Hey Ladies! Dh and I have been talking, and he doesn't have time in the morning to eat breakfast and has been EATING McDONALDS EVERY MORNING FOR BREAKFAST!!!! (Gasp!) So, in an effort to save time and $$$ I'm wanting to start making muffins or other easy meals to take in the car meals for dh.

This discussion however got Casey (dh) and I to talking about how breakfast is the one meal that we eat total crap each and every day. Logan LOVES LOVES LOVES his poptarts, and while it could technically be worse ( I suppose), I think it's time our family started eating healthier breakfasts. My goal is to start baking healthy muffins (yummy a must), making oatmeal, or rice cereal, and completely get rid of our breakfast cereals. Yes, the Fruit Loops need to go.

So, now if I make a HUGE batch of muffins, can I freeze them? You know, so I could take out a few the night before and they'd be thaw for Casey at 5:00 am?

Bear with me, I'm not a cook - k? That's why we eat so poorly - because I don't know how to do any differently, and Casey has fought me on eating anything healthy. I actually have his support for this one, so cooking mama's - help me out here please. I really want to make a new healthy change for my family.

I could use any YUMMY recipes that are for either regular HEALTHY muffins, and I could also use recipes that are gluten-free/casein-free/egg-free muffins as well.

So let's see if I can actually meet my goal by the end of the month to be completely rid of packaged breakfast cereals. Help me oh wise mama's!

How bout smoothies (Vita mix is great for that). Or a juicer? Fresh juice is quick to make and the juicer we have just purchased, Kempo greenpower, takes only three minutes to clean. That makes for a quick meal in the morning. How bout sprouted bread/toast with avocado or almond butter on it. Fresh fruit. Frozen waffles from NF store with organic maple syrup when truly in a hurry (or a nut butter).

:) Jennifer

Not all packaged cereals are bad.

They are a super source of fiber, vitamins and minerals.

If you could find some which are not coated with sugar and could convert their tastebuds to them (raison brans, rice chex, etc) then you would have a delicious, nutritious meal.

I make oatmeal every morning but have one child who simply can not stand the thought of it. I let her have boxed cereal.

I agree with Mari, you don't need to banish all cereals, just find good ones :) We get high fiber, high protein, low sugar ones at Trader Joes as well as the HFS. My very picky son ASKS for Kashi almost every day (we like the Go Lean and Go Lean Crunch). We also like the Grain Shop cereal (has organic whole grains), and Uncle Sam (which also has flax seed). Even my not crunchy DH will eat them. My mom freezes her muffins and has them just 1 or 2 at a time, so that would probably work, too. Anyway, good luck finding some healthier alternatives!

We used to eat pop tarts a couple times a year but then one of the parents's of one of dh's students worked in the Pop Tart portion of Cereal City (we live about 50-60 minutes from the headquarters for Kellogg's) and used to tell dh about how they were made and what was in them. Shortly after hearing this my mom tried to give some to us and we couldn't even stomache looking at them:eek: I won't get into the gorey details but they are just yucky.

Breakfast is definitely the hardest meal to be creative with in my opinion. We have smoothies almost every morning and then have muffins, a quick bread, applesauce, fruit, or yogurt to supplement the smoothie. On weekends we have pancakes, omelets, french toast, eggs, sausage, etc... since we have more time.

I don't buy cereal often but the ones that I buy on occasion are: Uncle Sam's, Kashi good friends,Kashi Autumn Wheat, Kashi Heart to Heart, and the two new ones that are called cranberry something and strawberry something (big help on those aren't I).

I have started to think outside of the box to and feed the boys traditional lunch foods for breakfast like a bowl of soup or apples and cheese.

hi delpha

i don't have a gluten-free/casein-free/egg-free recipe but here is one that we use which my children love.

fiddle around with the fillings part, ie you may want to do raisins and apple or oatmeal and raisins and carrot. i've experiemented with a no sugar and broccoli and cheese combo - just add salt and omit the sugar part.
(((((

anything goes muffins
makes 15 standard size muffins

2 cups plain flour
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup soy milk
1 egg
1/3 cup oil

fillings: chopped nuts, shredded carrot, oatbran or oatmeal.

