For the most part, you pick Panera Bread in hopes of grabbing a quick and healthy meal. It has to be better than Burger King, Dunkin or Taco Bell right? It's a bakery-cafe shop after all! But if you read the small fine print on many of their items, you'll find that even their food can be just as bad as fast food chains, for many reasons, especially some items on the Panera breakfast menu.
The Three Unhealthiest Picks on the Panera Breakfast Menu
We did the research and found out exactly what items you shouldn't be ordering from the Panera Bread breakfast menu. Take away the menu prices today, because we are getting down to the ingredients. Breakfast is the quickest meal of the day, so don't waste your time trying to figure it out and take our breakfast option recommendations down for next time.
1. Cinnamon Crunch Bagel
At 420 calories, this is the highest cal bagel on their menu. Sure cinnamon sounds like a treat in the am. Think back to the yummy cinnamon swirl treats we got growing up. But is 32g really a treat to your body? And then if you add cream cheese spread to that, you are basically skyrocketing.
Try this instead:
Sprouted Grain Bagel Flat
Not only are you cutting down to more than half of the calorie intake (It's only 180 cal!) with this whole grain bagel, your sugar intake is also decreased to 4 grams. What a difference, right? At this point, you are totally allowed to order another food item or an extra cup of coffee at least.
2. Cheese Souffle
It's tempting, we know. Just by reading the words "neufchâtel, cheddar, parmesan and romano cheeses," has us wanting this souffle in our mouth right now. But skip trying to be fancy because this 470 calorie baked egg souffle shouldn't even be served during breakfast hours. 36 grams of carbs is too much, too early. The same goes for their Spinach & Artichoke Souffle. Scrambled eggs and spinach in a pastry doesn't make it healthy.
Try this instead:
Ham, Egg & Cheese Breakfast Power Sandwich
This item isn't on their menu, but you can easily tell them to make it. Just ask for it to be on a whole grain option and you'll be getting a good source of vitamin A, calcium, and iron. Not too mention, it's high in fiber too! Though adding bacon sound delightful, try adding even more veggie iron and make it into a spinach breakfast power sandwich.
3. Drinks from the Espresso Bar
This may have crushed your heart, but almost every drink is at least 200 calories. When we say at least, we mean alot of their lattes are 450 calories. That's a whole meal in the form of a beverage. And if we broke down how many grams of sugar is in each, you don't even want to know.
Try this instead:
Parfait or Fruit Cup
If you're not ordering the Americano or Espresso, why not a fruit cup or parfait? The Greek Yogurt parfait is only 240 calories and very filling. It includes Greek yogurt with honey, maple butter pecan granola with whole grain oats, and fresh strawberries and blueberries. It almost tastes like a sweet donut!
And their fruit cup has fresh fruit and is a good menu item accompaniment to an Asiago Cheese Bagel or even an Everything Bagel. Hey, if you really want a Chocolate Chip cookie or croissant, just go for it with a side of fruit cup. It's all about balance.
