Breakfast Recipes

04 Oct Breakfast Recipes

Do you always have the same thing for breakfast? Why not add some variety? There’re lots you can do to satisfy your appetite and enjoy a change. Have a big batch of various muffins in your freezer that you can pull out, warm up and serve with a bowl of yogurt or cut up fresh fruit. I know a lady who makes pancakes and french toast in bulk and freezes them to make mornings quick, easy and very filling. You can even add cut up fruit or chocolate chips to pancakes to make them an added treat. Kids love it when you make the pancake in the shape of the first initial of their name!

Consider offering a variety of bread: rye, pumpernickel, whole wheat, raisin, bagel, English muffins, croissants, hot cross buns, etc. Toppings can vary from butter, honey, jam, peanut butter, cream cheese, cottage cheese, sliced cheese, grated cheese, avacodo or cinnamon and sugar. How about omelettes, hard boiled eggs, scrambled eggs, egg fritatta or egg McMuffin? Boil a batch of breakfast sausages, freeze and have handy to just pull out and brown in a pan. There’s also bacon, sliced ham, even cold cuts quickly heated in a frying pan. Maybe you’d enjoy some hash browns or leftover potatoes sauteed with an onion and colored peppers as a side dish to make the breakfast more hearty.  Besides the expensive but quick cold cereal, try hot oatmeal, cream of wheat porridge, red river cereal, cooked cornmeal. I know some women who have learned to adapt these recipes to their crockpot so it’s ready in the morning without any work. You don’t have to use pre-packaged oatmeal blends that are expensive. Buy a big sack of one-minute oatmeal, pour in your bowl, add boiled water and make your own creation with milk, white or brown sugar, cinnamon, raisins, sliced fruit and/or chopped nuts.

There are lots of ways for you to get a nutritious cost-effective breakfast in the morning without a lot of work. Be creative. Keep your eyes open when you go to restaurants to get different ideas on menus and presentation. Try them out on your family to see what constitutes a hit. Remember a good breakfast is the start of a better day. Protein is important. So give some thought to how you can make this meal an enjoyable moment for your family and their appetites. Be sure to send us some of your ideas.

As my family grew, our breakfasts grew. When we had our first child, I was awful for eating consistently, nutritiously and properly. As children came into our lives, our need for order, substance and wholesome eating became necessary. We learned as our family evolved. So give yourself the time to grow into good eating as your family’s needs change. With so many kids in our family, we couldn’t please everyone. My husband, being a logical engineer, suggested each child get would have what they enjoy, but also have to eat what others enjoyed. So growing up we roughly had: cereal on Sunday, pancakes Monday, toast and scrambled eggs Tuesday, oatmeal Wednesday, egg mcmuffins on Friday, cottage cheese pancakes Friday, bacon, eggs and homemade hashbrowns Saturday and homemade waffles with whip cream and fresh fruit for special occasions (we had three waffle irons to quickly whip up a large batch). Nowadays we’ve added eggs benny to our special days, using a frying pan of water with some vinegar to quickly cook up a dozen eggs, a package of hollandaise sauce, some bread and a smoked salmon slices to top it all off with.

Every family is different. We all have different needs, different budgets, different energy levels and different amounts of time. Start where you are at. Go slow. Feed yourself well. Build on what you know. Grow your traditions as the years pass and you find new and interesting ways to start your day well!

MEAT AND VEGGIES – Marissa

Consider frying up a family pack of hamburger meat. Spice as you desire. Freeze into a large ziploc bag.You can even cut up the veggies the night before if it makes for quicker work in the morning, ie. zucchini, cauliflower, carrots, broccoli, potato, sweet potato, onion.

In the morning put some oil in a frying pan, add your veggies, throw in your cooked hamburger meat, add spices and enjoy a hearty meal.

SMOOTHIE – Anya

To  make life simple, I buy ripe bananas that are reduced. Peel them and immediately freeze them whole or sliced in a ziploc bag. I also have a bag of frozen fruit (usually berries) in the freezer.

In a blender:

frozen banana, frozen berries, milk to almost cover, a couple of big scoops of yogurt

Adults would appreciate adding chia seeds, hemp heart or flax seeds, as well as walnuts if desired.

Blend till smooth. Drink and enjoy.

COTTAGE CHEESE PANCAKES – Gerhard (hi in protein and calcium)

1 regular size carton of 2% cottage cheese

1 egg

1 tsp sugar

flour to bind

Mix altogether in a bowl until reasonably thick. Can always thin out with a bit of milk if needed. Heat oil in a frying pan. Drop by spoonful into pan, flattening out to pancake size. Flip when edges are looking a bit crispy. Cook till done and then serve with maple syrup. Leftovers are excellent if frozen and re-heated. Some enjoy a peeled sliced apple that was microwaved to be placed on top with some cinnamon.

HEALTHY EGG MUFFIN CUPS – Natasha  found this on-line at asassyspoon.com. Great for kids!

