It may seem like an unlikely pairing to start the day, but mixing veggies with your cereal may be the next big food trend.

A new Galaxy Research study of Australian breakfast habits uncovered some unlikely results. It turns out that more than half a million Australians are already going green by teaming vegetables and cereal, such as zucchini and oats (aka zoats) in their brekkie bowl each day.

The research points to a shift towards a savoury cereal bowl, with just over half a million Australians also adding spreads like nut butters to their cereal and almost a million adding herbs and spices.

It sounds bizarre, but jumping on the vegetable and cereal trend will not only tick off one serve of vegetables for the day, it will provide a budget superfood combo of veggies and grain food; keep you satisfied throughout the morning, especially if you add calcium-rich alternatives like Greek yoghurt or milk, or extra toppers such as nuts or seeds to help boost protein and fibre.

FOOD PORN

While health and nutrition drive breakfast choice, Aussies love food porn at brekkie. The study found two million Australians posted social shots of their breakfast bowl at least once a week — that’s almost 400 million posts a year.

“The opportunity to personalise and get more creative with different ingredients, flavours, textures and styling combos can make a simple brekkie bowl a real social media star,” said food stylist and recipe developer Jennifer Jenner.

“One of my current favourites is topping a bowl of porridge with a swirl of pureed pumpkin, walnuts, pear and honey.”

“This trend will continue to grow as it gives people the option of a quick and easy sweet or savoury brekkie cereal bowl,” adds Ms Jenner.

The Galaxy Research study also uncovered other eccentric breakfast habits, which included building brekkie bowls with layers or sections, eating cereal with a fork or straight from the box.

Food sensory expert at The Australian Institute of Food Science and Technology (AIFST) Cathy Gair said our individual breakfast habits, even those that may appear a little odd, were often connected to satisfying our senses.

“Satisfying our senses naturally increases the variety of foods we eat and is an evolutionary trait that helps us meet all our nutritional needs by ensuring we get a range of vitamins and minerals from an array of different foods,” Dr Gair said.

The Galaxy research was commissioned by the Australian Breakfast Cereal Manufacturers Forum

(ABCMF) and conducted among a representative sample a representative sample of 1,382 Australians 18 years and older who ate breakfast cereal in the past month.

Kathleen Alleaume is a nutritionist and founder of The Right Balance. Story was originally published on news.com.au.