Menu review- Looking for breakfast ideas, besides oatmeal?

SEREVG

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Sep 25, 2014
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4
New to the site. I've been reading the forum for a while and have learned some great tips. I'm an experienced back country hiker and I'm prepping for my first back country hunt. NE Corner of WA, Mule deer are the primary target, also have tags for black bear. We are biking in about 6 miles and then hiking in from there. 5 days not including getting in and out.

I have most of my food packed up except for breakfast. We'll be camping a little lower and getting high to glass, and I'd like something that I can eat while I'm glassing. I don't like to eat at 0' Dark 30 and then haul my but up the mountain.

Each days bag contains the following:
Starbucks VIA
Black Tea (lunch warm up)
Spice Tea (decaf for evening warm up)
Honey Stick( for tea)
Sugar Packet (for tea)
MRE entree (Lunch)
Mountain House Pro-pack (Dinner)
MRE crackers
MRE Jalapeno Cheese spread/ MRE Nuttella spread (alternating) FYI: MRE crackers and Jalapeno cheese spread are like CRACK! Love!
Sardines in Olive Oil
Tapitio Hot Sauce Packet
Quest Bar (pretty tasty protein bar)
Protein bar (forgot the brand for the moment, but it's a candy bar yummy version- not the chalk block stomach anchor kind)
I'll probably add some Honey Stinger Chews as well.

Calorie count if I eat everything is about 1700-1800. Looking for breakfast ideas to bump me over 2k. Tasty, easy, light, decent protein. All "cooking" will be done via Jetboil Sol. Ideally no food in the Jetboil, just water.

Considering adding items below if I can figure out a clean packaging method. I currently use both. Love the energy drink, pre/post workout or when I'm dragging. The Barleans, is good in a protein shake. Other people just do water, haven't tried it that way yet.
http://www.amazon.com/Barleans-Orga...sbs_hpc_1?ie=UTF8&refRID=1PMY4MVZD6SXNHYY9MEP

http://www.amazon.com/Optimum-Nutrition-Essential-Energy-30-Count/dp/B003X5FYJQ

I also have a goody bag with a few pick me up items. MRE Hash-browns with bacon and maple sausage!. lol Starbucks VIA Latte's (yes one is Pumpkin Spice, lol)

Breakfast ideas? Thoughts?

Thanks

Vince
 
Joined
Jul 10, 2012
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eatonvile, wa
some breakfast ideas, i like shotblocks. 200c with or without caffeine. with for me ;) pop tarts. quick, not much actual nutrition, but can be pretty tasty if you havent had them in awhile. not necessarily breakfast, but i dont confine myself to "breakfast" salami, pepperoni, string cheese, rolled in a tortilla. a new, and VERY solid addition this year for me. mine work out at 332cal per. i also like kind bars and lara bars to mix in throughout the week.


side note: alot of your food looks kind of heavy for the cal's
 
Joined
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Tulsa Ok
Hate to say it....clif bars or Honey stinger waffles. I get really sick of clif bars, but not the honey stinger waffles. This year I also took some MetrX brownies. about 400 calories apiece, but really have to like chocolate. Pretty good ratios at 40/40/20 or so. Pop tarts are good as will like Fill said. fairly light, but really fragile.

I am not a get up and eat breakfast guy. Have to be up and going a bit. Had oatmeal one day this year and it was all I could do to choke it down. I like something I can eat on the run.
 

colonel00

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Jun 19, 2013
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Lost
May not be right up your alley but this year we made up some DIY biscuits and gravy meals. Just bake some mini biscuits. Once baked, crack the oven and let the biscuits "dehydrate". Crumble the dried biscuits and place in a quart ziploc with a sausage gravy mix that only needs water. To heat, I just add a cup of hot water to the bag and let it sit in a stocking cap or DIY cozy for 10 minutes or so.
 
