Iced Decaf Coffee w/Protein

I'm now seven months out from having surgery and still can't do breakfast in the morning. Every time I try, I get sick. And to top it all off if I take my fist full of vitamins with anything other than a protein drink, I get sick too. So after a lot of trying to eat actual food and take vitamins with water and a lot of time being sick from it, I decided enough was enough.

Meet my breakfast: Iced Decaf Coffee w/Protein. Iced Coffees are like smoothies in that you can change up the flavors and never get bored with them. Add different flavored sugar free syrups and different flavored protein powders and voila, something new. My current favorite (pictured) is Decaf Cinnamon Vanilla Nut coffee, with a splash of sugar free cinnamon syrup, with a scoop of cookies & cream protein powder. It a snickerdoodle you can drink. It's awesome. It doesn't make me sick, I can take my vitamins without getting sick, it counts toward my fluid intake, and it's totally filling  -- keeping me full until lunchtime.

Iced Protein Coffees are especially handy on busy mornings when you've got kids to get ready for school and don't have time to make eggs (blech, eggs. I still can't stand them. I used to at least tolerate them. Now I loathe them. *sigh*). And to be completely honest, I only drizzled the chocolate syrup and dolloped the whipped cream because it makes a prettier picture. I drink it without all the flash and pizzaz that makes it look like it was a professionally made drink. It's delicious with the chocolate and whipped cream, I mean I totally drank it, but it's just as yummy without all the pomp and circumstance not too mention quicker and easier in the morning. 

Protein Parfaits

You had to have seen this coming, right? I'm on a total strawberry kick and what better way to cool down on a summer day (it's supposedly spring but you couldn't tell by the 90 degree temps we're having). This is the Hulk of Strawberry Shortcake (like it took steroids). Perfect for breakfast or an after workout snack. Oh heck, I'd replace this for any meal in a heartbeat. For reals.

You could totally make it a little less filling and a little more healthy by omitting the almond protein shortcake crumble in the center and it, but what's the fun in that? Am I right? Of course I am.

Protein Parfaits are our favorite after school snack right now. I love the mouth feel of them the best. You have smooth yogurt, sweet fruit, chewy almond shortcake, and crunchy granola -- it's a mouth-gasm waiting to happen. And how could you ever get bored by parfaits? Switch up the yogurt, switch up the fruit, and it's a whole different snack. I love it!

Picky Eaters' Seal of Approval: 2 thumbs up, way up... and a cartwheel.  

Cranberry Ricotta Bread

I love baking. 4ft loves baking. So when we bake together we usually do quick breads. There are a lot of things to measure, which 4ft loves, and mix, which I love. And quick breads are one of my favorite things to bake because they're so versatile. You can eat them at breakfast, have them for a snack, and they work for dessert too. It's a three-in-one-delicious food. How could it get any better than that? It can't and your brain will explode if you try to come up with something. So stop trying.

Quick breads are also very good for experimenting because as long as you have a couple of key ingredients -- flours of some sort and lifters -- they're very forgiving and the results are usually splendiferous. Which would be the case with this bread. It's seriously delicious and my new favorite and 4ft's too.

This bread was the brainchild of trying not to waste food. I had some ricotta cheese in the fridge that was going to go bad if it didn't get used and I didn't have enough for like a lasagna or something. So I tossed the 3/4 cup I had left into my basic quick bread recipe and then threw in some cranberries too -- because hey, they're delicious and why not. 4ft was a little apprehensive putting cheese into a bread meant to be sweet but I explained that cheesecake was made with cream cheese and that was pretty good so why not give it a shot. So he agreed. We did. And the rest is taste bud history. It's absolutely splendiferous.

French Toast Sticks

4ft requested french toast and who am I to break his little 9-year-old little heart and tell him no he had to have a waffle instead? (Serious hardship to be this kid, right?) So I decided if I was going to eat white bread (with the possibility of it making me sick), I was going to really make the white bread worth my while. So he got nom-a-licious filled French Toast Sticks instead. 

I really like these because they don't have a lot of extra sugar in them AND you don't need syrup. They are delicious plain. The banana gets creamy from being baked and melts into the chocolate peanut butter so it's kind of crepe-like. I also like these because you can pick them up and eat them with your fingers -- who needs a fork? Less dishes for the win! And the best thing yet is you can fill them with whatever. The skies the limit. A berries and cream one (using fruit and cream cheese), peanut butter and jelly ones, cinnamon apple, Nutella -- you name it. For an added treat you could always roll them in cinnamon/sugar after they come out of the oven and call them dessert instead -- like a yummy filled churro.

