Breakfast may be the most important meal of the day, but that doesn't mean you always have to make it a huge production. In fact, lots of people (*raises hand!*) can't always stomach a lot of heavy foods like oatmeal or eggs so early in the morning.

Recently, I started drinking my breakfast on some mornings instead of eating it, and let me tell you, I can totally tell the difference. Not only are fruit smoothies jam-packed with fiber and vitamins, but liquids in the morning are supposed to be gentler on the digestive system, and I definitely feel lighter. At first, I was suspect that blended fruit and juice could get me through until lunch, but once I got used to it, I found it very satisfying. And, I even felt like I had more energy.

I've been experimenting with different fruits and fruit juices (with no sugar added). Here are some of my favorite combinations so far:

Do you eat frozen pancakes? If so, you might want to check your freezer -- Aunt Jemima is recalling their frozen pancakes because they may contain soy protein. The affected varieties include oatmeal, buttermilk, buttermilk low fat, homestyle, confetti, and whole-grain. And they would be in cardboard cartons with "use by" dates between November 1, 2011 and October 16, 2012. So now you know.

In this case, the pancakes may have been made on equipment used to process other foods that do contain soy protein -- a case of cross-contamination. Some people are allergic to soy protein, so it's become important that foods that contain the stuff are labeled as such. Otherwise, off the shelves they go.

Century eggWhile most of us wake up to cereal, eggs, pancakes, or oatmeal, many others around the world wake up and open their rice cookers. Breakfast food is incredibly diverse. Imagine starting your day with huitlacoche, a black fungus that grows on corn. It's a breakfast delicacy in some parts of Mexico. Or rice porridge with century eggs -- eggs fermented to a dark amber color. That's a traditional breakfast in China. 

Check out some of these surprising breakfast foods from around the world.

We have a saying in our home: I am not a short-order cook. That means if I make pad Thai for dinner, we all eat pad Thai for dinner -- no get out of jail free card, no special requests for mac & cheese. But breakfast is different. You want your eggs scrambled, over-easy, sunny-side up? You got it. Well, up to a point.

Even on the weekends, you probably don't want to whip up pancakes for one kid and eggs for another kid. That's why I love the kinds of breakfasts that are flexible enough to please a wide range of palates -- but without making the chef crazy. Here are my favorite customized-breakfast ideas.

The latest dining trend is a messy one: Eating with your hands. Well, according to The New York Times, anyway. Apparently more and more people are getting down and dirty with their food. It's traditional in non-western countries like India to eat with your hands -- and it's slowly becoming more acceptable here, too. Allow me to wipe my hands here on this napkin so I can applaud.

Some foods really are better eaten with your hands -- I mean, she who eats chicken wings with a fork is totally missing the point. And every New Yorker except Donald Trump knows it's the ONLY way to eat pizza. But I was curious about how far I could push this utensil-free dining. So, without preparing any special for-hands meals, I decided to spend 24 hours eating all my meals utensil-free.

Know what I love about carrot cake zucchini muffins? You get to have your cake and eat it too. You're eating your veggies (good for you), but you're still eating cake. Is it decadent? Or nutritious? Kind of both! Giada De Laurentiis puts an extra-nutritious spin on this recipe by using almond and brown rice flour -- and it's sweetened with maple syrup! But you can swap in regular flour if you want to.

The frosting is also optional -- but we're talking about luscious cream cheese frosting. Yum! These muffins make a rich, wholesome breakfast that will add jet fuel to your weekend mornings. 

As you prepare for New Year's Eve festivities tonight, you may want to think ahead and prepare something for breakfast tomorrow morning just in case you're not feeling in tip-top shape after a night of celebrating. Even if you're staying in, this cinnamon swirl bread will be a welcome treat with which to start off the New Year.

This recipe from Pillsbury is incredibly easy as it calls for just three ingredients, one of which is a pre-made, refrigerated bread dough, which takes out a lot of the work (i.e. no kneading). Still it's delicious and the perfect thing to enjoy with your cup of coffee (or five cups) tomorrow morning and all year long.

Still looking for the perfect Christmas morning breakfast? How about filling your home with the fragrant scent of cinnamon coffee cake? This recipe is by celebrity chefs Bryan and Michael Voltaggio, who are also delicious. Oh my goodness, I can actually smell this coffee cake just typing out the recipe!

To give yourself a head start Christmas morning, sift together the dry ingredients the night before and set out the butter -- it will be perfectly soft by the next morning.