Are Cold Breakfast Cereals Poisonous? 5 Simple Whole Food Breakfast Recipes

At the beginning of our Perfect Health and Wellness Series we talked a lot about food, including, The 8 Most Nourishing Foods, and, Toxic Ingredients to Avoid. I promised to provide some simple recipes to help you move from relying on processed foods to making delicious meals from scratch. The beauty of preparing your own creations is, you have complete control over the quality of the ingredients. You will be surprised at the simplicity. For example, making pancakes, muffins, or brownies from scratch takes only a few minutes longer than dumping the components from a box, however, preparing those items yourself allows the freshness and quality of the ingredients to really shine through.  The recipes that I am including on this list have been tweaked by me, week after week over the past several years. They are now family favorites, enjoyed by my husband and three children. I hope you love them as much as we do.

Five Family Favorite Breakfasts (Stop Your Cold Cereal Habit!)

Nourishing Traditions (book review) is the recipe book “bible” of the traditional diet proposed by the Weston A Price Foundation for achieving ultimate health. I highly recommend getting your own copy of this book. Even more important than the recipes, though, are all the interesting food facts. For example, the author, Sally Fallon, shares two stories about research performed on cold cereals. The results of both studies indicated that cold cereals are actually toxic. In one notable study, rats eating the cardboard box outlived the rats eating the cereal from within. According to the author, processing the grains with extremely high heat and pressure transform them into a toxic substance. Please do not panic if you give your children cold cereal on occasion, just remember the 80/20 Rule.  

1. Oh, the Wonderful Versatility of Eggs
Fried eggs, scrambled eggs, hard boiled eggs, omelettes, french toast… Make every effort to obtain your eggs from local farmers who pasture their chickens.

2. Porridge (a.k.a. Oatmeal)
Oatmeal, Millet or other whole grain combinations – soaked overnight with small amounts of fresh yogurt for better digestibility. Check out Nourishing Traditions for the full recipes. I use the recipe for Millet Casserole for my millet porridge. My children enjoy the millet porridge topped with soy sauce, but I prefer it  with typical porridge toppings, such as, nuts, dried fruit, coconut milk, and maple syrup. Very satisfying, and very inexpensive.

3. Pancakes from Scratch (Easier Than You Think)
I adapted my pancake recipe from the Nourishing Traditions recipe. Mine are much fluffier, so my family enjoys them more.  

4. Corn Bread
This recipe is not much more difficult than a boxed corn bread, however, you have the opportunity to soak the corn meal overnight in lime water to make the grain far more digestible. (Loosely based on a recipe from Carol Allen, IL) 

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F, and grease a 9X9 pan (I use Perfect Coconut Oil for greasing pans)

• 1 C Corn Meal
• 1/2 C Lime Water*
• 1 C All Purpose Flour
• 1/4 C Evaporated Cane Juice / Sugar
• 3 tsp Baking Powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 C milk
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 C butter

The night before, combine the corn meal and lime water and let it sit overnight in a warm place (the counter is fine, but not the frig). Melt the butter (this could be accomplished in your mixing bowl in the preheating oven, if your bowl can withstand heat). In a medium mixing bowl, combine the AP flour, sugar, BP, and salt and whisk together. Add the corn meal and lime water combo, and the remainder of the ingredients. Beat for 1 minute, then pour into the greased 9X9 pan. Bake for 25 minutes, until golden brown and toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  

* A large batch of Lime Water should be mixed up the day before. Add 1 inch of pickling lime (available online) to a 2 quart jug, fill jar with water and shake, cover tightly and let sit overnight.  The powder settles, and the clear water is Lime Water. Store in a cool place; it does not have to be refrigerated.

5. Peanut Butter Oatmeal Breakfast Cookies
(Based on a recipe by Michele on AllRecipes.com)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F

• 1/2 C butter (I use Organic Valley Cultured Butter)
• 3/4 C Evaporated Cane Juice / Sugar
• 3/4 C Peanut Butter
• 2 eggs
• 3/4 C All Purpose Flour
• 1 tsp Baking Soda
• 3/4 C Oats

The night before, melt the butter (preferably in your heat resistant mixing bowl) then add the oats, and allow to sit overnight in a warm place. Add the sugar and PB to the oat mixture and beat until blended. Add the eggs and beat again. Add the flour and BS and stir these two dry ingredients together before beating everything. Drop by tablespoons onto a cookie sheet (I use stoneware). Bake for 10 – 15 minutes, until just light brown. Yum!

Information About Food Sensitivities – Gluten Free, Dairy Free, Egg White Free

Six months ago, my son developed sensitivities to Gluten, Dairy, and Egg Whites.  

Dairy Free: These recipes can easily be made Dairy Free by substituting Perfect Coconut Oil for Butter, and any dairy-free “milk” for cow’s milk.  

Egg White Free: I have simply altered all my recipes by separating my eggs, and adding 2 egg yolks to replace every egg.

Gluten Free: I have developed amazing Gluten Free Recipes for Pancakes, Corn Bread and my PB Breakfast Cookie – please leave a comment if you are interested in the gluten free options.