Today's Breakfast

More often than not, I feel better if I have something with a lot of carbohydrates for breakfast. I've tried oatmeal, and it gives me an upset stomach. I've had yogurt and fruit, and they leave me starving in under two hours. Having a whole grain piece of toast or quick bread does a much better job of tiding me over for about 3-4 hours until I can have an early snack (usually some fruit or vegetable-based soup) or lunch. I know that this doesn't work very well for many people, but my body chemistry just likes having something with a lot of carbs in the morning.

In my limited repertoire of sugar-free, whole grain quick breads, this is actually my favorite. It's immensely flavorful and full of fruit. I can have it either plain or toasted, though I rather like it toasted for the crispy edges and the added fat of the spread improves satiety.

Blueberry bread:

• 3/4 cup unsweetened applesauce (79 calories)
• 1 medium egg (63 calories)
• 1/2 cup plain yogurt (77 calories)
• 2 tbsp. lemon juice (5 calories)
• 1 tbsp. vegetable oil (120 calories)
• 1 1/2 cups regular (not pastry) whole wheat flour (742 calories)
• 1 cup granular Splenda
• 1 tbsp. baking powder (15 calories)
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 1/2 cups unsweetened frozen blueberries (119 calories)

Total for entire loaf: 1220 calories

Whisk the applesauce, yogurt, egg, oil, lemon juice, salt and Splenda together until thoroughly mixed. Add the whole wheat flour and gently moisten it by pressing it down into the liquid with a spoon. Do not overmix it or the bread will be tough. Allow the flour to rest for 30 minutes and absorb moisture. While the dough is resting, spray a loaf pan with baking spray (or grease and flour it). After the 30 minutes is up, preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Sprinkle the baking powder over the flour and mix it well, but only as much as necessary to incorporate it. Gently fold in the frozen blueberries. You want to add the blueberries at the last minute so the bread doesn't turn purple from thawing juices. Bake for 45-60 minutes until a tester comes out without any unbaked batter. There may be blueberry juice on the skewer so it won't come out dry.

In this recipe, one could conceivably leave out the Splenda and just make this as an actual fruit bread, though obviously it wouldn't be very sweet. If you try it as toast, it would certainly work without the Splenda.

tea with skim milk and Splenda = 5 calories
blueberry bread (1/8 of loaf) = 152 calories
total: 157 calories