12 Keto Breakfast Recipes and Ideas to Make Your Mornings Hassle-Free

Make your morning go smoother with these
12 Keto breakfast recipes and ideas

Are you struggling to put together a tasty ketogenic breakfast? If so, we can help!

Whether you're rushed for time or it's a leisurely weekend morning, the following tips includes 12 Atkins breakfast ideas designed to make your morning meal easier, so you won't struggle to stay on plan.

These are real-life Keto ideas that I used myself to drop the weight, most of which I still eat today.

Breakfast is hubby's favorite meal of the day. He loves a hearty, filling breakfast in the morning.

In fact, we almost always go out to eat on Saturday or Sunday morning. He loves all of the basics you normally find at a cafe:

• bacon and eggs
• sausage and eggs
• ham and eggs
• omelets with salsa
• fried potatoes
• french toast
• pancakes
• biscuits and gravy

When we went gluten free, going out to eat stopped for a long time, but eating a hearty breakfast did not.

We simply started making a big breakfast at home on the weekends. During the week, hubby didn't eat breakfast. He simply took a large lunch with him to work.

However, his latest job change has dramatically affected the way we eat now. We have a large breakfast in the morning, a light lunch, and medium-sized dinner, depending on what time hubby gets home in the evening.

The later he gets home, the lighter the meal.

We also go to Golden Corral on Saturday or Sunday morning because I've been able to handle their scrambled eggs with onions, mushrooms, and cheese sauce. I also enjoy the grilled pork chops, breakfast sausages, bacon, and ham.

For those on Keto, an erratic schedule can make eating healthy a bit more difficult, especially since cereal isn't an option in the morning. But there are still many days when hubby has to skip lunch completely, so I always send him out the door with a full belly.

First: Dump the Traditional-Foods Mindset

If you box yourself into the notion that you have to only eat breakfast foods for breakfast, low-carb meal planning is going to be extremely difficult, especially if you're not passionate about eggs.

Hubby is, so our breakfast plate almost always contains eggs, but it doesn't have to. Anything that you can eat for lunch, dinner, or snacks can be eaten for breakfast.

You can also modify other dishes to be quicker and less time-consuming, making them a better option in the morning when rushed.

Egg Scramble
with Pepper-Jack Cheese

For example, egg scrambles are a regular morning meal at our house.

Since hubby now leaves by 6:10 a.m. in the morning, trying to spin out a delicious-looking omelet is a no-go. Although, we are always up by 5:00, the vertigo puts certain limitations on how well I can function that early in the morning.

The brain needs an adequate amount of time, once up, to start processing sensory data accurately. For that reason, I often spend the first half an hour making coffee and packing hubby's lunch. I then make a simple breakfast for the two of us.

The beauty of Keto is that you don't have to eat eggs for breakfast if you don't want to. There are a lot of other options, from light to hearty, that will give you the energy you need to start your day off right.

While I no longer drink protein shakes, I'll sometimes heat up a bowl of soup if it's raining outside.

When I was in weight-loss mode and hubby wasn't eating breakfast, I often ate:

• baked chicken legs
• leftover hot wings
• a lettuce salad with tuna and bacon
• a bowl of low-carb chili

These were quick meals I could have before running out the door to cook at the local boys' home.

Try to think out of the box.
I used to eat leftover hot wings for breakfast on Atkins.

Sometimes, I also:

• Mixed cottage cheese and blueberries together.
• Whipped up a small bowl of chicken salad.
• Stuffed a few slices of lunch-meat ham with cream cheese and minced jalapeno.

Even left over hot poppers are delicious cold for breakfast.

For most low carbers, eating eggs every single morning can get boring fast.

Since the Atkins Diet is for life, it is essential that you find ways to make the diet fit your schedule, food preferences, and lifestyle, so here are 12 Keto breakfast recipes and ideas to help make your mornings less of a hassle.

1. Basic Chia Seed Pudding (Submitted by Jennie Belew)

Vanilla Chia Seed Pudding
with Raspberry Sauce

One of our readers, Jennie Belew, was kind enough to submit her recipe for Chia Pudding in the comments of a blog post on why you might not be losing weight on Atkins Induction.