Joined
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Annapolis, MD
There was another breakfast thread a couple of weeks ago that you should check out. Most of the ideas were variations on oatmeal or butthole sandwiches if I remember correctly. A good idea that came from it was to put all your dry ingredients in a zip lock freezer bag, boil your water, add it to the freezer bag, and then put it in a cozy to keep it warm and let it rehydrate as you walk to where you will make your first stop that day. Sit down and enjoy a warm meal.

I have done instant breakfast like concoctions of either the real Carnation Instant Breakfast or protein powder mixed with other things and then just drank that cold in the morning before I head out.

Another option is, especially if you think breakfast is for oatmeal, is to take along some large oatmeal and raisin cookies for breakfast on the go. You can get them with nuts or craisins too or just bake the blend you want. If you want/need some dairy/milk with your oatmeal a stick of string cheese will do the trick. A box of raisins or craisins is a nice addition for a cold breakfast too.
 

Becca

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Wasilla, Alaska
We have been pretty solidly in the granola with powdered milk group for breakfast the last year or so. If I never have to eat oatmeal or clif bars again that would be fine with me :) another awesome addition we made this year was the new MH biscuits and gravy meals. Super tasty, 600 cal in the 2 serving bags (we usually split but you could eat it all yourself) and usually cheaper than other MH meals if you shop around. Love the idea of dehydrating my own, but I don't have the time this time of year or the patience to wait in the field while home dehydrated stuff rehydrated. Some DIY stuff could be fun for later season trips, may have to give it a whirl.

One other hot breakfast combo I like pretty well is instant cheese grits with bacon bits.
 
OP
S

SEREVG

FNG
Joined
Sep 25, 2014
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4
Some great ideas for sure. May do a combination of all to add some variety. I feel like I'm at a pretty good compromise of weight vs edibility. I chose the MREs for lunches for ease of prep (zero). Weight wise they are probably lighter than MH if you take into account the weight of the water needed to rehydrate them. They do have fewer calories generally speaking. The area we'll be in we'll have to hike down to get water. The two cups for a MH isn't really enough to worry about in this case, but it was a consideration. The MRE entrees do provide some nice variety.

I'm thinking a combination of:
Honey Stinger Waffles
MH breakfast (maybe add tortilla)
Bagel and smoked salmon w/ individual cream cheese
Bagel and salami w/ individual cream cheese

I'll try and get some weights on my daily and total food. I was reading a great article regarding calorie density vs weight. I can't remember where I was reading it. If it was here could somebody post a link? My gear is all UL, so generally I don't stress over food weight too much (gets lighter fast!). In this case, I'll be adding considerable weight in hunting gear so I may need to rethink my position. Our current plan is to base out lower near a water source and then get higher during the day to glass. We'll be leaving shelter, sleep systems and food in camp. I'm hoping to be sub 50lbs going in and sub 25lbs daily. (That excludes weapons, includes water). It may not be possible. I haven't weighed my spotting scope/ tripod, rangefinder and kill kit yet. I think those are the only items I'm adding over a standard backcoutry trip? I'm probably forgetting something. Rifle and sidearm of course, but in this area I'd be carrying a sidearm either way. Black bear, Griz, and wolves, Oh my. I worry about it about as much as a sasquatch attack, but I also carry a PLB and I don't expect to ever need that either. (knocks on wood)

Thanks

Vince
 

Shrek

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SEREVGE , the breakfast skillet is pretty good on a giant tortilla. I got some hot salsa packets from a Mexican restaurant and black pepper to add. A full bag is more than even the largest tortillas I can find will hold. Really big meal for one but really tasty.
 
OP
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SEREVG

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Sep 25, 2014
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Well I hit REI and the local organic grocery to look at options and I ended up with some Pro-bars and....oatmeal. lol

I wasn't happy with any of the vacuum packed options. MH was 2 servings at 350+ cal each. I really wish that they did their breakfast in pro-packs around 400 cal total. The other options all required special prep for the eggs in a skillet. I was not going to pay $7.00 for granola in milk, when I'm capable of making my own for a fraction of the cost.

