Easy breakfasts for picky eater

seeker

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 10:19 am

We are habitual cereal eaters but I know it's really not a good way to start the day. Pretty sure what we're aiming for is more protein, less-processed carbs, some fiber, and maybe a fruit?

Personally I favor eggs/omelets, sometimes with whole wheat toast or pita. The problem is that these pretty much need to be made fresh in small batches, and the bigger problem is that one of my kids has Egg Opposition Disorder (she always used to like eggs, then spent several months consistently refusing them saying she doesn't like them anymore and they gave her stomachaches. But then she ate them again on a few occasions and gobbled them up and said yummy. But then says she hates them. I'm confused and I'm wasting a lot of eggs while the child fills up on carbs. Can't figure out a pattern to when she will or won't eat them.)

My former healthy, easy go-to was yogurt. Either straight from the container in a rush, or with thawed frozen strawberries and a sprinkle of granola. She used to love this. Now she takes one spoonful and says yuck and doesn't eat anything else. She will only eat a specific brand of yogurt which is 1. hard to find, 2. only sold in individual small cups which makes it somewhat more expensive plus a very small portion even as far as kid yogurts go, 3. has a healthier profile but is still pre-flavored, 4. if I *am* going to buy special little cup yogurts I may as well send them to school for a snack.

Cottage cheese would be nice, they had some once by my in laws and gobbled it up and said it was great but Ms. Picky has not eaten it since and insists that I imagined the in-law incident and it was only her sister who liked it then. I'm beginning to question my sanity and my memory because while I'm no good at details, I have a much better emotional memory and I definitely recall feeling that emotion of "yay, we found something healthy that both kids like!"

I'm thinking I can find a couple of healthy pancake recipes that can probably be made in batches and frozen for future use. However of course she'll only eat pancakes with sugar/honey/syrup which is going to detract somewhat from the wholesome-breakfast value. Plus I don't think pancakes every day is *the* answer, so if we do that a couple of times a week, assuming I can even keep up with the preparation, I still need a few other solid ideas.

P.S. we have tree nut allergy here. Peanut butter is fine but no tree nuts.

P.P.S. Note that I like to trend toward easy healthy suppers a few times a week too so I don't want to waste all my peanut-butter-sandwich mileage on breakfast.

amother

Jetblack

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 10:45 am

We make smoothies sometimes, which is super easy if you have a decent blender. Throw in some yogurt, lots of fresh or frozen fruit (any combination of strawberries, blueberries, bananas, mango, peaches - my kids actually prefer frozen because of the consistency) and some milk. There is something about drinking breakfast with a straw that makes it appealing even to my pickiest eaters. It's also a great way to avoid throwing out food that is about to go bad - you can stick expiring yogurts and fruit that is too ripe in the freezer to have on hand to make smoothies.

seeker

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 10:48 am

Granted, smoothies go over well. I serve them for lazy-supper with some regularity but it would make more sense to freeze them in batches and serve them for lazy-breakfast instead!

mha3484

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 10:55 am

We have a rotation of choices: Cereal, oatmeal, yogurt with honey and granola, hard boiled eggs. When my kids get sick of one we move on to the next.

seeker

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 11:04 am

Oh I forgot to mention she also won't eat oatmeal anymore except the instant kind that comes with added sugars and junk (introduced to her by doting grandparents as I would not even bring that stuff into the house. Instead I get a virtual hunger strike.)

amother

Azure

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 11:12 am

How about grilled cheese (bread, slice of cheese, ketchup in toaster) or what we call pizza bread (bread, pizza sauce, shredded cheese in toaster)? My child who needs more calories at breakfast often eats macaroni and cheese (or some other milchig supper leftover). French toast can be made in advance and reheated in the microwave (if you have one). I don't know if these are the healthiest options but at least I know they had something substantial for breakfast!

mha3484

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 11:28 am

Apples and nut butter has gone over well too. Same with toast with spreads.

seeker

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 11:44 am

amother wrote:

She has some variation of bread-with-cheese for lunch in school half the time and I like to use that for an easy supper from time to time too. I'm also not convinced that this would be a healthier option than cereal and milk anyway. What's the big difference between cereal+milk and bread+cheese? Honestly looking to learn more.

