Healthy Breakfast before School

[chimo2u]

This is from the "Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook"

Overnight Steel-Cut Oatmeal

1 cup steel-cut oats
4 cups water

This is the ratio. This is supposed to serve 2.This makes a moderately thick porridge. Cut back by 1/2 to 1 cup on the water if you like a thicker oatmeal. Cook for 8 to 9 hours, or overnight, until tender.

Creamy Oatmeal with Dried Fruit

1 cup steel-cut oats
2/3 cup dried tart cherries or sweetened dried cranberries
1/3 cup chopped dried figs
1/3 cup chopped dried apricots
4-1/2 cups water
1/2 cup half-and-half or evaporated milk

Combine all ingredients. Cover and cook on LOW for 8 to 9 hours, or overnight, until tender.

I have not ever done the plain recipe. I loved the idea of all the dried fruits in the oatmeal and do this one. I find that in my humid Houston, my steel-cut oats don't seem to take quite as long as the recipe dictates to cook, but it varies with the season.

I look at the recipe and see 1-1/3 cups dried fruit and just put in whatever sounds good. The tart cherries and cranberries are a very yummy addition to the sweetness of anything else. I've used raisins for the figs. Or dried blueberries for a splurge. This recipe is supposed to serve 3, but I find that this is so filling for me, I'm not sure that I make as big a serving as they are calculating.

I have even added fresh cooking apples. The get more mushy than the dried fruit but I like cooked apples.

I just keep this in the fridge and microwave it in a bowl. Add a bit of cool milk and salt and it is so good.

HTH!

Simplest breakfast ever:

1 Ezekiel English muffin
1/4 cup cartoned egg whites
1 slice swiss cheese

Pop the muffin in the toaster. While it's toasing, pour the egg whites into a bowl and nuke for 1 minute. When that's finished, place the slice of cheese on top and melt for 10 seconds. Put the egg white/cheese in between the muffin and you have a quick and easy breakfast sandwich. Add some spinach or a tomato slice to make it even healthier.

Around 250 calories, 3 gram fat, and low sodium is about 300 mg.

WOW!! You guys are the greatest!!! I will definitely be trying these 2 new options this fall when we are back to busy mornings and crazy schedules! I like the english muffin tip too....it will save me $$ and calories not popping into McD's drive thru in the morning!
Thanks again for the wonderful tips, I'll be printing them off to save!
Marie

 

[MEM]

WOW!! You guys are the greatest!!! I will definitely be trying these 2 new options this fall when we are back to busy mornings and crazy schedules! I like the english muffin tip too....it will save me $$ and calories not popping into McD's drive thru in the morning!
Thanks again for the wonderful tips, I'll be printing them off to save!
Marie

I make a version of the Egg Muffin above except I use a Laughing Cow cheese wedge instead of Swiss cheese to reduce the fat and calories. Sometimes I add chipped turkey ham.

 

[MEM]

You all have been talking about Greek yogurt, so I bought some and put it in DH's lunch, instead of the usual lowfat Dannon. Holy cow, he hated the stuff! He said it tasted like chalky pudding. It was vanilla. Are the other flavors any better?

Its an acquired taste, I guess, and I have not found a brand or flavor that my family will tolerate. I have been known to cook with it, replacing sour cream or buttermilk in recipes with the same amount of Greek-style yogurt.

 

[luckey-lasvegas]

On the weekends I cook exta turkey sausage. I cook some Ukon gold potatos in the microwave for about 5 minutes. When they are cooled I dice them and the slice the suasage and cook them in a non stick pan with a little onion and canola spray. I let the mix cool and the seperate it into baggies and freeze. My dd dosen't like eggs so I just warm up some for her in the microwave before school. For my DH and I, I put it in a skillet and add a scrambled egg and veggies.

 

[HM]

My DD is gong into 5th grade and we are having trouble agreeing that breakfast must be eaten. I am looking for somthing healthy and quick she can eat before she catches the bus. I am willing to do prep work on the weekends or night before but do not have much time in the mornings. School starts in 10 days, yuck!

