Cozy Morning Rituals and Healthy Breakfast Ideas

Our cozy breakfast tray of whole food toppings, plus a few comforting and healthy recipes for the morning.

I am a morning person. It’s probably best to preface this post with that disclaimer. I’m also a sit-down breakfast sort of person who relaxes when there is a rhythm to the day.

For me, a bit of self care in the morning comes in the form of a simple table laid beautifully. A tablecloth or a linen napkin, a candle or two, and our ever-present breakfast tray of hearty toppings for yogurt, hot cereals and more.

Today I’m sharing how the small act of creating a breakfast table tray of ‘superfood sprinkles’ can set you up for a new healthy habit and a comforting start to the day.

Designer Bryan Graybill shares my love of a breakfast ritual. In a fantastic feature for Homes and Gardens, he says ‘Ceremony comes from repetition, not excess. A tray set the same way each morning is more elegant than a table styled once a month.’

I love that approach. But unlike Graybill, you and I don’t need to eat our breakfast in a $350 Hermès bowl. When I introduced my Year of East Coast Cozy series, I promised to share how we celebrate the everyday in simple ways.

Reading the above article, I immediately thought of our tray of breakfast toppings, which has been a staple in the Simple Bites dining room for a decade. And so I’m sharing with you how to build your own and keep it fresh!

A Tray of Healthy Breakfast Topping

In her award-winning cookbook, At Home In the Whole Foods Kitchen, author Amy Chaplin featured an easy little recipe for a ‘Superfood Breakfast Sprinkle’ for her morning oats. Ground flax, maca root powder and wheat germ made up the simple mix, and, a decade ago, I embraced the habit of adding it to my morning yogurt & cereals.

Over time, I expanded the mix to include chia seed, hemp hearts, coconut flakes and so on. The whole family caught on to the healthy habit and our breakfast tray was born to keep up with supply and demand.

Now, instead of the pre-mixed ‘superfood sprinkle’, I set out the pantry ingredients in individual jars so everyone can customize their breakfast bowls.

Here’s what goes into our tray of healthy hot cereal and yogurt toppings. My suggestion would be to start with one ingredient from each pantry category to start building your breakfast tray.

• Seeds: Pumpkin seeds. Chia seeds. Ground flax seed. Sunflower seeds
• Grains: Wheat germ. Bran flakes. Granola.
• Fruit & Nuts: Raisins or currants. Dried cranberries. Coconut flakes. Nuts of all kinds, especially almonds.
• Other Superfoods: Hemp hearts. Maca powder. Ground Turmeric.

Uses for Healthy Breakfast Toppings

We love our simple breakfast bowls in the mornings, whether they be butter-toasted steel-cut oats or Greek yogurt with a drizzle of maple syrup. However, over the 20-ish years I’ve been blogging, I’ve developed many hearty variations that have kept our mornings interesting.

From bircher muesli to baked oatmeal, here are a few of our favourite ways to start the day. ALL are improved with a scattering of nuts, seeds and grains from our ever-present tray of healthy toppings.

• Quinoa Breakfast Bowls – A hearty gluten-free, dairy-free recipe.
• Brown Butter Toasted Oatmeal – Our favourite for decades! Add roasted pears or spiced apple preserves.
• Mix and Match Homemade Granola – A fantastic granola formula that uses what you have in the pantry.
• Apple Almond Bircher Muesli – A nourishing, do-ahead breakfast that’s easy to stir together.

• Simple Chia Pudding – Enjoy as a parfait with Greek yogurt and fruit. Plus toppings!
• Apple Pie Baked Oatmeal – A comforting, family-size breakfast bake that hints of pie.
• Savoury Steel-Cut Oats with Parmesan – A stick-to-your ribs start to the day. Add a fried egg for a true bliss bowl.
• Cottage Cheese & Yogurt Parfait – Layer this breakfast with your favourite granola and fruit compote. Plus toppings, of course!
• Make-Ahead Steel-Cut Oatmeal with Maple-Stewed Berries – A nourishing, make-ahead breakfast of pure comfort. Use fresh or frozen berries for this breakfast.

Tips for Keeping Seeds, Nuts & Grains Fresh

This stuff is expensive, right!? I almost always buy in bulk, as it’s the most cost effective, which means I have to be vigilant that the ingredients don’t go stale or rancid.

Jars! Jars! Jars! Storing ingredients in jars is the best way to see what you have on hand and what is getting low. A sealed jar also keeps the food airtight, protected from moisture or pantry bugs/critters.

Small Jars. For your breakfast tray, set out small portions in little 250ml oe 125ml jars and replenish as needed. You will know how quickly your household will go through the ‘sprinkles’. Ingredients like ground flax and wheat germ will go rancid in a few weeks at room temperature, so don’t set out too much.

Store out of the sunlight. After breakfast, grab your tray and store it on a sideboard or hutch, out of the sun. This will help to extend the freshness of the nuts & seeds.

Cold Storage. Keep the remainder/backup of superfoods in the freezer as the cold will extend their shelf life. I store them in – you guessed it – more jars, clearly labeled with the date of purchase.

Canadians, buy local when you can. I use well.ca/shop-canadian for brands that support Canadian farmers and producers. Love those Manitoba Harvest hemp hearts!