The Food Network is kicking off the New Year with their January Healthy Every Week Challenge and I’m getting in on the fun. This challenge isn’t about dieting or deprivation. (There’s nothing to give up, no restrictions and no killer work-outs!) The goal of this challenge is to create one new healthy eating habit each week in January.

Week 1:  Eat Breakfast

The designated challenge for Week 1 is to eat breakfast every day of the week. Since this one is fairly easy for me (I don’t miss many meals), I’m going to change it just a bit.  I’m going to focus on ensuring my daily breakfasts fit in with one of my other goals for 2012  - to treat every day like a special occasion.  

Creamy Chèvre, Pistachio and Fig Breakfast Sandwich

Inspired by Cooking Light’s grilled goat cheese sandwiches with fig and honey

Yield:  4 sandwiches

Ingredients:

• 4 oz package chèvre (goat cheese)
• 1 ½ tbsp pistachio cream*
• 4 tbsp fig preserves
• 8 slices raisin bread
• ½ Meyer lemon
• 2 tsp chiffonade basil
• cooking spray (preferably one made with olive oil)

In a small bowl, use the back of a wooden spoon to cream together the chèvre, pistachio cream, basil, zest and juice from half of a Meyer lemon.

Assemble sandwich by spreading ¼ of the chèvre mixture on one slice of raisin bread, and about 1 tbsp fig preserves on the other. Press together to form a sandwich.

Lightly spray the outside of the bread slices with cooking spray.  Heat a non-stick pan over medium heat.  Add the sandwich to the pan.  Press down lightly with the back of a spatula. Cook for about 3 minutes per side, until golden brown.

Dust lightly with powdered sugar just before serving.

I mix up the creamy chèvre filling the night before, cover and refrigerate. The next morning, I just spread the filling and the fig preserves on the bread, and grill. In just over five minutes I can enjoy an elegant, grown-up, grilled cheese sandwich, and starting my day off with the sunny flavours of the Mediterranean feels very special occasion to me.

*On a recent trip to Paris, I bought a jar of Crema di Pistacchi imported from Sicily. Check with your local Italian food market to see if they import it, or buy it online.

Related articles:

• Pistachio Gelato Recipe (davidlebovitz.com)

Week 1 Roundup

Check out the links below to see how other bloggers took on the challenge of eating breakfast everyday.

• Picky Eater Blog: Chocolate Brownie Oatmeal
• Family Fresh Cooking: Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal
• Healthy Eating Starts at Home: Eating Breakfast Daily
• Carlene’s Figments: Bits of Nutrition: Eat Breakfast Daily and Avoid Common Excuses
• Simple Food, Healthy Life: Week 1 Comes to a Close + Healthy Breakfast Recipes
• JBR Nutrition: Be a Breakfast Eater
• Ramblings of a Pittsburgh Dad: Healthy Every Week Challenge, Week 1
• Meghan’s Kitchen: Ham and Cheddar Hash-brown Bake
• Don’t Be (Too) Timid and Squeamish: Maple Macadamia Nut Butter and Back to School Oatmeal
• Eat. Enjoy. Live: Healthy Every Week Challenge Week 1 + a Recipe for Oat-y Pancakes
• City Life Eats: Breakfast Bias
• Boys ‘n’ Berry: Week 1: Oatmeal
• Netlycka’s Distracting Confusion: Eat Breakfast Every Day
• You Don’t Look Sick: Living With Rheumatoid Arthritis: First Week of Healthy Breakfasts
• Deep Thoughts and Amusing Musings: Food Network’s January Challenge
• Healthy Kitschy Vegan: Guess What I Ate Last Night? Peanut Butter and Banana Oat Bran Mess
• Healthy Plates: Avocado Egg Sandwich
• Essentials of Nutrition: The Most Important Meal of the Day
• Pursuit of Healthiness: Healthy Every Week Challenge, Breakfast Edition
• Chick Bike: January Challenge, Week 1
• Nutritious Daily: Breakfast Every Day
• Cookin’ in my Kitchen: No-Butter Baked Apples
• Hungry Jenny: Breakfast All the Way + an Easy Granola Recipe

†DISCLOSURE:
This post includes Amazon affiliate links and I receive a tiny commission on any sales they may generate.