Eating breakfast in the middle of the day--what could be better? But it's easy to go overboard with delicious choices from the home grill, all-you-can-eat buffet, or those swanky menus. Here's how to help keep your plate under control.
Brunch is now more than a gathering of old ladies in funny hats. This combination of breakfast and lunch has become a busy meal at restaurants, and a favorite for visiting relatives and weekend guests. "People get up late, and enjoy themselves at brunch as a leisurely way to spend a Sunday," says chef Marc Meyer, author of Brunch: 100 Recipes from Five Points Restaurant. "When approaching a menu, brunch can't just be your conventional idea of breakfast—there has to be overlap with lunch." Along with omelets and pancakes, Meyer's brunch menu includes chicken and sandwiches.
Staying in Control
While brunch fare combines two menus, you may be drawn to some items loaded with fat, cholesterol, and many more calories than you need. For example, a ham and cheese omelet from a popular chain restaurant has 800 milligrams (mg) of cholesterol (that's 2 2/3 times the Daily Value), and much of its 750-plus calories are from fat. For pancakes from another chain, the news is better. They have 420 calories but can be high in sodium--and that's without the extras like syrup or bacon. "Go easy on real, whole eggs," says Elisa Zied, MS, RD, spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association and author of
So What Can I Eat?! "Limit yourself to one or two eggs at a time or request egg whites or a reduced-cholesterol egg substitute, if available." If you want to have an egg dish, choose one full of veggies, such as spinach, asparagus, broccoli, and tomatoes, instead of cheesy, saucy eggs Benedict. "Resist the temptation to pile extras on waffles and pancakes such as butter, whipped cream, and syrup."
To help guide you through the brunch buffets and menus, Zied shares her five favorite brunch choices:
Whole wheat pancakes or waffles topped with fresh fruit. You can reap the benefits of the nutrients vitamin C and riboflavin.
Skim or 1% milk. Changing from whole to even 1% milk can save you more than half the saturated fat and you still get the calcium benefit.
Low-fat yogurt topped with fresh fruit. Opting for low-fat versions will reduce the amount of fat by about 50%. Fresh berries or peaches are a colorful addition and have fiber and nutrients.
Egg-white omelet loaded with vegetables (and even one slice of cheese). Egg whites or reduced-cholesterol egg substitutes can knock down the cholesterol tremendously. The veggies add fiber, vitamins and minerals.
Oatmeal with dried fruit. Made with whole grain, this fiber-filled option has the soluble fiber from oats and insoluble fiber from dried fruits such as raisins, cut-up dried apricots, or dried cherries.
