Truly Satisfying Low Calorie Breakfast

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By livelonger


So here's the deal. Breakfast has a few important functions for me:

  1. Stave off hunger until lunch.
  2. Not be high-calorie (I have an office job, and have to lose weight)
  3. Should be high in protein (to fulfill #1 above) and relatively low in carbs and "bad fats"
  4. Not taste like paste, cement, pulp or any other industrially produced garbage that are routinely offered as alternatives nowadays. If it can actually taste good, that's an extra plus.

I have my "longevity smoothie" 2-3 mornings per week, but I'm always looking for a little variety. I'm not really into scones or muffins, especially having read recently that they're basically baked heart attacks.

My experiment

Here's what I came up with:

4 cheese and salsa breakfast burritos

Sound like it's going to overwhelm in terms of fat, calories and bad carbs, right? Not necessarily...




I've tried the green onion flavor (one on the left)
I've tried the green onion flavor (one on the left)

Low-carb tortillas - the foundation

I start off with La Tortilla's low-carb tortillas. They're slightly spongy (not doughy or chewy like regular tortillas) but they're actually not that bad--not the plasticky, rubbery garbage you'd expect them to be. And they're actually nutritious. Each one has:

  • 50 calories
  • 5g protein
  • 8g dietary fiber
  • 3g digestible carbs (no sugars)
  • 2g healthy (polyunsaturated & monounsaturated) fats

Cost: $3.09 for a package of 10 at Farmer Joe's in Oakland.


Fat-free cheese

Then I add a slice and half of Kraft Free Singles to each burrito. That's 6 of these guys. Probably because of the lack of fat, they're not waxy/oily and kinda rubbery, but especially when heated in the microwave, they're not bad either. They actually melt. The nutrition profile for these is not bad, either (per slice):

  • 30 calories
  • 4g protein
  • 2g carbs (1g sugar)
  • no fiber, naturally

Cost: $2.29 for a package of 24


Fresh salsa

I personally like Casa Sanchez's Medium Roja salsa. It has roasted tomatoes for that smoky flavor, and has enough cilantro and onions to make it really flavorful. The only downside is that, especially after microwaving it, it generates a lot of "juice", so you have to drain your burrito before it becomes manageable enough to eat (otherwise, consider wearing a bib). Nutrition information for a half-cup (enough for all 4 burritos):

  • 50 calories
  • 12g carbs (3g sugar)
  • no protein
  • no fat
  • plenty of lycopene from the tomatoes and quercetin from the onions

Cost: $3.99 for 4 1/2 cup servings

Nuke them for a minute and what do you got?

Here's the nutrition profile:

  • Calories: 430
  • Protein: 48g
  • Carbs: 36g
  • Fat: 8g

Cost: $2.81 (add another nickel for the microwave's electricity)

Admittedly pretty high in sodium, though... like just about every savory packaged food these days.

Compare to:

Starbucks Blueberry Muffin

  • Calories: 520
  • Protein: 7g
  • Carbs: 57g
  • Fat: 31g

(oh, yes -- don't believe me?)

How about the Grande (that's their medium) Mocha Frappuccino

  • Calories: 420
  • Protein: 6g
  • Carbs: 61g (51g sugar)
  • Fat: 16g (10g saturated)

(nutrition information)

Granted, the 4 breakfast burritos aren't liquid candy, but that's also why they'll probably keep you full longer. Also, their high protein content will reduce a relatively higher proportion of the number of calories available after digestion due to the Thermic Effect of Foods

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Webber profile image

Webber  says:
2 years ago

I've been in a cereal rut. I'll give it a try. Thanks for the healthy breakfast recipe.

nickswife2004  says:
2 years ago

This recipe sounds delicious! Thanks for the tips!

Iðunn profile image

Iðunn  says:
2 years ago

the hot sauce is a good touch. oddly, I've found that eating hot sauce actually curbs appetite. possibly this is because it setz off my ulcer, though. :p

gredmondson profile image

gredmondson  says:
2 years ago

Livelonger, a breakfast I devised when I was losing weight (and still like) is some (maybe 1 cup) of defrosted Three Beries (Costco) sprinkled with 1 1/2 teaspoons of sugar and 1/2 cup cottage cheese (whatever Costco has). This along with coffee will keep me well past lunch time. Hey, I'll put it in a Hub!

livelonger profile image

livelonger  says:
2 years ago

I think it's a great idea. I personally like frozen berries, esp since they're much more inexpensive than fresh.

wrong  says:
18 months ago

You need some sort of protein in your burrito to keep you fuller for longer. Try adding egg whites.

livelonger profile image

livelonger  says:
17 months ago

Umm....the burritos have 48 grams of protein. That's a lot.

Guru-C profile image

Guru-C  says:
14 months ago

This seems very satisfying, Livelonger!

Patty Inglish, MS profile image

Patty Inglish, MS  says:
11 months ago

This sounds like a good receipe. I usually eat fruit for breakfast, but this would be a nice change and I love salsa. Your smoothie recipe looks wonderful as well. Thanks very much for sharing.

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