The optimal breakfast leaves your kid feeling:
1. Full for at least 2-3 hours (so his tummy isn’t rumbling during the math test).
The magic formula that every breakfast – for kids or adults – needs to have is: Healthy Protein + Healthy Fat + Fiber = Clean Sustainable Energy. Some examples include:
Breakfast Panini: toasted sprouted bread (like Ezekiel) + cheese + egg + roasted turkey.
Zucchini Pancakes: zucchini, eggs, whole flour, greek yoghurt for garnish.
Perfect Omelet: eggs, non-starchy vegetables, whole grain toast with grass-fed butter.
2. Focused and Attentive vs Jumpy and Anxious.
Ayurveda, the science of long and healthy life, teaches us that cold and dry foods like cereals and crackers interfere with our attention span, while warm and moist foods help us stay grounded, focused, and calm. You can still enjoy the convenience of the cereal in the hot months of the summer, but for the rest of the year the following recipes – as well as the recipes mentioned above – are more appropriate:
Chickpea Socca with Your Favorite Add-ons.
Fiber-Rich Breakfast Pasta.
Farmer’s Pie with Blueberry Chia Jam.
3. Energized (but not hyperactive).
Modern nutritional science shows that our insulin sensitivity is at its highest in the morning and eating sugary foods like cereals and store-bought pastries paves the way to some serious sugar roller coaster and dangerously unhealthy habits (Sorry to be dramatic!). If you and your little bright scholar have a sweet tooth in the morning try serving some healthy homemade baked goods, probably made earlier in a week and warmed up for breakfast. Some great examples include:
Banana Bread with Zucchini and Chia.
Steel-Cut Oats with Baked Strawberry and Banana.
Warm Apple Oat Squares.
Pumpkin Waffles.
4. Loved. School day is long, and all the vitamin L (for Love) we put into the breakfast will make the time apart a bit sweeter for everyone.
Homemade foods prepared with your loving hands, served with a simple but cute linen napkin, and eaten without rush (plan ahead) will make him or her feel special and cared for.