There comes every, er, week or so, where I sneakily skip breakfast. Not on purpose, no intermittent fasting approach here. I just… I can’t stand the thought of another savory breakfast. I’m not a major breakfast lover to start with: I feel like my body needs a good chunk of time to get hungry in the mornings. But if I am to eat a big breakfast to start my day, I prefer it to be a bit sweet or super savory. I’ll take a bowl of quinoa with raisins and maple syrup, please, or hey, what about a fried steak with chimichurri? I’ll even eat chicken tikka masala in front of the fridge with the door wide open, scooping it straight out of the Tupperware and to my mouth as quickly as I can manage. But eggs? The texture… the repetition… I just can’t. Normally. But something magical happened when I wrote my first paleo sweet potato-apple egg breakfast bake several months back: true love. I was desperate for a filling and easy paleo breakfast bake that rewarded me with natural sweetness, plenty of fiber, and tons of healthy fats and protein to keep me full all the way until lunch. And as I first sautéed those sweet potatoes and apples, coated in cinnamon, I knew I’d found what worked for me. Paleo breakfast bake perfection. But as fall blew in, I felt inspired to give my favorite paleo breakfast bake an autumn makeover, stirring in pumpkin purée, pumpkin pie spice, and even, wait for it wait for it wait for it A VANILLA BEAN. And is there anything richer, more indulgent, headier than real seeds from a real vanilla bean? I simply haven’t found it. This paleo pumpkin breakfast bake is the real deal, y’all: it’s packed with protein, fiber, healthy fats, vitamins and minerals. It’s easy to slice up and take on the go, since, let’s be honest, that’s how a lot of us are eating breakfast these days. And it’s naturally sweetened, too, thanks to the sweet potato, apple, and raisins! While my lack of sugar cravings these days means I’ve lost my taste for the standard PSL completely, this paleo pumpkin breakfast bake is my favorite way to get that pumpkin spice in your life during the early cooler months. I make a paleo breakfast bake almost every Sunday, and we eat it over the entire week, making breakfast a no-brainer.
