Archives for October 2009

A delightfully romantic film, Breakfast at Tiffany’s, starring Audrey Hepburn provides a great look-back at the wonderfully vintage style of the early 60’s in New York City. Adapted from the novel of the same name, written by Truman Capote, it’s a story of a young woman, Holly Golightly, who exudes confidence and charm. Fun-loving and full of mischief, she longs to live in Tiffany’s because she believes nothing bad could ever happen there.

I welcome you to Breakfast at Karen’s. A week’s worth of planned meals to help you kick start your diet into gear. In true Holly Golightly fashion, I hope these meals will be fun and enjoyable while providing a real sustenance for your life. {+}

To make your eating choices simpler, I’ve designed some sample meals that I have found to be tasty, nutritionally balanced, sustaining and low in saturated fat. If you design your diet around foods like these, you won’t have to worry about counting calories.

Remember your diet principles and don’t skip meals. For best results, eat five meals instead of three. Limit your portion size and resist going back for seconds.

Breakfast–7:00a.m.
Let’s start with breakfast. The sooner you start eating, the sooner you get your metabolism going and burning calories. I try to eat as soon as possible—usually within thirty minutes of waking up. Unless you’re occupied by working out or engaging in some form of exercise—even going for a walk—you shouldn’t delay your breakfast.

Here are seven delicious Breakfast choices, one for every day of the week:

Monday: Start the week foods that will help to cleanse your system. Dining out and social outings sometimes throw our diets off. We are subjected to foods higher in sodium, sugar and fats than when we prepare our own food. We need to rid our bodies of these toxins as quickly and safely as possible.

A fresh fruit salad is ideal for cleansing your system. One advantage of starting the day with a fresh fruit salad is to top the USDA food guidelines of five to seven servings per day of fruits and vegetables—something that most Americans fail to do. If you start the day with a fruit salad of at least three or four fruits, you’re well on your way. Adding wheat germ or flaxseed to the fruit salad is an excellent way to add a dose of protein and healthful fats to the mix.

Drink a full glass of water with your fruit salad. This will aid in your digestion. Remember that fluids combined with insoluble fiber provide the bulk needed to move the waste through your intestines.

Tuesday: Hot cereal is a great way to start the day. Try a half cup of oatmeal, with a half cup of blueberries or strawberries. Add one tablespoon of ground flaxseed to get some healthy omega fats or liven it up with these healthy additions: bee pollen, wheat germ, or egg whites (or Egg Beaters).

Alternating with oatmeal, try cream of rye, or other cereals based on buckwheat, rye, barley, rice, or other grains, this way you are getting a variety of whole grains, necessary for optimum health.

Do you want a quick and tasty way to reduce your waistline? Add whole grains to your diet to lower your weight and benefit your heart as well.

A good hot cereal grain to try is Teff, it’s gluten-free and about the size of a poppy seed. A
quarter-cup of this cooked grain will provide over 20 percent of your daily requirements of
iron, magnesium and copper. Simmer with low fat milk for a tasty cereal or make pancakes from the flour, they’ll be naturally sweet and won’t require extra sugar or syrup.

Wednesday: Cold cereal: Choose a whole grain cereal low in sugar—preferably 4 grams or less. You can add your choice of berries or a banana.

You’re better off using rice milk, soymilk, or almond milk than cow milk, but if you use cow milk, choose a low-fat version.

Ordinary grocery stores are chock-full of breakfast cereals that have been sweetened to the max, and often have fifteen or twenty grams of sugar in a serving. You will have to search the shelves and read the ingredient lists on the boxes vigilantly to find the low-sugar brands. The low-sugar cereals are easier to find in health food stores. The crime is that the cereals aimed at kids tend to be the highest in sugar content.

Thursday: Oatmeal pancakes are very tasty. For lower fat and cholesterol, make with three egg whites and one-half banana, a handful of raisins, a dash of cinnamon, a teaspoon of ground flaxseed and a teaspoon of wheat germ. The cinnamon, banana and raisins will naturally sweeten the pancakes so you won’t have to use refined sweeteners.

Friday: Three egg whites scrambled with spinach, tomato, and onions cooked in one teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil. Serve with a toasted slice of Ezekiel multi-grain bread. This bread made with sprouted organic whole grains, is completely flourless. High in protein, and bursting with nutrients and natural fiber, this bread has a nice nutty flavor.

Saturday: Indulge yourself with something sweet. A fruit and protein smoothie is a great weekend treat. Whip it up with three-quarters of a cup of plain, low-fat yogurt (choose dairy or soy), one half banana, one-half cup of strawberries, one-half cup of blueberries, one-quarter cup of orange juice, one scoop of protein powder, one teaspoon of flaxseed and one teaspoon of wheat germ.

Sunday: Yogurt makes an excellent breakfast choice. Choose a low-fat yogurt, or a non-dairy yogurt. Most non-dairy yogurts are made from soy, and a few are made from rice. . Add a banana, berries, or other fruit, and/or a handful of nuts and raisins or granola.

If you want to have a slice of bread with your breakfast, choose a whole-grain bread or a bread made from sprouted grains. Instead of butter or margarine, choose a jam that isn’t loaded with sugar. The best jams are made just from fruit, fruit juices, and perhaps fruit pectin (a plant-derived gelling agent). If you want peanut butter on your bread, choose a brand that is pure peanut butter with no additives, preferably organic.

All of these sample meals provide you with the necessary nutrients for a healthy diet. If you eat like this every day, you will never have to worry about your weight again.

We value your opinion.  Start a discussion by leaving a comment below: