Tips for making experimental breakfasts

I have always been a believer in the idea that breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Rushing off to lectures without having eaten anything just isn’t an option for me. Making the time to have a proper breakfast is the best way to start your day but this does not mean that you need to spend hours in the kitchen every morning.

With many of us being back home for the foreseeable future, we have more time than ever to experiment with food. The current lockdown has meant that many of us have been trying to pick up new skills or just spend more time relaxing. This is a great time to try out new recipes.

During term time, my go-to breakfasts are usually porridge or cereal. These are quick and easy options but still manage to keep me relatively full until lunch. If I have a bit more time. which is mostly just on the weekends, I like to make something that requires a little bit more effort such as eggs or pancakes. My latest discovery is an egg poacher which you can put in the microwave. This can give you the perfect poached egg in just two minutes, and you don’t even need to wash up a pan.

The key is to experiment, trying out various combinations of ingredients

Being home has changed my eating habits quite a lot. To start with, I now have access to a blender. I have recently found smoothies to be the perfect breakfast and the best thing about them is that you can make them any way you like. Bananas are the classic smoothie ingredient, but you can add pretty much any fruit or vegetable and they are also very versatile as you can add water or any milk of your choice.

There are thousands of smoothie recipes online, and it all comes down to personal preference. However, I’ve recently been making a refreshing milkshake which has a banana, a handful of frozen berries and a few leaves of fresh mint. All this mixed with a bit of milk makes a very nice breakfast, especially on a hot day. If you want to make smoothies more nutritious, adding veg is a great option. Spinach is particularly good as it has many vital vitamins but doesn’t add a strong taste to your drink and if you find that your smoothies aren’t filling enough, you can try adding a source of protein. This can be protein powder, Greek yoghurt or a spoonful of any nut butter. The key is to experiment, trying out various combinations of ingredients is the only way you can find out what you love.

If you’re on a budget, as many of students are, it’s a good idea to stock up on frozen fruit which is usually much cheaper than buying fresh fruit. You can also freeze most fruit yourself, so if you notice you won’t eat all of your bananas before they turn brown, you can simply peel them and put them in a freezer bag for a later date. Having frozen fruit available means that you can make a smoothie even if you forgot to buy your usual breakfast items. Frozen fruit can even be added to porridge to make a quicker breakfast more exciting as it will quickly defrost when thrown into a hot bowl of oatmeal.

Trying out new recipes can be a fun experience

Many people have been using this time to try out and share new recipes. If you’re a fan of avocado, which I, unfortunately, am not, there have been lots of Instagram-worthy breakfast ideas floating around. Making your own sourdough bread might also be an option as this works great topped with avocado and gives you the chance to do some classic lockdown bread baking.

Finally, pancakes don’t have to be made sweet – the classic way that we all know and love. A traditional dish in Lithuania is potato pancakes. This savoury dish is made from finely grated potatoes and served with sour cream. I think it’s delicious and everyone who I’ve made them for seems to agree. Now I’m not telling you to start grating potatoes for hours on end, but just remember pancakes can be diverse. Adding a mashed banana into the batter can substitute the need for sugar or any other sweetener. Adding some spinach can make them more nutritious.

Having the time to make more breakfast foods while at home may inspire you to be more adventurous with food when we eventually return to university. If not, trying out new recipes can be a fun experience and a good way to pass time.