This morning I had a piping hot bowl of butternut squash soup for breakfast and I loved it.

A little atypical perhaps, but delicious all the same, not to mention super healthy (and even better, I used locally grown squash from the farmers’ market).

Why soup for breakfast, you may ask? Well as the weather cools off, I’m a big fan of warming foods. Part of it is that I’m always cold once falls comes here in Connecticut. I swear it feels like my feet get cold in October and don’t warm up again until April! And part of it is that I feel more satisfied with warmer foods during cooler months. I love the heaviness and how it makes me feel full.

And who says that breakfast always has to look like breakfast anyway?

Just last week you probably saw my blog post about getting away from sugary cereals and eating something more substantial. And that can mean diverging from the typical bacon, eggs or cold cereal routine that can get old quick.  Think about some of the benefits I got from eating soup for breakfast:

• Low in calories
• Ate my first serving of vegetables before 9 am.
• Reaped the benefit of important nutrients like beta-carotene
• Ate something low-fat and heart healthy
• Much less expensive than boxed breakfast cereals with an outrageous mark up

Not bad for first thing in the morning, it’s healthy and supports my pocketbook! Plus, it’s a great start to the day and supports a healthy lifestyle that many of us are trying to create and sustain.

Do you ever eat soup for breakfast or something else that’s an atypical breakfast food? What’s your favorite non-traditional breakfast. Do tell!

Filed under: Breakfast, Food, Healthy Meals, Healthy lifestyle, Meal Planning, Nutrition, Optimal Health, Vegetables