Talk to me about breakfast....

[Seeking Squirrels]

What does it look like in your house on a school day? 

 

Do you do a hot cooked breakfast during the week? Here I'm thinking things like pancakes, eggs, bacon, sausage, french toast, "real" oatmeal......

 

Or do you do self-serve type quick things? Cereal, packaged oatmeal, yogurt, toast, pop tarts....

 

Do you decide what will be for breakfast or is it more of a free-for-all? 

 

If your kids are all older teens and up, how was it when they were younger? 

[winterbaby]

The dilemma seems to be that carbs = convenient and protein = effort. But eggs are quick. Bacon and sausage are not unless they are premade and then reheated, which I think only really works well for sausage. If you are going to give them carbs, why not opt for cereal rather than going to the trouble of pancakes? I really think of pancakes as a special weekend treat. You can quickly do a high protein breakfast with eggs and/or reheated sausages, and if you want to add carbs do a quick cereal hot or cold. I generally do scrambled eggs, then she has a carb item at public school breakfast. I keep saying I'm going to do the premade and reheated sausages thing, but never get around to it. Nothing could ever persuade me to do a big production breakfast on a morning when I expect to turn around and be productive. Because then you have the pots and pans hanging over your head for when you'll want to cook lunch or dinner.

[JIN MOUSA]

We do "real" oatmeal (steel cut oats, takes 30+ minutes start to finish), but I make a big pot on Sunday, put it in the fridge, and we eat that all week. My kids prefer to eat it cold (why?!?), but it reheats well (unlike quick/instant oats, which get so sticky and gummy if you don't eat them right away). I use Alton Brown's recipe, and add vanilla, cinnamon, and some raisins or nuts or something else seasonal. 

 

On weekdays, my job is to serve their oatmeal and pour their milk. They are able to set the table, carry their food, and get a banana. We have an acceptable window for breakfast eating (8 to 9), mainly because my oldest (who has the most school) would not be done with breakfast and ready for the day until 10:30 or later, which just doesn't work for me. 

[theelfqueen]

Depends on the day.. a lot of school days my 16 year old starts with an 8 AM Jiu Jitsu class ... he doesn't eat before that. So he has to shower and eat quickly after that. Often yogurt , fruit and something carbs. (Toast, cereal, bagel with butter).

My 12 year old is an early riser and helps himself to something -cereal, toast with peanut butter, bagel with cream cheese and Salmon...

If we're not doing BJJ and especially if DH is home - hot breakfast is pretty nornal.

Everyone had tea whenever they eat.

 

Sent from my SM-G930V using Tapatalk

[QueenCat]

Everyone's been on their own for breakfast since around the age of 7-8. Options have included (but not necessarily all at the same time): 2-3 cereals (healthy ones, by our family's standards), yogurt, boiled eggs, fresh fruit, bagels (add cheese, peanut butter, almond butter), homemade muffins, eggs to make your own quick eggs. Drink options: water, milk, oj, aj, coffee, tea. Typically, on most days most of us choose one of the egg options, one of the complex carb optons and one of the fruits. Youngest ds is not much of a morning eater so he would eat less but have a snack in between breakfast & lunch. When in school (he's in college), he carries granola bars for that purpose.

 

Dh sometimes makes a hot breakfast on the weekend.

Edited August 25, 2017 by QueenCat

[AmandaVT]

DH takes something with him - usually, a piece of fruit or kind bar and he keeps cottage cheese and yogurt at work. 

 

I have oats almost every day. My favorite is Bob's Red Mill Scottish Oats. Yum!

 

DS prefers dinner leftovers most days. Sometimes he likes cereal with a sliced banana, sometimes something else. 

 

DH eats on his way to work. DS and I eat later. Neither of us are hungry first thing.

[regentrude]

I have never prepared hot cooked breakfast. I don't want a heavy meal in the morning, and I leave the house at 7:30. No cooking happening. (ETA: Hot breakfast is not traditional in my culture. Back home, people don't fry eggs or make pancakes in the morning. For special occasions, perhaps a boiled egg, but not ona  work day.)

 

When the kids were little, we all had breakfast together: toast/rolls, cream cheese, jam, yoghurt, cereal. Coffee for adults, milk for kids.

When the kids were older, they fixed themselves something later in the morning. DS sometimes heated up leftovers from dinner.

 

These days, DH has a fruit flavored greek yoghurt, and I have plain yoghurt with fruit and some muesli, but often take it to work and eat it at mid morning. And we drink coffee.

