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10 healthy breakfast ideas for children
Help your children get a good start to the day with these hearty and healthy breakfast ideas.
Thu, Dec 08 2011 at 4:45 PM
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Healthy Eating, Recipes
Black bean and egg burrito

Photo: Kimi Harris

With Environmental Working Group's recent report on the large amount of sugar in many children's cereal, I thought it would be timely to share healthy breakfast ideas for children. By giving your children a hearty breakfast, you will not only be ensuring they get proper nutrition, but you will also be helping form good eating habits. Plus, research shows that feeding children breakfast helps lower the risk of lead poisoning and boosts their brain power.
 
One very important thing to keep in mind is that children's needs are not that much different than adults'. I feel that it's an advertisement-driven myth that children need special breakfasts. Children and adults have been eating the same breakfasts for hundreds of years, and there is no reason to stop that now just because we have a large variety of super-sugared cold cereals available.
 
However, as a parent, concentrating on making a delicious and nutritious meal for my children helps ensure that I eat a good breakfast as well. So feeding your children a good breakfast can help you eat a good breakfast, too. It's a win-win situation!
 
1. Scrambled Eggs, Stir-Fried Zucchini and Sausage: I find that we do better with a plenty of protein and vegetables. This favorite breakfast gives us a good start to the day! My daughter has been eating this breakfast since she was quite little and still loves it at age 5. So you don't end up using three pans, stir-fry the zucchini in a little fat and salt until soft, remove from pan. Cook the sausage in the pan (I use bulk sausage with no casings). Remove from pan. Add more fat/oil to the pan and then scramble the eggs in the pan. You can also add the zucchini and sausage to the scrambled eggs, but we like to keep them separate.
 
2. Whole Grain Slow Cooker Hot Cereal: I love waking up to a hot breakfast already made. I keep this grain mix on hand, and then it's quite simple to throw together the night before. It's also perfect for families who eat at staggered times.
 
3. Maple Cinnamon Pumpkin Seed Butter on toast: This homemade seed-butter is delicious on apple slices and on toast. For a special treat, spread over whole-grain bread (I recommend sprouted grain bread) and cover with sliced bananas. It's a nice change from peanut butter, and makes a quick meal on the go.
 
4. Whole Grain Pancakes with nut butter: You can also spread the pumpkin seed butter, or nut butter of your choice on pancakes. I like to keep pancakes in the refrigerator and freezer to toast on-demand at breakfast. This recipe soaks the flour overnight, which not only reduces anti-nutrients present in whole grains, but also makes the end product fluffier and lighter.
 
5. Amaranth with Cream, Maple Syrup and Dried Fruit: Another option is amaranth (a traditional and nutritious whole grain), which makes a delicious hot cereal. I love it with a bit of pastured cream and pure maple syrup, and my family does, too. Oatmeal is always nice, but this recipes mixes things up a bit.
 
6. Healthy baked goods: Another do-ahead breakfast is having premade, nutritious muffins or biscuits on hand. You can serve with a quickly scrambled egg and a piece of fruit. My favorites include this, once again, soaked, whole grain biscuit. For a gluten- and grain-free baked good, this Spiced Apple Muffin is also a favorite. This muffin recipe uses a lot of eggs to bind the fiber-rich coconut flour together, so it's very protein and fiber-rich.
 
7. Fruit smoothies: We are a smoothie-loving family. Smoothies are popular with children because they are sweet, and they make an easy medium for adding in probiotic foods, like yogurt or coconut kefir. You can also grind up chia seeds or pumpkin seeds for more protein. Buy some paper straws, and your child can sip their smoothie on the way to school, if needed. I don't add any sweetener, but simply add a naturally sweet banana to the fruit mix.
 
8. Yogurt and Fruit Topped with Granola: Chop up an apple and some walnuts and top with plain live-culture yogurt and a drizzle of maple syrup. Sprinkle with homemade or high quality store-bought granola. Serve. It’s like having a fruit salad for breakfast.
 
9. Italian Breakfast Skewers: We adore this recipe. It does take more time, however, so do it on a less hectic morning. My 5-year-old loves them!
 
