Make ahead breakfast ideas needed...

[Deb in NZ]

We start school the beginning of February & I am looking for recipes for make-ahead breakfasts that I can prepare the night before & put in the fridge to bake the next morning (i.e. monkey bread, breakfast casserole, etc.) I find that the days I've prepared breakfast after dinner & put dinner in the crockpot after breakfast seem to run the most smoothly. I'd like to make a list of 10-15 breakfast & 15-20 crockpot dinners to rotate during our busy summer term (February-April).

 

TIA,

[RoughCollie]

My suggestion is muffins, which I serve with fruit or OJ and milk or yogurt.

 

I mix up the batter and put it into muffin tins lined with paper muffin cups. I freeze the tins. When the muffins are frozen, I remove them from the tin and put them in a freezer bag with the type of muffin written on it, along with baking instructions.

 

In the morning, I pop what I need into muffin tins and bake them.

 

I got that idea from someone here and it really works.

 

I also make pancake mix using a cookbook recipe and milk powder. That way, all I have to add is water and eggs to make pancakes for breakfast. You can also do the dry mix ahead of time, and add fresh milk -- which is what I do now that I discovered that milk powder costs as much as fresh milk. These can also be made in big batches and frozen. They reheat well in the microwave.

[Philothea]

I've been making egg bakes lately. You just kind of put whatever you have in a greased glass pan and bake it with however many eggs your family eats. Mine usually include cheese, onion, mushroom, and peppers. Sometimes I use spinach and feta. An square pan takes about 30 minutes to bake and a rectangular pan takes about 50 minutes.

 

I also have made cinnamon rolls the night before and left them in the fridge the overnight, then in the morning you can leave them out for about 1 hour or so and then bake them. They are kind of a treat though.

[Jennifer in NH]

Here is one we really like:

 

Sausage(or ham), egg and cheese muffins.

 

4 eggs

1/2 cup milk or cream

1/4 cup bisquick

1 tsp baking powder

1/4 tsp salt

 

1 lb sausage, cooked, drained and crumbled (or leftover ham chopped up very fine)

1 cup grated cheddar cheese

 

Mix the 1st 5 ingredients together.

then fold in the cheese and the meat.

 

Fill greased muffin tins about 2/3 full.

bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 20-25 minutes.

let cool.

Makes 1 dozen muffins

 

These can be eaten right away or put in the fridge for the next day. I tend to make them sometime during the day and eat them on a later day.

They freeze really well too, so you can double the recipe easily.

 

For anyone that eats low carb, just use heavy cream instead of the milk, and a low carb bake mix instead of Bisquick.

 

hope this helps.

Jenny

[stripe]

I'd advocate some simple breakfasts like toast and oatmeal or other hot cereal, and/or cold cereal.

 

There are nice recipes for larger batches of muffins where you cook what you need, over the course of a few days. (I am not referring to 6 week bran muffins recipes here, but those exist too.) I like one from the King Arthur Baking book. The King Arthur Flour website has some nice recipes online; here is a link to a blueberry muffin recipe where they say that the batter lasts for a week in the frig (it makes 12 muffins). They also have a quick mix to be used for pancakes and waffles, and more ideas on how to use it for all sorts of baked goods.

 

I also make something, like a batch of muffins or cinnamon rolls or whatever, and then freeze them when they've cooled, and warm them as needed.

 

Various strata do well with an overnight "soak" in the frig.

Also overnight yeasted waffles.

[MKS]

Alton Brown has a fabulous recipe for overnight, crockpot oatmeal using steel cut oats. It's basically a very rich old-fashioned Irish oatmeal.

 

I make pancake mix using dry buttermilk (Saco brand) and soy flour, so all I have to add is water and fat (oil or melted butter). Fast, cheap, and healthier because I use whole grain flour.

[melissel]

My three favorites are baked oatmeal, oatmeal pancakes, and apple muffins (any kind of muffin will do, really, but these are our favorites). I double the baked oatmeal recipe and it lasts the four of us three days (at least). We warm it in the microwave and add milk and a little syrup. I don't generally like pancakes from the fridge or freezer, but these freeze and reheat nicely and have a lot of substance to them. We reheat them in the toaster oven. And the muffins are just yummy :lol: I make big batches and back and freeze, then warm them on the counter, toast in the toaster oven, butter and serve!

 

Oatmeal Pancakes

 

---------------------

 

Baked Oatmeal

 

1/2 cup applesauce (or veggie oil)

3/4 cup sweetener of your choice (I use maple syrup so I cut back on the amount)

2 eggs

1 cup milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

3 cups regular oats

1/2 cup raisins

 

Optional (I don't generally do this, but the brown sugar addition is yummy)

1-2 tablespoons brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

DIRECTIONS:

Beat together applesauce and sweetener of choice. Mix in eggs, milk, salt, baking powder, oatmeal. Beat well then stir in raisins. Pour into a lightly grease pie pan. Sprinkle with brown sugar and cinnamon. Refrigerate overnight.

