Power Parfait + House-Made Granola Recipe
For many young athletes, their focus falls on training, and rightfully so, but are they aware of the effects from a good or bad diet?
Are you a breakfast person? We’ve got you covered. Are you looking for an after-school but before practice snack? Look no further!
People often say that breakfast is the most important meal of the day and, truth is, they’re right.
Breakfast is the foundation of your diet, your health, and your overall well-being. Why mess with something that is so important? High fat, sugary, deep-fried donut? No thanks! Instead, choose the sweet, slightly crunchy, velvety decadence that is parfait. For this power breakfast, we combined greek yogurt, freshly sliced fruit, and homemade granola to make the ultimate breakfast-in-a-bowl.
Greek yogurt is a fan-favorite here at CoachUp for its creamy texture, high-protein content, and extreme versatility. No matter the time of day, plain, non-fat greek yogurt can replace your traditional high-sugar standard yogurt, fatty mayonnaise on sandwiches, and, if frozen, even ice cream. Be brave, add more greek yogurt to your diet and be prepared to see the transformative benefits of this super food!
For this recipe, we have focused on incorporating protein-rich greek yogurt, antioxidant-packed berries, healthy carbs, fiber from whole-grain granola, and kiwis — because, of course, kiwis are awesome! In this case, we recommend slicing your fruit the night before and making the granola ahead of time as well so that it can cool before being served. This reduces the hands-on prep time and allows you to enjoy this ultimate breakfast in a matter of minutes!
Parfait Ingredients
- 1 cup/ or 8 ounces of plain, nonfat greek yogurt (fage, chobani, etc)
- 1 kiwi –sliced
- ¼ cup blueberries
- 6 large strawberries — sliced
- ¼ cup of house made granola (recipe below)
- ½ teaspoon of cinnamon (optional)
Assembling your perfect parfait
1. Begin by spooning about ¼ of the greek yogurt into a small bowl, wide cup, mug, chalice, cocktail glass, shaker bottle, or if you are entirely out of options, back into the greek yogurt container.
2. Next, arrange half of your sliced fruit onto this base layer of yogurt, being sure to evenly distribute the delicious goodness.
3. Top this layer of fruit with ⅓ of your remaining greek yogurt.
4. Now add your granola on top of this new yogurt layer
5. Add the second half of your fruit, arranged like previous layer
6. Complete your parfait with the remainder of your greek yogurt and optional cinnamon
Simple House Made Granola
Yield: ~6 cups
- 4 cups old-fashioned rolled oats (use certified gluten-free oats for gluten-free granola)
- 1 cup raw pecans (or preferred nut)
- ½ cup chia seeds (or preferred seed)
- ½ teaspoon cinnamon
- ⅓ cup melted coconut oil
- ¼ cup maple syrup or honey
- ⅔ cup dried cranberries, chopped if large
Making your very own granola:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degree fahrenheit
2. Combine first four ingredients in a large mixing bowl
3. Add melted coconut oil and honey and mix thoroughly
4. Pour contents of mixing bowl onto a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 10 minutes
5. Remove sheet from oven, flip/turn/rotate granola and return to oven for additional 10-15 or until golden brown and delicious
6. Remove from oven and let cool completely
7. Break up granola, add cranberries, and transfer to airtight container; granola will keep for 1-2 weeks at room temperature
Nutrient comparison between Greek Yogurt Parfait with Fresh Granola and Dunkin Donuts Chocolate Donut:
As you can see from the figures computed above, the greek yogurt parfait we have provided may have slightly more calories than a chocolate donut, but it is a worthy trade-off for a number of reasons:
- 25 grams (!) of additional muscle-building protein
- 8 grams of extra hunger-fighting dietary fiber
- 10 grams less fat
- An entire day’s worth of Vitamin C
- And a third of day’s worth of calcium For more incredible easy recipes, download CoachUp’s Cookbook and start eating!
