When I was a kid, I never ate breakfast. I mean, not ever, but hardly ever. It just wasn’t something I did. At least not during the week. I am certain I had a doughnut or two on the weekends when I was little — Donut Delites, after all, was right down the street. I don’t think I really ate it in college or law school, either. We’d go out for breakfast on the weekends sometimes, of course, and indulge in yummy eggs and hashbrowns, but that wasn’t every weekend. In fact, I am really not sure when I started eating the meal. I am sure, though, that now I really don’t function without breakfast. While not my favorite meal of the day, it is my most important and the one I worry most about.
Worry, you ask? Yes, worry. I often worry about what I will have. I have not found something that is perfect for me. The problem is this: I want something satisfying, not too many calories and portable. It’s really important that it keeps me going because I often work out at noon so lunch is not until sometime after 1. I know that you’re thinking, “Kate, you’re hardly a delicate flower, you could get by with an apple and all would be good,” but really, I feel a blood pressure drop if I eat sugar in the morning, which of course fruit is. A banana works better, but I really crave protein. Eggs are great, but who gets up and makes eggs in the morning? Well, Aaron will, but not me. I get up for work and leave about 15 minutes later. I get as much sleep as I possibly can before heading out. So, I am not making eggs. I go in phases where I eat Amy’s bean and cheese burritos for breakfast — not the breakfast burrito ones. These are pretty good and generally fill the bill — whole wheat tortilla and good protein and they come in at 300 calories, which I think is about perfect for breakfast (maybe a little on the high end). Sometimes I do a bagel, but I know I’m not doing myself any favors there. If I put peanut butter on it it works better, but ultimately this option just doesn’t do it for me. What I really can’t do are two things on the opposite ends of the health spectrum — doughnuts or oatmeal. Sugar crash with the former, gag reaction with the latter. Basically, I am on a quest for the perfect breakfast food for me. Which brings me to this morning. And I hope you’re sitting down.
Subway. Recently, Subway moved into the spot under my office building, which had previously been a pretty bad bakery. It was so boring looking and everything always seemed to taste stale, which seems particularly egregious in a bakery. Anyway, I was not exactly thrilled that a Subway moved in, especially since it moved from its former site, which was about two blocks away. But then they did something interesting. They put up posters that they were serving breakfast. And then, fate stepped in. Aaron’s mom sent us a $20 gift card to Subway for Valentine’s Day. What else was the universe trying to tell us other than the obvious: try Subway for breakfast? And that we did. This very morning.
I am happy to report that at a little after noon, I still feel really good and am about to go to the gym. Hooray! How did this happen, you ask? Well, I had the egg white and cheese sandwich on flatbread. With tomatoes (sorry, Kristin). It was truly yummy. I mean, not Sardine yummy, but Subway yummy. It was hot and the cheese was pretty melted — they do a weird thing where you get one of their normal cheese options (provolone, pepperjack and American) and then they add a splash of what looks like shredded cheddar or colby. It was $2 and 320 calories, according to their website. Had I opted for the English muffin, it would have been a mere 170. I am considering this route the next time, but the flat bread was quite good — moist and squishy. Next time? Yes, I believe there will be a next time.
So, since I can’t eat there everyday, I need to get some other ideas of what to do. Will you share with me what you eat for breakfast?
life and puppies 
i am totally with you on so many points!
i also use my time in the mornings for sleep primarily.
i can’t eat eggs (my tummy does not like them even though i like them).
i also need something portable.
I rely on 50% string cheese (super portable) and 50% honey nut granola bars (nature valley) but it sounds like the latter would not be good for you.
I try the string cheese alone but usually it’s just not enough. I also eat late around 1pm so i need something to stick a little bit.
and i’m here to tell you that no an apple is not enough silly!
(p.s. i’m at work..fooey on you work!)
Haha! Take that, Rose’s work! String cheese is brilliant. I often do that in the afternoon for a snack, but morning is also feasible. But, yes, I think I would need to supplement and I could try the granola, but I’m skeptical. Sometimes I do a hard-boiled egg so maybe I could do that and the cheese. Good thoughts Rose! Thanks.
Rose broke through the firewall! Whoo hoo!
