Ask A Miami Expert: Easy Breakfast Meals For Kids
Breakfast is widely considered one of the most important meals of the day, even more so for growing kids, but due to hectic schedules and making it to school on time is often downgraded to fast but very unhealthy options or skipped altogether. Dina Garcia, RD, LDN of Vida Nutrition shares some healthy but simple breakfast options that kids will love. Parents will love how easy it is to make or put these together. Best of all, for older kids they can even help make if they are done getting ready for the day.
Dina Garcia, RD, LDN
Vida Nutrition
11098 Biscayne Blvd., Suite 410-30
Miami, FL 33161
(786) 479-4081
www.vidanutrition.com
Garcia is a licensed dietitian-nutritionist and owner of her private practice Vida Nutrition LLC. Prior to Vida, she received a Bachelor of Science degree in Dietetics from Ball State University and worked for seven years as a clinical dietitian. Don't forget to follower her social media platforms Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube for the latest updates and great nutrition ideas.
She is a mom of two children, ages 5 and 7. She shares, "I totally understand how hectic mornings can be when you have to get your kids to school on time and its sometimes hard to fit in making & eating a healthy breakfast. Luckily, if you are in the habit of buying the right things and knowing how to put them together, making a healthy breakfast shouldn't be any harder than making a not-so-healthy breakfast!" Additionally, "something that is often overlooked at kid's breakfast is protein. Protein is a simulator to the brain and helps kids with focus and concentration. All of these meal ideas I shared have some protein added to them to keep them balanced between protein, fat, fiber and fluid (PF3).
Fun with Cereal
Garcia shares that just having plain cereal and milk will often leave kids hungry before lunchtime even comes around. She elaborates that adding some extra protein and fat will help solve that problem. One of her suggestions is a DIY honey nut cheerios. To make simply stir a spoonful of natural peanut butter into a bowl of plain cheerios, drizzle with a little bit of honey and top it off with milk. Another great thing to add to cereal is a sliced up banana. "A quick tip for cereal... look for whole grain as the 1st ingredient, at least 3 grams of fiber per serving, less than 10 gm of sugar per serving," states Garcia.
On the Go
Let's face it as a parent we are pretty much always in a rush in the mornings so often times have to give the kids breakfast on the go. Garcia has three great combinations for quick meals that cover all the food bases for kids but are easy to grab and eat in the car. The first is a cheese stick, banana, and granola bar; the second is a boiled egg and apple with peanut butter (or alternate butter like soy butter for those with nut allergies); and lastly the third is a simple peanut butter (again use alternate for nut allergies) and banana sandwich on whole wheat bread. Be sure to bring a container or bag to store trash, especially banana peels, and this helps to keep all trash together, easily get rid of things and not smell up the car!
Dairy Goodness
Some great dairy breakfast options are yogurt parfaits and smoothies. Garcia shares one of her favorite, and easy, smoothie recipes is as follows: 1 cup fruit, 1 cup spinach ("trust me they won't taste it!"), Greek yogurt, and coconut oil, nuts/seeds, or avocado for fat. For yogurt she shares, "to get the best nutrition in the morning mix it with any fruit and top with your child's favorite nuts or for nut allergies use low sugar granola instead."
Perfect Pancakes
A favorite among Garcia's kids she shares is the PF3 pancakes. While this one is easy to make it does take a little more time so is more of a weekend option in her busy household. Below is the easy recipe to make this yummy breakfast option.
Ingredients:
- 2 eggs
- 1 banana
- Pinch salt
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon & vanilla extract
- 1/3 C dry oatmeal.
Directions:
- Blend all the ingredients together in a blender to make pancake batter.
- Prepare just like regular pancakes in a skillet or in a griddle.
- Top with butter or peanut butter and a touch of light syrup.
Excellent Eggs
Eggs provide as a great source of protein and are pretty easy to whip up. One fun way to mix eggs up Garcia shares is scrambled eggs with cheese and fruit on the side. Simple but nutritious. Eggs in a basket is one her kids love and you simply cut a hole in buttered bread and cook the egg in the middle. A last egg idea she gives is eggs with whole wheat toast and adding butter or avocado on top the toast. Don't forget eggs and chicken sausage make tasty but healthy side items to any of the above ideas!
Related: Top Omelets In South Florida
