Beyond cereal: Three recipes to upgrade your breakfast game

A new look for your morning routine

Bowl, cereal, milk, eat, repeat… bleh, bleh and more bleh. This monotonous breakfast routine has seeped into the lives of far too many. From the earthy richness of coffee to the pillowy yet robust texture of homemade pancakes, breakfast is objectively the best meal there is, and it deserves to be treated as such. 

Even for students who operate on constrained time and budgets, quick and cheap doesn’t have to mean dull and tasteless. 

I have pulled together some scrumptious and practical early morning recipes for the aspiring Gordon Ramsay to break free of the humdrum standard of Cheerios and Captain Crunch. So get that tush out of bed, flip on some cooking tunes — I recommend the soul-warming sounds of Aretha Franklin or Sergio Mendes — and let’s get cooking. Without further ado, here are three quick and easy recipes for a college student in a rush and on a budget.

Omelette Francaise

Starting off in the French countryside, we have the simple yet savory omelette francais. The omelette francais is the traditional omelet’s thinner, rolled and undeniably more bourgie cousin. It’s an indispensable dish for any cook’s arsenal and a bonafide crowd-pleaser. Minimal ingredients are required, but if you so desire, this recipe leaves plenty of room for experimentation. 

Ingredient list:

3 eggs

Teaspoon of salt

Half a tablespoon of olive oil

Aged white cheddar

Shaved Potato Skins (optional)

Trader Joe’s Umami Spice (optional)

Sriracha or Ricanta Manzana hot sauce

Estimated Prep and Cook Time: 15 minutes

Instructions:

1. Crack and empty three eggs into a medium-sized bowl
2. Grate a handful of white cheddar cheese and add to the bowl
3. Add one teaspoon of salt, a dash of Umami spice and some shaved potato skins
4. Whisk until the eggs and added ingredients are mixed thoroughly 
5. Add a tablespoon of olive oil to a 10-inch nonstick pan on medium heat, making sure to spread it throughout the pan
6. Gently pour the mixture in the pan making sure that it covers the entire pan
7. Cook for four minutes while moving your spatula in a figure-eight motion to evenly distribute contents
8. After four minutes or once the mixture has solidified, but is still slightly runny on the top, begin to gently flip the omelet onto itself in inch-long segments
9. Using a spatula, gently move the omelet onto a plate
10. Optional: Drizzle Sriracha or some Manzana Hot sauce over the top and voila

Cinnamon Currant French Toast

Next, we have a subtle twist on a beloved classic with the Cinnamon 

Currant French Toast. With lightly egg-battered cinnamon bread, chopped bananas, raspberries, a drizzle of honey and just a dollop of whipped cream, it doesn’t get much better than this. This matured french toast is a kick-your-legs-back kind of dish best served on a tranquil Saturday morning.

Estimated Prep and Cook Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients:

Half a loaf of cinnamon bread (If you’re feeling saucy, drop by the Co-op for Acme Cinnamon Currant bread)

3 eggs

Cinnamon

Honey

Raspberries

Heavy Cream

2 Bananas

Directions:

1. Add three eggs and a dash of cinnamon into a medium-sized bowl and whisk until combined
2. Slice loaf into the desired amount of pieces
3. Chop up a banana or two, depending on the planned serving size
4. Pour three cups of heavy cream into a blender and whip until solid
5. Lightly dip bread into the batter one side at a time and place on a non-stick pan at medium heat
6. Flip until each side is golden brown
7. Add a tablespoon of whipped cream, a drizzle of honey and a small handful of raspberries

Overnight Oats

To round out the trio we have Overnight Oats. Overnight oats are the ideal, simple concoction for on-the-go, early risers in need of prep-free, portable nourishment.

Estimated Prep and Cook Time: Five minutes

Ingredients

½ cup milk

¾ tablespoon chia seeds

½ cup rolled oats

Peanut butter/nut butter

Cinnamon 

Honey

Instructions:

1. Add all the ingredients together except for the peanut/nut butter, making sure all the oats are covered by the milk and place in the fridge overnight
2. In the morning add the desired amount of peanut butter, stir

A little bit of effort goes a long way both in the kitchen and in the belly. These three simple recipes may provide the spark of culinary inspiration needed to transform bland and boring into a breakfast routine that you can own.

Written by: Andrew Williams — arts@theaggie.org