Breakfast menus loaded with trans fats

Breakfast menus can be loaded with high-saturated fat items (like bacon and sausage) and baked goods that are high in trans fats. Trans fats raise your bad (LDL) cholesterol levels and lower your good (HDL) cholesterol levels.

Eating trans fats increases your risk of developing heart disease, stroke and type 2 diabetes. These trans fats lurk in many foods; you're likely to find them in fried foods like French fries and doughnuts and baked goods including pastries, pie crusts, biscuits, pizza dough, cookies, crackers. They're also in stick margarine and shortening.

You can determine the amount of trans fats in packaged foods by looking at the Nutrition Facts label. You can also spot trans fats by reading ingredient lists and looking for the ingredients referred to as "partially hydrogenated oils."

So when it comes to selecting breakfast foods, the American Heart Association recommends fresh fruit and whole grains.

Start your meal with a glass of 100 percent fruit juice, for instance, and order whole-grain instead of white toast. Instead of butter, spread your toast with low-fat cottage cheese and a little jam.

You can also ask for low-fat cream cheese with your bagel and look for whole-grain cereals (not high-fat granolas) and serve with fat-free milk.

Try fat-free or low-fat yogurt with fruit -- either in a bowl or as a smoothie and spoon into hot cereals such as oatmeal, grits, cream of wheat or cream of rice with a little honey to warm you up on a cool morning.

Instead of pancakes and syrup, try whole-grain waffle with fresh fruit; pass the fried eggs (over easy or sunny side up) in favor of an omelet or scrambled eggs using egg substitute or egg whites.

Instead of bacon or sausage, choose lean ham or Canadian bacon and walk by the croissants and muffins, until you spy a whole-wheat bagel with low-fat cream cheese.

Try this recipe: Cookies for breakfast? Sure, when they are rich in fiber and low in fat and taste like big chunks of granola. Make these ahead of time for a quick breakfast treat.

Rise-and-Shine Cookies

½ cup all-purpose flour

¼ cup whole-wheat flour

½ teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon salt

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

teaspoon ground nutmeg

½ cup firmly packed brown sugar

Egg substitute equivalent to 1 egg

3 tablespoons canola or corn oil

1¼ cups quick-cooking or regular rolled oats

½ cup wheat germ

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

In a small bowl, stir together flours, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine brown sugar, egg substitute, and oil. Stir until well combined. Stir in flour mixture, oats, and wheat germ.

Drop dough by tablespoons about 1 inch apart on a baking sheet. Flatten slightly to a 2-inch diameter with your hand or the bottom of a glass. Bake 10 minutes or until light brown. Cool on wire racks. Store cooled cookies in an airtight container for one week or in the freezer for several weeks.

Serves 15.

Nutrition values per two-cookie serving: 116 calories, 4 g fat (2 g saturated), 18 g carbohydrates, 3 g protein, 0 cholesterol, 74 mg sodium.

"American Heart Association Quick & Easy Cookbook" (1995 Clarkson Potter)