Make Your Hotel Breakfast Better with Mix-Ins

Change up your hotel breakfast with these easy mix-ins.

If you travel frequently, you will likely find yourself eating the exact same hotel breakfast every morning. Since our goal is to encourage healthy travel, we sincerely hope your hotel breakfast choices are healthy- that means skipping the waffles, muffins, and bacon and opting for healthier options like oatmeal, fruit, yogurt, and eggs.

Oatmeal and yogurt are available in just about every hotel for breakfast. It is easy to get burned out on either option, but with a little creativity both are easy to change up for a more enjoyable breakfast. I enlisted the help of Business Travel Life intern Alessia Pizzino to come up with some easy and tasty ideas to make your oatmeal and yogurt more interesting on the road.

Oatmeal Upgrades For Travelers

Many hotels offer at least one of the following items that you can easily mix into your oatmeal. If not, plan ahead and pack your favorite mix-ins with you.

• Nuts/shredded coconut
• Nut Butter (peanut butter is available usually if toast is served)
• Honey/Maple syrup to sweeten
• Seeds
• Coconut/Almond Milk
• Spice such as cinnamon /nutmeg/ cardamom/ turmeric/ ground ginger (check the coffee area for spices and flavoring!)
• Fruit such as peaches, berries, sliced apples or sliced banana
• Dried Fruit
• Protein Powder

If your hotel does not offer breakfast, or you are in a hurry, oatmeal is easy to pack along in your bag and heat up in your hotel room (with or without a microwave!). If you have a fridge, you can also mix dry oatmeal or muesli into milk or  yogurt and let it sit overnight for quick overnight oats.

The overnight muesli mix was new to me until I saw it on Instagram. There are three flavors available: Sunflower & Pepita, Cacao Nib, Almond, and Coconut, and Cherry, Cinnamon, and Cardamom.

Oatmeal Mix-In Recipes For Travelers

Try one of the following recipes during your next trip. Simply mix the ingredients into the oatmeal. If the oatmeal comes precooked, you can mix ingredients into the cooked oatmeal. If the oatmeal comes dry, mix the ingredients into the oatmeal before cooking.

Banana Nut

• 1 cup cooked oatmeal or 1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal
• 1/2  tbsp. chopped pecans
• 1/2  tbsp. chopped walnuts
• 1 mashed banana

Blueberry Muffin

• 1 cup cooked oatmeal or 1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal
• 1/4 cup blueberries
• Dash of cinnamon
• 1 tsp. maple syrup (optional)
• Top with a little granola

Continental Breakfast Bowl ( a little bit of everything from a hotel breakfast)

• 1 cup cooked oatmeal or 1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal
• 1/2 banana or diced apple
• 1/2 tbsp. nut butter
• 2 tbsp. cottage cheese (stir in after cooking)
• Top with 2 tbsp. granola or cheerios

Peaches and Cream

• 1 cup cooked oatmeal or 1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal
• 1/4 cup Diced peaches or dried peaches
• 1/4 cup vanilla yogurt (stir in after oatmeal is cooked)

Peanut Butter Banana

• 1 cup cooked oatmeal or 1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal
• 1 mashed banana
• After oats are cooked, stir in 1 tbsp. peanut butter (or any nut butter)

Protein Powder Oatmeal

• 1 cup cooked oatmeal or 1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal
• 1 mashed banana
• 1 serving of protein powder (stir in after oatmeal is cooked)

Yogurt Upgrades For Travelers

If you have the choice, it is best to use a low-fat Greek yogurt, but any low-fat yogurt will do. I recommend Greek yogurt because Greek yogurt contains almost double the protein and half the sugar compared to regular nonfat or low-fat yogurts. You can also reduce the amount of sugar in your yogurt by choosing plain over flavored.

Some general foods that are easy to pack or find in your hotel that you can mix-in to your yogurt include:

• Nuts
• Fruits
• Honey
• Chia seeds
• Dark chocolate chips
• Granola/ Cereal
• Cinnamon
• Protein Powder
• Cottage Cheese

Yogurt Mix-In Recipes For Travelers

Banana Walnut

• 6-8 oz. vanilla yogurt
• 1 tbsp. crushed walnuts
• ½ Banana, mashed

Cookie Dough

• 6-8 oz.vanilla yogurt
• 1 tbsp. nut butter
• 1 tsp. dark chocolate chips

Honey Nut

• 6-8 oz. vanilla yogurt
• 1 tsp. nut butter
• 2 tsp. almonds

PB & J

• 6-8 oz. yogurt
• 1 tsp. honey honey
• 1 tsp. nut butter
• 1 tsp. jam

Protein Powder Yogurt

• 6-8 oz. yogurt
• 1 serving protein powder
• 1 tsp. water
• Top with sliced banana or berries

Strawberry Shortcake

• 6-8 oz. vanilla or strawberry yogurt
• Chopped Strawberries to your liking
• Crushed graham crackers or Cheerios

 

How do you change up your hotel breakfast? Please comment below!