 

The next morning, preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).

 

Bake in preheated oven until firm, about 35 minutes. Serve hot.

 

And here's a link to a thread where people make other suggestions for it, including using steel cut oats, I think.

 

----------

 

Apple Muffins

 

(I generally double this. I get only 18-19 medium sized muffins from the doubled recipe, they are fairly dense.)

 

1 3/4 c. white whole wheat flour

2 1/2 tsp. baking powder

1/2 tsp. salt

3/4 c. + 1 tbsp milk

1 egg, well beaten

1/3 c. oil

1/2 c. brown sugar (I usually cut this back some)

1 whole peeled, cored, grated/chopped apple (last time I made these, I doubled the apple and they still came out delicious)

 

Preheat oven to 400° F. Mix together flour, baking powder and salt. Combine milk, egg, oil and sugar. Add this mixture along with the grated apple to the dry ingredients. Stir just until moistened. It will be lumpy. Fill greased or paper lined muffin pans 2/3 full. Bake for 20 minutes. Makes 12 muffins.

 

 

HTH!

[Blueridge]

I just finished making a big container of granola. That is so nice to have in the fridge for quick breakfasts. You can serve it dry as a snack, cold with milk or warm it with the milk for a hot bowl.

Ginger

 

In a large bowl, combine:

4 cups rolled oats

1 cup honey wheat germ

1/2 cup coconut

1/4 cup chopped almonds

1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp. cinnamon

Combine and warm in a saucepan:

1/4 cup honey

2/3 cup oil

3/4 cup peanut (or almond) butter

1 tsp vanilla

Pour over the dry ingredients, spread onto a large cookie sheet, and bake 20 minutes at 350. Stir a few times to cook evenly. Remove from pan, cool, and keep in a lidded container.

 

Enjoy~

Ginger

[melissel]

Alton Brown has a fabulous recipe for overnight, crockpot oatmeal using steel cut oats. It's basically a very rich old-fashioned Irish oatmeal.

 

I make pancake mix using dry buttermilk (Saco brand) and soy flour, so all I have to add is water and fat (oil or melted butter). Fast, cheap, and healthier because I use whole grain flour.

 

Oooooooh...I had to go looking for this, because I've tried others with regular oatmeal in the past and they were gross. This sounds yummy!

 

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/overnight-oatmeal-recipe/index.html

 

Thanks MKS!

 

I also forgot to say that We try to do fast breakfasts here too. One of our favorites is organic yogurt (we love Stonyfield vanilla, but have been using plain with honey lately) with chopped strawberries (or a handful of blueberries, or a sliced apple for dipping) and granola. I haven't yet managed to try making my own (but Ginger's recipe sounds yummy!), but I keep boxes of granola cereal in the pantry for these mornings and toss in a handful. This has also been known to appear as dessert in our house, LOL!

 

Oh, and editing to add one last idea! Here's a link to a post where emeraldjoy shares her amazing granola bar recipe. It is SOOO good. Even my super picky dad, who only eats Kashi granola bars, loved these. In another post, she mentioned not to let the "glue" part boil for long--the longer you boil it, the harder your final product will be. I made ours with almonds and cranberries. They were amazing, and gone within two days.

Edited January 12, 2009 by melissel

[hsmomof2boys]

One of my sons really likes me to make sausage gravy and biscuits. What I usually do is cook about 3 pounds or so until browned, season it with white pepper, and freeze the cooked meat into individual portions, about 1/4 to 1/3 pound per pacakage portions. I just take out what I need and heat it up in a pan on the stove. When it is hot, I sprinkle about 2 tablespoons flour into the meat and stir until it is mixed. I slowly add milk, about 1 cup. This needs to simmer about 20 minutes to get the flour taste gone. After it's ready, I spoon it over biscuits.

 

It's very easy.

 

Instead of freezing just the meat, you could finish the gravy with the flour and milk and simmer 20 minutes to get the flour taste gone. Freeze it in 1 cup portions for one, or if you have more children, as many servings as you need. Just place it in the refrigerator for a day or so to thaw. It tastes very good. Heat it up and serve over biscuits.

 

We use the stovetop as we do not have a microwave. It can be heated in the microwave, but you have to stir it more often.

[Jen in PA]

I make lots of egg custards (aka crustless quiche). I use whole eggs, or mostly whites and a couple of whole eggs, some skim milk, some shredded cheese, and whatever meats and veggies I have on hand that will work well together. I especially like mushrooms/swiss/broccoli, gouda/salmon/scallions, and cheddar/red onion/shredded beef. The slices heat in a minute in the microwave, and pair well with bread, fruit, muffins.... anything, really.

