Preparing healthy breakfasts for my family may be the hardest part of sticking to my meal plan and eating a nutritious diet.
Nutritionists recommend that you eat something within 30 minutes of waking up. For my kids, this isn’t a problem. For me and my husband, it is.
You’ve heard the TV jingle, “The best part of waking up, is Folgers in your cup.” Well, for me, that’s true. I’m one of those people who want my coffee first thing in the morning. Unfortunately, though, once I’ve drunk my coffee, I’m not longer hungry… until 10 o’clock rolls around.
Today I’m sharing my healthy breakfast struggles with you as well as what I’ve been doing to overcome this bad habit I have.
“Cook Once, Eat Twice” Doesn’t Only Apply To Dinner
One of the things I’ve learned from the Frugal Real Food Meal Plan subscription is that I don’t have to plan a different breakfast for every day of the week. With this meal plan you get three breakfasts a week, and most times you end up with leftovers which can be eaten through the week.
Another thing I’ve learned is that you don’t always have to eat breakfast food for breakfast. Food is food so if you don’t have the time or the energy to make breakfast for your kids every morning, make use of the leftovers and don’t feel bad about it!
This is great because it cuts down on planning a different breakfast each day, buying more food, wasting the food that isn’t eaten, and saving my sanity.
However, I’m not a “get up and cook a big breakfast” kinda mom. I want things that are simple, quick to fix, and very nutritious. That means that I often don’t use all the breakfasts included in the meal plan. I do use the ones that you can make ahead and have ready throughout the week. Muffins, granola, premade oatmeal or breakfast casseroles work well for this. Other than that, though, we save our bigger breakfasts for Saturday mornings.
One of the downsides I have found with many of the breakfasts in this meal plan subscription is that a good bit of them are bready and sweet which I’m not a fan of. None-the-less, there are many that are great and I’m constantly trying new recipes and adding them to our family favorites!
5 Easy Breakfasts For Busy Mamas
Like I said earlier, I typically don’t eat breakfast myself. I know, I know. It’s terrible, and I’m really working to get away from that bad habit. One thing that’s helping me not only eat, but is helping me make sure my kids are eating healthy breakfasts is preparing easy breakfasts that they can grab on their own. Let me quickly share 5 that we’re currently loving right now.
1. Smoothies
Smoothies have always been easy for me. I buy fruits when they are on sale, cut them up and freeze them. Then I make my friend Kristen’s smoothie packs and take a day to prep a bunch of bags. Most of my smoothie packs are made using seasonal fruits.
Now, just for the record, not all smoothies are healthy, but I like to think that mine are. At least, I go out of the way to make them healthier since I like to drink them for breakfast.
I always try to add spinach or some other veggie to my smoothie. My fruit is seasonal. The yogurt I use is homemade greek yogurt that is unsweetened. I use coconut milk or coconut water for my liquid portion. I use a fresh banana or 1/2 of an avocado as my fresh ingredients. More often than not I add in herbal powders to my smoothies. I always add in my seed cycling seeds too.
2. Oatmeal
Oatmeal is another quick fix breakfast for us. I simply put a pan of water on the stove and turn the heat on, in 10 minutes or less it’s boiling, I add in our steel-cut oats, turn the heat to low, cover the saucepan and let it sit for another 10-15 minutes. Most times, if we’re having oatmeal for breakfast, I’ll start all of this before the boys wake up so it’s on the stove, hot and ready when they climb out of bed.
Another oatmeal favorite is baked oatmeal. I’ll bake up a large casserole dish of this goodness and store it in the fridge for breakfasts during the week. We usually get 2-3 days worth of breakfasts out of large casserole dishes of baked oatmeal. Here’s a great recipe for Apple Cinnamon Baked Oatmeal from my friend Renee at Raising Generation Nourished.
3. Homemade Granola
Another quick fix breakfast is homemade granola.
There are SO MANY recipes for homemade granola on the web, you’re sure to find a few your family will enjoy. Choose from classic granola, to gluten-free options, to ones that are full of nuts and seeds and other healthy fats. There’s something for everyone!
