...to ask you about breakfast?

[Pineconepicture]

My children are top loaders, they like a big breakfast and then hardly eat anything at dinner. It's always been this way and we largely just go with it now. So, breakfast is our main family meal where we all sit together and have a natter etc.

But...since starting school it's harder to fill DS up in the time available. We still sit together, but just don't have as long so overall DS eats less and as a result is often walking out the door to school saying he's still hungry. I thought by now maybe his appetite would have shifted so he would be more hungry in the evenings, but it hasn't happened. So I'm trying to find some filling, easy breakfasts which are going to give him energy for the day but can be consumed relatively quickly. Or even something which we could take with us on the school run, sort of a grab and go style loaf or bake type breakfast if such a thing exists?

Cereal doesn't seem to keep him full. Porridge does the trick better than most things, but noone wants to eat it every single day of the week even with different toppings etc. We tried overnight oats but no-one was a big fan.

Does anyone have any filling, healthy breakfast recipes which work for manic mornings?

YABU - just stick with cereal, his metabolism will shift eventually
YANBU - and here's a recipe you might want to try

Eggs in any way…with brown bread or a bowl of granola with fruit and yogurt and honey

Eggs,cheese omelette
Overnight oats,
Sausage!
Scones

Porridge plus an egg on toast?

Pancakes. Asda bakery sell the big American type ones.

Or Porridge plus granola, yoghurt and fruit to bring with him for mid- morning?

I'd mix up the toppings with the porridge every morning and prepare a sausage/bacon and egg sandwich to eat on the way to school. Or a few boiled eggs and some crumpets.

When I do keto I do those kind of baked omelet things which you can refrigerate and reheat or eat cold.

Sausages are also filling.

Continental charcuterie and avocado and cheese

Avocado, tomato and mozzarella salad

Smoked salmon and cream cheese bagels

Baked eggs are brilliant

If he eats eggs you could try scrambled eggs, but instead of stirring in the pan, just let them cook so it's like an omlette (you can flip it over in the pan) you can then make a toast sandwich, which is quick to eat. (not sure I've explained that well)

My aunt used to make wraps for hers in the mornings, ham, cheese etc.

Beans on toast with cheese?

Scrambled eggs or scrambled tofu

Cereal just isn't filling. Here are some other ideas:

• Pancakes are really quick/easy to make and there are lots of possible fillings.
• I sometimes fry up leftovers for breakfast, bubble and squeak (or pizza!)
• Beans on toast? Some way towards a cooked breakfast without being a lot of work or washing up
• If it's cereal, add in some dried fruit and nuts.
• If he's also doing some exercise in the day, protein shakes are filling

Cereal and then grab a banana for the journey?

You can make breakfast sandwiches in advance. I'm assuming DS is around 5 years old? Toast or crumpet, with premade egg and cheese omelettes. I think you can buy pans for the right size, or use a muffin tin.

take them out of the freezer the night before and either warm in the oven, or microwave.

I make crepes once or twice a week. Dd had Nutella and banana. Ds likes berries.

Another idea is eggy bread. Unfortunately mine won't eat it these days.

Cereal won’t do it as it’s usually empty carbs (sugar). Protein and complex carbs is the answer.

Hard boil a batch of eggs and keep them in the fridge. Give him a couple with toast. Quicker than scrambling etc. if time is really short.

Peanut butter, full fat Greek yoghurt, nuts are all good sources of protein and quick in the morning.

Eggy bread (sure there is proper name for it) thick slice of bread soaked in raw egg dry fried on greased griddle pan for couple of minutes each side.........worse case scenario solid enough to pick-up and eat on route if not finished in time
🏃‍♂️🏃‍♀️🏃

Seeded toast with sliced tomato, avocado, pumpkin seeds and olive oil is amazingly tasty. And fills me up for hours (probably the fibre content). Takes 5 mins to make.

I appreciate it may not be a teen boys taste though. But whack some egg and bacon on it and he’ll be good for hours!

Tortilla (seasoned eggs, sliced potato, spinach) which can be made in advance and eaten out of his hand en route — beans on toast, scrambled eggs, last night’s leftovers, savoury muffins? DH makes excellent protein balls to the recipe of a sports nutritionist he works with.

French toast!

Beans on toast - sometimes topped with cheese or a fried egg

Breakfast burrito. Scrambled eggs, bacon and cheese in a tortilla, toast it in a pan or health grill then wrap in foil for the journey, or the same fillings in a sub roll

If you have a timer on your oven you could put hash browns in overnight to be ready for breakfast time. You can microwave sausages and then brown them really quickly in a pan.

Have you tried different variations of overnight oats? Ours loved the mango ones from Healthy Little Foodies.

The overnight weetabix from Healthy Little Foodies aren't my favourite but the kids love them too. https://www.healthylittlefoodies.com/overnight-weetabix/

Baked oats go down well, as do all egg based meals. Shakshuka is a favourite, but I do have to make it early. Breakfast quesadillas. Pancakes too.

Bagel topped with nut butters and fruit. They love cottage cheese too.

Yogurt with granola and fruit (although we always look for as low sugar as possible).

We'd often have a 'second breakfast' that we'd take with us. Breakfast that we take with us on the go are; mini brioche rolls (this is a treat), home baked porridge bars, banana, bagels and/or nuts (although we don't allow nuts whilst wearing school uniform, before school - just because of nut allergies at school).

Boiled eggs and soldiers with an extra hard boiled egg for car.

Whatever he eats now with a Tupperware container to go:

• Sliced apple and peanut butter
• Cheese cubes and grapes
• Few slices of ham

Eggs are great. Put an omelette in a pitta, add veg for goodness.

Also veggie sausages: and you can also take them out in a sandwich or wrap.

Basically, you just have to get protein into him. Wherever form it takes. He needs that. Carbs, he'll just burn through. Lots of good ideas above, but the only thing that will work is protein.