Pea Mail: Winging It, Breakfast Edition
Here’s your next edition of Pea Mail, with a great question from a reader about what we eat on days when Lulu decides to pull the stopper up in the bathroom sink with the water running, grab a plastic spoon and ladle tap water all over the sink, floor and mirror (that was Saturday).
Hey Mama Pea,
Love your blog! You make so many wonderful recipes and I was wondering if you plan them all out or if some days you just wing it. Which also leads me to wonder what ingredients you keep on hand at all times for the “winging it” days. Could you maybe do a post on the essential items?Please and thank you,Jessica
So you are not buying that every day I’m whipping up Whole Wheat Banana Waffles for breakfast, Tofu Ricotta Gnocchi for lunch, and Seitan Lettuce Wraps for dinner?
How good of a day would that be? That would definitely not be a day that Lulu grabbed a bar of soap and wrote all over Gigi’s bedroom window with it (that would also be Saturday…I was in the shower for exactly 3 1/2 minutes). 
So in this series of posts, I’m going to show you what we go to on those days when we don’t have time to plan out elaborate meals, shower or actually remove yesterday’s mascara before putting on another coat.
Today’s post: BREAKFAST
Gigi and I went through our refrigerator, freezer and cupboards and pulled out our breakfast basics. It was quite a lot of fun. Putting it all away? Not so much. 
Here we have representatives from each of the following categories:
*Frozen fruit: strawberries, mango, pineapple, cherries, raspberries, bananas. We keep a variety on hand to throw into smoothies, popsicles and “ice cream.”
*Fresh fruit: bananas, strawberries, apples, blueberries, oranges, mango, pineapple. The produce drawer is stocked for slicing atop cold cereal, oatmeal, soy yogurt or just eating on it’s own with a sprinkle of cinnamon or spoonful of nut butter.
*Hot cereal: old-fashioned oats, oat bran, steel cut oats, Bob’s Red Mill Mighty Tasty Hot Cereal. I generally rely on just plain old oats or oat bran on a rushed morning, for Chocolate Peanut Butter Oats or Pumpkin Oat Bran. If we have a little more time, I’ll make a pot of the steel cut oats or hot cereal on the stove top, and we always have fresh fruit and nut butters for toppings
*Non-dairy products: organic soy milk, almond milk, coconut milk creamer, soy yogurt, coconut milk yogurt. I use the soy and almond milks in smoothies, on cold cereal and in hot cereal. Lulu also drinks it straight-up. She’s hard core like that. The coconut milk creamer is for decaf coffee and teas, though I resist the urge to drink it straight from the carton. The girls enjoy soy or coconut milk yogurt with fresh fruit or in Fruit-in-the Bottom Yogurt. 
*Bready Things: (that’s a technical term) leftover pancakes, leftover waffles, Kashi Go Lean waffles or other whole grain varieties, whole grain English muffins, breads and bagels. When I have widow pancakes and waffles from weekend batches, I’ll stick them in a Evolve Ziploc bag and toss them in the freezer. Then we just pop them in the toaster and top them with Earth Balance or nut butter and maple syrup. The girls also like a toasted whole grain cinnamon raisin English muffin topped with Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese or Earth Balance, or toast with Earth Balance and Simply Fruit jam. 
*Cold Cereal: Kashi Go Lean, Cheerios, granola, etc. We top ours with non-dairy milk and fresh fruit. The girls love Cheerios with blueberries and bananas. I also often throw some Kashi Go Lean in a bag with some nuts and dried fruit and take it with me out the door.
*Protein Powders: Sun Warrior Rice Protein, Jay Robb Rice Protein, Nutribiotic Rice Protein, Olympian Labs Pea Protein. I use these more than anyone else in the family, in smoothies, oats or pancakes, but sometimes I’ll throw a spoonful of one or the other in a community smoothie. I’m a giver. 
Extras: Earth Balance, maple syrup/agave blend, Tofutti Better Than Cream Cheese, Simply Fruit jam, unsweetened coconut, sunflower seeds, flax seeds, chia seeds, nut butters (almond, peanut, flavored peanut butters), nuts (almonds, pecans, walnuts, pistachios), dried fruits (raisins, apricots, cranberries, apples). I’ll throw seeds, nuts or coconut on top of hot cereal or blend them in smoothies. The dried fruits are great for making makeshift snack mixes with cold cereal and nuts.
That IS peanut butter. She can’t be left alone with a jar.
Gigi was like a kid in a candy store with this spread.
We winged it this morning with a tropical smoothie and a leftover pancake. 
Mango Sunrise Smoothie
Makes 2 large servings
- 1 1/2 c. non-dairy milk
- 1/2 c. orange juice
- 1 c. frozen strawberries
- 1 c. frozen pineapple
- 1 c. frozen mango
- 1/2 c. ice
- protein powder, if desired
- 1/2 t. xanthan gum
- stevia to taste
Add ingredients to a blender and blend (you got that?).
Add as much sweetener and milk as needed to reach desired consistency and sweetness. 
Not bad for a five-minute breakfast.
I’d have sat and enjoyed it as well, but I had to dig out the Play Doh that was stuffed into the toothbrush holder in those five minutes. I need to buy a padlock for the bathroom. 
That IS more peanut butter on her hands. I’m planning an intervention.
