I woke up early yesterday morning and did my normal routine of washing my face, brushing my face, putting on my gym clothes, and then going online. I signed onto Facebook and as expected, my newsfeed was flooded with St. Patty’s Day statuses, about drinking, getting drunk, getting hammered, getting sloshed, taking jello shots, getting plastered, taking more jello shots, and then drinking even more.

Now, it’s 10:00 at night and I’m back on Facebook, looking at a day full of pictures of parties that looked like they could’ve used more booze, parties that looked like they had more than enough booze, and some parties that have just begun. I’m scrolling through pictures of people dressed up in green, people passed out, and people who look like they are having the time of their lives. Despite not having an ounce of Irish blood in me, I will celebrate a holiday when it can cause some joy and entertainment to my not so exciting day.

At a few different points throughout my day yesterday, I seriously questioned my “coolness” and my sanity.  Why was I was not out celebrating this holiday, with what seemed like to be the entire population of fun, young 20 and 30 somethings? Why did I spend my morning taking first aid training and my afternoon at work? And why did I not think twice about going downtown to spend my day drinking, like I did last year?

I put some serious thought into this and then just realized that I just don’t really care to drink that often.

I mean I enjoy drinking – of course I do – it’s fun – and I do drink from time to time, but I think it just has to do more with the wicked hangovers I get and how poorly I deal with them. I will be the first person to admit that I am a miserable person to be around when I’m hungover. Because I don’t drink very often, my body does not process the alcohol well and as a result, my system goes entirely out of whack. I get cranky, anxious, lazy, unmotivated, think negatively, eat like crap, and worst of all, my digestive system turns into a mess.I need about a good three days of recovery before I start feeling like myself again.

But… the point of this post is not to make a pity party for myself, or to confess to you all how lame I am – The point of this post is to simply have some fun and provide all you people who partied like the irish yesterday with a few good healthy hangover recipes.

I know that for me, the morning after drinking becomes the time for an unhealthy pig out- the whole day is about fatty, greasy food- like fried hashbrowns, bacon, and giant cheesy omelettes. It all tastes great, but the problem is, after I stuff my face with all this food, I sit around, sedentary, like one giant lump for the rest of the day.

My hope in this post today is that WE all slowly learn to make a little bit healthier food choices the morning after drinking. My goal is to prove that healthy and nutritious food can be just as satisfying hungover food.

Now, I can’t force you to get off the couch and do the cooking, but maybe if you read this post before you get up and head to the local diner or breakfast joint for some greasy hash browns and morning mimosas, you might think twice about ordering food that you THINK is what you need and instead, save yourself a little bit of guilt by cooking up a healthy b-fast on your own or swapping in some healthy choices if you do go out like ordering egg-beaters or a whole-wheat wrap.

You can click on the links to find the recipes for all of the pictures, except for the oatmeal, which is pretty self-explanatory!

Healthy Hangover Foods

A Healthy Avocado Black Bean Omelette from HoneyWhatsCooking.com

Make sure to use (or order if you’re going out) egg whites or egg beaters and fill that baby up with veggies! I like to opt for goat cheese, since it’s generally a healthier cheese and has less calories per ounce than most cheeses.  Not to mention, it has a nice creamy texture and a great, strong taste!

Vegan French Toast from Peta.org

This french toast uses vegan creamer and egg replacer, as well as non-dairy milk.  You can always make it a little healthier if you don’t have those ingredients on hand by using 1% skim milk and only the egg-whites.

Elvis Presley Oatmeal – Yummm!

You can make a bowl of quick oats or steel cut oats and top it with peanut butter or another natural nut butter, turkey bacon, sliced bananas, and even drizzle some honey or agave on top if your heart desires  :)    

Healthy Breakfast Burrito

You can try out this recipe for a healthy Breakfast Burrito by making it on a a low-calorie whole-wheat wrap or gluten-free wrap.  Sub out the potatoes for quinoa or brown rice if you desire – most restaurants should offer this or have a whole-grain option you can choose. Scramble with egg whites or egg beaters, and use hot sauce or chili powder to kick up your metabolism!

Healthy Quinoa Pancakes from AmbitiousKitchen.com

This recipe uses cooked quinoa, but if you don’t have it on hand, just sub another 1/4 to 1/2 cup of desired flour, like almond flour, whole-wheat, GF all-purpose, coconut flour, etc)   Top with bananas and fresh fruit puree instead of loading it with syrup!  A little syrup will go a long way if you have a ton of healthy fruit on top!

Breakfast Power Sandwich from MoreOatsPlease.com

You can try out my own personal recipe: The Power Breakfast Sandwich.  Use a whole-wheat, low-cal english muffin or two slices of whole-grain bread and top with unsweetened fruit jam, or homemade Chia Jam, a plain egg beater omelette, and 2% american cheese.

Happy Sunday Lads and Happy Eating