I, as I think Kate knows, do not eat breakfast. If I ever do, I eat my favorite thing in the whole world: egg and cheese on a roll (sometimes with bacon). So, pretty close to your Subway breakfast. But that’s only about twice a month. I have a fantasy that I get healthy and start eating a banana and a yogurt every morning, but I just don’t see it happening.
Yogurt and I have a troubled relationship. Sometimes we get along well and then there will be years (like now) where I am too grossed out by its behavior that I can’t be near it.
I do know that you don’t like b-fast, Fee. But, what kind of roll are we talking about?
I have felt the same way about yogurt my whole life (well, maybe not AS grossed out as you, but definitely grossed out), and then I discovered Fage and it changed everything. http://www.fageusa.com
It is the best yogurt ever. I even like the plain yogurt and that is unheard of for me! My favorite of all time is the cherry. I will eat it over ice cream for dessert. It’s a bit expensive, but try it.
The roll. I don’t really know if it has a name, it’s just a plan old deli roll here in NY. You just go in and say egg and cheese on a roll, as opposed to on a bagel (which is good, but not as good as the roll).
Good for your Kate! Breakfast! @ subway! Who knew?
I have eaten breakfast nearly every day of my life and would say that my favorite weekday breakfast is: Grape Nuts. Or Shredded Wheat. Not very portable (or exciting). Sometimes I have a peanut butter english muffin. I also like plain yogurt with lemon curd. My favorite portable food is bran muffins, but they have to be sans-raisins, and I’ve never made them myself, for some unknown reason, but they would be perfect to-go. I always get them when I go out of town.
I can’t get over it. Subway? As I was reading, I was thinking- a “skinny cheese” for breakfast?
But actually (sorry for the two comments in a row) the best weekday breakfast I ever had was in high school when my parents went to Europe: Root Beer Floats. Yum. Obviously not feasible if you are an adult.
I heard Subway was having breakfast! Interesting. What you’re describing sounds really good for a pretty good price. We have a cafeteria in my building that serves breakfast for cheap, but I have trouble ordering eggs from a place that spells “cavatini” as “cavatiny”.
Instead, I have appropriated my stepson’s Xmas gift smoothie maker. I usually turn my nose up at special products like that, but this one is the bomb. We buy giant bags of frozen fruit at Sam’s, and then at night you fill up one of the glasses with frozen fruit, fresh banana, juice, milk, whatever. By morning, your fruit is thawed, and you just screw on the blade attachment, blend and voila. Then I bring it to work to accompany my dry cheerios. This has been a big improvement over having a pepsi with my cheerios, and I don’t even have to hassle with the blender.
I totally went through a Grape Nuts phase for a long time and a smoothie phase. When we were in Corpus, Ben would make me a smoothie and have it in the fridge for me to take to work on my drive (he always left way before me). That was great. I am now thinking maybe I should bring some Grape Nuts to work (BTW, why are they called that?) and look more into the smoothie thing — maybe getting some frozen fruit from Costco…Nice ideas, ladies. Muchos gracias. Today, though? Subway breakfast #2 — this time with tomato and green pepper. Two dollars! And a gigantic diet Coke. Yumsville.
Fee, I will check out this yogurt of which you speak.
I’m having a hard time understanding because I love breakfast so much it hurts. I wake up and I’m just so excited to eat, whether I’m hungry or not. I actually wake up at least an hour early (and you know I hate waking up) to ensure I have enough time for said breakfast.
I too, have to have some protein or it wears off far too quickly, so here’s what I’ve come up with so far. I love eggs, but lately have not been in the mood, so now I’m totally on the smoothie kick. I use a protein powder and add some fruit and sometimes some almond butter. It is genuinely delicious.
I also used to love to make an egg and a veggie sausage and put them on an english muffin, or scramble some eggs and cheese and throw those in a tortilla for a breakfast wrap.
I’m a big fan of the fage yogurt as well and I have been known to have that with fresh fruit and a whole grain frozen waffle.
I don’t know useful this was since most of my ideas are not very portable, but if I lived with you I would make us both breakfast! Does that help? Hmm…
It does help! This is reminding me of so many phases…I went through a phase of the frozen waffle with peanut butter. Yum. And see I guess it doesn’t have to be portable, portable. I can make something like a waffle at work, but I don’t really see myself scrambling eggs at work. You see what I mean? Now, tell me more about this protein powder. What is it and is it weird and all steroid-y?