My kids are not hungry in the morning either. We resorted to Instant Breakfast for them. It keeps them with enough energy until lunch (early at their school).

 

[luckey-lasvegas]

My kids are not hungry in the morning either. We resorted to Instant Breakfast for them. It keeps them with enough energy until lunch (early at their school).

We blend this with a bananna, ice and a splach of chocolate syurp . DD calls it the Chunky Monkey smoothie.

 

[Schmoodle]

I like to make these oatmeal breakfast bars. They are high protein and calcium and made a great grab and go breakfast along with a hard boiled egg.

Preheat the oven to 350
Spray an 8x8 pan with cooking spray like pam

Mix
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup DRY milk powder (non-fat milk)
1 cup unsweetened applesauce or mashed RIPE bananas or combo of the two
add 1 teaspoon baking powder
add 1 teaspoon (or more) of cinnamon
add sweetener as desired or needed (can use honey, agave nectar, sugar):
As desired:
cut up dried fruit
chopped nuts

pour (glop really) into the pan
bake for about 22 minutes till the edges brown and come away from the pan
let cool.
remove from pan
cut into six bars 2 bars per serving
bag into individual servings and refrigerate

You can make all different combinations - we love "banana bread style" with mashed bananas and walnuts, blueberry muffin style, dried cherries and almonds, and substituting pumpkin for the mashed banana along with pumpkin pie spice, yum!

 

[edk35]

My 16 year old son is the NON eater in our house. The only time he is eating good and does have breakfast is during high school soccer season. Other than that...I am lucky is he will eat 2 or 3 bites of ONE eggo waffle. I would just have a bunch of easy stuff and grab and go stuff like others have suggested. My 11 year old son will eat breakfast but sometimes he wants REGULAR stuff not breakfast. I have made him soup for breakfast. He might eat a left over piece of pizza or something else he likes that is leftover from dinner. Who says she has to have breakfast food for breakfast.

 

[SarahKate]

I don't buy the flavored stuff AND I don't buy the fat free. I get 2% Fage brand and add some honey for sweetener with fresh berries and nuts.

If you eat it plain, it does taste like sour cream. There are some Fage cups that have a small container of honey on the side, or you could send a little honey packet in a lunch.

Another thought for sweetening the Greek yogurt is using agave nectar. I've found the honey takes a while to mix in, but the agave is a lot easier and super yummy!

 

[DisneyDreams4]

I freeze many things so the kids can have a quick breakfast without me cooking every morning.

We always have pumpkin pancakes in the freezer- often with whole wheat, flax seed, and applesauce or other fruit. I freeze them in 4 stacks inside gallon-sized bags-- the kids can take just one or several.

I'll also bake several different kinds of muffins (regular and mini-sized) and breads (banana with chocolate chips, zucchini, etc) all in one afternoon and freeze them. The kids like to eat them for breakfast (pop in the microwave) or take some as snacks in their lunches (thawed by lunchtime).


I was hesitant to freeze stuff at first, but it the texture and taste are perfectly fine when reheated.

boy those pumpkin pancakes and banana bread sound good. I am coming to your house for breakfast. thanks for the great ideas

 

[janets]

I have a 12.5 yo boy who is simply not a breakfast eater. He has always preferred regular food to breakfast foods.

That said, he needs to eat something in the AM. He's been carrying a bit of weight and we've been working on portion control and making good selections. We've also been working on cutting carbs. He, like me, loves those carbs. And I changed my entire eating world in April when I cut out carbs almost completely, reduced my protein intake to 500 calories, include 1-2 servings of certain fruits and veggies and have, to date, lost 46.6 lbs. Before anyone gets worried, I am under a dr's supervision.

