1. Poached Eggs and Walnut Bowl (10-15 min)
Ingredients (amount can be customized):
- Eggs
- Walnuts
- Arugula
- Feta cheese
- (recommended) fruits
When I wake up in the morning, this recipe is often the first thing my mind jumps to. With only a few ingredients, it takes little effort to make, and the flavors blend so well together; I can never truly get enough. It is also incredibly customizable, allowing me to adjust my portion sizes and ratios on any given day.
To start, I recommend boiling the water at near maximum heat to save time. While the water is boiling, I often cut up some fruits to eat on the side, potentially with Greek yogurt if I’m in the mood.
Soon, the water should be ready, and while many sources say you need vinegar in the water, I’ve discovered that when the temperature of the water is really high, the egg begins to solidify quickly enough to retain its shape. After the eggs are in the water, you can usually reduce the temperature and allow them to simmer for the next few minutes.
During this time, I crack open a couple of walnuts and break the pieces into small chunks. I’ve also discovered oven-roasted chickpeas and almonds add to the overall texture, but in my experience, the flavor of the walnuts best complements the eggs.
After a few minutes, the eggs should be ready, assuming you want a runny yolk. If you want a hard one, let the eggs boil for a few more minutes, and you can usually tell when the yolk, hidden behind the egg whites, is a light yellow. Once you drain the eggs, I like adding them into a bowl so that I can eat with a small spoon, but if you prefer using a fork and a knife, plates work fine.
Then add the cracked walnuts, arugula (or sprouts, if preferred) and feta cheese. If you really enjoy the taste of the feta, you can also add a spoonful of the feta water, though I recommend you don’t overdo it.
Overall, this breakfast takes very little time, since the main delay is just waiting for the eggs to poach. Should you have more time, the 15-20 minute version includes warming a quesadilla in a pan before removing it, then frying (or scrambling) the eggs. You then put hummus, or another preferred spread, on the tortilla before adding the fried eggs and the same toppings as the other bowl. This version is also better as a pre-practice snack, adding some extra carbs for fuel. I hope you enjoy it!
2. Avocado Toast (20 minutes)
Ingredients:
- Avocado
- Avocado oil
- Feta cheese
- Italian Batard bread loaf
- Two eggs
- Sprouts
Anytime I enter a restaurant for breakfast, avocado toast is usually the first thing I look for. After years of perfecting my recipe, this is the one I feel like is the most satisfying. Yes, you can change it up a bit, replace the bread with a sourdough, remove the cheese and scramble the eggs, but trust me when I say this recipe is not one to be missed.
First, preheat the oven to 365 degrees. I recommend doing so when you first wake up to save time, but either way, it should only take around five minutes for the oven to heat up. In a bowl, I then mash half an avocado and a decent amount of feta cheese before adding three-fourths a tablespoon of avocado oil. Cut out a slice of the bread (if bread comes pre-cut, it is not truly bread), and then put the mixture on the slice before placing it into the oven. It should not need to be in the oven for more than 5-10 minutes; in that time, you can work on your eggs.
Now, this may sound unusual, but if you dislike the leftover grease on fried eggs and just want to keep the texture, listen to what I say next. In a small to medium pan, turn the heat to high, crack two eggs without any oil and once it starts to get really hot, add a tablespoon or so of water. The water should sizzle, and be sure to put a lid on before it evaporates. You are essentially trying to steam your eggs, just with limited material. Add more water if needed, and be sure not to flip. The steam is meant to cook the top of the eggs.
As the eggs cook, be sure to rinse and pat dry your sprouts before taking the toast out of the oven. Then, you want to take your eggs out of the pan. There will be a small layer of the egg’s natural fats stuck to the bottom of the pan, but if you immediately rinse it with water, it comes out right away. Place the eggs on top of the toast, add the sprouts on top, and enjoy the best avocado toast of your life.