Edited August 25, 2017 by regentrude

[Loowit]

I am not a breakfast person.  I try to eat at least a little something though.  Usually it is a protein bar on my way home for the gym.

 

Kids are on their own during the week.  They have options of cereal, oatmeal, eggs, toast, etc.  Every once in a while I will buy frozen waffles, or we make our own waffles and freeze them so they are available.

 

DH like to have a hot breakfast but often doesn't get up in time for it.  I try to keep things around that he can grab on his way out the door like banana bread, muffins, protein bars.  Right now he is working from home and I am trying to be good and make him breakfast.  This morning it was scrambled eggs and an English muffin.  He also like pancakes, cream of wheat, eggs in many forms, etc.

[Miss Tick]

MWF are egg days

TTh are cereal days

 

DH cares more about variety than i do, so he often cooks. I mostly just care about coffee in the morning. Egg days usually include fruit or toast. On cereal days I try to have a protein for lunch.

[nixpix5]

We do oatmeal and fruit, quinoa and fruit, egg, ham and cheese on english muffins or croissants, omelet and bacon, homemade pancakes, occassionly cold cereal and if so, nothing super sugary. We will also throw yogurt in from time to time.

 

I taught my kids how to make all of these things so I rarely do the breakfast cooking but I do on Saturday and my DH on Sunday.

[Emba]

Most days I do a warm breakfast of some kind.  I don't like my kids to have sugar during the week, so cereal and yogurt are weekend things.  Pancakes or waffles are a Sunday tradition. 

 

So lots of eggs on weekdays - eggs and toast, leftover steak and eggs (scrambled together), breakfast burritos (made ahead and warmed up), Pioneer Woman muffin melts (made ahead), egg quesadillas, etc.  Mostly eggs and toast, though.  I also occasionally buy those frozen hash browns to use instead of toast with eggs.  I'm big on scrambling leftovers up with eggs - leftover rice, leftover diced baked potato, etc.

 

 

I also sometimes make turkey bacon, or regular bacon, but rarely.  I may make sausage the night before and heat it up.  Sometimes I make grits and cheese, cornmeal mush with cheese, or oatmeal with raisins and banana slices for sweetness.  Yorkshire puddings with sausage in the middle were popular the one time I did it (and I mixed up the batter and cooked the sausage the night before so it was relatively quick that morning). 

 

Two of my kids will eat cold hard boiled eggs for breakfast with some sort of fruit or starch.  DH and the other one will not.

 

I really am not a breakfast person, myself, but DH is, and so for him, I make breakfast.  I try to encourage my kids to think outside of the traditional breakfast box once in awhile, though, like leftover pizza or other leftovers, because it really is so much easier.  Once I made an awesome breakfast bowl with blueberries, ricotta cheese, coconut and I think pecans?  DH liked it, but the kids hated it.

[Emba]

I've also used leftover pancakes to make breakfast sandwiches with ham and cheese or eggs and cheese.  They were really good.  I will eat a BLT for breakfast, but DH doesn't care for them.  Sometimes I do cottage cheese for breakfast.

[mamaraby]

We do old fashioned oats in the microwave. Oats and water in a bowl for 3 minutes. All three of my children can do it on their own. They know how to get out the scale, how many grams of oats they usually eat, and how much water to put in (we eyeball it and it depends on the texture one wants). They can add in the toppings on their own too. Sometimes the kids make PB&J. On Sundays and very occassionally I make pancakes or waffles.

 

This morning we had yogurt and granola plus some fruit, but that was because I located a recipe for soy yogurt that ended up as the plain, unsweetened sort I prefer. Then the kids asked for granola so I made that after soccer last night.

 

I would say 90% of the time, the kids feed themselves.

[MotherGoose]

The dilemma seems to be that carbs = convenient and protein = effort. But eggs are quick. Bacon and sausage are not unless they are premade and then reheated, which I think only really works well for sausage. If you are going to give them carbs, why not opt for cereal rather than going to the trouble of pancakes? I really think of pancakes as a special weekend treat. You can quickly do a high protein breakfast with eggs and/or reheated sausages, and if you want to add carbs do a quick cereal hot or cold. I generally do scrambled eggs, then she has a carb item at public school breakfast. I keep saying I'm going to do the premade and reheated sausages thing, but never get around to it. Nothing could ever persuade me to do a big production breakfast on a morning when I expect to turn around and be productive. Because then you have the pots and pans hanging over your head for when you'll want to cook lunch or dinner.