Thanks mama's - and Barb, that recipe is what I needed. I KNOW I can find a gf/cf/eggf muffin recipe. I was just hoping to get a regular recipe that people liked. So, that works well. I'm also wanting one with oatmeal - or maybe a banana bread recipe that I can put in muffin cups. Something like that. I really need something that my husband can just pick up on the way out the door.

And about the pop tarts - maybe you should fill me in on what's in them Bobbi Jo. I mean, I'm not disputing they are bad at all - it's pretty obvious with the technicolor goo inside .... I just think if I knew specifics it would be easier to avoid. Kind of like hot dogs - yk??? ;)

I know ALL cereals aren't bad, but we are in a bad habit of eating corn pops, fruit loops, fruity pebbles, and I'm thinking if we had some muffins around the house this wouldn't really be an issue for us. Plus, honestly, I'm sick of the open boxes all over my kitchen and I'm hoping to find something new. Devin is the only one in our family that eats a decent breakfast, and that's mainly because of his special diet. I'm wanting to eliminate some of the colors if you know what I mean.

Thanks again ladies!

We don't eat many boxed cereals b/c they are so expensive. Most mornings my ds just wants a bowl of oatmeal and some fruit. Other times he likes soy yogurt, pancakes, or french toast. I have a recipe for a yummy Orange Julius that I got out of a homeschooling magazine (can't remember the name of the mag though).

Orange Julius:
8-9 ice cubes
1 1/2 c. milk (I use soy milk)
1/2 c. water
1 tsp. vanilla
1 6 oz. can frozen orange juice concentrate
1/4 c. sugar

Crush ice cubes first, then blend all ingredients til smooth and frosty.

Some mornings we will eat toast with peanut butter and honey and drink an orange julius.

Here is a recipe for carrot spice muffins that I like:
2 C. flour
2 tsp. baking soda
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. allspice
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. salt
3 eggs ( can use egg replacer instead)
1 c. soy milk
1 c. sugar (can use less if you want)
1 c. canola oil
1/2 tsp. vanilla
1 1/2 c. grated zucchini
1 1/2 c. grated carrot
1/2 c. chopped pecans (or other nut)

Sift flour, baking soda, and spices into a large bowl. In separate bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, soy milk and oil. Combine all ing. until just moistened. Divide batter into greased muffin cups. Bake in a 375 degree oven for 18-20 minutes. Makes 24 muffins.

Here is a really yummy chocolate chip banana muffin recipe. I always make these when I have bananas that are starting to get too brown.

1/2 c. butter or margarine
1 tsp vanilla
3/4 c. sugar
egg replacer equal to 2 eggs
1 1/4 c. flour
3/4 c. oats, uncooked
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
1 cup mashed bananas (about 3 meduim sized ones)
3/4 c. chocolate chips (you can leave these out if you want and the muffins will still be delicious)

Preheat oven to 350. Cream the butter, vanilla, and sugar in a bowl until fluffy. Add in the egg replacer. In a new bowl mix together flour, oats, baking soda, and baking powder. Add the mashed bananas to the sugar mixture, then add the dry ingredients to the wet. Do not overmix. Stir in choc chips. Spoon into well-greased muffin tin and bake for about 25 minutes Makes 12 muffins. Recipe from Vegetarian Baby and Child magazine.

I hope this gives you some new ideas.
:)

HEre is a really yummy really filling recipe that i think everyone loves. It's really changeable too. I've replaced the apples with peaches, added bananas and/or raisens, used different nuts, etc.

1/2- 1 cup cooked brown or basmati rice
1 tart apple (granny smith, pink lady, etc) chunked
Whatever milk or non dairy milk you use
vanilla
1-3 tablespoons dry sweetener (i use brown sugar)
approx 1/2 - 1 ts pumpkin pie spice; cinnamon, ginger, all spice,
cloves, and nutmeg
1/8-1/4 cup chopped walnuts or pecans
1/4 ts flax meal (optional)
1/4 ts wheat germ (optional)

put everything in the bowl if your rice is dry add a couple teaspoons of milk. Microwave it for one minute. take it out stir it up. microwave it again for 1-3 minutes or until the apples are soft. give it one moresti and enjoy.
the whole thing takes about 10 minutes
I personally mix brown rice ith the basmati when i 'm cooking cause i like the texture and flavor of the combination but either are great in this recipe.

btw i got your pm. THank you sooo much. No hurries. Thank you again and i promise i will pm you. I'm short on time since it's midterms. I shouldn't even be here now. I should be researching the life, times, and work of John Waters for Humanites.