3. Pumpkin and Almond Flour Loaf (20 minutes of making, 25 minutes baking and afterwards can eat right out of the fridge)
Ingredients:
- Eggs
- Almond milk (normal works too)
- Almond flour
- Baking powder
- Vanilla extract
- Pumpkin spice seasoning
- Butter
- Just Date’s Pomegranate Syrup (optional)
What is Autumn without pumpkin pastries? This is one I enjoy making to eat with eggs, or sometimes just to snack on on its own. You can change the ratios as you prefer, but here is what I typically do to make about four days’ worth of the bread.
First, heat up the oven to 365 degrees Fahrenheit. In a bowl, put in a cup of almond flour and a teaspoon or so of baking powder. Make sure to mix them well before adding the liquids, or the baking soda will form small chunks. Then, pour in half a cup of almond milk and whisk until well distributed. I typically prefer a high egg content and add about five eggs, but you can add as many as you prefer.
Next, add in one and a half tablespoons of vanilla extract along with some pumpkin spice seasoning. In order to make sure the mixture will not stick to your baking mold, melt some butter to line the inside. You can add any extra butter to the mixture for extra flavor.
Pour the contents into the mold and sprinkle some extra pumpkin spice on top. Leave it in the oven to bake for around 25-30 minutes, and then take it out and let it cool. If you would like to make it sweeter, I recommend adding Just Date’s Pomegranate Syrup. It is low in calories and has the sweetness of sugar that really tops off the meal.
4. Hummus Egg Toast (5-10 min)
Ingredients:
- Bread
- Hummus (recommended beet)
- Eggs
- Recommended add-ons
- Walnuts
- Roasted chickpeas
- Sprouts
This has to be one of the easiest things to make in the morning. All you have to do is pop a slice of bread in the toaster (preferably cut from a loaf and not pre-cut) and let that cook while you do your eggs. If you could not tell, I love poached eggs, but any kind, from scrambled to baked, can go with this dish.
Once the toast is done, I get store-bought hummus from the fridge. The type I always go to is beet hummus. The color adds a bit of personality to the morning, and the flavor is amazing. I lather it on the bread, place the eggs on top and then it is ready to serve.
If I feel lazy or rushed that morning, I leave it at that, but if you have time to put in more effort, adding cracked walnuts or roasted chickpeas contributes an additional crunch to the texture. They also make the meal more filling. Sprouts add a nice color as well, and overall, this meal is an incredibly customizable one, perfect for a rushed morning.
5. Soy Marinated Eggs (15 minutes of actual cooking, but then you can eat right away the next morning)
Ingredients:
- Eggs
- Soy Sauce
- Green onion
- Sesame seeds
- Chili flakes (optional)
- Seaweed (optional)
This dish does need to rest overnight, but it can be eaten right away in the morning. First, boil the water. There is not much to do while the water is boiling, so I like getting work done or resting until it starts to bubble. Then, I add in four eggs and set a 6-minute timer. While they are boiling, I rinse some green onions and cut them into pieces. This step should be done by the time the timer goes off, and at that point, I fill a bowl with ice and some water and place the eggs inside to cool.
Once they are safe to touch, I create a crack on the side and start peeling off the shell. I then directly place the eggs into the container and submerge them a third of the way in soy sauce. After that point, you can fill the rest of the container with water, making sure the eggs are submerged.
This is where you can add the green onion, sesame seeds and chili flakes, though if you do not like spice, you can omit the flakes. The eggs need to marinate for several hours, so I just enjoy leaving them to rest overnight so I can eat them the next morning. I like eating them relatively fresh, which is why I only use four eggs instead of leaving a larger batch to marinate and eat over the week, but that’s personal preference.
These eggs taste amazing with ramen and also go well with steamed rice. For breakfast, though, they feel more satisfying by themselves or with some dried seaweed. Overall, the eggs are really simple to marinate and are definitely one of the top five recipes for students.
