New Year's Breakfast or Brunch Recipes

If you're an early riser, these healthy recipes make a delicious New Year's breakfast for your family and can be increased in amounts to serve guests, as well. If you've been up extra late New Year's Eve, then sleep in and serve these same delicious foods as brunch. Whichever you decide, what better way to ring in the 1st day of a new year than with great food that is also good for you?

Cheese and Spinach Quiche

Ingredients:

1 1/4 c. raw baby spinach
1 small onion or 3 green onions, finely chopped
1 1/2 Tbs. olive oil
4 large eggs
1 c. low-fat small curd cottage cheese
5 oz. mild low-fat chedder cheese, grated
3 Tbs. flour
Salt and pepper to taste
1 prepared 9-inch crust, thawed

Directions:

Preheat over to 350 F.
Bake pie shell until "just dry"
Saute onions in a bit of olive oil until transparent. Add spinach and stir until slightly wilted.
Beat eggs until thoroughly mixed and frothy. Add sauted veggies, seasonings, cottage and cheddar cheeses, and flour. Beat on low speed until blended.
Pour into readied crust.
Bake 50 mins. or until eggs are well set in center. Time may vary slightly.
Let set five minutes, cut and serve. Makes 6-8 servings.

Quiche variations:

Turkey sausage or turkey bacon, browned
Small broccoli florets or asparagus tips with or instead of spinach
Shallots or garlic clove instead of onion
Green pepper, diced
Sun dried tomatoes

If you wish to cut calories, bake a "crust-less" quiche.

Fruit and Oat Bran Muffins

*Noted for their high fiber content

Ingredients:

2 1/4 c. uncooked oat bran (not to be confused with oatmeal)
1/4 c. honey or molasses
1/4 c. all natural apple juice
1 c. skimmed evaporated milk
1 TBS. baking powder
1 large egg
2 TBS. olive oil
1 chopped apple (cored and peeled)
1/4 c. chopped nuts of choice (optional)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 425 F.
Spray muffin tin with Pam

Mix egg, milk, sweetening, apple juice, oil, and olive oil in bowl. Add oat bran and baking powder, and mix. Stir in chopped apple (and nuts).

Fill muffin cups with batter, and bake 10-17 minutes, or until toothpick inserted into middle of a muffin comes out clean.

Makes 12 muffins.

Serve warm.

Variations: add currents, dates, golden or dark raisins, or chopped dates as part of the fruit.

Mixed Fruit Salad

Ingredients:

*Place canned fruits (unopened) and apple in fridge day before making salad

1 large can pineapple chunks in their own juice (save juice)
2 large bananas, sliced (let sit a few minutes in pineapple juice to prevent darkening
1 large can drained mandarin oranges (save juice)
1 large red apple, cored, but not peeled (set in orange juice from above a few minutes to prevent darkening
1 c. seedless grapes (green, red, or purple)
1 c. chopped dates

Drain bananas and apples, and put into a large salad bowl. Add other fruits and stir gently to mix.

Serves 12

Add your favorite cold or hot morning beverages, increase number of quiches, muffins, and fruit salad to accommodate a larger group, if necessary.

Alternate Brunch Menu Idea

Pancakes of your choice, scrambled eggs with veggies added, sugar-free all fruit spreads or maple syrup, Canadian ham or turkey sausage, citrus salad made with fresh orange and grapefruit sections with juice squeezed into it.

Serve brunch with your favorite cold or hot morning beverages, and you'll have a good, healthy start on your new year.

Sources: Experience, Personal Recipe Collection