I bake sausages on cookie sheets. Easy and doesn't stink up house. Do a couple Of packages at once.

[QueenCat]

The dilemma seems to be that carbs = convenient and protein = effort. But eggs are quick. Bacon and sausage are not unless they are premade and then reheated, which I think only really works well for sausage. If you are going to give them carbs, why not opt for cereal rather than going to the trouble of pancakes? I really think of pancakes as a special weekend treat.

 

Complex carbs with fiber are easy and good for you. Our bagels, muffins, etc are all whole wheat. Muffins are made with added flaxseed or oats. Bagels are store bought but always whole wheat. If dh makes pancakes or waffles on the weekend, it's with whole wheat flour. Just add a bit of easy protein and fruit and you've got a great start to the day.

[frugalmamatx]

Ours is a mishmash. Anything from milk and cereal to crackers and cheese to leftovers to a full bacon and eggs breakfast {rarely}. It just depends. 

 

 

I buy the frozen pre-cooked sausage patties a lot. Those plus a can of biscuits or waffles and I've got breakfast in minutes. 

[Elizabeth86]

I had a nice schedule until I got pregnant. Now it is just whatever that is easy and the kids want. My oldest wants instant peach oatmeal every morning right now.

 

My schedule used to be

 

S - PB on toast & fruit

M - smoothie

T - Scrambled Eggs, Toast &Fruit

W - Smoothie

Th - Cereal, Granola and a boiled egg or sometimes steel cut oats in the crockpot, but only ds 1 and me eat this & fruit

F - Smoothie

S - Homemade Waffles & Fruit, sometimes bacon

 

I little ones and we dont get started on school until later in the day, so breakfast isnt a big deal to cook. My kids also take a long time to be hungry for breakfast. I let them choose any easy non cooking option like a boiled egg or piece of cheese if they dont like what we are having. We are out of the house early M W and F so that is why we do smotthies or no one would eat before we left.

 

Like I said this is my non pregnant schedule. My kids may or may not have had cookies with breakfast this morning. Just saying.

Edited August 25, 2017 by Elizabeth86

[whitestavern]

It's a mix of easy cold and cooked items here. I plan it out a week in advance so I know what has to be done and can prep the night before wherever possible. Some things we do: yogurt, English muffins with peanut butter, eggs all different ways (we have chickens so lots of eggs!), oatmeal, fruit, smoothies, banana "ice cream" and granola.

[EMS83]

When they were little bitty, it was mostly oatmeal, bananas, and sometimes Cheerios.  These day's it's Honey Bunches of Oats, granola bars, and bananas (or whatever other fruit we have on hand).  When our hens are laying, I'll scramble eggs.  1 cup of apple juice, some kefir. Apple juice and kefir (in separate cups, lol), and coffee for me.  Any more cooking than that and it's going to be a "breakfast for dinner" meal.

[wendyroo]

Breakfast is often hot, but always simple.  We need to eat gluten free, high protein, low sugar, no dyes.  Two of the kids have sensory issues which limits what they eat, but they are also on stimulant meds which reduces their appetite, so my mission in life is to get lots of calories into them.

 

Three days a week I make oatmeal (slow cooking) with apples, peanut butter, and whole greek yogurt added.  Three days a week I make scrambled eggs with broccoli and cheese and served with fruit.  One day a week I make yogurt parfaits made with plain whole greek yogurt, fruit, unsweetened shredded coconut, chopped nuts, and gluten-free granola.

 

Wendy

[Seeking Squirrels]

DH usually makes pancakes or french toast or something on the weekends. During the week we tend to eat a lot of cereal, pop tarts, toaster strudels, sweet rice, and packaged oatmeal. I've been wanting to do better, but meals are stressful for me and I really wasn't sure what normal weekday breakfast looked like!! 

 

DD9 will not eat bacon or sausage or anything mixed together. She will eat eggs hard boiled, but no other way. She has eaten blueberry muffins, so I may be able to expand on that and try making some healthier homemade muffins. She has a few fruits she will eat, I should pull those out for breakfast more instead of not usually until lunch. She used to do smoothies but the last few times have been no-go's. 

 

I saw homemade muffins mentioned a couple of times, does anyone have a favorite healthy-ish, kid friendly recipe? 

 

What about the slow-cook oatmeal? I'll be honest, I've only ever done instant oats. DD9 will do oatmeal if it's not too strong of flavor. She likes it with a bit of brown sugar and maple syrup. I've also done brown sugar and cinnamon and she ate it. She won't do most packaged oatmeals. 