Our current favorite is this Pumpkin Spiced Granola from SkinnyTaste.com. I triple the batch and make it ahead of time. I store it in a large, gallon sized glass jar. When the kids are ready for breakfast, I pour it in their bowls and let them choose the toppings. They eat it plain, like cereal with raw milk, or like a parfait with homemade yogurt and fresh fruit.
4. Muffins
Muffins are another breakfast food that you can prepare ahead of time and most everyone likes them.
When it comes to eating muffins in our house, we like bread muffins and veggies muffins.
Our favorite bread muffin recipe is our Carrot & Sage Muffins. I have to limit the boys with these as they will eat the whole batch. Crazy kids! Veggie muffins are easy to make too. Simply mix small veggies with whipped eggs, cheese, and some breakfast sausage if you’re in a meat mood. Pour it into your muffin tin, and bake at 350 degrees until a knife comes out clean in the middle.
Both bread and veggie muffins can be made in large batches and stored in the fridge for breakfasts all throughout the week. Plus, they make excellent on-the-go breakfasts as well.
5. Scrambled Eggs
The last quick-fix breakfast we make regularly is scrambled eggs. Not only can you whip them up in under 15 minutes, but they can be made in so many different ways.
We love Mexican Scrambled Eggs here. Throw on some salsa, sour cream, and cilantro, and we’ll all eat without complaining. In fact, I think I’m feeling hungry right now!
Okay, so if you’re like me and breakfasts are not your favorite meal as soon as you wake up, I hope this post lets you know you are not alone and has inspired you with some easy breakfast ideas you can try.
I am fortunate in that I love breakfast and always have. But I understand those who aren’t into eating first thing, and I sympathize. I do insist my kids have something to eat each morning, and look for creative ways to encourage this. I like the idea of the smoothie packs – I love prepping ahead and saving time on busy weekday mornings.
Some things I do to save time on weekday mornings – crustless egg, cheese, and vegetable quiche – reheat a serving in the microwave with a little cheese on top. I make a batch of banana oatmeal blender pancakes and reheat during the week. Breakfast muffins with eggs, cheese, and ham can be frozen and reheated. And my friend Krista shared her crockpot barley and apple breakfast (nice to wake up to on a cold morning!) http://seekingjoyfulsimplicity.com/simple-hearty-winter-breakfast-crockpot-barley-and-apple/
Thanks for the inspiration and resources!
Thanks so much for sharing your quick breakfast ideas with me, Michelle! I REALLY appreciate it, and I’ll definitely give some of these a try!
We’ve been really struggling with breakfast at our house. So we’ve defaulted to yogurt and fruit for now, mostly because the kids can make it themselves:-)
On another note you mentioned eating nonbreakfast foods in the morning and I have to share one of the most satisfying meals for breakfast is a slice of meatloaf! Topped with fermented ketchup, cheese, and a fried egg…so good!!!
One of the things I have learned through personal experience and from my clients – including protein and fat with breakfast helps provide longer satiety. Protein can be a tablespoon of nut butter, regular cheese, cottage cheese, or a tasty slice of meatloaf!
Great ideas! Breakfast is a struggle, especially since I can no longer do eggs!
My latest go-tos are on your list already but I do ahead of time. Mighty nest has a great chocolate chip cookie dough overnight oats (done in the morning and taste good cold, really!). I also do steel cut but found an overnight recipe so I put it on to boil for a minute, then remove from heat and cover and just leave it out all night (I know, lil sketch but it works!) and then I just turn on the burner to warm it in the morning. I like to do as little as possible but still have a good breakfast:)
Just discovered your blog and enjoy reading about your knowledge and passions! Thank you!!
Thanks for sharing, Gretchen! I’m sure your overnight oats are super healthy and similar to what soaked oats would be. I’ll have to check the Mighty Nest site out for them! Thanks for your comment!
I think we must be twins! My breakfasts are almost identical to what you have listed het, except for the homemade granola. I’ll have to try that. Thanks!