What helps me out on busy mornings is to make a double-batch of pancakes. The extras keep really well in the fridge. You can reheat them in the microwave or toaster oven. Quick and easy.

Same goes for waffles.

Hi I'm piglet the lurker that never posts. I totally understand about your husband going to work early--mine goes in at 12 midnight. In the begining, I use to send him in with a smoothie that I put in the freezer at night--he ate/drank it while it was still slushy. I also sent in muffins but most of the time miniature homemade pizzas. These were easy: I made the dough (whole wheat) about every 3 days and kept in in a bag in the refrigerator use a third at a time and put nice bits of things on them. Kevin loved picking things out for "his pizzas" and 'his smoothies." And weirdly enough, I really enjoyed making them. I thought about the description of Laurel packing the lunch for her husband in (the old?) Laurel's Kitchen Cookbook, if you know that book. He doesn't take a lunch anymore, though. Eating at night made him fat. Now he drinks green tea.
But anyway, I thought I would post a fun, yummy transitional muffin recipe for kids that (for now) like pop tarts and fruit loops. It's from a really trashy book called Muffins by Elisabeth Alston. They are good without the chocolate, too.

"PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS
12 regular of 48 mini

make one or two days ahead for best flavor

1/2 cup sliced unblanched almonds
1 2/3 cup whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup sugar (use less!)
1 tablespoon pumpkin pie spice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 large eggs
1 cup plain pumpkin (half a 1 pound tin)
1/2 cup butter (I stick) (I use 1/2 cup canolla)
1 cup chocolate chips"

I amd not typing this out verbatim anymore. You know how to make muffins. Bake 20-25 minute, until springy at 350. Wrap in a plastic bag when cool and keep up to2 days.Toast almonds if you like. Skip the chips and the almonds and they are still yummy. I skip them myself. The spices and pumpkin make them good.

She has something about freezing:
"almost all baked muffins freeze well for up to 3 months. Freeze them in a tightly closed plastic bag when they are cool but still fresh. To reheat, place the frozen muffins on a baking sheet in an oven or toaster over at 350 fo 5-10 minutes, until hot. "
Enjoy your muffin-y mornings.

hi delpha

one more no brainer cake.

banana bread
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 1/2 cups flour (we just throw in an assortment of oatmeal, plain flour and wholemeal)
1 teaspn baking soda
1/4 teaspn salt
1 cup mashed banana
optional 1 cup chopped up nuts

mix butter, sugar, eggs
lightly stir in dry ingredients
add banana and nuts
pour into greased loaf pan
bake for about 40 mins at 175deg centigrade

since you are going to be in the kitchen here is one for you, be warned that its very uncrunchy.

amitymama brownie recipe
1 1/2 cup flour
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup cocoa powder
3 eggs
175 grams butter (sorry i converted and now can't find the imperial measure for this)

this is the difficult bit :p : mix the dry ingredients, mix the wet stuff, then mix all of it. pour into a shallow pan at 180deg centigrade for about 30 mins.
important: take it out when the stuff looks a little undercooked and then let it stand for a while.
i stopped making this after a bit this coz i was eating too much of it :rolleyes:

enjoy.
barbs

THANK YOU LADIES! That is what I was wanting!!! I've got some great ideas and some new recipes!!!

And Laurie - you're right - Devin can't eat wheat, oats, corn, milk, eggs, peanut butter (and the list goes on and on!). But, actually, I think I've got some recipes for him as far as gf/cf/eggfree goes.

Not only that, but Devin, Logan and I really like warm brown rice cereal in the morning, and it doesn't get much simpler than that - just cook brown rice - add some milk (or soymilk) and brown sugar. It's a real comfort food for us, so we'll be able to go without cereal without a real problem. I just need something that Logan can carry around like a pop tart - thinking toast with a light coat of jam?

My REAL challenge is Casey. He is incredibly picky, but he does like his breads, muffins and such, and if I could just have some muffins - or breakfast burritos (I forgot about those - thanks!) then I'll be set!