[wendyroo]

What about the slow-cook oatmeal? I'll be honest, I've only ever done instant oats. DD9 will do oatmeal if it's not too strong of flavor. She likes it with a bit of brown sugar and maple syrup. I've also done brown sugar and cinnamon and she ate it. She won't do most packaged oatmeals. 

 

I have slowly weaned my kids off needing added sugar in their oatmeal.  I make the oatmeal with half water and half whole milk, so that adds some sweetness and creaminess (and added calories which my kids need).  I chop up an apple and cook that in the oatmeal which also adds sweetness.  I cook it on low (mostly unattended) for 20ish minutes until it is done, and then I add some yogurt and some natural peanut or almond butter.  Sometimes the kids like it topped with raisins and/or chopped pecans.

 

Wendy

[JIN MOUSA]

DH usually makes pancakes or french toast or something on the weekends. During the week we tend to eat a lot of cereal, pop tarts, toaster strudels, sweet rice, and packaged oatmeal. I've been wanting to do better, but meals are stressful for me and I really wasn't sure what normal weekday breakfast looked like!! 

 

DD9 will not eat bacon or sausage or anything mixed together. She will eat eggs hard boiled, but no other way. She has eaten blueberry muffins, so I may be able to expand on that and try making some healthier homemade muffins. She has a few fruits she will eat, I should pull those out for breakfast more instead of not usually until lunch. She used to do smoothies but the last few times have been no-go's. 

 

I saw homemade muffins mentioned a couple of times, does anyone have a favorite healthy-ish, kid friendly recipe? 

 

What about the slow-cook oatmeal? I'll be honest, I've only ever done instant oats. DD9 will do oatmeal if it's not too strong of flavor. She likes it with a bit of brown sugar and maple syrup. I've also done brown sugar and cinnamon and she ate it. She won't do most packaged oatmeals. 

 

I totally get the easy morning thing (hence one pot of oatmeal for the whole week for us). 

 

Hard-boiled eggs will keep well in the fridge for several days (peel them first), so that may make mornings easier. 

 

I've also read about freezing scoops of muffin batter, then baking them frozen (or thawing a bit first, then baking); that can be another way to have a nice, hot breakfast, with minimal morning work. 

[JIN MOUSA]

I have slowly weaned my kids off needing added sugar in their oatmeal.  I make the oatmeal with half water and half whole milk, so that adds some sweetness and creaminess (and added calories which my kids need).  I chop up an apple and cook that in the oatmeal which also adds sweetness.  I cook it on low (mostly unattended) for 20ish minutes until it is done, and then I add some yogurt and some natural peanut or almond butter.  Sometimes the kids like it topped with raisins and/or chopped pecans.

 

Wendy

 

Love that idea!

[reign]

Monday- Nutella on bagel

Tuesday-PB on toast OR French toast

Wednesday and Thursday- Cheerios

Friday- Oatmeal

Saturday- pancakes

Sunday- donuts

 

We also have smoothies everyday and cottage cheese is available as a breakfast option. We leave the house early on Wednesday and Thursday.

 

I have coffee for breakfast and my husband just drinks a smoothie. We just aren't big breakfast eaters.

[wendyroo]

Love that idea!

 

I sell it by calling it "apple pie" oatmeal.  It is also super convenient because the cooked apples are soft enough to be served to old babies and young toddlers without worrying about them choking on chunks of raw apple.  Any time I can get away with serving exactly the same meal to all of the kids, I consider it a win.

 

Wendy

[regentrude]

What about the slow-cook oatmeal? I'll be honest, I've only ever done instant oats. DD9 will do oatmeal if it's not too strong of flavor. She likes it with a bit of brown sugar and maple syrup. I've also done brown sugar and cinnamon and she ate it. She won't do most packaged oatmeals. 

 

I simply throw some plain rolled oats in a bowl, pour some boiling water over it and let sit a minute That way, it does not get all mushy like boiled oatmeal.

It's my winter breakfast; I stir in some nut buttter and fresh fruit, or stewed apples/pears. Frozen bluberries work well, too; they thaw and cool the oateal at the same time.

[Zinnia]

Dh eats either a protein shake or 3 fried eggs.  Every.single.day.  My oldest (very picky) 11 year old eats instant oatmeal.  Every.single.day.

 

These work for me because they get up and are gone by 7am.

 

I have 3 kids (5, 7. 9) that are homeschooled.  They get up around 8, and we usually have cereal, grits, eggs, or oatmeal.  Cooked, but simple.  This works for me because I get up at 5:30, and by the time I've been up 2.5 hours, I'm awake, hungry, and willing to cook.  All things I can not do before that point.