She is doing Atkins 40 and was struggling with breakfast ideas because she needed something light that she could eat in the morning. Atkins Nutritionals (the ANA) suggested Chia Seed Pudding.

You can use any type of low-carb milk you want in the recipe:

• almond milk
• coconut milk
• calorie-countdown milk
• heavy whipping cream
• heavy cream mixed with water

A cup of Atkins shakes or your own homemade shake mixture would seriously beef up the protein quite a bit in this.

Atkins French Vanilla Shake

(Available at Amazon)

(I don't know if dry protein powder would dissolve enough in this pudding mixture to not be gritty. If you try that, leave us a comment below and let us know how it went.) 

I'm also thinking that a flavored Crystal Light sugar-free drink would also work in this, something like orange or raspberry.

Crystal Light Drink Mix Variety Pack

Since the volume of the pudding is created by the chia seeds, those who are allergic to corn could use liquid stevia instead of the Splenda. Hershey's cocoa powder is also corn free.

Ingredients:

• 3 tablespoons chia seeds
• 3/4 to 1 cup of low-carb milk or cream
• 1/2 to 1 packet of Splenda
• flavoring: vanilla extract or a little cocoa powder

Put all of the ingredients in a glass jar and shake vigorously. Continue to shake the jar, now and then, until the seeds begin to bloom and stop sinking to the bottom of the jar. Place the jar into the refrigerator to chill and allow the seeds to fully bloom.

You can eat this at any time, but if you let it sit in the refrigerator for a while, it will transform into the consistency of custard. To serve, you can eat it as it is or top with whipped cream, crushed nuts, berries, or other fruits.

Here's what Chia Seeds look like

Chia seeds are typically used as an egg substitute, but recently, they've surfaced within the gluten-free community as a substitute for Xanthan gum. They absorb liquid, forming a thickened mixture when allowed to sit, similar to what flaxmeal does.

Chia seeds (available at Amazon) are chock-full of:

• fiber
• omega 3 fatty acids
• small amount of protein
• some calcium

So they make a viable alternative for flax.

The pudding won't be a smooth mixture like traditional vanilla or chocolate pudding. Once the seeds have bloomed, they are smooth and jelly-like, similar to tapioca pearls.

2. Homemade Protein Shakes, Smoothies, and Egg Creams

The difference between a protein shake and a smoothie is simply the addition of protein powder.

Smoothies don't include protein. Most protein shakes are also made with heavy cream or cottage cheese for a thicker consistency, while smoothies are thickened by way of the fruit and vegetables you use.

Egg creams are made with a whole egg or two, with or without the protein. If you don't want to use raw eggs in your shakes, you can use one of the pasteurized egg products available. Just make sure that you include the carb count.

Recipes for shakes, smoothies, and egg creams vary widely. They are easily adaptable to whatever low-carb plan you're following.

For example, if you are on Atkins Induction, you have a limit of 2 to 3 tablespoons of heavy cream per day, so you'll need to lower the amount of heavy cream in the following recipes to fit the parameters of whatever phase you're currently doing.

If you're avoiding certain food groups like dairy, you can skip the heavy cream altogether and use the thick coconut cream that forms on the top of a can of coconut milk after being refrigerated instead.

Basic Protein Shake

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup heavy cream
• 3/4 cup water or almond milk
• 1/4 to 1/3 cup whey protein powder (1 scoop)
• 1 teaspoon vanilla or other flavoring
• 1 Splenda packet or a drop or two of liquid stevia
• 1/4 teaspoon guar gum (optional)
• 4 to 6 ice cubes

Place all of the ingredients into your blender or food processor, except for the ice. Blend the ingredients together until well mixed. If using a blender, you can pull the plastic middle insert out, leaving you a hole at the top to feed the ice cubes through. Add the ice, one cube at a time, and allow the mixture to blend until the cream and vegetable gum thickens the shake.