[cathmom]

You can also do the dry mix ahead of time, and add fresh milk -- which is what I do now that I discovered that milk powder costs as much as fresh milk.

 

Really? Maybe this is dependent on where you live. A box of dry milk powder is supposed to make 5 gallons. By my calculations, with the cheapest price of fresh milk around here possible, a box of dry milk saves at least $4.

[my2kidsmom]

Baked Cheese Grits (recipe on the side of Jim Dandy grits) is a favorite and is easy to make ahead of time.

 

Also, fry a tube of sausage and mix with1 box of softened cream cheese...press 1/2 can of croissant rolls in bottom of a round pie pan or square casserole dish...top with sausage mixture and then top with the other 1/2 of the can of rolls....bake on 350 for 20-25 minutes or until croissant rolls are golden.

[Rosie_0801]

Apple crumble, with a good oat and seed topping, makes a tasty breakfast!

 

:)

Rosie

[Kate CA]

I have great success with crockpot cereal. I use a seven or nine grain cereal that I buy in bulk.

 

Crockpot Breakfast Cereal

 

5 C water

2 C seven-grain cereal

1 medium apple, peeled and chopped

1 C unsweetened apple juice

1/4 C dried apricots, chopped

1/4 C dried cranberries

1/4 C raisins

1/4 C chopped dates

1/4 C maple syrup

1 t ground cinnamon

1/2 t salt

1/4 C maple syrup

chopped walnuts (or other nuts) optional

 

In a five-quart crockpot, combine all ingredients except walnuts. Cover and cook on low for 6-7 hours or until fruit and cereal is softened. (I do about 8 - it does not hurt it.)

 

You can add or subtract any of the extras or make the batch larger. I have even added frozen strawberries and peaches in lieu of what they suggest. The important thing to remember is that you have three cups of liquid per every cup of seven-grain cereal. The easiest recipe I have done is with raisins, apples, brown sugar, and cinnamon. It is very good and will keep ready-made in the fridge for many days.

[LaxMom]

Alton Brown has a fabulous recipe for overnight, crockpot oatmeal using steel cut oats. It's basically a very rich old-fashioned Irish oatmeal.

 

 

I second this recommendation, with the following caveat: If you do not want to add the dried fruit, decrease the liquid. Despite the comments about burning, I have never had that happen.

 

Also, baked French toast is a favorite here. That has to be done overnight, because the bread soaks up the custard.

 

My family loves Dutch Baby (oven pancake - like a giant popover) and I'm sure you could mix the batter the night before. I sautee apple slices in the skillet, sprinkle them with cinnamon & sugar, then pour on the batter. It makes a wonderful, carmelized apple bottom. Any fruit would be good, though.

 

And, yes, my children are currently eating up granola muffins (from the New England Granola Bakery's recipe collection) that I made the other day.

[Shawneinfl]

we are in a serious cereal and frozen waffle rut around here.

 

I can't wait to try the crockpot oatmeal. I've been trying to get my kids to eat oatmeal for years without success.

[cathmom]

I can't wait to try the crockpot oatmeal. I've been trying to get my kids to eat oatmeal for years without success.

 

I tried many cp oatmeal recipes and none were edible. I finally gave up when even my oldest son, who will eat just about anything, begged me to please stop making it!

[Jennefer@SSA]

Oh, and editing to add one last idea! Here's a link to a post where emeraldjoy shares her amazing granola bar recipe. It is SOOO good. Even my super picky dad, who only eats Kashi granola bars, loved these. In another post, she mentioned not to let the "glue" part boil for long--the longer you boil it, the harder your final product will be. I made ours with almonds and cranberries. They were amazing, and gone within two days.

 

:iagree:

 

I made these for the first time just last week and they were a huge hit! :)

[Jennefer@SSA]

My mil makes this for my boys every time she comes to visit and they love it! It's not a breakfast regular in our home.

 

Basically you just mix up your eggs like you are going to make scrambled eggs but pour the mixture into muffin cups (well greased). You can use a standard muffin pan or mini muffin pan. Drop whatever extras you wish into each muffin cup; we add a tiny bit of diced ham and cheese. Bake at 350 until the center is no longer giggly. I make these at night just before we go to sleep, store in the fridge and heat them up the next morning.

 

It's just eggs but my kids get such a kick out of the muffin shape and picking them up with their fingers! :001_smile:

[Tammyla]

Same here, but at least regular oatmeal is quick and easy to make.

 

We like a hot breakfast here most mornings, but if the day is rushed have a few pick up and go standbys.

 

Oatmeal Muffins

Cinnamon rolls

Granola Mix

Sandwiches (PBJ etc.)

Bagels & cheese

Cheese & crackers or fresh bread

Fresh Fruit

Dry Cereal mix with raisins

 

 

I tried many cp oatmeal recipes and none were edible. I finally gave up when even my oldest son, who will eat just about anything, begged me to please stop making it!