The only thing that’s universal about breakfast is that nobody wants theirs messed with. It’s too ingrained into our routine, too specific to how we rouse ourselves and work up the energy to start our commutes. That means that breakfast can be the toughest part of COOK90, especially if your old routine was to buy a bagel and coffee on your way into the office.
So let’s make this as easy as possible. Pick one thing and eat it every day. Or pick two things and alternate.
I scramble or fry a few eggs almost every morning of COOK90, dousing them with Roasted Garlic–Herb Sauce (here) or harissa, and often eat them with some reheated rice. This takes almost no time—the longest part of the process is bringing the water for my tea to a boil—but I get that not everybody wants to wedge cooking into their morning routine. Luckily, most of the recipes in the following pages take just as long to make in batches as they do individually, so you really only have to make breakfast once or twice a week.
A dozen Perfect 7-Minute Eggs (here) takes about 15 minutes, and can feed you all week. Overnight Oats (here) can hang out in the fridge for up to three days (though, happily, they’re ready to grab and stuff into your bag after just one night). Frittatas are in the Weekends chapter (here and here), because who’s going to make a frittata on a Monday morning? But you might just make one on Sunday night for breakfast on Monday (and Tuesday) (and Wednesday).
Now let’s talk about coffee. This might make you cranky, but you should make your own coffee on COOK90. Set the timer on your coffee maker and it’ll be ready by the time you wake up. If you’re used to visiting that cute coffee shop, this might annoy you; if you’re a triple-shot almond milk latte person, things might get painful. But think of all the money you’re saving. The first time I did COOK90, I broke the habit of buying three rubbery, overcooked hard-boiled eggs from the office cafeteria every morning—a habit that, combined with my daily cup of tea, cost me $20 a week. When I started cooking my own damn eggs, I not only ate better (and drank better tea), but I pocketed $80 a month. Isn’t that something worth making breakfast for?