And actually, our decision to get rid of cereal is about cost as well. Lately I've been on a mission to evaluate all of our expenses and determine what is a real "necessity" and what is a percieved necessity. I've never NOT had cereal in my house, so until recently, I always thought it was as necessary as milk, eggs, and bread. Anymore, as I go down the cereal aisle looking at brightly colored boxes of clever marketing I get pissy - Devin can't eat ANYTHING down the aisle of our regular grocery store, and he's always sad - wanting Yu Gi Oh cereal and such, while Logan is clamoring to get Fruit Loops - Fruity Pebbles or any BRIGHTLY colored crap he can get his hands on. And all my life I thought that was necessary. All my life I thought this was good and normal, and now I'm dissatisfied. I realize that Devin is the only one among us that eats right, but I can't afford the better cereals for Logan - out of necessity, Devin's diet has eaten up most of our food budget - and honestly, at this point after 2 years of bright sugar snappy cereal - Logan wouldn't eat good healthy cereal anyway. So it's time to make this change for my family. My goal is to quit buying into the marketing. And, if I didn't have to buy Devin's expensive cereal - which I only do because if we're eating cereal - he needs cereal as well - then honestly, my food budget would go up dramatically. I mean - it is truly ridiculous how much money we spend on cereal a month. It would be nice to be able to afford more organic foods, and they're just not in our budget, unless I kick out the cereal.

We use that Orange Julius recipe minus the sugar for a dessert after dinner, and it's really GOOD! I am allergic to dairy, so we also use soy milk.

Could you send me the poptarts story too? You can pm me. We haven't eaten pop-tarts in a very long time, but your post intrigued me... :D

I can't remember if you are doing GF for celiac or ADD. But, if it is not for celiac, try Barbara's Fruity Punch cereal. It is a whole lot better for them than Fruit Loops. But, it has oats so celiacs can't do it.

Nature's Path has a whole line of kids cereals that are GF. We love the Panda Puffs (peanut butter) and Koala Krisps (like cocoa crispies). Not sure the status of them as far as allergens except gluten and dairy. None of either in these two or Gorilla Munch (like Kix).

We do Quinoa with honey, grits, amaranth with honey and those not GF, oatmeal with molasses or honey on most mornings. We also eat a lot of free-range eggs. I make GF waffles and pancakes on the weekends and we eat them all week. My girls love peanut butter rolls (pancakes rolled up with PB inside). Also, if you go to Yummy Food forum, a mom posted Chicken Divan pie. I made it this weekend without the milk and with non-dairy cheese and no broccoli (DH won't eat anything green). It was good and would make a great breakfast. In fact, Sam had leftovers for breakfast today.

Probably the favorite in the house though is the quinoa. It is eaten the most. We go through about 4 lbs a month.

Devin is gluten free because of his adhd, AND he has an intolerance to gluten (plus many more things) , so we avoid all gluten - including oats and then some. ;) But as far as we know, he's not celiac - but then we can't find out now, because we've already removed gluten, and I can't put him back on gluten, just to find out he can't eat gluten - because he's already tested intolerant anyway. He eats those Koala Crisps and amaranth flakes a lot. Most of the other cereals have something in them that he can't eat. His diet is so crazy, that I have forgotten why he doesn't eat X cereal because of Y, but I remember what cereals he can and can't eat. It only takes once of eating a cereal he's not supposed to eat and we remember forever - his reactions are STRONG!!! But really, I'm just wanting to get rid of cereals period - both for allergies for Devin, and because they are expensive, and because most of what Logan WILL eat is not good for him. Of course - he can't eat it if I don't give it to him - and the only way I won't give it to them is if I don't have them in the house.

If you want to give your pop-tart loving son a treat, try the amy's organic pop-tarts. They are all natural, filled with real fruit puree, and are soooooooooooo yummy. I would have to rate them as one of my dd's all-time favorite foods!

Some of the organic cereals might not be as expensive as you think. They have pretty good sales at the big grocery store chains around here....this week, one healthy, organic brand is buy one, get one free (so two for $3.50...which might even be cheaper than the regular sugar filled brands!) And I got a ton of cascadian farms cereal (organic too) for $1 a box....it was on sale, they had those store coupons for $1 off, and then inside the boxes were more $1 off coupons. I made several trips to the store that week, but it was worth it for the price!
We buy organic rolled oats in bulk, and they are cheaper that way than buying the reg. brands of whole oats.

