Breakfast is the most influential meal of the day. If you start your day with sugary pastries or a greasy breakfast sandwich, the rest of your food choices will follow suit.

However, when you start your morning with a wholesome and nutritious meal you’ll be more likely to continue with good choices throughout the day. Enjoy this recipe for Pumpkin & Zucchini Muffin is a nutritious start to your day.

Don’t let the rich flavor and mouthwatering moistness of these muffins fool you. You’ll have a hard time convincing anyone, but this recipe was modified to include less fat and sugar than the original.

Courtesy of RealHealthyRecipes.com

What You Need

Serves 40

• 3 eggs, lightly beaten
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon salt
• ⅔ cup raw honey
• 1 cup canned pumpkin
• ½ cup coconut oil, melted
• 7 oz applesauce
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 3 cups almond flour
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon
• ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
• 1 cup shredded zucchini
• ½ teaspoon ground cloves
• ¼ cup chopped walnuts

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees and line a mini muffin pan with paper baking cups, or use non-stick cooking spray.
2. In a mixing bowl combine eggs and honey. Add pumpkin, melted coconut oil, applesauce, and vanilla.
3. In a separate bowl combine all of the dry ingredients. Gradually add dry ingredients to pumpkin mixture and mix until well combined. Stir in the zucchini.
4. Pour into muffin tins, sprinkle the tops with chopped walnuts. Bake for 10-20 minutes or until you can poke a toothpick in a muffin and it comes out clean. Cool in the pan for 10 minutes. Enjoy!

Nutrition

One muffin equals 92 calories, 3g fat, 15g carbohydrate, 1.5g fiber, and 2g protein.

A handful of stevia-sweetened chocolate chips will do the trick, providing that chocolate flavor that you crave without a bunch of sugar. Add some to a blended protein shake, mix into a bowl of oatmeal, or add to grain-free mini muffins.

Ah yes, any day that starts with chocolate is a day that’s bound to be great 🙂

These mini muffins use cooked quinoa in place of traditional flours along with some of those stevia-sweetened chocolate chips. It adds wonderful protein, fiber, complex carbs and a nice texture. Making a big batch of quinoa on the weekend to keep in the fridge makes it quick and easy to use cooked quinoa in your cooking all week long.

And enjoy a bite of chocolate as a healthy start to your day!

Courtesy of RealHealthyRecipes.com

Servings: 48

Here’s what you need

• 1 cup cooked quinoa
• 1 cup blanched almond flour
• ½ cup arrowroot starch
• 1 tablespoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon sea salt
• 1 egg
• ½ cup coconut palm sugar
• 1 (15.66 oz) can coconut milk, canned and full-fat
• ¼ cup coconut oil, melted
• 1 tablespoon vanilla extract
• 1 cup lily’s chocolate chips (stevia sweetened)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and line 48 mini muffin tins with paper liners.
2. Combine the quinoa, almond flour, arrowroot starch, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl and set aside.
3. Combine the egg, coconut sugar, coconut milk, melted coconut oil and vanilla in an- other bowl. Mix well and add the dry ingredients. Mix until fully combined. Fold in the chocolate chips. Pour 1 Tablespoon of batter into each of the 48 mini muffin tins.
4. Bake for 15-18 minutes or until golden and set. Remove from oven and let cool for 5 minutes. Transfer out of muffin pan and cool on wire rack.

Nutritional Analysis

One serving equals: 57 calories, 2g fat, 7g carbohydrate, 1g sugar, 28mg sodium, 3g fiber, and 4g protein.

Breakfast is arguably the most important meal of the day. Not only does this first meal break the fast that your body has been in overnight, it is your first opportunity to influence how the rest of your eating for the day will go. If you choose to eat a sugar-fueled breakfast then chances are high that you’ll continue to make poor food choices for the rest of the day.

These Ham and Chive Egg Muffins are the perfect blend of protein, fiber and flavor to start your day off right. Make a big batch on the weekend to provide days of on-the-go breakfasts for your busy workweek. Enjoy!

Courtesy of RealHealthyRecipes.com

Servings: 12

Here’s what you need

For the Lemon Vinaigrette

• 10 eggs
• 2 Tablespoons coconut cream
• 1 Tablespoon nutritional yeast
• sprinkle of sea salt and black pepper
• 1 cup cooked ham, chopped
• ¼ cup fresh chives, minced
• ¼ cup red bell pepper, chopped

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 12-muffin tin pan with coconut oil.
2. Whisk the eggs, cream, nutritional yeast, sea salt and black pepper in a large bowl. Add in the ham, chives and bell pepper. Divide the egg mixture equally between the 12 muffin tins.
3. Bake in the preheated oven for 12-18 minutes, until set. Remove from the oven and cool before removing the egg muffins from muffin tins. Once fully cooled, store extras in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Enjoy!

Nutritional Analysis

89 calories, 6g fat, 2g carbohydrate, 0g sugar, 268mg sodium, 1g fiber, and 8g protein.