Put away the cereal. I know it's tempting for a quick breakfast before school, especially when everyone has woken up late on a Monday morning. I've discovered cereal does nothing to keep kid's tummies full and their brain working throughout the school morning. In our house, cereal is for special occasions and weekends (if we have it in the house at all). Instead, we opt for breakfasts that pack protein and can get in a good mix (if not all) of the food groups before the school day even starts.
As a new school year looms, I'm putting away the cereal and breaking out my tried and true go-to breakfasts for my kids (and daycare kiddies). Here are six of my favorite breakfasts for those busy weekday mornings:
1.) Egg muffins. I've been making these for years for my kids. I love that they're so easy, plus you can add anything you'd like. Cheese, hashbrowns, veggies, etc. I can make 24 muffins in under an hour (prep plus cooking time) Sunday evening and have enough for one or two breakfasts throughout the week for five of us plus daycare kids.
2.) Muffins. Make these as healthy or unhealthy as you like. Our favorite are these chocolate chip muffins with added protein powder, but I also love a good berry muffin. I often pair these with yogurt in the morning for my kids. This combo tends to keep them full until lunchtime easily.
3.) Banana "cookies." The base of this cookie is bananas (literally) and oats mashed together. You can pretty much add anything you'd like to these cookies. Our go-to is bananas, oats, raspberries (washed, dried, and mashed into the banana and oats), a tbsp of protein powder (I've used chocolate and vanilla flavors and both are great), and Enjoy Life chocolate chips.
4.) Oatmeal. Packets of oatmeal are easily opened and heated, but of course those can contain a lot of sugar. I do always keep some on hand for the ease of things. However, I've also discovered some great overnight oatmeal recipes that are full of flavor and less on the sugary side of things.
5.) Make ahead pancakes. These are easy to whip up, plus you can make a big batch ahead of time for the week or freeze to eat at a later time (and warm up in the microwave).
6.) Yogurt bar. This one is all about the toppings. If my kids ate just yogurt for breakfast they're starving within an hour. However, add some cut up bananas, berries, granola, Cheerios, chocolate chips to the mix and they've managed a pretty decent breakfast. Plus, they get to have fun with it. This requires a bit more time (so not a great option for those rushed mornings) as kids like to take forever to whip up their concoctions, but I do love this for school mornings.