Christy

Delpha,

www.enterolab.com can do a gene test to diagnose celiac, crohn's, or other g.i. diseases without putting him back on gluten. If you need to know why he's g.i. that is.

This is not very crunchy but it is portable for your DH. I make these about 4X a year. Take a muffin pan, get a roll of those pillsbury grands biscuits, flatten 1 biscuit and press it into the muffin cup. Scramble some sausage( the Jimmy dean kind, not links) and throw it in the cup on top of the biscuit layer. Then scramble eggs and throw some in on top of the sausage, then top with a little cheddar cheese and bake at around 350* until biscuit edges are browned and cheese is melted. They keep well in the fridge for a few days and are easy to heat up in the microwave and are totally portable. I am sure if you fiddled with it you could make it a healthier recipe... making your own biscuits instead of pillsbury, soy sausage or something.....free range eggs or egg substitute? HTH I am still working on healthy breakfasts here too. I think I have a recipe for peanut butter muffins here somewhere.....my kids ate them once with jelly on them and loved them.

Christy - I totally agree with you about the organic cereals being cheaper than regular cereal when it's on sale. The only problem is - I don't live near a hfs. Last time I was at the hfs I bought 10 boxes of Devin's cereal though, because I got it for $2.50 a box. Locally I have to pay more than $5.00 a box for the same cereal though. And since the nearest hfs is 2 and a half hours away - and since we are almost done travelling that way regularly - it will be really difficult for me to continue. But I do agree - when those babies go on sale they are cheaper than the other cereals.

Adria- Thanks for that link - I didn't know it was possible to test once they were off of gluten. I WILL DEFINITELY check into it - I've always wondered why this wasn't explored earlier.

Kate - That's a great idea!!! Dh would LOVE those. And here's a little secret for you - I'm not terribly crunchy - we eat mostly regular food, so that recipe is right up our alley - and much crunchier than McDonalds every morning! And if you could send me your recipe for peanut butter muffins - I'd really appreciate it.

And Laurie - You're my hero! I believe we think along the same lines a lot - I just think you're a lot farther down the path that I'm trying to take. I just keep taking one step at a time. Slow ans steady steps have taken me quite a way down the path though. It's amazing how many small lifestyle changes I have made thanks to knowledge I've gained from amity mama's, and what a REAL difference it has made in our lives.

I used to make breakfast burritos for my dh. I would scramble eggs, add cheese, onions, sausage or bacon, onions, bell peppers and keep it in a bowl in the frig. In the am he would just put some of that on a tortilla, add sauce, roll it and head out the door. lol

A couple more ideas:

The Super Baby Food book has a recipe for "toaster pastries" (or whatever they had to call them to not call them PopTarts) and they're pretty easy to make: some whole wheat dough (similar to a pie crust I would guess) and then some jam inside. That book has several crunchier variations on things.

If you need even faster, you can freeze premade breakfast burritos so DH can grab and go. Same with bagel sandwiches or "egg mcmuffins." My DH can take some time to make breakfast and likes omelettes, so once a week or so he cuts up a couple of peppers and onions and puts them in the freezer so that step is done already and can just be added quick to eggs. He also has made omelettes ahead of time and frozen them (we saw those at costco - Jimmy Dean or someone makes them - and couldn't believe we'd never done that).

Would your DH be interested in dinner leftovers for breakfast? Or do you already do that for his lunch?

~amey

I make this a lot and the kids love it: I just throw it in the crockpot before bed and it's ready when we wake up. Although it *is* sort of a cereal thing.

Crock Pot Granola Casserole

2 cups of your favorite granola
4 large apples -- peeled and thinly sliced
1/4 cup honey
1 tsp. cinnamon
2 Tbs. melted butter

Place all ingredients into the crockpot -- apples on the bottom. Cover and cook on low for 7 to 9 hours. Best served with milk.

Most of the time we just eat fresh fruit for breakfast. One of my kids is a cereal addict (but we stay away from the sugary kinds) and I'm trying to wean him from it because we are weaning ourselves of milk also, but I feed the little ones and my oldest fresh fruit for breakfast every day :)