Most of us aren’t getting enough fiber everyday. Today we are sharing over 13 high fiber breakfast recipes, along with some simple swaps you can make to almost double your daily fiber.
The Importance of Dietary Fiber
After writing this post – The #1 Thing Missing from your Diet, I’ve wanted to create more resources to help people find ways to add more fiber too their meals.
The above linked post goes into great detail on fiber, but in summary fiber is important because it can –
- lead to bowel regularity, decreasing constipation and diarrhea
- help lower cholesterol levels
- stabilize blood sugar levels
- aid in weight management by helping you feel full after meals
- decrease your risk for certain cancers, heart disease and diabetes
- reduce blood pressure
How Much Fiber are You Getting?
The average person gets about 15 grams of fiber per day. This is WAY BELOW the recommended daily amount.
High Fiber Breakfast Foods
We are breaking down some great sources of fiber by each meal category. Starting with breakfast.
Breakfast is a great meal to work in some extra fiber filled foods. It’s a meal that makes it a bit easier to add in some whole grains or fruit. Some top fiber foods that are often seen at breakfast time include –
- High Fiber Cereal (1/2 cup) = 8-14 grams
- Whole Wheat Bread (1 slice) = 1.9 grams
- Oat Bran (1/2 cup) = 2.9 grams
- Avocado (1/2 cup) = 5 grams
- Spinach, cooked (1 cup) = 4.3 grams
- Guava (1 cup) = 8.9 grams
- Berries (1 cup) = 6-8 grams
- Apple, with skin = 4.8 grams
- Orange = 3.7 grams
- Chia Seeds (1 tbsp) = 4.1 grams
- Almonds (1 oz ) = 3.5 grams
- Flaxseed (1 tbsp) = 2.8 grams
High Fiber Breakfast Additions
There are so many ways you can increase your fiber at breakfast. Some simple examples of foods to work into your morning meals include –
- add fresh fruit whenever possible
- including some sautéed veggies into your meal via adding them to scrambled eggs, breakfast burrito/tacos, or even sautéed veggies with leftover salmon from the night before
- creating a sweet potato and veggie hash
- avocado
- chia, hemp and flaxseeds are great additions to yogurt, cereal, oatmeal, or smoothies
- working beans into your breakfast is great for getting more fiber
- whole grains like toast, English muffins, bagels or even whole grain pancakes or waffles can give you a daily fiber boost
Tips to Add More Fiber to Breakfast
These are just some examples of how to build a more fiber filled breakfast. Everyone’s breakfast is different, just as everyone’s needs are different as well.
Cereal
Cereal is a great way to add in some dietary fiber, but not all cereals are created equal. The Geriatric Dietitian put together this great Ultimate List of Cereals that are High in Fiber.
In addition to picking a high fiber cereal, you can add even more fiber and nutrients by topping with some fresh fruit. If you aren’t ready to commit to a high fiber cereal, you could also mix your regular cereal with a high fiber version 50/50. Or just keep your cereal and add berries to still get a bit extra fiber.
Oatmeal
Long gone are the days when my mom would give me a pack of instant oatmeal loaded with brown sugar and send me on my way.
There are so many better choices for oatmeal these days, everything from Overnight Oats to healthier version of instant oatmeal. Our current favorite – this Banana Nut 5 Grain + Seed instant oatmeal packets from Purely Elizabeth.
A standard bowl of oatmeal typically contains about 4 grams of fiber. Adding in 1/2 diced apple (with skin), a handful of chopped almonds and a few chia seeds sprinkled on the top takes that 4 grams up to about 10 grams of fiber.
This Baked Oatmeal is also a great, high fiber, meal prep dish for a quick and easy breakfast.
Breakfast Parfait
A breakfast parfait can be a great way to add in more fiber foods to breakfast. There are so many options and combinations you can choose.
Greek Yogurt (or even cottage cheese) + Fresh Fruit + Nuts or Fiber Cereal = a fiber filled combination
The parfait example below is a delicious and easy way to get an amazing amount of fiber in just one meal.
Elevating Scrambled Eggs
Plain scrambled eggs used to be my breakfast of choice but then I started adding some fiber filled ingredients and never looked back.
Taking my beloved scrambled eggs and adding 1/2 cup black beans (5 grams fiber), 1/2 avocado (5 grams fiber) and 1/2 bell pepper (~ 2 grams fiber) ends up providing 12 grams of dietary fiber!
Avocado Toast
Personally, I’m glad this trendy toast is still around. I’m a huge fan of avocado toast but there are ways you can add in some more fiber boosting benefits.
A standard slice of avocado toast on sourdough bread contains about 6.5 grams of fiber (5 grams per 1/2 avocado and 2 grams per slice sourdough). You can bump up the fiber even more with the following additions –
- whole wheat toast = 3 grams per slice
- chia seeds = 4.8 grams per 1 tablespoon
- hemp seeds = 1 gram per 1 tablespoon
So just using whole wheat bread and adding chia and hemp seeds to your avocado toast can bring your breakfast up to 13 grams of fiber!
Smoothies
Smoothies can be a great way to work in a little plant based fiber. It’s a convenient way to add in some fruits and veggies quickly.
Some of my favorite fiber filled smoothie additions include –
- frozen berries
- spinach
- almond butter
- chia seeds
- flax seeds
- avocado
- guava
I also love using Memore in my smoothies. It’s a nutritional supplement made from real ingredients (blueberries, beets, spinach, flax seed, garbanzo beans) that provides 6 grams of plant based fiber. (Full disclosure, I am in a partnership with Memore). If you are interested in trying Memore, you can use the code “DomesticDietitian” at checkout to get 30% off your order.
Check out our favorite smoothie recipes here.
Yum, these recipes all sound so delicious! I’m a huge fiber fan.