hi everyone!
this morning i broke down and made corn muffins from a trader joe’s corn muffin mix!
i am so frustrated with breakfast choices for my kids….
what do you give your kids/family/self for breakfast each day?
our mornings are so fast- we have about 40 minutes between waking up and leaving the house… and i am not a fan of breakfast in the car.
i think cold cereal is blah….
my kids are over frozen waffles (even the delicious van’s waffles with pure maple syrup and butter is no longer appealing).
they are "not in the mood" for eggs…
grilled cheese is yummy but not every day!
cold pizza????
they would like chocolate chip pancakes but that’s not REALLY breakfast….it’s DESSERT!
xoxo
jennifer
mornings are so hard but you really can be creative. Whole wheat english muffin pizza. you can have it all made in the fridge the night before and just pop in the toaster oven. I make a spread of spinach and ricotta and top with whatever lean protein topping your kids dig and a little more cheese. This can be so yummy too just spread with cream cheese and fruit. A fruity pizza
oops, for chocolate chip pancakes, they sell a brand at the local supermarket that is vegan. vegan chips (carob) are utterly gross but this actually taste like chocolate. they are kosher and not much money so make the pancakes, don’t tell your kids you used fake chocolate. see if they know the difference. (don’t go to healthfood store, for some reason they don’t sell this brand. don’t know about whole foods)
i knew someone who would make large batches of american pancakes (can’t do german ones, need the fat ones, she used a mix) and would put them in ziploc bags and freeze them. said they tasted like they were freshly made when you nuked them. egg white omelets (try the eggology ones, really not bad) are fast. just shove them on a croissant or a biscuit (can be made the night before or store bought), shove a fake sausage or real one on it or some cheese. hash browns (the frozen ones are great, low in fat, vegan if you buy the right ones), shove some fruit on the side. some people love smoothies for kids. english muffins pizzas can be made the night before. or get some biscuits, put butter, sliced tomatoes and salt on them (or blt, they sell bacon you can nuke now and the vegan stuff ain’t bad), really good. i never had cereal when i was growing up either. i think i was the only kid in the whole school (and we were thinnn). kuddos to you.
The chocolate chip pancake scenario is familiar to me…but fear not! Pillsbury makes a lovely frozen one you can microwave for the kids, and they love them! It’s not that bad as long as you give them some sliced fresh fruit to go along with it, and a half glass of milk or juice. We have about the same time you do each morning – 40 minutes. Another suggestion would be those mini cinnamon rolls the Schwan’s man sells…they cook in the micro in 30 seconds and you spread your own icing over the top! Not a bad choice for once a week breakfast treats. Add grapes, and viola! Happy morning to you!
What about adding making pancakes ahead of time and then freezing them? You can pop them in the microwave and then top with some fruit and low fat whipped cream….its healthier than a sugary ceral, very fast and I think the kids would like it. 🙂
My daughter has a bagel with cream cheese and fresh fruit or apple with chunky peanut butter or englise whole grain muffin with peanut butter and freah fruit.
My sister make her girls muffins. She make banana. carrot, pumkin oatmeal. Makes them on the weekends and freeze them. then they can pick what they want!!
I use to have the same issue. I started getting up earlier and getting the kids up early as well. I found it was too stressful to have them “hit the ground running” in the am. I would rather them get up early and be able to have a stress free morning. Right now my kids (12 and 14) get up at 5:30 my husband drive them to school and they leave the house at 7:00. Now that they are teen they handle their own breakfast. I use to make up a big batch of breakfast burritos or homemade egg Mcmuffins(much healthier then the real ones) I’d wrap them all up, then during the week the could nuke them during the week. Also oatmeal, hard boiled eggs,leftover dinner. Check out websites for ideas.
Try Vitalicous.com. They have great muffins, muffin tops and cake mixes with virtually no calories and tons of fiber! And their muffin tops are only 1 point each. I have two every morning for breakfast since I’ve been on WW for over a year now. They’ll love them; especially the peanut butter chip with chocolate! And they have corn muffin tops that are new and taste great.
We lots of food allergies in my house so breakfast can be tough. I do cut melon (which I cut up and have in tupperware night before) and then pancakes (again made a few days before in freezer) I put chocolate chips in them and flax seed so the kids love them and have no idea how healthy they are..also we have oatmeal with yes, chocolate chips and flax seeds….and sometime my daughter wants a sandwich,salami and turkey toasted, I give it too her, b/c it has protein and I know she has at least one good meal in her before the day starts
Good luck
I also like the idea of corn muffins for breakfast once in awhile…sometimes I toss some blueberries in the batter. I have also filled half of the muffin tins with batter, placed raspberry jam or preserves in the middle, then covered with the remaining batter. Sounds like you’re getting lots of ideas.
