Raise your hand if you have a picky eater.
Now raise your other hand if the thought of feeding your child for the upcoming school year has you totally freaking out.
Do you have any hands left?
My daughter will be attending preschool three mornings a week. She only goes to school until noon, so I don’t have to worry about packing a lunch box quite yet, but getting a filling breakfast into her is definitely a necessity.
With school starting at 9 a.m., my girl’s current summertime routine of snacking all morning is going to need to change. I have turned to trusty old Pinterest to help me find some yummy breakfast options my girl will love. Here is a roundup of some of my favorite breakfast recipes for the pickiest of eaters.
Peanut Butter Oat Breakfast Cookies
This super easy recipe from Watching What I Eat makes the most delicious breakfast cookies. Yes, I gave my child cookies for breakfast, but sometimes desperate times call for desperate measures. When I made my first batch I omitted the protein powder and added a little vanilla extract. I also added raisins because I had some extra on hand.
Ingredients:
- 2 ripe bananas, mashed until smooth and creamy
- 1/3 cup peanut butter
- 2/3 cup unsweetened applesauce
- 1 scoop vanilla protein powder (optional)
- 1 tsp vanilla extract
- 1 tsp butter flavor extract (optional)
- 1 1/2 cups quick oatmeal – uncooked (or use old-fashioned oats for more oatmeal texture)
- 1/4 cup chopped nuts (peanut, walnut, or your favorite)
- 1/4 cup carob or chocolate chips (optional)
Directions:
- Preheat heat oven to 350 degrees
- In a large bowl, mix mashed banana and peanut butter until completely combined
- Add in the applesauce, vanilla protein powder, and the extract(s)
- Mix again until all are completely combined
- Add the oatmeal and nuts to the banana mixture and combine (add the optional carob/chocolate chips at this time if you want them mixed throughout)
- Let dough rest for 10 minutes
- Drop cookie dough, by spoonfuls, onto a parchment paper-lined cookie sheet and flatten cookies into circles. (if you just want the carob/chocolate chips on the top of the cookies, add now)
- Bake cookies for approximately 20-30 minutes
- Remove from oven and rest on cookie sheet for 5 minutes, then move to cooling rack.
For more details and other recipe options from Watching What I Eat, click here.
Ants on a Log
This breakfast idea is fun, nutritious, and even allows you to get the kids involved (be prepared for a possible mess if you have tiny tots). Serve with a side of yogurt or a couple of slices of turkey bacon for extra protein. Also works great as a mid-day snack alternative.
Ingredients:
- Banana
- Nut butter (such as peanut butter)
- Raisins
Directions:
- Unpeel the banana and cut in half longways
- Spread the nut butter on the inside of the banana
- Place raisins in the peanut butter (or get your child involved by allowing them to handle this step). The raisins are the “ants” crawling along the “log.”
Jazzed Up Pizza
Cold pizza for breakfast is always been a favorite of mine. This nontraditional version from Parents.com is much healthier and is a great way to add fruits, grains, and nuts to your child’s diet. The allure of a “pizza” for breakfast will have your little ones eager to take a bite!
Ingredients:
- 2 tbsp of fruit jam, nut butter or cream cheese
- Small whole wheat pita or whole-grain English muffin
- Sliced bananas or strawberries (or other fruits) – additional option: almond slices
Directions:
- Spread jam, nut butter or cream cheese on the pita or English muffin
- Top with fruits and/or almond slices
Pancake Bites
These little pancakes from Apples and Sparkles are baked in mini muffin tins making them perfectly kid-sized. Since the recipe makes about 3 dozen, they help make meal planning for the week much easier.
Ingredients:
- 3 1/2 cups prepared pancake batter
- Add-ins of your choice (such as crumbled bacon, blueberries, other fruits, etc. – for variety, consider adding different add-ins for each dozen )
- Cooking spray
- 1 tbsp melted butter
- Maple syrup, for serving
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees
- Spray a mini-muffin tin lightly with cooking spray
- Toss the add-ins with a small spoonful of dry pancake mix or flour (to keep them from sinking to the bottom of the muffin tins)
- Spoon batter into each muffin cup about 1/2 full
- Sprinkle with a little of the add-in of your choice (or you can just make them plain, of course)
- Top with a bit more batter, filling the muffin tins about 3/4 of the way full
- Bake for about 12 minutes, until cooked through
- Remove from the muffin tins and brush lightly with butter
- Repeat with remaining batter
- Serve warm with maple syrup