When it comes to healthy eating, breakfast is the first step.

We all know how important breakfast is and how we should never miss it. We have been exhaustingly hearing this message. This is not meant to tap on clichés, but I have to say this is all so true. Food is in essence fuel, and breakfast fuels your day, giving you energy to go on, starts your metabolism, and most importantly kick starts your internal processes.

Perhaps the most significant thing to know here, is the fact that what we eat in the morning, can in fact impact what we will eat for the rest of the day. So if we start our day with highly sugary, wheat laden, or highly fatty foods, what we end up doing (internally) is raise our blood sugar levels, blood pressure and hence starting a cycle of highs and lows (sharp rises in blood sugar and pressure, followed by lows of the same), which causes us to crave more foods during the lows and feeling drowsy and out of energy during the highs! Yes, the body will have to focus on processing the intake causing you to feel tired and inactive (in the high), then will feel deprived during the low so will be asking for more…. You see, what we eat in the morning completely affects all our performances all day long!

This is why it is important to know that while we do have to have breakfast, we are better off with a better choice of healthy breakfast.

Granolas and Mueslis are among the breakfast options (not the only) that could be very healthy to have in the morning to kick start the body, supply ample clean energy and offer a tasty bite at the beginning of the day. However, not everything labeled “Granola” or “Muesli” is in fact healthy or will provide the benefits mentioned above.

Why?

As with everything, what it holds and what goes in the making of the item is the decisive factor of that item’s benefits. If the granola is made with over processed ingredients, incorporating loads of simple sugars, corn syrups, cookie doughs, sugar glazed fruits and nuts and all sorts of “dessert” elements, then that granola while tasty, should be kep for dessert or indulgent days as here it does not deliver the benefits we are after; a healthy, balanced, clean energy source for our first part of the day. Therefore it is always best to choose better and go for options that work for us.

With that said, having made your own granola/Muesli/Pudding… you don’t really have to always go for the same old option until you exhaust it out of your care. We do get bored, and we need change, and as ever eating healthy does not mean eating boring… As such, parfaits or breakfast cups are a fantastic way to liven up a healthy breakfast keeping variety, texture and eating experience alive and well. These breakfast cups are limitless, really you can go wild with the options, the choice of layers… from the simple yogurt, to Avocado ice cream (recipe on this link), to even chia pudding all can work in the layers. Your choice of granola, Muesli or even popped rice can also work in the layers. Fresh fruits, roasted fruits, sauteed fruits, preserved fruits can all be incorporated. The nut butters, the applesauce, the mashed avocadoes/bananas/dates are all ingredients that can be used… It is just a matter of which combinations and your open creativity…

So, here I am sharing with you, one of my favourite breakfast cups recipe, and also including a video with 3 different ideas… hoping that it will unleash a little guru inside you, waiting to express your own take. Go for it, experiment with different options and keep your breakfast healthy, full of options, creative and absolutely packed with all the energy you need to have a fantastic day, everyday.