Thursday, July 30, 2009

Breakfast for Champions: What Makes a Good Breakfast

Simultaneously posted on The Tarnished Teapot.

Breakfast has become recognized as the most important meal of the day--and that means a nutritional breakfast, not a breakfast that subsists merely of a pop-tart, bowl of Frosted Flakes, or a Toaster Strudel. Perhaps you made vows at the end of last school year to start this school year off right: no more racing out the door, grabbing a McDonald's coupon on the way to the car.

I don't have school-aged children I'm trying to get out the door on a deadline, but I do face 3 very hungry urchins every morning and am looking to save time and money like most of you. Here are some tips to help you start this school year off on a better breakfast note--it will help your budget, your children's attention span, and your mornings!

First, it's important to know what constitutes a healthy breakfast. My general rule of thumb: some grains (preferably whole), some protein, and some produce; my kids generally also drink milk in the mornings, not juice. Those three categories plus the milk can appear in many forms, and sometimes you have to think outside the box. The following are some examples of breakfasts we eat in our household (some are fast, some take more time to prepare/eat):
  1. eggs, toast, fruit
  2. quiche with spinach, muffin
  3. muffin, cheese stick, fruit
  4. cottage cheese pancakes, fruit, some dry cereal as an "appetizer"
  5. regular pancakes, sausage, fruit
  6. granola, yogurt
  7. smoothie, muffin or dry cereal or toast
  8. oatmeal with milk, fruit
  9. egg sandwich, fruit
  10. hard-boiled eggs, breakfast cookies*, fruit
*sometimes we do eat cookies for breakfast--homemade oatmeal cookies are about as sweet as a nutrigrain bar or a pop-tart, have no corn syrup in them, and more whole grains.... Who knew!

Check out the full tummies breakfast index for some more ideas. What's your favorite breakfast to feed your family?

Tomorrow I'll post some ideas for freezer-friendly breakfast treats as well as a new way to plan your breakfast "menu" for the week. Stay tuned!

1 comment:

Megan S. said...

Baked oatmeal! (Makes great leftovers, too.) Michael's favorite is peanut butter toast. Also rice pudding made with brown rice and raisins, or overnight waffles. Enough? :-)