Yes. It’s chock full of steroids. I’m trying to become a female Indian version of the Hulk in hopes of making me more marketable. Hee hee.
I get it at Whole Foods, and I’m not going to lie, it’s a little pricey. But there’s no sugar, it’s all natural and it tastes great. It’s called Jay Robb’s Whey Protein powder. I like it because it fills me up and it’s easy but it’s not full of sugar and junk. I don’t know if it’s the healthiest thing in the world, but it certainly doesn’t seem bad. He also has an Egg White powder. I recommend vanilla. With protein powders/ drinks, always go vanilla.
Although I will say, he’s the idiot who created that dumb fruit cleanse I tried to do, which was horrible and I do NOT recommend it, so maybe he’s not the most solid person when it comes to nutrition…
“making me?” I meant “making myself.” Oh dear. Sorry. 🙂
What a practical post–so many great ideas!
I don’t have anything (better than what’s been discussed) to add, except that I make smoothies with a hand blender (only $10, easy to clean up, and also great for soups and mixed drinks–so pretty much my full menu offering!) and I’ve recently started adding flax seed to my smoothies so that I stay full longer (it has been suggested that this effect is psychological, as the seeds do not work in the same way for my boyfriend, but he is bigger than me, so has been excluded from the results).
Kristin’s post made me think of my first week in New York (state). A friend of mine from Chicago took me to a deli so we could pick something up to eat on the train into NYC. He told me we were going to try ‘East Coast fast food’ and highly encouraged me to follow his lead (i.e., not bring attention to ourselves by asking questions or delaying the ordering process in any way). This is how I came to order my first ‘egg and cheese on a roll’, which opened up a whole new breakfast world to this Minnesotan. It’s eggs made portable. I don’t know why it isn’t elsewhere (though I now suspect it may be the concept behind McD’s egg muffin thing, which I never understood before my egg-and-cheese-on-a-roll day).
If I had to describe a roll to folks in, say, the Bemidji area, I would say it is a big good chewy hamburger bun.
Yes Heather, definitely the size of a hamburger bun. But dryer, and kind of covered in a semolina flour type substance. And sometimes a sprinkling of poppyseed. I had egg and cheese on a roll this morning! It was divine. Perfect for a snowy day.
Exactly! Drier, but in a very good way, and also lighter. Magic!
I’m having one tomorrow.
i want one!
Here’s one with ham. Yum. http://i115.photobucket.com/albums/n289/billyboy71_2006/IMG_0010-18.jpg
I occasionally try to recreate them at home, but it’s never the same.
Soooo interesting. Keyes, Aaron is in love with your handheld mixer idea and declared it something he simply must have immediately.
I have one of those too – great for making whipped cream.
Well, goodness — I hope Aaron feels like a toolbox for not having one. He has every other kitchen gadget known to the culinary world, it seems, but no hand mixer. Can you just use it in a glass? That seems dangerous.
Hmmm. I’ve only ever used it in a bowl, but I’m sure there are special glasses or containers (metal) that you can use it in.
Yeah, that’s what I was wondering. Aaron suggested one of those metal malt cup glasses after I expressed my worry about glass, though he thought glass would be a-ok.
I’ve used it (it=hand blender/mixer) in metal pots (when making soups), bowls (of all materials), and glass glasses but mine came with (included in the $10!) a plastic cup/pitcher thing that has a cover–and this is what I tend to make the smoothies in (as the extra can be put back in the fridge or freezer).
Because the deli I wanted to go to this morning was surrounded by a lake (NYC needs to sort out its drainage problems asap!), I had to eat my lunch (which was a mashed avocado with walnuts squished into it on that dark dense sunflower seed bread) for breakfast and it kept me full until 1:30.
I have a hand mixer, thank you.
Sooooooooory, Aaron. Geesh. I thought you said we should get one, meaning you didn’t have one. Well, I’ve been put in my place.
Keyes, how was the avocado? I was recently reading about people having avocadoes for breakfast, something I’d never considered. Yum. This morning I had a Smart Ones breakfast — I know, you purists would hate it, but it was quite tasty. It was egg and cheese on an English muffin coming in at 210 calories. Pretty satisfying, really, although it was too hot.
Was GREAT! Highly recommend (for any meal).