Mighty Bowls: Healthy Breakfast for $2 or Less

From apple spice oats to mango quinoa, these recipe ideas will start your day (and your year) off on the right foot and keep your energy level high all morning…for as little as $2 per serving.

In my household, breakfast is a prerequisite for a good start to the day.

In order to streamline the process of getting breakfast on the table, we adopted a weekly breakfast schedule.

Oatmeal. Eggs and toast. Bagels. Yogurt and toast. Cereal. Repeat.

It's not that these dishes are particularly exciting – they're not, are they? But they're fast recipes, and the ingredients are handy and inexpensive. Admittedly, it's time to jazz up our breakfast routine.

We want tasty recipes that are easy on the wallet and the waistline. So when I recently stumbled across these hearty healthy recipes that match my family's needs and my pantry's contents, I was thrilled.

Mighty Bowls of Goodness, tasty recipe suggestions from our Health Starts Here opens in a new tab program, are filled with nutritious foods and cost less than $2 a bowl for breakfast.

The recipe is easy: grain (such as quinoa, brown rice, rolled oats or millet) + cooking liquid (move beyond water with almond milk, soy milk, hemp milk or coconut milk) + fresh or dried fruit (like apples, cranberries, bananas) + topping (try spices, seeds and nuts).

From apple spice oats to mango quinoa, there are weeks full of healthy breakfast options to fill you up without emptying your wallet. If you're looking to add nutrition, flavor and convenience to your morning routine without added costs, try these Mighty Bowls of Goodness breakfast combinations:

Almond Rice

1 cup brown rice cooked in 2 cups almond milk. Top with a sliced banana, an ounce of chopped raw almonds and a chopped date or two to sweeten.

Strawberry Sesame Millet

1 cup millet cooked in 2 cups soy milk. Add some honey and frozen sliced strawberries at the end of cooking. Top with toasted sesame seeds and a dash of cinnamon.

Spiced Apple Oats

1 cup rolled oats cooked in 2 cups almond milk. Mix in a shredded apple and nutmeg. Top with slivered almonds.

Mango Quinoa

1 cup quinoa cooked in 1 cup water, 1 cup coconut milk. Stir in ¼ bag frozen mango at the end of cooking. Toss in diced dried apricots, a sprinkle of dried coconut and a dash of vanilla extract.

Banana Cinnamon Quinoa

1 cup quinoa cooked in two parts hemp milk. Top with banana, raisins, cinnamon and pumpkin seeds.

Warming Wheat Berries:

1 cup wheat berries cooked in 2 cups water. Stir in some allspice and dried cranberries. Top with toasted pumpkin seeds.

The breakfast possibilities for Mighty Bowls of Goodness don't stop there, of course. What's already in your pantry, fridge and freezer? Oh, I spy pecans and frozen blueberries. I guarantee my family's breakfast routine is about to get much tastier!

Have you cooked up your own Mighty Bowl of Goodness recipe for breakfast yet? If so, we'd love to hear how you are warming up your morning without burning a hole in your wallet.

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