The Italian breakfast: what do Italians eat for breakfast? | Lazzaris since 1901 (2024)

Contents:

• Benefits of a Healthy Breakfast
• Cappuccino, Coffee and Croissant
• Bread and Jam
• Milk and Cereals
• Yoghurt and Fruit

Breakfast in Italy is a sweet and enjoyable awakening routine for body and mind. Don’t you feel like you’re in heaven when you open up your eyes in the morning, the coffee machine in the kitchen is mumbling and your house smells like coffee? Or maybe it’s not coffee but the smell of fresh-baked croissants, or freshly squeezed oranges: there are many different habits in Italy, but they all can be defined as Mediterranean breakfast or Italian Breakfast.

There are also savoury breakfast lovers, they start the day with an English breakfast made with eggs, bacon and toast, or people who love typical American sweets like muffins and pancakes. However, our made in Italy breakfasts are one of a kind and they can also become a cure-all for health if we adopt some precautions.

Benefits of a Healthy Breakfast

The Italian breakfast provides the right incentive to face the day, especially if it ensures20% of our daily energy requirement. Because of its mix of carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, simple sugars and lipids, it guarantees the correct caloric intake to recharge ourselves after the overnight fast, to reboot our metabolism and to reactivate our neurons. Allowing ourselves at least 15 minutes to have a slow breakfast can help to maintain satiety for an extended time, providing the right energy to get through until lunchtime without eating unhealthy snacks or drinking carbonated beverages.

This is the right time to rediscover how important it can be to share this moment with our family: eating with our loved ones, comfortably seated, no rush, it helps us to enjoy some good food and each other’s company and this will allow us to adopt a less hectic lifestyle, which we had forgotten before Covid-19 lockdown.

What do Italians love the most for their breakfast?

Cappuccino, Coffee and Croissant

A cornetto, together with an espresso or with a cappuccino becomes the joy of lots of Italians who love to have a breakfast in a café, in their favourite pastry shop or at the cafeteria just outside the office.

In Italy, the cornettois also wrongly called croissant or brioche. Real cornetto takes its origin from the kipfel, a traditional pastry from Wien, which is different from the French croissant in shape and ingredients, such as eggs. In order to have a healthy breakfast, it is important to choose a homemade cornetto, made with less refined carbs, such as whole wheat flour with a lower glycaemic index. During this quarantine time, you may have more time to experiment in the kitchen, toeven try to do them yourself, filling them with honey or with a delicious cherry preserve.

Bread and Jam

If you love simplicity, your ideal breakfast will be bread and jam. If you like to bring back happy childhood memories you can go with bread, butter and jam. This is an excellent burst of energy, just remember to eat a small quantity of butter and to choose homemade jams or marmalades,or a jam prepared with raw sugars, such as brown sugar. If you like a bittersweet taste, we suggest you to try our orange marmaladewith a slice of toasted whole wheat bread and a small slice of butter. If you want to cuddle yourself with a little bit of sweetness try some whole wheat toast with some peach preserve, along with a good coffee, better decaf, or a cup of green tea. As concerned the kids, they surely prefer some bread with some spreadable hazelnuts cream, but they will also appreciate the sweet version prepared with apricot preserve.

This time of domestic cohabitation makes every day similar to the previous one. You can use this simple recipe to create a new family ritual, a special occasion you look forward to the whole week. Bread and jam, prepared with the help of your kids: this is the perfect idea for a breakfast in bed during the weekend!

Milk and Cereals

Breakfast of champions or for the kids: milk and cereals. Fresh milk or yoghurt guarantee a protein and fat intake to face your day, furthermore it provides a probiotic charge which contributes to replenishing the bacterial flora. For those who are lactose intolerant or who prefer a vegan breakfast, there are many other options, such assoy milk or rice milk, recommended for those who have kidney problems or high cholesterol.

It is always better to prefer whole grains, even better if they are organic and activated, or gluten-free such as buckwheat or oat, as they are easily digestible and very nutritious.

For many people, milk and cereal have evolved into milk and biscuits. In this case, we suggest to integrate your breakfast with some fresh fruit, to guarantee a proper intake of vitamins and simple sugars: we recommend to avoid citrus fruit, which may cause unpleasant heartburn.

Yoghurt and Fruit

Italians also love to have breakfast with yoghurt and fresh fruit. In order to be even more healthy, you may choose low-fat yoghurts and seasonal fruit. To have a complete meal you can add some dried fruit – highly satiating – and a teaspoon of honey. You can also try some low-fat yoghurt with a teaspoon of ablueberry preserve. Even then, you can complete your breakfast with a cup of green tea or a coffee at the end of the meal.

What do you enjoy for the most important meal of the day? No matter which energy charge you prefer, just remember to balance it with some seasonal fresh fruit or with an orange juice. Your daily diet and your health will benefit from an Italian breakfast, delicious, complete and healthy.