4ft loved them, in case you were wondering, and was not upset that he didn't have just standard toast drowning in syrup. He ate his and then finished mine -- he thought they were that splendiferous. (Oh, and they didn't hurt my stomach -- not sure why because bread normally does. Weird.)

Protein Pancakes

Another pancake/waffle recipe? Really? Yes, really. So hush you. 

I still can't eat eggs. I do not like them in a box or with a fox. I do not like them here or there. I do not like them anywhere. (Okay, I think you get the idea.) And after getting my hand smacked by my doctor about relying too heavily on protein shakes for breakfast (oh how I miss my protein mocha decaf coffee), I have to figure out breakfast ideas that are high in protein and low in egg flavor. I also know a lot of people who don't like or are allergic to bananas (a main staple in protein pancakes/waffles) and while I'm not one of them (I heart bananas), I do occasionally run out, so I decided to experiment with pancakes that don't use them.

I really liked how the batter turned out. A lot of the low flour/high protein pancake batter is really thin and runny, but this one was thick and didn't slop all over the pan when I cooked them. I was able to cook four at a time which was pretty cool and meant we got to eat sooner. I'm not sure how it'd work in a waffle iron -- maybe if you added a little soy milk to the batter to thin it out some so it would spread to fill the waffle grids. Mental note: try that. (This is where we all laugh that I'll remember to actually do it)

4ft declared them delicious and I'd have to say I agree. I topped mine with fresh sliced strawberries and didn't need to use syrup at all. 4ft drowned his in maple, of course, because that kid doesn't like strawberries (I'm seriously not sure how he came out of me. How can you not like strawberries? But then how can you not like bananas either?) As for the Littles (Grumpers and Bear), they won't eat pancakes or waffles (not sure how they're mine either, come to think of it) so they wouldn't come near them with a 3ft pole. 

Protein Kodiak Waffles

This stuff is A-MAZ-ING! It's made with 100% whole wheat and oats and it uses honey instead of sugar. And there isn't a never ending list of ingredients I've never heard of before.

The mix already had some protein in it, 7 grams per serving, but I knew I could squeeze in more protein. So I did:

These waffles were amazing. They were light and fluffy with a delicious crunchy "skin". Their flavor was delicious without the syrup and dipped in a little sugar-free caramel syrup, they tasted like dessert. The extremely picky husband had no idea they were good for him and glared at me when I told him he was eating something healthy. He has a reputation of eating unhealthy to maintain, don't you know? 4ft devoured his as well. I think they're my new favorite waffle as well, especially on the mornings when we're busy and I don't have time for "from scratch" protein waffles.

Egg Sandwich

Last night, 4ft (my nine-year-old) had his Blue and Gold celebration for Cub Scouts. So after serving up a ton of food, our den was in charge of putting it on, and partying the night away scout style, I was too tired this morning and didn't want to hassle with putting together waffles. So I raided the fridge and threw together this one skillet, no fuss, egg sandwich breakfast.

Finally! Bread! I was able to eat bread without it hurting. Okay so it's the sandwich thins and when you toast them they really dry out (which is probably why I could eat it) but to be able to pick up a sandwich and eat it was a marvelous thing. Of course, I couldn't finish the sandwich. I ended up eating about 3/4 of it and then finishing just the egg and bacon out of the center (for the protein). It was seriously delicious and I was totally bummed I had to stop eating.

Waffle Sundae (w/ Protein Ice Cream Recipe)

Waffle Sundae w/ Fried Bananas and English Toffee Protein Ice Cream

Are you drooling yet? You should be. I had this for breakfast. Yeah, it rocks to be me. 

The best thing: I gave this to 4ft for breakfast and he looked at me in disbelief and said, "Mom, this is ice cream! I can have ice cream for breakfast? Wait! Forget I asked."

"Why?"

"I don't want you to change your mind!" And he immediately started shoveling it in. 

After his plate was clean, he declared me the best mom ever (hey, I'll take it) and the best "baker" (it's never cook it's always baker -- apparently my kid thinks everything comes out of the oven?). 

Protein Waffles

Oh. Em. Bee. People. 

These are epically delicious! Seriously. They didn't need the berries on top and 4ft ate them plain. He's a syrup MONSTER and he ate. them. plain. He also took the rest of the batch to school for his snack and asked me to make them again tomorrow. No problemo kid. They rock so hard I was sad I couldn't shove another bite into my stomach. I swear to bob they have the consistency of a real waffle but are so much better for you and just bursting with flavor.