Breakfast!

I feel like a kid at nap-time, waiting patiently for time to pass or for the house to wake up so I can make some noise. Both boys are fast asleep, taking advantage of the last few days this will be possible before classes start again on Monday. I'm hoping to get the kitchen organized today, consolidating dishes and pantry duplicates so we can get rid of the last of the boxes and settle back into having a working kitchen and living room. This involves all kinds of unpacking and moving of cans, dishes, pots and pans, so I'm holding off until some signs of life come out from down the hall.

While I wait, I'm enjoying my usual breakfast - this berry shake. It started off as a before bed snack of a bowl of cottage cheese, yogurt, and a banana. We then added berries to the mix, then it became breakfast. Next was the blending of it into a shake, then the additional ingredients slowly crept in as we began making it more often. This breakfast is now an everyday thing, save for the few days we have eggs or pancakes - will post those later. Its quick, easy, portable, high protein and super filling! Oh, and delicious too. Don't let the cottage cheese scare you - it gets blended and you really can't tell its in there - promise! A lot of the ingredients are optional, and there is plenty of room to play with the flavors.

I forgot the honey in this picture, and the leucine and superfood tubs off to the left aren't included in the recipe. Leucine is a branch-chain amino acid and works to knock the edge off muscle soreness while the superfood is a freeze-dried fruit and vegetable powder chock full of antioxidants.

Berry Shake

1/4c kefir (optional, but really good for you)
1/3c cottage cheese
1/4c vanilla yogurt
1 egg (optional if you're squeamish)
2tbsp coconut milk
1tbsp ground flax
1/3c frozen berries
1 banana
honey to taste

Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until smooth. You can also do this with a stick or imersion blender. Makes one serving.