Breakfast is considered the most important meal of the day. Your mother knew this long before health enthusiasts began promoting fancy breakfast foods and beverages on television. Your great-great-grandma even realized the importance of a hearty breakfast back during the days when meals were prepared on a wood-burning stove.

Why is breakfast so important?

After sleeping for several hours, the body needs to "break the fast." Eating breakfast provides the body with the energy necessary to accomplish mental and physical tasks.

"Breakfast actually fuels the body with energy and nutrients," said Heather Forsythe, registered dietitian and clinical nutrition manager at the Regional Medical Center in Orangeburg. "If you don't have anything to eat for breakfast, your body doesn't have anything to run off of. If you don't eat, you tend to feel more sluggish."

Forsythe said breakfast eaters also score higher on tests than noneaters -- just one more reason to send the little ones off with full tummies.

And eating breakfast may help you lose weight by curbing overeating later in the day. In fact, Forsythe said breakfast skippers may never make up for the nutrients they miss in the morning.

Great-great-grandma's typical breakfasts included grits, buttermilk biscuits and gravy, homemade sausage, fried salt pork or smoked bacon or ham and creamy scrambled eggs. She enjoyed making breakfasts that would "stick to your ribs," such as blueberry flap jacks drizzled with homemade cane syrup and jumbo biscuits that could be "sopped" in a blend of heavy cream and syrup.

In today's society, many people rely on cereal or granola bars for that first all-important meal of the day, or fast foods, such as biscuits and breakfast wraps, as they commute. Most quick-grab foods don't provide enough vitamin C and D, calcium, iron or fiber -- the essentials for a balanced, healthy diet. And, sometimes, eating the same foods repeatedly can result in the "breakfast blahs."

If quick-grab foods are your only option, Forsythe said some ready-to-eat cereals can give you that much-needed nutritional boost in the mornings, including Total, Raisin Bran and Cheerios. Also, toasted whole grain bagels or bread with low-fat cream cheese or peanut butter make for a healthy beginning to the day, as does fruit-spiked yogurt with granola or whole grain pancakes.

Many fruits are plentiful during the summer, making it easy to eat a nutritious, delicious breakfast your grandma would be proud to serve.

Get a head-start the night before by preparing foods, such as hard-boiled eggs and muffins, which can be heated in the microwave before serving. Store them in the refrigerator along with slices of watermelon and cantaloupe. Add slices of low-fat cheese and other fruits, like kiwi and strawberries, for a satisfying breakfast platter.

Breakfast smoothies are another way to enjoy fresh or frozen fruit for breakfast. The following recipes will get you started.



Almond Muffins



1 cup all-purpose flour

1-1/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup sugar

1 egg, beaten

1/2 cup sour cream

1/4 cup margarine, melted

1/4 teaspoon almond extract

1/3 cup flaked coconut

1/3 cup miniature semi-sweet chocolate chips

1/4 cup sliced almonds

1 tablespoon sugar

Grease muffin cups and set aside. In a medium bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt. Stir in 1/2 cup sugar. Set aside.

In a separate bowl, melt margarine in the microwave. Add egg, sour cream and almond extract to margarine and stir.

Add the margarine mixture to the flour and stir just until moistened. Fold in the coconut and chocolate chips. Fill muffin cups two-thirds full. Sprinkle almonds on top of batter. Sprinkle the 1 tablespoon of sugar evenly over muffin batter.

Bake at 350 degrees Fahrenheit for 18 to 20 minutes. Cool for 5 minutes before removing muffins from pan. Serve warm. Makes approximately 10 muffins.



Strawberry Smoothie



3 cups sliced, fresh strawberries

1/4 cup sugar

2 cups plain yogurt

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 cup reduced-fat milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

Place strawberries in a bowl, and toss with sugar. Put strawberry/sugar mixture and remaining ingredients in a blender container. Blend until smooth. Serve in chilled glasses. Makes 4 cups.

T&D Staff Writer Sonja Gleaton can be reached by e-mail at sgleaton@timesanddemocrat.com or by telephone at 803-533-5540. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

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