Let me start by saying I love breakfast. And you should too.

Depending on where the day may take you, it could be the only time you’ll have total control over what you’re eating.

But why limit yourself to traditional breakfast fare when there’s so much more to start the day with?

Now fellow blogger Sebrina, obviously feels the same way. Her post “Would you eat salad for breakfast?” is exactly what I’m talking about.

And Sebrina’s salad idea is a great one.

But I want to take that idea a step further, into the land of what your family and friends might call “weird.” But follow along with me here, because these “weird” or “crazy” breakfast ideas won’t seem so strange once you give them a try:

• The peanut butter and blueberry breakfast sandwich. Easy to make, gives you the benefit of fruit and whole grains, and, hey, who doesn’t like peanut butter in the morning?
  (But be sure and use a good quality whole wheat or multi-grain bread, and to keep the blueberries from rolling off, squish them down with your palm onto the peanut-buttered bread.)
• Soup – yes, soup. In cooler weather there’s nothing wrong with a nice bowl of soup for breakfast. And if you’re a bread lover, a delicious piece of toasted or warmed bread goes along great with it.
• Leftovers from last night’s dinner –unless it’s cold pizza! Trust me, there’s no law saying that dinner leftovers are only for the next day’s dinner. What you ate the night before can make a quick and nutritious breakfast.
• Beans, most any kind, can make for a great breakfast meal. My favorites are Mexican-style bean breakfasts such as a bean burrito, beans in a taco or the more traditional huevo ranchero. That’s a delicious dish of fried eggs and avocado over salsa and refried or black beans, served up on a corn tortilla.
• Potatoes — and I’m not just talking about the traditional breakfast home fries. If you have leftover mashed potatoes from the night before, heat them up and serve with some scrambled eggs.
• Cold quinoa and some veggies tossed with olive oil. While you might not care for cold rice (although I think it’s quite tasty), quinoa is quite different and very delicious cold.
• Hummus. Your basic hummus is made from “whipped” chickpeas, lime juice, garlic and lots of tahini, which is another way of saying ground sesame seeds. It’s easy to make yourself, and there are lots of ready-to-eat organic varieties in the supermarket these days. Hummus can be served on most any kind of bread, cracker or even as a veggie dip. It’s my absolute favorite “alternative” breakfast idea!
• Any kind of sandwich. Why eat junk for breakfast and save the good stuff for lunch? I often have a cheese, tuna or salmon sandwich with peppers and veggies for breakfast.

Think about it – why make the most important meal of the day out of foods that need to be fortified with fake vitamins and minerals (like cereal), when you can have all those nutrients in their natural form, just as nature intended.