Angie Kalousek Ebrahimi on Fox40 Sacramento
As students are heading back to the classroom, mornings can quickly become a race against the clock. Between packing lunches, coordinating schedules, and getting everyone out the door on time, breakfast is often an afterthought.
But senior director of Clinical Product Strategy and Innovation at Blue Shield of California and a certified nutrition coach, a protein-filled breakfast can help both kids and adults start the day strong. “Protein helps you stay fuller longer, supports steady energy, maintains muscle health, and can help regulate blood sugar throughout the morning,” she said. “The good news is that healthy breakfasts don’t need to be time-consuming or expensive.”
To make school mornings easier, Kalousek Ebrahimi recommends three simple, protein-rich recipes from the Thrive Global Cookbook, a collaboration between Thrive Global and Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan. The cookbook is available online at no cost and includes dozens of nutritious recipes designed to be affordable and easy to prepare.
3 quick, protein-packed breakfast ideas
Strawberry parfait
Four-ingredient muffins
- Energy-boost smoothie: Made with yogurt, milk, frozen strawberries, spinach, and nut butter, the energy-boost smoothiecomes together in just minutes and can be customized based on dietary preferences or allergies. For families looking for additional sweetness, a ripe banana is a great addition.
- Strawberry parfait: Layered with yogurt, fresh strawberries, and almonds or seeds, this strawberry parfait provides protein, fiber, and nutrients in a grab-and-go format. It’s also easy to adapt using seasonal fruit or pantry staples.
- Four-ingredient muffins: A simple make-ahead option, these four-ingredient muffinscan be personalized with add-ins like blueberries, coconut flakes, or chocolate chips.
Energy-boost smoothie
The smoothie and parfait both feature yogurt, an easylousek Ebrahimi recommends using unsweetened Greek yogurt, which typically contains about twice the protein of traditional yogurt and less sugar.
Making healthy eating easier
One of the cookbook’s biggest advantages is its flexibility. Many of the recipes use everyday ingredients that families already have at home, and can be adapted to fit different tastes, dietary needs, and budgets.
“At Blue Shield Promise, we know families are balancing a lot, especially during back-to-school season,” said Kristen Cerf, president and CEO of Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan. “The Thrive Global Cookbook offers simple, nutritious recipes that make healthy eating more accessible and achievable. Whether it’s a quick breakfast before school or a healthy dinner after a busy day, having easy, nutritious options can help families build healthy habits that support their overall well-being.”
The Thrive Global Cookbook includes dozens of recipes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks, and beverages, with options for vegetarian, vegan, gluten-free, dairy-free, and diabetes-friendly diets, and many meals can be prepared in 15 minutes or less.
Download the Thrive Global Cookbook — available in 11 languages — a collaboration from Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan and Thrive Global, the behavior change technology company founded by Arianna Huffington.
For more nutrition tools, recipes, and lifestyle support, available at no additional cost to most Blue Shield members, visit our digital lifestyle-medicine platform, Wellvolution
Click below to watch Angie Kalousek Ebrahimi’s FOX40 appearance featuring healthy back-to-school recipes
