Power Breakfast

“Let Them Eat Cake”

“Take out a piece of paper and write down what you ate for breakfast today,” my kids’ teachers will periodically assign, “Then keep track for the coming week.”  When the teacher gets this food journal assignment back, however, she probably thinks my son or daughter is a jokester.  Every entry would read  “Cake,”  “Cookies,”  “Peach Crisp,” or even “Gingerbread.”  It’s a wonder my kids don’t get in trouble for writing down their dessert instead!   But given a chance to explain, they tell their teacher about our “Breakfast Cake”—the standard breakfast fare at our house!

1.   Scratch made Simple

It all began when I had a houseful of hungry kids that had to be out the door early.  These were athletes on their way to early football practice or A-hour students that had to last clear till lunch.  These were hungry boys that were growing 5 inches in one summer, or girls that were even hungrier than the boys!!  I had to feed a hungry crowd on a budget, while remembering the nutrition classes I took in college.

Cooking from scratch was the only way I could pull it off.  So I set out to simplify and make an efficient workspace: 

I decided to use only 1 big mixing bowl, 1 cup, and 1 spoon, with no need for a mixer and parts, sets of measuring cups, or even measuring spoons.   The no-fail recipe that I started with was fool-proof enough to allow me to “eye” the measurements, thus proceeding simply and quickly.  An airbake Jelly roll pan that I received as a gift had a layer of air between the bottom layers, making it extremely difficult for my breakfast to burn!

I chose one section of my kitchen counter. I placed my jug of honey and container of cooking oil in the cupboard below, and the cake pan in the other bottom cupboard, with the “pam” to spray them right above in the upper cupboard .  Also in this upper cupboard were the spices, salt, and baking soda or powder.  

On the inside of that cupboard door and the one next to it, I taped up two sheets of recipes I had typed out, eliminating the need to hunt for recipes!  The fridge is immediately to my right and the pantry with the fruit and flour is several steps away. 

I have gotten so that I can whip up a breakfast cake in about 10 minutes and put the pans in to bake.  Immediately after scriptures and prayer, we have a hot breakfast, cut in such a way that there is two pieces for each, one piece for Grandmother, (and often, an extra piece for the athletes).

2.  Feeding the Hungry

Just exactly what is in breakfast cake?  It is a lot like muffin, but faster and easier than filling each muffin tin, to feed my army.  Just like a bar cookie (brownie), I spread out my batter and cook it all together.  

How do I make it healthy?  I use whole wheat flour and whole oats, I cut back the oil a bit and use raisins and nuts or other fruit.  And I add two eggs for more protein.  Instead of sugar, I use honey.  And to make the honey easy to work with, I measure  the oil first, then pour the honey into the same cup, which makes it slip out much easier!

Some like to eat their breakfast cake in a bowl with a spoon.  Others on a plate with a fork.  Still others grab theirs and run out the door!

What about those of us (me) who are not running quite so fast any more and don’t need such a hefty breakfast?  I simply cut my portion of breakfast cake into two parts.  One of them, with my early morning apple, is just right.   Then later in midmorning--the time I usually feel a "low," I eat the other piece.  It works well for me.

3.  Brain food with no Sugar High (or Low)

While a sugary breakfast gave us a quick high with lots of energy, then a real low when it runs out, a honey breakfast allows for less nutrients to be robbed in the digestion process.  Honey has some great properties such as enzymes, and many have found that it helps against hay fever type allergies.  Honey is twice as sweet as sugar, so you need about half as much (a little more than half actually).  It can be quite expensive, but we have found it to be worth it.  We located a place to buy large pourable jugs at a good price, which we stock up at tax return time.

My breakfast cake recipes also include no milk, which we have found to cause mucous build up.  (Our calcium comes from our whole grains and greens--No we don’t put the greens in the breakfast cake—perhaps we should!! j/k)

4.  Heating the House up

I live in central Arizona, where at least half of the year there is the Air Conditioning bill to worry about!!  To solve the problem of baking without heating up the house, we got a second-hand oven that we could put right outside the door to the garage.  It was a short trip from the kitchen table, and out of the reach of the a/c bill.

5.  Breakfast Cake:

Large Recipe                                                                      

1 jelly roll pan                                                                         

3 c. whole wheat flour                                          

1 heaping t. salt    2/3 t. soda                                   

     Stir together and add:                                                  

½ c. oil                                                                  

1 c. honey                                                               

1 1/3 c. water                                                        

1 t. vanilla                                                              

2 unbeaten eggs                                                        

Fruit*                                                                       

1 t. vinegar or lemon**                                           

Beat with a spoon for 2 full minutes.                        

Bake at 375° for about 18 minutes.                            

*Add fruit into batter (see below) or in the case of applesauce or pineapple rings, place them in the pan first, then cover with the batter.

**I have learned to add 1 t. of vinegar or lemon juice so that it won’t be a tough, gluten-y batter. 



Extra Large Recipe

1 Jelly Roll pan and 1 9x9 square pan

5 ¼ c. whole wheat flour
2 t. salt            1 t. soda
      Stir together and add:
¾ c. oil
1 1/3 c. honey 
2 c. water
1 t. vanilla
2 unbeaten eggs
Fruit*
1 t. vinegar or lemon**

Beat with a spoon for 2 full minutes.
Bake at 375° for about 18 minutes.

6.  More Variety

To add variety, I have revamped many recipes to make them healthy and breakfast-friendly, such as:

Hearty Peach Crisp***

Oatmeal Raisin Cookies

Grandma’s Raisin Squares

Stovetop Granola

Gingerbread

Sticky Biscuits

Baked “Eggy” Oatmeal Squares

Carob Brownies with Peanut Butter Frosting

Banana Muffins (or muffin cake)

Cornbread  (yes, for breakfast!)

***Actually, I save Peach Crisp for Sunday breakfasts.  They like it enough to motivate them to get up on Sunday mornings!

When I need a breakfast to pick up and take along, I make hearty breakfast cookies.  No need for dishes, I quickly put a hot cookie on a napkin. Or I make them ahead, such as when we will be leaving early on a trip, and grab my ziplock bag of cookies to eat on the way!

These days, when my college kids come home to visit, guess what they want?  Breakfast Cake or Peach Crisp!  Once I sent some chicken soup and breakfast to my son in medical school who was quite ill!   I asked him how the soup tasted, and he replied, “Forget the soup!  I wanted the breakfast cake!!”

If you’d like my hearty breakfast versions of these, or if you have some to share (yes!!), email me at: ideasformypocketcomments@gmail.com.