smileyfaces

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 11:54 am

Bananas and peanut butter
Hard boiled eggs (perhaps this a different variety than what she’s used to?)
Homemade “Granola bars” - can be sweetened with dates, etc
egg muffins (mix eggs, cheese and sauté veggies in a muffin tin and bake, take out and warm up as needed)

amother

Orange

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 12:19 pm

yogurt is rarely healthy, so not missing out much there.

whole wheat toast with pretty much anything (pb, cream cheese, avocado, etc.) is a good, quick morning option and better than cereal.

if you're not hung up on breakfast foods, you could also offer soup (just stick one bowl in the microwave for 1 minute), with toast.

amother

Rose

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 12:53 pm

What does she want to eat? As long as it's not candy, let her have it and leave with a full stomach. Sometimes I give my kids a piece of cake or they share a small danish but they drink a cup of milk w/ it so I'm not so sure that it's much different from sugary cereals.

amother

Jade

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 1:13 pm

Look for healthy homemade muffins/ cake/cookie recipes.
You can make them with oats.
Use banana and dates to sweeten.
A little honey is not too bad
You can also hide veggies like carrots and zucchini.
I've seen recipes for chocolate cake made with black beans.
As long as the kids don't see it they won't be the wiser

amother

Azure

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 1:25 pm

Amother azure here. I don't know that bread and cheese is better than cereal and milk. It's just that my kids will agree to eat it --particularly one who is on ADHD meds and doesn't have much appetite at lunchtime, so I try to make her breakfast more caloric.

yogabird

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 4:24 pm

Would a breakfast muffin or cookie work? That's what my picky eater is doing this year. I've seen recipes that incorporate butternut squash or sweet potato puree, or shredded carrots or zuchinni. Sweetened with banana, applesauce, stevia, conconut sugar etc. Just saw a recipe for "brownies" made with sweet potato puree and peanut butter as the main ingredients. It had just 1/4 cup of oat flour. I usually do almond flour for protein but you said no tree nuts, I'm thinking maybe pumpkin and sunflower seeds for protein? What about homemade granola?

I've done pancakes made from eggs, oatmeal and banana. Add some chocolate chips or blueberries. They freeze fine.

Coconut milk yogurt? Avocado pudding?

loveit

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 8:13 pm

Banana muffins, cottage cheese pancakes? (The pancakes are sweet from the cottage cheese and get a protein boost, my kids like them with peanut butter on top!) google the recipe, it's from Whole Foods. I use whole milk always as well which is better nutritionally as well

amother

Apricot

Mon, Oct 23 2017, 10:17 pm

These are my go tos. I let my kids have what they want daily...
Noodles with sauce
Pancakes
Baked potatoes...my kids love them!
Baked sweet potatoes
Veggie burgers(Dr. Praegeres)
My mom used to make Dr. Prefers. Spinach broccoli and poatatoes pancakes for breakfast
Cereal with rice dream
Smoothie
Toasted bread
Eggs.
Shakshuka
Granola that I make
I eat salad sometimes
Crackers or rice cake and jam
Fruit.
I love love soup in the morning and so do my kids. We have leftover soup from supper a lot for breakfast (not meat soups)

Teomima

Tue, Oct 24 2017, 3:43 am

Like yogabird said, breakfast muffins/cookies are often a GREAT choice. Throw in whatever you want/have (pureed fruit/vegetables, oats, seeds, etc). I find as long as you throw in a sparse handful of mini chocolate chips, it's hard to find a child that will turn them down. They're easy to make in advance and freeze, and you can make endless variations so kids are less likely to get bored by them.

Iymnok

Tue, Oct 24 2017, 3:53 am

Think sustained energy. Whole grain muffins or bars with a fruit and a cup of milk is (nearly) portable and very filling.
I made some Nature Valley copycat bars. They are simple and very filling. Dh was full on only two. I want to figure out how to replace some of the sugar and honey with dates.

nameless

Tue, Oct 24 2017, 4:04 am

lymnok, can you post the recipe for your Nature Valley copycats?

amother

Taupe

Tue, Oct 24 2017, 7:20 am

I offer once a week each:
1. cereal and milk
2. pancakes with natural maple syrup
3. yogurt with granola
4. sliced hard eggs for 1 scrambled eggs for other, with crackers
5. grilled cheese or plain bread and sliced cheese
6. cream cheese sandwich or tuna and crackers
7. cheese snack on shabbos