Giada De Laurentiis is Italian to the backbone. She was born and partly raised in Rome, her grandfather’s family ran a pasta factory in Naples, and Italian is her first language. She even used to start her day like a true Italian, nibbling on a fresh pastry and sipping a strong espresso. However, once she hit 50, she found that she had to give up her favorite breakfast for health reasons.
The Food Network star and bestselling author told The Kitchn that as she got older, she felt like she needed to change up her routine to keep her energy levels steadier. She said, “I used to start my day with a sweet pastry like a chocolate croissant dipped into espresso. When I turned 50, I realized I couldn’t handle the sugar spike anymore.”
Nowadays, she opts for broths, homemade avocado toast, and buckwheat cereal with flax seeds. She still drinks coffee, though, and she gives her cereal some Italian flair with a drizzle of olive oil and almonds. She also cleverly uses skewers for an easier breakfast-on-the-go and occasionally turns to one of her favorite foods for a satisfying early meal: brown rice.
Read more: 11 Once-Popular Desserts That No One Eats Anymore
What Italians Eat For Breakfast
An espresso next to three Italian cornetti – Silvia73/Shutterstock
It’s customary for Italians to eat sweet breakfasts. One of the most popular foods available at breakfast time is “cornetti”, or croissants, which are usually filled with things like cream, jam, pistachio spread, or Nutella. A lot of people eat their cornetto standing up at an espresso bar with a cappuccino, and it’s usually a hurried affair.
Breads, yogurt, and fruit are also popular in home kitchens, as are mueslis and cereals. But most Italians like to keep things light and simple — Sicilians enjoy granita with brioche, the sfogliatella, or Italian lobster pastry, which was created in Naples, and in Puglia, locals eat a shortcrust custard pastry called a pasticciotto.
The effects of a sweet versus savory breakfast are still a matter of debate. While some studies suggest that sweet breakfasts don’t have much of an impact on overall energy levels, simple sugars are known to make energy levels crash when consumed in high amounts, and foods with a lower glycemic index are thought to be better for the morning. That might explain De Laurentiis’ reasoning for giving up her Italian breakfast. She also said that espresso makes her feel “jittery”. Her go-to travel treat is still a sweet Italian classic, though, so she hasn’t completely quit the sugar just yet.
Read the original article on Tasting Table.
Dining and Cooking