Pants weather is the perfect excuse to indulge in your favorite spiced anything, from pumpkin bread to chai tea lattes and gingerbread cookies. However, if you’re like me and aren’t quite ready to go up a size in pants until winter hibernation mode really sets in, cinnamon is the perfect topping to add that fall flavor without the calories.
In fact, cinnamon has a bunch of health benefits of its own. It’s loaded with powerful antioxidants, is anti-inflammatory (in case you do decide to indulge in that pumpkin bread), lowers blood sugar levels, can help to regulate metabolism and more. It’s basically magic fairy dust that helps with everything. What’s not to love?
Here are some healthy foods that pair perfectly with cinnamon. Put some spice in your life!
Oatmeal
Oatmeal is possibly the easiest healthy breakfast to amp up with brown sugar, fruit, nuts, and even carrots or pumpkin. The best thing about it? Cinnamon pretty much goes with anything you would throw in oatmeal.
Sweet Potato
Sprinkle with cinnamon, then if you’re looking to be fancy drizzle on some almond butter or add a few apple slices on your sweet potato.
Apple Cider
Heat up some fresh apple cider and add a dash of cinnamon on top for an easy way to hack spiced cider.
Lattes
Cinnamon in lattes (especially chai tea lattes) adds that extra level of flavor and comfort for those late nights when you want to go to bed but you have to stay up studying.
Popcorn
Throw some cinnamon on buttered popcorn for the perfect healthy movie snack. Take it to the next level by adding dried cranberries or chocolate chips to the mix.
Spiced Nuts
Cinnamon spiced pecans have changed the salad game forever. Enough said.
Sautéed Apples
You’re doing apple season wrong if you have never thrown freshly picked apple slices in a pan with some butter and cinnamon.
Waffles
Cinnamon sugar can take a bland whole wheat waffle to a whole other level.
Yogurt
If you throw in a little pumpkin puree, maple syrup, and vanilla, it’s basically like eating pumpkin pie. Or try it layered in a fruit, granola, and yogurt parfait.
Banana Smoothies
Frozen bananas, peanut butter, vanilla, milk, and cinnamon is the smoothie of your dreams. It’s like waking up to a peanut butter cookie milkshake made of fruit.
Zucchini Bread
While zucchini bread may not be the healthiest option on this list, it still contains vegetables so it’s okay to have a slice or four, right?
Butternut Squash Soup
Have you ever had a bite of squash soup and thought to yourself, “wow, this could not be more bland?” Cinnamon changes the game yet again.
French Toast
Bread and butter and maple syrup and cinnamon… I’m already salivating.
Applesauce
Sprinkle in some cinnamon and heat it up for a healthy dessert (or breakfast or snack or side).
Homemade Granola
Granola is one of those foods where a whole batch disappears in two days and you wonder who could possibly have broken into your house and eaten it all. If you add in cinnamon, you will definitely need to set up some security cameras.