 

 

[Selkie]

Dh and I eat the same breakfast every day: Two eggs on a bed of sautéed, garlicky spinach with baked sweet potato fries. He has chicken sausage, too. Sometimes we add another vegetable, such as roasted brussels sprouts or asparagus or beets.

 

My kids are all teens and none of them are big breakfast eaters. Although they're up early, they usually don't eat until midmorning and it is often more lunch-type food, such as a sandwich or leftovers from dinner.

 

We don't eat most of the traditional breakfast foods like cereal, oatmeal, pancakes, or breakfast pastries.  

[greenbeanmama]

We do:
-scrambled/fried eggs (hard boiled eggs are "snacks" in our house)...on Saturdays, my husband will make omelets sometimes

-muffins (big batch=freezer muffins, so only make once every three weeks or so)

-pancakes/waffles (same as with muffins, reheated in the toaster - the buttermilk adds a bit of protein!)

-oatmeal ("real" oats, cooked fresh)

-seven grain cereal (Bob's Red Mill - seriously, my children devour this stuff)

-the occasional box of Cheerios for those moments I realize I forgot to plan breakfast

 

There is usually a fruit, smoothie, or smoothie pop (leftover smoothie in popsicle molds - lots of yogurt in them, so protein there too) to go along with the main part of breakfast.  I wake and get ready first; everyone else wakes at 6:00; breakfast is at 6:20.  Lollygaggers needs to be done by 6:50.  Bonus points to anyone who has already finished math by that point (it happens regularly!).

[happypamama]

DH leaves earlier than we are awake. He fries himself some eggs, but I also stock

the freezer with frozen breakfast scrambles (i.e. eggs, cheese, salsa, and sausage) that he can microwave when he gets to his office for days when he gets up later.

 

I almost always make myself something with eggs, like an omelet with cheese/veggies/mushrooms/coriander chutney from the local Indian grocery, or sometimes just fried eggs with a side of sautéed mushrooms. Sometimes I eat full fat plain Greek yogurt or cottage cheese instead. I almost never eat carbs in the morning and load up heavily on fat and protein, which keeps me happy for several hours.

 

I make a hot breakfast almost every morning for the children. Pancakes are a rare treat because they take forever, and so do waffles. Bacon or sausage is a weekend treat, mainly because they're too expensive to serve this crew every day. I very often set up my magic pot (er, Instant Pot; I have to stop calling it magic) with slow cooker oatmeal with some sort of dried fruit and nuts (and I froze a bunch of bags of chopped local peaches this year too, for oatmeal and such), slow cooker egg casseroles (eggs, cheese, hash browns is a favorite combo), or slow cooker bread pudding, and it cooks all night long. That way, it's ready whenever the kids feel like eating. Or I will cook eggs/omelets for those who want them. If the kids don't want what I'm making, or if they need more/are hungry before I'm awake, they get something themselves, like toast (with or without PB), PB sandwich, quesadilla, leftovers, yogurt, bagel/English muffin (I usually insist on eggs with those). Some of them can do good eggs, and some like to cook hash browns.

[Carrie12345]

The kids (15, 14, 10, 6 at home) are almost always on their own for breakfast. Sometimes they do a hot breakfast, sometimes they don't.  

 

The younger two ALWAYS want cereal, and I'm very anti-cereal, but I've capitulated and try to keep pretty healthy cereals on hand.  They're happy to eat something heartier with it, but they REALLY want cereal! They might make quick oats in the microwave or toast something in the toaster and cover it in peanut butter.  If I keep yogurt, hard boiled eggs, cheese sticks, and fruit stocked, they'll eat that, too.

 

The older two do whatever strikes their fancy when they get up.  Sometimes they get complex and fancy, sometimes they have cereal, sometimes they nuke dinner leftovers.

 

When I do cook breakfast, it's usually some style of eggs, and it's usually after the younger two are up and before the older two are up.  I can almost never deal with frying meats before noon, as much as I adore bacon and sausage!

 

Because I've had babies/toddlers/been pregnant almost all my parenting years before the past few, I've been pushing them to be as independent as possible in the mornings from the beginning.  I suppose I technically didn't have to with the last one, but it worked out so well with the previous four!

[Laura Corin]

Whole grain cereals only, usually no added sugar muesli, containing lots of nuts for protein and oils and slow release carbs. With 2 percent milk usually.