We all know to start the day with something in our bellies. Whether it be savory, sweet, or keeping it healthy, some protein, carbs, and fiber can only help your daily start. Breakfast kick-starts your metabolism, enabling better focus and energy. Studies show that breakfast early upon awaking leads to better health. Still, bacon and cheese omelets aren’t recommended seven days a week…Here is a look into all that breakfast offers. Starting with the tastiest: All the good, (But maybe bad for you in the long run...) Donuts! So delicious. So many, many options. This fried dough of delight from the Dutch (olykoek, or “oily cakes”) have graced North America most likely earlier than 1809. Rings, cake, yeast, holes, bars, and crullers, with all the fillings and toppings make opening that pink box a salivating experience, bringing one back to their childhood. An easy homemade recipe is: INGREDIENTS 2 cups sifted AP flour ½ teaspoon baking soda ¼ teaspoon table salt 2 tablespoons Crisco (or other shortening) 3/8 cups of milk ½ white sugar ½ teaspoon vanilla extract 1 egg (Beaten) 1 tablespoon white vinegar Confectioners’ sugar for dusting 1 quart of oil for deep frying Create a “Buttermilk” by adding the vinegar to the milk 1st. Let stand and thicken for 10 minutes. In a medium bowl (The Brown stainless steel 1.5 qt is only $2.60!), fold the shortening and and sugar until blended. Now, beat in that egg, and add the vanilla. Sift all remaining dry ingredients, adding the “Buttermilk” bit by bit. Once it is a nice dough, roll it down to a 1/3 of an inch. Let rise with resting ten minutes. Heat the oil at 375 degrees. Cut doughnuts with a glass, or into anything you want. Simply fry on each side once until golden brown. Drain on a paper towel and sift some confectioners’ sugar all over that golden brown and delicious puck of tastiness! Add or stuff with whatever your heart desires. It is your own donut creation after all! Along with donuts, we have our croissants, Danishes, macarons, strudels, and tarts to name but a few that folks enjoy at the breakfast hour. French toast, pancakes, and waffles can also be included this assemblage. All that are sweet and scrumptious! Today, sweet with savory are becoming a fan favorite. Bacon adorns donuts almost more than frosting itself now-a-days. Many in society love their eggs. Eggs are awesome! Poached, boiled, scrambled and fried are all the standard norms. Yet eggs are capable of multi-tasking in many a dish. Peameal bacon, bacon, or anything closely named, or resembling, that porky goodness is a continuously desired and chosen product for the before lunch crowd. Adding eggs only enhances the situation. Whichever form of ham, or bacon you desire, Eggs Benedict is one of the most sophisticated A.M. plates an individual can order (or make at home). INGREDIENTS 2 eggs 1 cup of milk 2 stick of butter A Hollandaise sauce packet from the market Strips of bacon, or slices of peameal bacon or ham Sliced avocado and tomato English muffins A tablespoon of white vinegar Make the Hollandaise according to the package. Typically, it is mixing the packet with the milk. Heat and add the butter, let it all melt and come to a bit of a boil under constant stirring. Easy stuff and cheap. Hollandaise can be made under a double boiling technique with eggs and butter. The packet is usually under $2 and works. Add a drop of lemon, a dash of pepper, your favorite poultry season, or hot sauce to make it “your own” Hollandaise recipe. To Poach eggs, the Anolon Tri-Ply Stainless Steel 5QT Covered Sauté Pan with Helper Handle  works wonderfully. Fill with water until ¾’s full. Add the tablespoon of vinegar. Bring to a slow roll boil. This method has few bubbles on the simmer. An aggressive boil destroys the eggs. Crack eggs in the water. Leave them alone for a minute. At this point, a spatula can be used to gently lift eggs from the bottom of the pan if sticking occurs. With the spatula, (Port-Style - Kitchen Basics Blue Silicone Spatula - KGB16362 at $8.49 is quite the value!) slowly and gently push water over the tops of the eggs. This aids in overall cooking. Your breakfast meat should be warm. Your English muffins should be nicely toasted. Using the Cuisinart - Metal Classic 4-Slice Toaster ensures a perfectly crusted muffin. Mash avocado on each muffin. Place your tomato slice on secondly. Add your choice of protein. Softly place your poached egg on top, guaranteeing not to break that yolk. Now, drizzle as much Hollandaise as you wish. Grab a serrated knife and fork. Add a sprinkle of paprika and pepper to class up the look of the dish. Eat up! The omelets, hash browns, biscuits n’ gravy, breakfast burritos, and let’s never forget breakfast sausages all are excellent choices to commence the day. Sweet and savory collide beautifully when bacon or sausage meets pancakes’ syrup. The endless combinations with endless ingredients promise a tough decision when going out for, or making, breakfast. Sweet and savory are all fine and dandy for some, but many prefer to gain an advantage on their day and diet by maintaining a healthier approach to the morning meal. Fruits, grains, veggies, and egg whites are uppermost on the list of nourishing provisions. Turkey bacon and sausage have the health advantage over their counterparts, so some studies say. An easy healthy idea is Avocado Toast. Popular in Australia, now most Countries, avocados offer fiber and are high in monounsaturated fats. INGREDIENTS A Loaf of Whole Grain Bread An Avocado Olive Oil (To drizzle) Salt & Pepper Additional toppings can include: Sliced Boiled Egg Sliced Red Onion Sliced Tomato Lox Whole Gain bread indicates that the grain is still intact. Whole wheat is an exceptional example of fiber. Fiber equals a healthy start for your own engine: Your digestive tract. Toasting quality whole grain bread, adding mashed Avo with a dash of sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, a drizzle of EVOO, accompanied by any wholesome add-ons, confirm a positive jump-start to the morn’. Fruits with additional nutrients and supplements have become popular over the last quarter century. Anything still around over 25 years, with healthy claims, and tastes great can’t be wrong! Coconut oils add the good fat to your diet. While hydrolyzed collagen add a nutritional protein over animal protein. Acai adds the antioxidants. Chia gives you omegas for brain power. So many combinations of nutrients, supplements, fruits, veggies, nuts, and seeds to promote proper health. For under $100, the Cuisinart - 15pc 350-Watt Compact Blender Brushed S/S - CPB300C  is perfect for the on-the-go, health minded, smoothie lover! INGREDIENTS ½ Cup Cranberry Juice (Fresh) ¼ cup plain low-fat yogurt ½ cup fresh berries of your choice (Freeze for 3 hours prior) ½ tsp lemon juice (Fresh squeezed) 1 Tbsp ground flax seed 3 mint leaves (Torn) Blend in your Cuisinart. Bring with you and enjoy your quick, healthy breakfast. These are but a few ideas for the wake-up meal from the good for your health to the gluttonous. As with anything in life, enjoy in moderation, eat all three occasionally, in conjunction with fruits, veggies, and exercise, and life hopefully will have more fun than sadness.