Peanut butter on toast is amazing, it melts just enough and it’s protein. Also, deviled eggs are great, make them the night before and serve them with toast. No cooking required. And my favorite of all….homemade leftover spaghetti for breakfast. I love it.
Cinnamon toast on whole wheat bread with a side of fruit. My son likes apples coated in lemon juice and sprinkled with cinnamon and sugar. This morning it was cinnamon toast with a cut up pear.
I get tired of him having cold cereal, too. On weekends I make bisquits or pancakes or waffles. But weekdays cinnamon toast is quick. I wish he’d eat oatmeal….
My mom used to do this and I loved it… it needs to be made the night before, refrigerate, and pop in micro or oven in the am
Breakfast casserole:
scramble eggs (you can add peppers, or what ever veggies you like in eggs)
cook some potatoes, shreds, cubed– however you like them– season how you like as well
layer in a pan, top with cheese (i like cheddar)
refridge until ready to serve in am
bake until warm and cheese melts — about 10-15 mins or microwave, but eggs can heat strange in microwave
Yummers! Add an extra chair at the breakfast table – I’m SO there.
hey jenny- try looking at https://weightwatchen.com/ . it is great site that has recipes and is child friendly. hope that this helps!!!
I found a realy good recipe in Southern Living for oatmeal breakfast cookies. You can mix in a variety of things, nuts, choc chips, dried canberries, raisins, etc for variety. They are yummy AND good for you.
Here is my list of b’fast items:
-p/b jelly sandwich (ww bread)
-egg/ham/cheese burritos
-yogurt w/cereal sprinkled inside (good cereal, not sugary ones)
-fruit, cheese and nuts
-muffins
Good carbs in the a.m. are important for energy throughout their day. Proteins to make their tummy full.
I bought Martha Stewart’s Pmmpkin Spice cake mix from Macy’s and made muffins from the mix. I freeze them individually and have one for breakfast with fat free cream cheese and the whole kit and kaboodle is only 4 points! Tastes great. Of course, anything Martha sells is great.
Oatmeal – I like the steel cut or old-fashioned but the Quick Oats are very fast (1 min) and much better than the nasty things in the packets (loaded with sugar and weird stuff too). You can always add sugar (or brown sugar), honey, nuts, fruit, etc. Also, trader joes has frozen steel cut oats (in the freezer section (duh), and they are microwaveable.
I also like Cream of Wheat, but I may be in the minority there. I’ve loved it since I was a child. I don’t know if that comes in a quick or instant variety.
Also, I would eat cold cereal 3x a day if I could, so I am no help there.
Or what about bananas sliced up with PB on them?
Sounds like variety might be key. Good luck!
I give my little one del monte fruit cups (she loves the orange segments), toast, english muffin, pancake sandwiches, yogurt and french toast sticks with dunking syrup. Hope it helps! Keep up the great work!
My kids enjoy homemade waffles (make in large batches and freeze) topped with fruit or jam. Bagels with flavored cream cheese, dried fruit with nuts along with some flavored yogurt they enjoy. Also, biscuts with jam and cheddar cheese are very tasty!! Anywho, Goodluck!
I like to take a whole wheat or multi-grain tortilla or one of those flat wraps and spread peanut butter on it and then roll it up with either sliced bananas or sliced apples drizzled with a little honey and sprinkled with granola. it’s like a wrap sandwich that you can eat in the car.
I think it’s important to not fill kids up with bread and starchy foods. That becomes a bad habit that’s hard to break when they get older and the key reason people are so fat. I think whole grains, fruit, protein (if you’re a vegetarian you can buy lots of stuff from morningstar farms that tastes very good) and yogurt. Smoothies are a great choice if you’re in a hurry. You can buy fresh frozen fruit so you don’t have to peel and slice anything or worry about syrups or added sugar.
I had to make myself eat breakfast – plus, I don’t like anything that takes too long to prepare. I bought a Magic Bullet and now in 1 minute, I can make a delicious smoothie for breakfast (slip in some fiber powder and they’ll never know it). I use a little yogurt, skim milk, fresh or frozen fruit and some crushed ice (sometimes a little extract) and voila!