I haven't tried this with Xanthan gum, since I wasn't using that type of vegetable gum at the time I used to drink these. You'll probably need much less than the 1/4 teaspoon. You can also leave it out. The shake will just be thinner. Extra ice might also help thicken it up a bit more.

Low-Carb Strawberry Smoothie

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons of heavy cream
• 1 cup strawberry Crystal Light Drink, prepared
• 1 teaspoon of vanilla or strawberry extract
• 1 pack Splenda or a drop or two of liquid stevia
• 1/4 teaspoon of guar gum
• 3 or 4 whole frozen strawberries (if not on Induction)
• 4 ice cubes

In a typical smoothie, you'd use a lot more strawberries, but this recipe is more suitable for a low-carb diet.

Place all of the ingredients except for the frozen strawberries and ice in the blender or food processor, and mix well. Once it's blended, with the machine running, add your strawberries and ice cubes one at a time. Blend until it is as thick as you want it to be.

Basic Egg Cream

For a basic egg cream, simply make the Basic Protein Shake or Strawberry Smoothie and add one or two whole eggs or 1/4 cup of egg substitute to the shake ingredients.

3. Breakfast Custard

There are a couple of different ways to make custard when doing Atkins. If time is super short, you can nuke it in the microwave. If you have a bit more time, it can also be baked in the oven until set.

I've made this in both custard cups and a pie plate. Both came out well. This is super good with the nutmeg or cinnamon. Just sprinkle it across the top for a festive look:

Ingredients:

• 4 eggs
• 1 cup heavy cream
• 4 Splenda packs
• 2 teaspoons vanilla
• nutmeg or cinnamon

Grease your custard cups or pie plate well, and set aside.

In a bowl, whisk together all of the ingredients except for the spices. Pour the custard mixture into your cups or pie plate. Sprinkle with nutmeg or cinnamon.

The cups can be nuked at half-power for 3 to 4 minutes, until set. Or you can bake this in a pie plate in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for 30 minutes, until set. The custard cups can also be baked.

4. Fish or Chicken Breast Packets

Any type of protein can be eaten for breakfast: fish, chicken, beef, pork, nuts, or cheese. Don't limit yourself to just eggs. Fry up a burger patty or saute a piece of chicken breast in some herb butter. Both make a viable breakfast option.

For convenience, I used to wrap a piece of fish or chicken breast in a piece of foil to seal in the juices. This can be seasoned to taste, and then baked at 350 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes. Fish will take longer to cook than the chicken breast does.

If you have some left over vegetables like broccoli or cabbage, place the vegetables on top of the meat and wrap the whole thing up nice and tight before baking.

5. Flaxmeal Muffins Baked in the Oven

One-Minute Muffins are a traditional low-carb staple, originally made with 100-percent flaxmeal and nuked in the microwave, but the batter can be adapted to use a wide variety of low-carb flour substitutes and made into a much larger batch of muffins, then baked in the oven.

For example, if you don't like flaxmeal, you can use almond flour instead. This alternative version won't be legal on induction, as you have to be on the nut run of the Atkins Carbohydrate Ladder, but it makes a good muffin for Phase 2. A 50/50 mixture of flaxmeal and almond flour is also pretty good.

Whole or sliced almonds
can be ground into flour for
low-carb baking. 

If you're on a higher carb intake, such as Atkins 40, pre-maintenance, or maintenance, you can also add a tablespoon of oat bran or sub the flaxmeal with oatmeal flour. Just whirl regular oats in the blender until the mixture is as smooth as you want it to be.

Pork rind flour, Carbquick bake mix, dried Parmesan cheese, cocoa powder, a tablespoon of vital wheat gluten can all be useful in making these muffins rise better, as long as you're not sensitive to wheat.

Beware of coconut flour, though.

While you can use coconut flour in these, it will soak up a lot of liquid. More than flax does, so start with a tiny bit (typical ratio of replacing flaxmeal or other flour with coconut flour is about 1 tablespoon of coconut flour to 4 tablespoons of flax) and be prepared to adjust the amount of eggs or liquid you use in the recipe, if needed. 

[For more low-carb flour ideas, check out our blog post on Low-Carb Flour Alternatives in the archives.]