I grabbed a couple of Pro-bars and some interesting organic oatmeal in cups that looked pretty good for balanced nutrients and weight. I'll grab them names and post them up.

Some really cool organic soup options. Fishpeople had some yummy looking soups that were heat and eat in vacuum bags. Heavy, but would be a great treat on a cold day. Will grab some to try for a shorter trip for sure.
 

5MilesBack

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I've NEVER been able to eat oatmeal, unless it's in the form of a cookie.:) And I'm not much of a breakfast person, unless you consider the meal I eat 3-5 hours after getting up "breakfast". Might have to try those MH biscuits and gravy. Might be nice around 0900 every day.
 

Poser

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Durango CO
I do Granola + powdered milk mixed with protein powder. I package the milk and protein powder together in one bag and do 4 spoonfuls daily mixed with pre packaged portions of granola. I increase the granola portions each day of the hunt so that by the end of the week it is about 100 calories more than the start. Its not the lightest meal in the world, but it doesn't require any cooking and only needs 4-6 oz of water to prepare.
 

jmez

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I like instant cream of wheat, high protein granola and freeze dried fruit. Just add boiling water and it is ready to eat in about a minute.
 

RockChucker30

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Almonds with dried cranberries and cherries, pemmican, and epic/Lara bars are my breakfast and lunch. My only hot meal is dehydrated quinoa with black beans, tuna, and spices.
 

unm1136

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Aug 30, 2012
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Albuquerque NM
I am going to toss this in the dehydrator this week to have for breakfast in the woods next week...

Baked Beans in the Blender, blended until smooth and dried, and added to cooked dried sausage crumbles and strips of ham. Rehydrate in the quart freezer bag in the morning and go to town. Sweet, savory, and spicy. I have it on good authority that in days past Pork and Beans was the go to breakfast.
 
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Oct 1, 2014
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I prefer Fage 0% greek yogurt and a cup of grapes. Lots of protein in that. I also like to have eggs, steak, milk, pancakes and cereal. Sometimes, I eat unsweetened yogurt with toasted 5-grain muesli and a packet of Equal mixed in, and a serving of fruit, Cottage cheese with some sliced strawberries. Some more good options are Peanut butter sandwich with a yogurt and recently found a Chomps Snack Stick which is a grass fed beef stick. If you want to check the nutrition you can check here http://www.gochomps.com/pages/nutrition. Other good ones are a boiled egg with a lite Emmenthal laughing cow cheese triangle on organic, whole wheat toast. That gives you about 240 calories and very healthy. Other ones are cottage cheese with fruit, I make my own coleslaw at 120 calories and you get two cups of the stuff. I also do Indian spinach with lite cottage cheese and spices, those are always good for little pots to work. Other alternatives are, chicken liver pate on rye or I even make mini Spanish omelets with those laughing cow slices. I'm not into having a lot of bread or sweet things in my diet, so I skip the sugary cereals, muffins, etc. Myself, as it just messes with my stomach and I found once I cut those things out of my diet, it was easy to lose and maintain weight and I noticed a difference in the way I look and feel. I hope these ideas will help. Looking for more ideas, please share if anyone finds any healthy & low cost ideas.
 

inupiat1

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Oct 25, 2014
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Burien, Washington, United States
I have been testing soylent for the last 3 weeks to replace 1000 calories a day (approx. 1/2 of my caloric intake) mainly for eating healthier foods and I am testing it to see if I can add it into hunting/camping diet. It gives all the nutrients that you need for a whole day (on a 2000 calorie level) and could theoretically replace all of my food. I always seem to be drawn to tasty, fatty and generally unhealthy foods. It tastes very mildly sweet and has a light vanilla flavor. I haven't tried adding flavors to it yet as I like the taste on its own. You can look at it at soylent.me
If you like peanut butter, PB2 is a pretty good powder that adds flavors to things or in place of peanut butter (if you hydrate it) without the weight and fat. I eat it with pilot bread, which you may have a hard time finding outside of Alaska and Washington State.
 
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