This time of the year, nothing beats a warm breakfast. Warm breakfasts tend to make us sit down, slow down and evoke a sense of true nourishment and comfort. But who has time to slow down in the mornings?! Just pour a bowl of boxed breakfast cereal with milk, wolf it down and run! Unfortunately, the majority of people start their mornings in just that way. And it could be harming us. Even organic puffs and O’s are not whole foods. Take a look at them. How much does that corn flake resemble corn? What about the rice puffs or wheat O’s? Are they anything like the real grains from which they came? Not really. But oh my, a box of cereal is EASY. And on Sunday mornings, when we have to be out the door early for choir practice before church, we often have cereal. We call it Cereal Sunday. I have surrendered to it after YEARS of a No Cereal Policy.
So, what CAN a busy family eat in the morning that will truly feed and nourish? And without an hour of morning prep time? Quick morning meals DO mean a little preparation. But that can be done a few days ahead or the night before.
- Potatoes, preferably precooked. Whenever you make potatoes for a meal, toss in a few extra. Fry up slices or cube them for a more hash-like dish. Add peppers or any veggies of your choice. If I add bacon it’s more “breakfast-y.” I often mix with leftovers. Mix with scrambled eggs. Top with cheese. It’s VERY fast if the potatoes are pre-cooked. Also works with sweet potatoes.
- Make your own granola. I promise there’s a super easy way! Then you can set aside
one jar for the week and freeze the extra. If you have any extra. I hardly ever do. It is nearly impossible to find a granola that is made with a traditional oil or fat that our bodies have historically consumed. Most vegetable oils available are fairly new inventions with untested results on our bodies. And we DO want fat in our breakfasts or we’ll be famished before lunch! While I AIM to soak my oats and then make my granola mix to bake or dehydrate, I often just do a quick batch in the crockpot, using butter or coconut oil as my main oil. Keep it simple by just using oats and whatever you have on hand. No need for a billion additions. I line the crock pot with a Demarle form to avoid caked on granola and by the end of the afternoon, I have crispy granola, ready to top with yogurt or soak in milk and feed people for a few mornings. - Soak oatmeal overnight and it cooks up in five minutes the next morning. If you have a little more time, try soaking steel cut oats, millet, quinoa, rice or any other grain you like and have a warm porridge the next morning. Add butter, a little maple syrup, some fruit or some nuts for a cereal you can feel good about and that will have staying power! EVEN BETTER: use your programmable pressure cooker or crockpot. Set the soaking oats in there and your hot breakfast is waiting for you upon waking.
- Use your rice cooker and crockpot to make porridge. Let it cook overnight and be ready for you in the morning. No waiting! Again, these take planning, but do not take much time. And can take NO time in the morning. Grits can be surprisingly easy this way. Add some cheese and green chile and even beaten egg during cooking for something that will really stick to your ribs.
- Fried Mush. One of my favorite ways to use up leftover cooked grains is what Sally Fallon, author of Nourishing Traditions, calls Fried Mush. I take the grains and add one to several beaten eggs. Mix together and fry in butter, coconut oil, tallow or another traditional fat. Sometimes we eat this with maple syrup and sometimes we sprinkle with cheese and add salsa. It’s fast, nourishing and helps eat up leftovers.
- Make a loaf of quality bread over the weekend and use it for toast, french toast or breakfast sandwiches during the week. Or even put together the sandwiches over the weekend, wrap and they’re ready to pop in the toaster oven and run. Same with breakfast burritos.
- Pop pancakes in the toaster. If you make any pancakes, ever, make twice as many. Regular pancakes, paleo pancakes, any type. Even if you just make a few extra, you can set those aside in the refrigerator and then toast them up quickly another morning.
- Muffins. Make a batch or two of muffins and dole out in the mornings for perfectly portable servings. I sometimes make a big batch of batter and freeze the uncooked batter in right-sized portions so they are SO easy to drop into the muffin tin and bake that morning or the night before. See this recipe. OR I make this recipe, which can sit in the refrigerator for a month! I can then scoop into the muffin tins and bake in no time.
- Make a smoothie. Be sure it has some fat and protein in it to get you through lunch. Put together Smoothie packs in jars or baggies. Set in fridge the night before and they’ll be blender-ready the next morning. Or go straight from freezer to blender. Add fruit, yogurt, any supplement to the pack. The next morning add juice or milk or ice.
- Reconsider breakfast. This is my current challenge. I have been trying to make leftovers an acceptable breakfast in my house. Or a cup of real bone broth with coconut milk. How about a platter of fruit and cheeses? What can YOU create quickly and easily that just might work for breakfast?
- Eggs! Quality eggs provide an unbeatable source of nutrition. Keep the yolk because that’s where all the goodness is.
- For the time crunched, hard boil several over the weekend and they’re ready to go straight from the fridge.
- Scramble up eggs with leftover veggies. Cooking up eggs can be done very quickly. You can even break, scramble and mix in your veggies and/or cheese the night before. The next morning, give it all a shake and then add to the pan.
- baked eggs are a little more time consuming, but add some variety. Put a touch of melted butter and cream in the wells of a muffin tin. Crack an egg into the well, topping with chopped veggies, parmesan or whatever else sounds good. Cook for about eight minutes at 400 and slide out onto a plate.
There are many more ideas suitable for your family. I hope this sampling gets you started. Again, a little prep time on the weekend or the night before reaps fast, nutritious benefits all week long.
Want MORE awesome ideas? I love The Healthy Breakfast Book by Katie over at Kitchen Stewardship. And I LOVE the Subtitle: Cereal-free Secrets to Starting the Day with Real Food. I bought this book YEARS ago and I re-read it every year or so for inspiration and reminders. Check out the table of contents and all the awesome bonuses you get for less than $10. This book gets Productive Mama’s Smile of Approval!
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