So we started cutting his carbs before school ended. In about 3 weeks, he had dropped 10 lbs, and his entire stomach had shrunk. He has been struggling over the summer since he's in camp and they give them lunch and like any institutional place, they serve A LOT of carbs (cheap and filling). He's tried to find substitutes, but he can't eat tuna every day (that darn mercury!). So we're working on maintaining and when school starts, we'll get back to business.

But most of the suggestions include a lot of carbs. I looked up the Z Bars from Clif Bar for kids and it has 3 g of protein but 23 g of carbs and 11 g of sugar. I don't care if it's real sugar and not high fructose corn syrup, that's a lot of sugar and carbs. Plus, he simply doesn't like these kinds of bars.

So we're looking for low fat, high protein, low carb options. He doesn't eat peanut butter (sometimes I wonder if I actually gave birth to him ), will eat eggs but if he has them more than 1-2 times a week, gets sick of them and won't eat them for weeks afterwards. I often get him lean deli to eat but if he has to eat that for bkfst and lunch, it's going to get really old really fast.

 

[disneymama83]

I like to make these oatmeal breakfast bars. They are high protein and calcium and made a great grab and go breakfast along with a hard boiled egg.

Preheat the oven to 350
Spray an 8x8 pan with cooking spray like pam

Mix
1 cup oatmeal
1 cup DRY milk powder (non-fat milk)
1 cup unsweetened applesauce or mashed RIPE bananas or combo of the two
add 1 teaspoon baking powder
add 1 teaspoon (or more) of cinnamon
add sweetener as desired or needed (can use honey, agave nectar, sugar):
As desired:
cut up dried fruit
chopped nuts

pour (glop really) into the pan
bake for about 22 minutes till the edges brown and come away from the pan
let cool.
remove from pan
cut into six bars 2 bars per serving
bag into individual servings and refrigerate

You can make all different combinations - we love "banana bread style" with mashed bananas and walnuts, blueberry muffin style, dried cherries and almonds, and substituting pumpkin for the mashed banana along with pumpkin pie spice, yum!

Thanks! I'm going to make this next week!

 

[I_heart_Tinkerbell]

Thank you al so much for the info. My 9 yo boy went back to school this week and breakfast has been very hard. He is not hungury in the morning and is picky only wants a mini bagel w/ cream cheese and barely finishes that. He has to eat breakfast around 6:40 am Bus comes at 7:10. He doesn' have lunch until 12.

I will be trying some of your suggestions and see what works for us.

 

[Indiana Rose Lee]

I have a 12.5 yo boy who is simply not a breakfast eater. He has always preferred regular food to breakfast foods.

That said, he needs to eat something in the AM. He's been carrying a bit of weight and we've been working on portion control and making good selections. We've also been working on cutting carbs. He, like me, loves those carbs. And I changed my entire eating world in April when I cut out carbs almost completely, reduced my protein intake to 500 calories, include 1-2 servings of certain fruits and veggies and have, to date, lost 46.6 lbs. Before anyone gets worried, I am under a dr's supervision.

So we started cutting his carbs before school ended. In about 3 weeks, he had dropped 10 lbs, and his entire stomach had shrunk. He has been struggling over the summer since he's in camp and they give them lunch and like any institutional place, they serve A LOT of carbs (cheap and filling). He's tried to find substitutes, but he can't eat tuna every day (that darn mercury!). So we're working on maintaining and when school starts, we'll get back to business.

But most of the suggestions include a lot of carbs. I looked up the Z Bars from Clif Bar for kids and it has 3 g of protein but 23 g of carbs and 11 g of sugar. I don't care if it's real sugar and not high fructose corn syrup, that's a lot of sugar and carbs. Plus, he simply doesn't like these kinds of bars.

So we're looking for low fat, high protein, low carb options. He doesn't eat peanut butter (sometimes I wonder if I actually gave birth to him ), will eat eggs but if he has them more than 1-2 times a week, gets sick of them and won't eat them for weeks afterwards. I often get him lean deli to eat but if he has to eat that for bkfst and lunch, it's going to get really old really fast.