***Keep the questions coming if you enjoy these posts. I’ll do a Lunch Edition soon and make sure you check out the Pea Mail: Vegan To Go post, if you missed it the first time around!
mama pea! didn’t you have comments on this post before? coulda sworn ya did.
oh well…
i tend to wing it for every “meal”…i’m a go with the flow, kind of eat what i feel like, snacky, grazer.
that being said…i could eat a sweet potato every day and be happy!
Yes! My blog deleted my old post spontaneously (?!?) so I had to reconstruct it. Sorry
Me likes this post a lot Mama Pea! Breakfast is my favorite food and, even though I am not a vegan or vegetarian, hearing your staples is super helpful! It reminds me I haven’t had toast in a while, I’ll have to get on that!
Mama Pea,
Why am I so slow? I can’t seem to find your contact information. I’ve had a question brewing for weeks and this post sparked me to contact you!
For the record I can’t find my keys when they’re staring at me in the face, so please feel free to make fun of me when you direct me to a very obvious place.
can i get me some of those waffles to go with that smoothie. thanks
Maura- look on the right hand side of the page- still in the white area as you scroll down you will see it. It has a lime green header that says contact me and it is right under a picture of Mama Pea. hope that helps you!
I would definitely agree with your b’fast essentials – you can find most of that in my kitchen too, though scaled down for a family of moi. Ok so maybe my kitchen doesn’t look that much different…
Your post today reminded me of a constant dilemma. How do you fit a week’s worth of produce in your fridge? I only go to the grocery store once a week and so my fridge get quit packed. I feel like every week is a game of refrigerator Tetras.
Thank-you for sharing this! It is super helpful to me. I am a huge fan of your recipes and am in constant awe of your mad mommy skillz!
did you republish this? i know i am not a lunatic and commented last night, but it popped up in my reader again! oh well, i love you times two.
i’m not vegan (or even vegetarian for that matter) but i’ve been wanting to eat several vegan meals a week, and this is great for me to get some ideas of things to have on hand for those meals! thanks mama pea
your a superhero!
Seeing as I could eat breakfast for every meal of the day, you just filled up my entire week with ideas
It’s nice to see the variety of things you have on hand for quick, easy things to put together and also the fact they can serve as staples in more elaborate cooking. Thanks for sharing!
And, even without creating recipes breakfast, lunch, dinner every day you are still a supermom. Heck, dealing with kids’ bathroom adventures make all of us supermoms.
Great post!!! Everything looks so yummy, your making me want waffles, smoothies right now!! Thank goodness it’s getting close to dinner time!!
I love pea mail! Keep it coming! Thanks for sharing what you do for quick meals, it shows that even when time is an issue you don’t have to sacrifice, taste or health!
mmm love the smoothie!! so thick and delicious!! maybe ill make one for dessert
love your quick ideas and also making waffles/pancakes and putting them in a ziplock baggie for later!!
You are a better mom than me. I have been guilty of donut runs on mornings when Conner decides to make it “snow” in the kitchen with flour.
This is awesome – can’t wait for your lunch version!
Your littles are absolutely adorable!! And I’m super jealous of your vitamix : )
Sweet–a smoothie combo I have yet to try. It appears that we have similar breakfast goods on hand, so I might just have to make this ASAP.
haha “she’s hardcore like that.” hahahaha. Your writing skills are awesome.
I need to branch out on my breakfast making skills obviously.
Great Post, MP!
Skylar is a high raw vegan til about 4pm. Raw fruits and vegs, raw nut ball/dates treats, a little of this and that. Raw softserve. Whatever I’ve got going on she gets.
I dont have any of the breadlike things here, going GF for me…well, I never buy bread. I do however buy more brock and pears and apples than is conceiveable!
And I confess that I made Scott banana ice cream at 9am today with 2-3 oz of coffee in it, too. And Skylar had some. And wanted more. She’s a chip off the old block with the coffee
I cant believe I am writing this!
This post was so fun! Your daughters are seriously the luckiest girls alive. I know they may forget to thank you–but they appreciate those delicious, home-made smoothies and pancakes more than you’d ever know! I promise
I never thanked my mom enough, but now that i’m older I do remember how sweet her efforts were when I was younger–always running around and in need of delicious fuel. I do thank her now though, so we’re good!!
Anddd I need to make that mango sunrise smoothie…stat! xoxoxo
I noticed in one picture that you have the Eat-Clean Diet book. I bought this for my cousins a couple of years ago and they love it, and I am somewhat addicted to Eating Clean magazine, but I find their meals are generally NOT vegan-friendly and are rarely vegetarian friendly. Do you find there is enough in that book that you can use to make it worth the purchase price? Am I just not using my imagination enough? Sometimes I get tired of figuring out how much tofu/tempeh/seitan/beans = a serving of clean, lean meat.
Hey Natalie. I’ve had that cookbook for about five years, and while I sometimes veganize a few of the baked goods/desserts, I don’t really think it’d be worth purchasing for you. I wouldn’t buy it again with the lifestyle I have now. I think someone needs to come up with a veg-friendly clean eating/fitness cookbook! I was pretty exasperated when I saw Jillian’s Master Your Metabolism cookbook is packed full of animal products when she herself is nearly vegan!