We all know a healthy breakfast is a good idea. But also, pastries exist. When faced with a contradiction of this magnitude, the best thing to do is to take the middle path. So, yeah, eat a healthy breakfast most days, but don't feel bad about allowing yourself to have chocolate for breakfast when you feel like it. And for those days when you do feel like it, here are 14 delicious recipes.

1. Double Chocolate Peanut Butter Muffins

Food, Dessert, Baked goods, Ingredient, Sweetness, Cuisine, Recipe, Chocolate, Finger food, Cooking,

If single chocolate is good, it stands to reason that double chocolate is twice as good. And as any mathematician will tell you, the addition of peanut butter to chocolate improves it by a factor of 17.

Get the recipe on Pass the Sushi.

2. Tart Cherry and Cacao Nib Granola

Food, Cuisine, Dishware, Ingredient, Meal, Serveware, Tableware, Produce, Kitchen utensil, Breakfast,

Taking control of your life starts with great granola. OK, maybe that's a reach, but at the very least you can get your day off to an excellent start.

Get the recipe on Brooklyn Supper.

3. Spiced Orange Chocolate Chip Waffles

Food, Belgian waffle, Cuisine, Dishware, Tableware, Dish, Dessert, Baked goods, Plate, Bowl,

Being gluten-free doesn't have to be a total drag all the time. For example, you can eat these amazingly delicious spiced orange chocolate chip waffles. You should also probably eat them even if you're not gluten-free.

Get the recipe on Tasty Yummies.

4. Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Granola

Red, Food, Cuisine, Carmine, Ingredient, Dessert, Recipe, Sweetness, Snack, Dish,

Chocolate-covered strawberries are the inspiration for this lovely granola. But don't let its good looks fool you — this is the breakfast to eat on days when you mean business (or are just running late).

Get the recipe on Oh My Veggies.

5. Chocolate Chip Banana Bread

Food, Cuisine, Finger food, Ingredient, Baked goods, Dish, Breakfast, Recipe, Snack, Meal,

Banana bread is an essential part of the diet of anyone who buys bananas and then forgets about them (read: everyone). And lots of chocolate chips transform this treat from obligatory baked good to the best breakfast ever.

Get the recipe on This Week for Dinner.

6. Pear and Chocolate Cake

Food, Cuisine, Baked goods, Dessert, Dish, Ingredient, Recipe, Snack, Bread, Gluten,

Even if you're not typically a lady who brunches, you can steal the show next time your fancy friends have you over with this pretty, chocolate-studded pear cake.

Get the recipe on Brooklyn Supper.

7. Gluten-Free Chocolate Almond Pound Cake

Cuisine, Food, Sweetness, Ingredient, Dessert, Baked goods, Dish, Cake, Recipe, Torta caprese,

You may be saying "Cake for breakfast? That's pushing it." Well, it's pretty much the same thing as coffee cake, so eat up.

Get the recipe on Healthy Green Kitchen.

8. Triple Chocolate Raspberry Oat Bran Muffins

Sweetness, Dessert, Ingredient, Confectionery, Baking cup, Cuisine, Candy, Recipe, Snack, Cupcake,

Yes, these muffins have chocolate. But they also have oat bran. So on the balance, if you can just like jog a block or take an extra flight of stairs during the day, these muffins are totally good for you. Possibly.

Get the recipe on A Brown Table.

9. Chocolate Crepes

Finger food, Kitchen utensil, Silver,

For whatever reason crepes somehow made it into the dessert category, but they're really just very thin pancakes, so they should fall squarely into breakfast. Help this wonderful, noble food claim its rightful place at the breakfast nook. It's the least you can do.

Get the recipe on Dieter's Downfall.

10. Chocolate Peanut Butter Protein Pancakes

Food, Sweetness, Cuisine, Ingredient, Fruit, Baked goods, Dessert, Dish, Berry, Garnish,

Here's the deal, these are protein pancakes. (They also have peanut butter and chocolate, but still, protein.) Eat as many as you want.

Get the recipe on The Lemon Bowl.

11. Sea Salt Chocolate Muffins

Food, Cuisine, Baked goods, Ingredient, Finger food, Dish, Dessert, Recipe, Plate, Snack,

In the past five years or so salty-sweet went from an occasional surprise to a combo so ubiquitous that it's easy to roll your eyes at it. But don't you roll those eyes, missy! It became so popular because it tastes so very good. Enjoy it while it lasts. Some gross flavor will come into style soon enough.

Get the recipe on A Brown Table.

12. Stuffed Nutella French Toast with Strawberries

Food, Dishware, Ingredient, Serveware, Tableware, Cutlery, Kitchen utensil, Fruit, Strawberries, Sweetness,

Surely you know that Nutella is really good on a piece of toast. But when it's stuffed in between two pieces of French toast and topped with strawberries? You just won breakfast by a landslide.

Get the recipe on Cook Like a Champion.

13. Pumpkin Crepes with Cinnamon, Apples, and Chocolate

Food, Brown, Cuisine, Photograph, Ingredient, White, Dish, Recipe, Breakfast, Meat,

Pumpkin, cinnamon, apples, chocolate, and beer means there's a little something for everyone in these crepes — a perfect breakfast to make for friends.

Get the recipe on Joanne Eats Well with Others.

14. Chocolate Chai Rolls

Serveware, Food, Dishware, Cuisine, Plate, Tableware, Ingredient, Dish, Dessert, Baked goods,

Let's face it, cinnamon rolls have been begging for an update for years. Wait no longer, because these chocolate chai rolls are officially the bomb.

Get the recipe on The Law Student's Wife.

Elizabeth Stark is a food writer with a passion for seasonal food, great desserts, and inadvisable wine pairings. Read more on her blog, Brooklyn Supper.

Follow Elizabeth on Twitter, Pinterest, and Facebook.

This article originally appeared on Cosmopolitan.com.

From: Cosmopolitan US