Quinoa is a whole protein, and can be mixed with some whole oats for a good carb and protein. Greek yogurt, plain mixed with fruit, and if you really want to cheat, a splenda pack. (Although the health food people would object to that.) Eggs in the form of quiche are different, and might not seem so boring. Slices can be frozen and heat up well. Leftover meat, in general. I make pork loins about once a week. That makes a great lunch or breakfast. Not typical, but it works. Cottage cheese and tomatoes.

Does he like any other nut butters? We do almond butter a lot. I personally can't drink milk, and use Almond milk as a sub. Maranantha makes a cocoa almond butter that is yummy. Not super sweet like nutella. On whole grain toast it is yummy and not crappy for you.

Good luck with the new school year. School lunches sure don't help the situation!

 

[magik]

Smoothies are quick and can be very healthy. I use frozen fruit (say strawberries and bananas), a little almond milk, a handful of spinach or other greens. There are lots of possible variations.

Teresa

This is what I generally have for breakfast, although a slightly different variation:
1 scoop protein powder (currently whey-to-go chocolate or strawberry flavors)
1 cup non-dairy milk (currently almond milk, but sometimes soy milk, oat milk, hazelnut milk, etc.)
handful of frozen fruit (generally various berries, but sometimes also peaches, mangoes, etc.)
big handful of baby spinach (mildest tasting that I've tried so that you hardly notice it) - when adding greens, it's best to start out with less and work your way up so that you find the taste level that works for you.
1 tbsp flax oil or whole flax seed (I have a vitamix blender, so the whole flax seeds get ground up when I blend, not sure how well whole flax seeds would be ground up in a regular blender)

 

[Schmoodle]

I have a vitamix blender, so the whole flax seeds get ground up when I blend

jealous...
I really want one of those.

 

[disneyofcourse]

When I was a kid/teen I had mini eggo waffles daily or a banana smoothie(1 banana, sugar, whole milk) Maybe have her eat a bagel with cream cheese or Jelly? Even scrambled eggs is pretty much what I ate and still eat. I also loved white bread with butter and a side of grapes. Maybe try a granola bar to go if she doesn't really like breakfast. Even a power bar or a piece of fruit..


My mom didn't go out of her way to feed me no carbs, or less sugar or low fat foods and I turned out well.

 

[*Robin*]

What a great thread! I've written down a ton of ideas!

I make up Alton Brown's granola recipe every couple of weeks. I use it in yogurt every morning, while my guys will just eat it as snacks. You can also use it for a base for homemade granola bars.

Honestly though, the stuff is amazing, deliciously addicting, healthy and you can add all the dried fruits you want for extra punch. (like cranberries and dried bananas...YUM!)

Here's the recipe:
Granola

Ingredients
3 cups rolled oats
1 cup slivered almonds
1 cup cashews
3/4 cup shredded sweet coconut
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons dark brown sugar
1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons maple syrup
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup raisins
Directions
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

In a large bowl, combine the oats, nuts, coconut, and brown sugar.

In a separate bowl, combine maple syrup, oil, and salt. Combine both mixtures and pour onto 2 sheet pans. Cook for 1 hour and 15 minutes, stirring every 15 minutes to achieve an even color.

Remove from oven and transfer into a large bowl. Add raisins and mix until evenly distributed.

 

[Indiana Rose Lee]

When I was a kid/teen I had mini eggo waffles daily or a banana smoothie(1 banana, sugar, whole milk) Maybe have her eat a bagel with cream cheese or Jelly? Even scrambled eggs is pretty much what I ate and still eat. I also loved white bread with butter and a side of grapes. Maybe try a granola bar to go if she doesn't really like breakfast. Even a power bar or a piece of fruit..


My mom didn't go out of her way to feed me no carbs, or less sugar or low fat foods and I turned out well.

Lol, just because people survived doesn't mean they might not have done better/been healthier with a healthier diet. Children can survive on crap. Heaven knows we see that all the time.