Also make sure that you stick closely to the 1 cup of total alternative flours, except for coconut which requires less, and don't make too many adjustments at once. It's better to experiment with only one major change at a time, so you can see how the change affects the dryness, moisture, texture, and taste.

The flavor of sugar-free syrup you use will flavor the muffins, so try banana, orange, or something you like. My own favorite is Davinci's Caramel.

Ingredients:

• 1 cup golden flaxmeal or other alternative flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 2 tablespoons cinnamon
• 3 eggs
• 1/4 cup sugar-free syrup (like Davinci's)
• 2 tablespoons water
• 6 tablespoons oil
• 1 tablespoon vanilla
• 1/2 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees. In a small bowl, combine flaxmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and cinnamon. Mix well, and then set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the eggs, syrup, oil, and vanilla. When good and whipped up, gently fold in the dry ingredients. You want this well mixed, but don't go crazy with the beating. The flaxmeal is going to soak up the liquid and the batter will get nice and thick.

Gently fold in nuts, if using. Allow the batter to sit for 5 minutes.

While the batter is resting, lightly spray 12 muffin cups without the papers and fill the compartments with the batter, about 2/3 full. Bake for 15 minutes. Remove the muffins immediately from the pan and allow to cool on a wire rack. These are 1 net carbs each.

6. Bacon and Egg Salad

If you're looking for something you can make ahead of time and lighter than fried eggs, a bacon and egg salad might be just what you're looking for. While I often do this as a snack, one or two hard-boiled eggs at a time, there's no reason why you couldn't make this the night before, so it's all ready to go the following morning.

Simply mash up your hard-boiled eggs.

Add some crumbled bacon bits, sliced green onion, minced red peppers, olives, or whatever you like.

Even some chopped nuts would be good in this.

Bind it with mayonnaise, Ranch-style dressing, homemade Thousand Island dressing, or even a sharp blue cheese dressing.

Eaten out of a bowl or wrapped in a lettuce leaf or two, you've got a quick, tasty low-carb breakfast meal.

7. Egg Muffins

Basic Egg Muffins with ham and cheese
are Atkins-Induction friendly foods.

These are like mini quiches or little breakfast casseroles in a cup. The variety you can give these little gems is endless.

For the basic recipe:

Simply combine 1/2 cup heavy cream to 8 eggs, and beat well. Add chopped cooked meat like:

• crumbled bacon
• sausage chunks
• or diced ham

Add some minced veggies like:

• green onions
• bell peppers,
• jalapeno
• or leftover cooked broccoli

Toss in a bit of grated cheese.

Ladle the mixture into well-greased muffin cups and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

These can be eaten hot or cold, so make plenty for those mornings when you don't have time to cook and need a grab-and-go low-carb breakfast on the run.

8. Low-Carb Hot Cereal

There are a wealth of low-carb hot cereal recipes on the web these days, but here's how I used to make mine back when I was able to eat flax seeds and oat bran.

Alternatively, you could also make this with all flaxmeal. If you are allergic to corn, you'll want to pick up the whole flax seeds and grind them in a coffee grinder yourself, as the flaxmeal tends to be contaminated with corn. At least, Bob's Red Mill were.

Ingredients:

• 2 tablespoons golden flaxmeal
• 2 tablespoons oat bran
• 1/2 cup boiling water
• 1/2 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 tablespoons chopped walnuts or pecans
• 1/4 cup heavy cream or coconut milk
• cinnamon to taste
• sweetener to taste

In a microwavable bowl, combine flaxmeal, oat bran, and boiling water. Stir well. Add vanilla and nuts if using. Nuke for 1 minute, and stir again. To serve, top with heavy cream or coconut milk, cinnamon, and sweetener to taste. You could also stir in a tablespoon or two of nut butter to kick this up another notch.

9. Soy Flour Waffles

If you have access to some organic soy flour, soy flour waffles make a nice low-carb breakfast. In 2008, I used to take dried black soybeans and grind them into flour in an electric wheat grinder. Black soybeans have a milder flavor than the yellow variety, but when making waffles, the yellow soy flour worked fine.

