Like lots of people, I have difficulty with time in the morning. I really need to eat breakfast because of the medications I have to take. Also, it’s good for us to eat breakfast, especially if we’re trying to lose weight. But who has the time?
I don’t like eating cereal for breakfast every morning. I don’t like frozen waffles. Toast or a bagel isn’t quite enough. For a while, I bought pre-made breakfast sandwiches. They were quick and tasted great. They were filling. They were fattening. They were expensive.
Time to try something else. I love sandwiches at all times. But for breakfast, at least some mornings, they make especially good sense. But if store-bought breakfast sandwiches are full of fat and salt and cost too much, what to do?
It takes only about five minutes to make a quick and easy breakfast sandwich at home. You can even make them in advance and freeze them. They are cheaper and healthier.
This is where homemade bread really shines. So too do artisan loaves of bread. Even slightly stale bread can work in this version.
- Toast a slice of bread on a griddle or in a small frying pan with just a tiny touch of olive oil. Toasting like this instead of in a regular toaster or toaster oven adds a huge amount of flavor and a chewy texture that’s very satisfying.
- Remove toast to a plate and top with a slice of cheese while it’s still hot.
- In the hot pan, add just a little more oil and crack an egg into the pan. Cook over easy with a little salt and fresh cracked pepper.
- Place the egg on top of the bread and cheese. Give the cheese a little chance to melt and then enjoy!
For an even healthier version, poach the egg in a small saucepan of water and a little vinegar. Eat this sandwich open-faced with a glass of juice and you’ve got a fairly nutritious, hearty meal to start your day.
You don’t want to do this every day. But even in rotation with cereal, pancakes, bagels, or muffins, you might want a little more variation. Here are some more ideas:
- Store-bought pesto isn’t bad if you don’t have the time or materials to make your own. To add an Italian flair to this sandwich, spread some pesto on the toasted bread before adding the cheese. You may need to return the bread to the pan to get it hot enough to melt the cheese.
- Put a thin slice of ham on the bread before the cheese and heat up in the pan. A touch of mustard wouldn’t go astray on the bread here. You could also throw the ham slice into the pan to heat after removing the bread and before adding the cheese.
- Do the same thing with a couple slices of bacon.
Don’t skip breakfast. If you don’t have time in your current routine, get up a little earlier. Eating breakfast helps kickstart your metabolism which helps you lose weight and improves your morning energy so you hit the ground running when you get to work.
Lots of people say they don’t like to eat breakfast, that they’re not hungry. You should force yourself to eat something, even if it’s only a slice of toast or English muffin with your coffee. Soon, it won’t seem like a morning without some sort of breakfast. A fruit smoothie is a great breakfast for people who don’t usually eat in the morning.