6 eggs

coconut oil for muffin pan (or vegetable oil)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a nonstick muffin tin with nonstick cooking spray or  melted coconut oil. Set aside. Whisk the eggs in a bowl.

Place 2-3 items listed below  into each tin. You can customize each muffin cup however you’d like! Pour the egg mixture on top, leaving 1/4″ from the top.

• kale, chopped
• baby spinach, chopped
• tomatoes, diced
• onions, finely chopped
• red bell peppers, finely chopped
• green peppers, finely chopped
• mushrooms, finely chopped
• goat cheese, crumbled
• basil, finely chopped
• mozzarella cheese, shredded
• salt and pepper to taste, (other seasonings too like oregano or garlic powder!)
• fire roasted salsa, for topping the eggs!

Bake for 20 minutes, or until a toothpick comes out clean for each frittata. Remove from oven. Use a knife to go around the edges and pop out the egg cups.  To reheat, simply place one egg muffin in the microwave for 35-45 seconds on HIGH or until warm.

 PANCAKE RECIPE – Stella

Great to have your own mix. Save time and money by having this handy. Mix and store in a large container:

6 cups flour
1 tbsp. Salt
6 tbsp. Baking powder
6 tbsp. Sugar
2 cup powdered milk

Mix thoroughly and keep in an airtight container in the cupboard. When needed, mix 1 ½ cups of pancake mix with 1 cup of water mixed with 1 beaten egg. Use margarine or oil in fry pan.

 POTATO PATTIES

When you have excess mashed potatoes from the weekend that have been sitting in the fridge, scoop them out and shape into patties. Place them in a frying pan with melted margarine or butter and brown on both sides. You may want to add a bit of flour if you find they are too soft. It’s quick and easy. Add salt and pepper. Serve with some eggs and you have a filling breakfast.

One of my teenage sons loves leftover spaghetti noodles for breakfast. In a frying pan he sautee’s a chopped onion in some butter or margarine, adds the cold cooked spaghetti noodles, cracks an egg into it, mixing as he goes. Then he grates some cheese on top, adds salt, pepper, and some parmesan and voila. A hearty breakfast using leftovers and done in a jiffy.

Another one of my teenagers enjoys a cornmeal breakfast from time to time. In a pot, he boils one cup of water with a bit of salt and a dab of butter (optional). Then he adds 3/4 cup cornmeal while quickly mixing and turning the stove off. While it sits with the lid on, he makes a sweet cup of coffee, puts it in a bowl and then scoops spoonfuls of cornmeal into it. It’s like a hot porridge with a different twist. Economical and filling.

OVEN APPLE PANCAKE – Catherine C., Ottawa

1/4 cup butter or hard margarine
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
cinnamon, generous sprinkle throughout
nutmeg, a light sprinkle
2 apples, peeled, cored and sliced into wedges 1/4 inch thick
3 large eggs
3/4 cup milk
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup flour

Melt butter in 9-inch pie plate in 425 F oven. Stir brown sugar into melted butter. Sprinkle with cinnamon and nutmeg. Overlap apples in a single layer. Cook in the oven for 10 minutes. Beat eggs with a spoon in a bowl. Add milk, salt and flour. Stir to moisten. Don’t try to smooth out small lumps. Pour over apples. Return to oven. Bake for 20-25 minutes. Cut into wedges. Serve with maple syrup and sausages. Yummy. Great for Sunday mornings.

 OATMEAL FRUIT MUESLI

½ oatmeal flakes
½ cup yogurt
1 tsp maple syrup or honey
¼ cup milk
½ tsp vanilla
½ cup cut-up fresh or frozen fruit
1 tbsp raisins
1 tbsp nuts (almonds, sunflower seeds, walnuts, or pecans etc.)

Mix first 5 ingredients in a bowl. Cover and refrigerate overnight. When ready to eat, add remaining ingredients. (lots of overnight oatmeal recipes online – consider making a big batch, placing in mason jars for the week and having easy grab and go).

BROCCOCLI QUICHE – A.R. (I don’t have time to make breakfast so I double or triple this recipe, baking all in my oven on the weekend, freezing already sliced, and just unthaw in the fridge the night before. Makes for a quick and nutritious breakfast when I’m too tired to do much.)

Boil a chopped head of broccoli for 5 min ( or two cups of broccoli, can also substitute some cauliflower or carrots for some of it, or boil up a frozen version of it)

Grease a pie plate with some shortening/lard/margarine.

Sprinkle into the plate:
1/3 cup of finely chopped onion
1/3 cup chopped green or colored peppers
the steamed broccoli

In a bowl, mix:
1 cup of milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 eggs
1/2 cup of Bisquick

Pour over pie pate.

Bake 400 degrees for 40 minutes.

Many bisquick quiche recipes on-line that add a variety of items to include protein, veggies or cheeses.