These waffles are made using the same recipe as for the one-minute muffin that you nuke in the microwave, but you use soy flour instead of flaxmeal.

While some people have said you can use flaxmeal to make these waffles, I have never tried that myself.

If you decide to try the all-flax variation, please leave a comment below and let me know how it worked out for you.

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup organic soy flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 2 packets Splenda or a few drops of liquid stevia
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 2 eggs
• 1/8 teaspoon vanilla
• 2 tablespoons sour cream or yogurt

If you don't have a relatively new non-stick waffle iron, you'll need to spray your waffle iron really well with non-stick spray, and heat it to the proper setting. Soy tends to burn more easily than wheat, so you'll want these to bake a little lower than for a wheat waffle, if possible.

While the waffle iron is heating up, in a small bowl, combine soy flour, baking powder, dry sugar substitute, cinnamon, and salt. Set aside.

In a larger bowl, combine eggs, vanilla, and sour cream. Whisk this together the best you can. You won't be able to get it completely smooth. That's fine. Add the flour mixture and stir well.

Once the waffle iron is hot, pour the mixture into it, and spread out slightly. Bake until they're done. It will take a little bit longer than for traditional waffles, depending on how crisp you like them.

10. Egg Drop Soup with Veggies

Egg drop soup is easy to make. You simply heat up your soup broth and then drizzle a beaten egg into it, while stirring. The eggs cook and form threads of egg as you gently stir.

For a light low-carb breakfast, you can heat up a cup of broth with a few leftover vegetables like:

• mushroom
• green onions
• shredded cabbage

Stir in one beaten egg. A little chopped cooked meat would also boost the protein content nicely.

11. Flaxmeal Pancakes for One

While you can make pancakes using the soy flour waffle batter above, the soy flavor is stronger for pancakes than it is for waffles. The pancakes also tended to fall on me.

A better pancake uses flaxmeal and whey protein powder, which gives the cakes a better structure due to the flaxmeal.

Ingredients:

• 1-1/2 to 2 tablespoons flaxmeal
• 1 tablespoon whey protein powder (soy protein would also work)
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 egg
• 2 tablespoons heavy cream or coconut milk

In a small bowl, combine flaxmeal, protein powder, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon. Stir well and set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk the egg until well beaten. Add heavy cream and stir again. Carefully fold in the dry ingredients. Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes.

When almost ready, heat the pan. You want the pan colder than for traditional pancakes. When the skillet is warmed, bake as for traditional pancakes, but you'll need to cook these a bit longer.

12. Hawaiian Burger Breakfast

Not light, but when hubby and I used to go out to dinner, there was a small restaurant we used to go to that offered something called an Hawaiian burger. This was simply a burger served without a bun and topped with Canadian bacon, a fried egg, and a slice of cheese. It's an Induction-friendly meal.

For a Phase 2 or Atkins 40 dinner, you could also add some fried onions and mushrooms to the stack.

Induction Breakfasts Don't Have to be Boring

Baked mixed vegetables topped with cheese
and browned in the oven.

When you're on Atkins Induction, your food choices, and sometimes the amounts you can eat, will be more restrictive than if you're on Phase 2 or following Keto or LCHF. That's because Induction is specifically designed to:

• get you into the state of ketosis
• lower your basal insulin levels
• help cut your cravings and hunger down to a manageable level

Induction, however, will give you a good, solid foundation from which to build a low-carb diet that you can live with for the rest of your life, so go the extra-mile now and begin your new lifestyle with foods you enjoy eating.

If you build your diet on foods you find boring or continuously eat the same things each and every day, you're going to crash and burn. That's what happens with a lot of low-carb dieters. They eat bacon and eggs every single day for two weeks, and then they can't stand to look at another egg.

While you do need to mold the rules and regulations to fit your tastes and carbohydrate tolerance level, getting in a rut at breakfast is the fastest way to fail.

The best way to approach an Atkins Breakfast is to drop the breakfast-foods mindset and just eat what you enjoy. That way, you can tailor your low-carb diet to be truly yours.