Five Ways to Eat Fruit for Breakfast

When I was told that it's healthy to eat fruit for breakfast, I thought, "How you you survive until lunch on just fruit?" I tried and it didn't work - I was snacking by ten o'clock. Here's where I went wrong: It had been drilled into my head to only eat one or two servings of fruit a day, so I would eat one banana and one apple for breakfast. No wonder I didn't make it to lunch time. You've got to eat way more than that. 

Normally I try to stick to eating one type of fruit or one family of fruit for a meal, like just berries, or just melons, just oranges. But some days I like to put a little effort into it and make something fun and delicious. Here are five ways that I do fruit for breakfast: 

1. A Great Big Smoothie!

I will blend 6-8 bananas or a bag a frozen mango or whatever sweet fruit I have by themselves or with some greens. I always stick to one type of greens per smoothie- like just baby spinach, or just kale. I find the taste results are better this way. When adding greens, start with a small amount and slowly increase. Sometimes I get creative and try to mimic tropical drinks like pina coladas but I find that sticking to simple 1-2-or 3 ingredient smoothies taste best. Keep it Simple! I also make at least one litre of smoothie for breakfast to get me through until lunch. Some of my favorite recipes are:

• 6-8 Bananas (optional add ins: Spinach or Kale, Dates, Mango, or Blueberries)
• 10 Oranges and Spinach
• 3 Apples, 3 Medjool Dates (pitted) and Spinach (Sprinkle of cinnamon optional)
• Bag of frozen Mango, Spinach (Dates or Blueberries are good add ins!) 
• Coconut water, 1/2 Pineapple, 2 frozen Bananas and 3 pitted Medjool Dates

 2. Cut a Watermelon in Half and Eat it!

Or grabl 6-8 bananas and eat them, or any large serving of RIPE sweet fruit. No prep, no mess and super easy in the morning. I can't wait until watermelons are back in season! I've been making meals out of bananas and mangos lately: the only thing required is peeling the fruit.

3. Banana Cereal

Sliced Bananas and Banana Milk. Slice 5-6 Bananas into a deep breakfast bowl. To make Banana Milk: Blend 2 bananas and 1 cup of filtered water in blender and pour over sliced bananas for your cereal. Can use one frozen banana for cold milk. I also sometimes add blueberries and dried mulberries for a a little crunch! (Pictured below I blended the dried mulberries for a granola topping. I also usually add way more milk!)

4. Fresh squeezed OJ!

One - two litres of fresh squeezed Orange Juice is a great way to start the day! Sometimes I just eat a bag of oranges, but there's a couple ways to get fresh OJ: Cut them in half and use an electric citrus juicer (not too expensive), or use a glass handheld citrus juicer - very inexpensive! I've even resorted to just squeezing them myself. You can also use a blender and blend the oranges well, pouring the contents into a nut-milk bag and straining the contents. 

 5. BAD Fruit Oatmeal.

Bananas, Apples and Dates! When Blended remind me of my old morning oatmeal. I throw two sliced apples in the Vitamix or food processor with two ripe brown spotted bananas and pulse blend a few times to chop the apples. Then I add three chopped and pitted medjool dates and pulse a couple more times to mix them in. The dates taste like brown sugar in this recipe. You can add a touch of cinnamon as well if you like, or blend up some banana milk and pour it on. I enjoy it plain- it's one of my fav ways to do fruit for breakfast. A sure winner with the kids if you have time to make it. (In the picture below, I tried making it with persimmons, which tasted great too!) 

I enjoy fruit for breakfast because it gives me a bunch of energy without weighing down my digestive system, and if you eat enough, it will get you through until lunch. Give it a try today. 

Naturally Ashley