A Dairy Good Way to Start Your Day

By Sarah Correll

Did you know that diets that provide 3 servings of dairy a day can actually increase bone mass? Or that dairy product provide potassium, which helps maintain healthy blood pressure? How about that regularly eating three servings a day of dairy is associated with reduced risk of heart disease and type 2 diabetes? Get a jumpstart on your health with this dairy breakfast inspiration!

Oatmeal Cottage Cheese Pancakes

A sneaky way to include dairy in your diet.

Greek Breakfast Pockets

Feta, spinach, mushrooms, and sausage combine in a non-traditional breakfast treat.

Peaches and Cream French Toast from Two Maids a Milking

On the sweeter side of life.

If all else fails, grab a yogurt cup, cereal with milk, or a simple glass of milk on your way out the door.

Heating Up the Most Important Meal of the Day

By Sarah Correll

According to the Mayo Clinic, eating a healthy breakfast can help us eat more vitamins and minerals, control our weight, and have better concentration and productivity through the morning. Luckily for us, it’s also National Hot Breakfast Month, and our friends at the Real Farmwives of America have some great recipes to share!

Homemade Pancakes

Serve your family a homemade classic with this recipe from Liz at Two Maids a Milking.

Slow Cooker Irish Oatmeal

MaryBeth from Alarm Clock Wars shares a versatile oatmeal recipe.

Crock Pot Blueberry French Toast Casserole

Prep the night before for a delicious breakfast with this recipe from Amy at A Latte with Ott, A.

Pull-Apart Cinnamon Caramel Bread

If you have a sweet tooth, this recipe from Leah at Beyer Beware is for you!

Breakfast Pizza

Cris from Goodeness Gracious shares a recipe with under 300 calories per slice!

Some Like It Hot!

It’s February, and we all know what that means.  No, not the Superbowl.  Not Valentine’s Day.  It’s National Hot Breakfast Month!  Breakfast has been cited as the most important meal of the day, and to celebrate it, below are links to recipes you could whip up for tomorrow's breakfast-- all from some of our favorite blogs.

Crock Pot Blueberry French Toast Casserole from A Latte with Ott, A

Lighter-than-Air Potato Rolls from Two Maids a Milking

Quick Breakfast Tacos from the Wife of a Dairy Man

Breakfast Crescent Roll Ring Bake from A Latte with Ott, A

Breakfast Freezer Burritos from GOODEness Gracious

Brown Sugar Baked Oatmeal from Pinke Post

That’s six recipes to get National Hot Breakfast Month started!  

Tell us…  What is your favorite hot breakfast food?

National Hot Breakfast Month

By Michelle Plummer of Winners Drink Milk

February has been named National Hot Breakfast Month. The history of celebrating Breakfast in the month of February was actually created by the Jimmy Dean Foods division of the Sara Lee Corporation. Jimmy Dean Foods is known for producing heat-and-serve breakfast dishes (most notably with Jimmy Dean Brand Sausage) and found that over 60% of Americans eat cold cereal or another non-hot breakfast each day. This is why they started a month-long holiday to promote interest in hot breakfast options.

Today we always hear that breakfast is considered the most important meal of the day, but why? First, breakfast starts your day off right and gives you needed energy to get your body going for the day. Second in regards to weight loss, having a complete diet also gives the body balance and weight control. Not only can it help improve the way your body functions, but it also helps with improving focus and performance at school and at work.

Jimmy Dean may have created National Hot Breakfast Month, but Moms have been serving up hot breakfasts for years, long before cold cereal!  A warm bowl of cream of wheat on a snowy day, or oatmeal served with a dollop of peanut butter and jelly, my personal favorite!  Warm breakfast can be made easily by making a few extra pancakes on the weekend and heating them in the toaster with a sausage link or cream cheese and berries nestled in the filling later in the week as the kiddos are going off to school.

 Hot breakfast is a great start to your day,  but  think of foods you enjoy that are not typically considered breakfast foods;  Burritos, pizza rolls, grits loaded with cheese all can be breakfast foods to satisfy the body and mind, breakfast does not have rules.  It is a great way to get your day started and keep you going.

Grilled Cheddar Cheese on English muffin is one of my favorite Hot Breakfasts ever!  The cheese melts into the little holes of the muffin and it is crispy on the outside and yummy on the inside!  Sometimes I will add just a touch of salsa, but really I like it better when I can dunk the cheese bites into the salsa! 

Tell us what you enjoy for Hot Breakfast Month and enter below to win a hot breakfast on us!  The benefits to this wonderful meal are enormous and can be a wonderful start to anyone's day. Make breakfast a part of your morning routine!

Beef Sticky Buns

By Ginny Tauer of Indiana Beef

If you love sweet sticky buns, you'll delight in a savory option for breakfast or brunch. Beef sausage crumbles, mushrooms, onion, spinach and Cheddar cheese are tucked in prepared pizza dough, rolled, sliced and baked to make perfect pinwheels of scrumptious-ness.

Total recipe time: 1 to 1-1/4 hours  Makes 4 servings or 8 sticky buns

Ingredients

1.        1 recipe Basic Country Beef Breakfast Sausage (recipe below)

2.        1 cup sliced button mushrooms

3.        3/4 cup diced onion

4.        3 cups fresh baby spinach

5.        1/2 cup reduced-fat shredded Cheddar cheese

6.        1 package (13.8 ounces) refrigerated pizza dough

7.        1/2 cup jalapeño pepper jelly, warmed (optional) or Cream Cheese "Frosting" (optional, recipe below )

Instructions

1.        Prepare Basic Country Beef Breakfast Sausage. Set aside 2 cups beef in large bowl; reserve remaining beef for another use. Add onion and mushrooms to same skillet sprayed with cooking spray over medium heat; cook 5 to 7 minutes or until vegetables are tender, stirring occasionally. Add spinach to skillet; stir to wilt spinach. Add vegetable mixture to beef; set aside 20 to 25 minutes or until mixture is cooled completely, stirring occasionally. Stir in cheese.

2.        Preheat oven to 425°F. Unroll pizza dough on flat surface; pat or roll dough evenly to 14 x 10-inch rectangle, pinching together any tears, if necessary. Spread beef mixture on dough, leaving 1/2 inch border on short side furthest from you. Starting at closest short end, roll up jelly-roll style, pinching to close. Slice dough into 8 pieces using serrated knife and careful sawing motion; place cut-side-up on greased baking sheet.

3.        Bake in 425°F oven 18 to 20 minutes or until golden brown. Remove buns to cooling rack. While still warm, drizzle with melted jalapeño pepper jelly, if desired.

Basic Country Beef Breakfast Sausage: Combine 1 pound ground beef (96% lean), 2 teaspoons chopped fresh sage or 1/2 teaspoon rubbed sage, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper in large bowl, mixing lightly but thoroughly. Heat large nonstick skillet over medium high heat until hot. Add beef mixture; cook 8 to 10 minutes, breaking into 1/2-inch crumbles and stirring occasionally. (Cooking times are for fresh or thoroughly thawed ground beef. Ground beef should be cooked to an internal temperature of 160°F. Color is not a reliable indicator of ground beef doneness.) Makes 2-1/2 cups crumbles

Cream Cheese "Frosting": Combine 1/4 cup softened reduced-fat cream cheese and 1 tablespoon milk in small bowl, stirring until smooth. Drizzle over warmed beef buns.