I love breakfast, and really believe it is so important. After you wake up, typically, your body has been fasting for the longest time period. So, it needs food! And food does not mean a cup of coffee.
Here are just a few reasons why breakfast is key for starting your day on the right foot:
Cortisol (your “stress hormone” produced in your adrenal glands) levels are usually high in morning, and we typically have low glucose, or blood sugar (this could be different for those with diabetes).
If we don’t eat, our cortisol levels will stay elevated, which equals more stress (and if we are just drinking coffee without food, then we really push our sympathetic nervous system – flight-or-flight – into high gear, and probably end up feeling jacked up, jittery and, well, freaked out). Plus, chronically elevated cortisol levels and stress are associated with many diseases.
To lower cortisol and to maintain normal blood sugar, we need well rounded breakfasts with carbs, fats and protein.
Skimping or skipping breakfast could leave us feeling overly hungry later in the day.
We will be able to focus on our work, life, or whatever we are doing, better.
It’s delicious — no more explanation needed!
It’s frickin’ hot in Atlanta right now — the kind of heat and humidity that makes it hard to move. So, I like to keep my breakfasts cold in the summer here. Overnight oats are my go-to summer breakfast, but quite honestly, I’m a little burnt out on them. I wanted to switch it up so I made this smoothie bowl — equally as refreshing as overnight oats and maybe a bit tastier. I really don’t like drinking smoothies for meals (so I don’t) for a lot of reasons — they don’t satisfy me and I like to eat, and chew… smoothie bowls, on the other hand, these I can dig. While I consider this an exciting breakfast, it’s also very simple and you probably have many of the ingredients in your kitchen already.
A few notes on the ingredients — feel free to mix it up. Use any kind of peanut butter you love — I used Crazy Richard’s. I picked blueberries because they are in season and I love them, but you can choose a different berry if you wish. I used granola I had in my pantry — KIND peanut butter granola — which is delicious and makes this bowl extra-peanut-butter-y, which is always a positive.
But feel free to use your favorite granola — store-bought or homemade. I recommend sticking with full-fat Greek yogurt because it’s thick and satiating. I went for soy milk in my base but choose any milk you have on hand.
Don’t have time to whip this up in the morning? Make the smoothie base before bed, throw in tupperware or a mason jar and add the toppings in the morning.
This bowl has it all — protein (from the milk, yogurt, PB and maybe granola), fats (from the yogurt, PB and maybe granola) and carbs (from the granola and fruit). Plus, you’ve got your fiber from the fruit and granola, antioxidants from the berries, probiotics from the yogurt and other essential vitamins & minerals from all the ingredients (calcium, potassium, etc.). Most importantly, it’s tasty and full of texture! Enjoy the refreshing summer recipe below.
With love and light,
Caroline
Blueberry Peanut Butter Smoothie Bowl
2017-07-28 07:56:41
Serves 2
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Total Time
10 min
Total Time
10 min
For the smoothie base
1 cup whole milk Greek yogurt, plain
1 cup milk
1 cup frozen blueberries
1/2 tsp vanilla
1-2 tsp cinnamon
1 tsp honey (optional for additional sweetness)
For the topping
1/2 cup granola
1 cup fresh blueberries
1 banana, sliced
2 Tbsp peanut butter
For the smoothie base
In a blender, add all base ingredients, blend until smooth, and divide between two bowls.
For the topping
Top each bowl with 1/2 sliced banana, 1/4 cup granola, 1/2 cup blueberries and 1 Tbsp peanut butter.
Whole Self Nutrition http://www.thewholeyogird.com/ Disclaimer: Although I am employed by the National Peanut Board as a registered dietitian nutritionist and communication specialist, this post is not related to my work with the board.