My girls microwave a piece of quiche for breakfast. I usually use cottage cheese instead of cream and lots of veggies. Their favorite is broccoli/ cheddar. Whip it up and cook it the night before and it is ready in a snap.
People! Jenny’s daughter can’t eat peanuts! Jennifer, can she eat other sorts of nuts? There are a variety of other nut butters. Be careful if they were processed in the same plant as the peanut butter. Stay away from all the sugar and fake food. Smoothies made with vanilla yogurt frozen banana, frozen strawberries and OJ maybe a little honey, Yummy! Do add some sort of protein to avoid the sugar crash.
Every morning I fix 8 scrambled eggs that me, my husband, and my two kids share. We have yet to get sick of them… I think the key is to not cook them too long! Eggs are horrible if over done.. and Organic eggs are soooo tasty.. Sprinkle a little Antique white cheddar on top, or some ghouda.. and then a slice of whole wheat bread with cream cheese, a glass of tomato juice, and a small cup of coffee.. and I’m ready to tackle the world.
I wish I could get myself together enough to have steamed salmon every morning in place of the eggs sometimes.. 🙂
oh, and when my kids say no thanks.. I say: Sit down and eat!!! It’s for your nutrition. We don’t eat for pleasure girls, it’s just a benefit.. we eat because it’s good for us.. They’ve been hearing that for years.. and they quit fighting it.. I think I won 🙂 this time…
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I grew up in Northern Europe. Here’s what we had for breakfast: Oatmeal, cream of wheat, any other hot cereal… pair that with home-made jam and a glass of cold mil and it’s the best!! I was raised on that stuff and we still have it for breakfast when I go home to see my parents. On days when my mom didn’t cook we made open faced sandwiches with cheese & ham or with home-made jam!! We’d have some tea or milk and be good to go!
Also, I have visited families in Norway/Finland/Sweden and their typical every-day breakfast is toast with jam and fruit and coffee/tea…
My daughter was on a gluten free diet and I had to become creative. Try instant grits with cinnamin, a little honey and butter. Yummy! Fast and Easy. Also did this with squash. You roast acorn squash (in season right now) mash it up, again, add the cinnamin, honey and a little butter. Eat it on toast like a apple butter. Different but good and healthy!
What about breakfast burritos, or leftovers from last night. There is no law that says breakfast has to be eggs, muffins or pancakes. Warm up leftovers from last night. Just make sure something gets in their bellies.
FYI Jerry Seinfeld’s wife Jessica just wrote a book about how to ‘sneak’ healthy foods to your kids. It’s called Deceptively Delicious. I don’t know if she is any kind of expert other than being a mom. Looks interesting.
I know you said your kids are “not in the mood” for eggs… well, there are so many different things you can do with them to make them *different*… mentioned already are breakfast burritos — these are portable, too. You can add salsa or fresh veggies or cheese… or left over onions, mushrooms, etc. Also, someone mentioned making egg sandwiches… sometimes I do this openface – poach an egg, toast some break, put the egg on top, break the egg so all the gooey yolk moistens the toast, and add salt/pepper/catsup/salsa/?whatever. Also, I love egg cookers… hard boiled eggs, soft boiled eggs, poached eggs… all without too much work. I also want to warn against loading up with muffins, starches, and sugars… some say that having lots of sugars in the morning makes you crave more sugar as the day goes on. Finally, for something different, and add a little protein – maybe wrap melon with prosciutto? put lox on a bagel or with a poached/soft egg?
I think fruit and soy smoothies are yummy for breakfast. You can get frozen berries or peaches, throw in the blender with a banana, soy milk, a few ice cubes and some honey.
Also, prep fresh fruit the night before and serve that with yogurt and honey. Making large batches of waffles is a good idea too. Don’t “nuke” them, good lord, just toast them in the toaster oven!!
hi..my kids are really picky, so I started to make a “buffet” like they have at hotels..they love this, it’s fun, they get to choose, and always eat something.. I put out yogurts, cereals, granola, fresh fruit, whole grain crackers and cheese and milk, water and oj..
I change it all the time, sometimes bagels quartered with a few spreads. I buy stuff, out it out and it’s easy. I rotate the stuff…..but there is always boxes of cereal (little ones) and milk, oj and some fruit. Trust me it works. Oh, and once in a while I surprise them with pizza, real pizza, hot! They LOVE it.