10. Black Bean and Egg Burrito: We love these for breakfast, lunch or dinner. They are protein- and flavor-packed.
 
Parenting can take a lot of creativity and patience, and getting your children to eat well is no exception to that rule. Remember that it is a journey, especially if your child is used to super-sweet cereal. But with persistence, good food and kindness, you are sure to make headway in feeding your child nourishing food for breakfast.
 
I'd love to hear from you! What is your favorite, healthy breakfast to feed to your children?

The opinions expressed by MNN Bloggers and those providing comments are theirs alone, and do not reflect the opinions of MNN.com. While we have reviewed their content to make sure it complies with our Terms and Conditions, MNN is not responsible for the accuracy of any of their information.

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Comments: 8
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anonymous
Tae Nov 28 2012 at 12:33 PM
I love that most of these have make-ahead components which serve to make all of them more viable for school mornings. The ability to separate prep or stages of creation is something I actively look for. Doing the prep and long cook work the day before, or even a few days and freezing it, makes eary morning assembly a snap. The only one I don't think I'd be able to pull off on a weekday morning would be the skewers. We tend toward oatmeal with pear or apple most school mornings for convenience and
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economic reasons but I'll definitely be trying the burrito next week.
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anonymous
Muffin Dec 09 2011 at 1:09 PM

Although I find you foods tempting and tasty They are a bit expensive and time consuming for the average mom. How about a bowl of oatmeal from scratch, or that burrito w/o lettuce and tomato but with onions and taters added instead on a WG tortilla.

Granola on yogurt grosses me and my kids out, but they love Muesli. Or why not serve those biscuit with chunky preserves adding more fruit into little ones bodies with flavor!

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anonymous
Kimi Harris Dec 10 2011 at 12:35 AM
Muffin, The reason I didn't list oatmeal, was simply because I thought most people would have already thought of that as a healthy breakfast! But oatmeal is certainly a favorite frugal breakfast around here. The black bean and egg burrito is actually quite simple to make. You can always use canned beans, and you can use jarred salsa for a simple way to spice it up. I personally think that it's better to get as much protein as you can in the morning (personal preference), which is why I prefer the
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beans to potatoes. And there is no reason not to serve jam with those biscuits, however, I would recommend watching out for the sugar content on most jams. Why not serve some apple or orange slices on the side instead? That's another option for getting in fruit without any added sugar. :-)
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anonymous
Muffin Dec 10 2011 at 10:42 AM
I Kimi, All is understood, but too many parents do not have time to make a burrito with fresh veggies early in the morn--hence my comment. Some commercial picante is loaded with sugar and salt. hence why I suggest eggs, meat?, taters, chilies and onions--a small dose of vitamin C with that flavor. Beans that early in the day can produce a bit too much gas--which could embarass the child especially when young. (yes I was a teacher, counselor and therapist before entering the culinary world by happenstance)
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Oatmeal---I brought it up for too many parents rely on the prepackaged sugar infused varieties--when homemade cost less and does not contain excess sugars, salt and chemicals to increase shelf life. Plus it is winter time, almost and a bit of homemade warmth early in the morn is never bad when the air is frosty and cold. Jams are great--but preserves are a bit healthier for they contain some real chunks of fruit and when serving Biscuits on the Go, or for breakfast--adding some berries, cherries, or chopped peaches, apricots to that lovely gooey luscuiousness only increase the flavor and health of the offering. THANKS,
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momof3's picture
Momof2children Dec 09 2011 at 10:23 AM

Both of our kids have a bowl of blueberries every single morning (fresh in the summer....frozen/defrosted the rest of the year) and that seems to start out the day the right way. Simple/fast.....and sometimes we'll toss in a couple of pieces of toast.

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anonymous
Tracy Dec 09 2011 at 5:11 PM

Your kids must be skinny

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momof3's picture
Momof2children Dec 13 2011 at 9:39 AM

LOL...not that skinny! And it does make it sound like they only get blueberries..the wheat toast is almost 100% part of it...

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cisforcupcake
cisforcupcake Dec 09 2011 at 9:45 AM

I opt for kefir over fresh fruit or low-sugar granola. The brand I like has 12 active cultures, and is 99% lactose-free so it's great for my son's belly.

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