Ideas for a Quick and Healthy Breakfast for Children

by NDFAuthors

  • Oct 15, 2020

Since family mornings are usually filled with the rush of preparing for school and work, it sometimes happens that parents do not have enough time to prepare a nutritionally rich breakfast for their children, instead, in a hurry, they opt for some other options, which might not be as healthy. That is why we’re sharing with you recipes for a quick and healthy breakfast for children, developed by our expert associates within  our “ABC of Better Me” program.

Breakfast is the most important meal because a good breakfast provides nutritional ingredients, minerals, calcium and iron, vitamins and fibers to a developing child’s organism. A healthy and balanced breakfast provides energy for the beginning of the day, improves concentration and memory, and prevents snacking between meals. A regular and good breakfast has long-term effects on preventing obesity, high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes.

Skipping breakfast or replacing it with candy and greasy snacks will result in other meals during the day being very high-calorie and imbalanced.

If you don’t have inspiration for new recipes, our  ideas for a quick and healthy breakfast for children developed by our expert associates within the “ABC of Better Me” program might help you. You can learn more about this program, whose aim is to help develop healthy habits in children, here.

It sometimes happens that parents do not have enough time to prepare a nutritionally rich breakfast for their children, instead, in a rush, they opt for some other options, which might not be as healthy.

Integral tart with nettle, chard or spinach and cheese

Ingredients:

  • 1 large cup of whole wheat flour and 1 more flat spoon for the filling
  • 1/2 teaspoon of sea salt and a little more for the filling
  • 3 tablespoons of olive oil for the dough and 1 more dough for the filling
  • 2-3 chard ties
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic
  • 250 g of young cheese
  • 1/2 of turmeric

Preparation:

Mix flour with half a teaspoon of fine sea salt and 3 tablespoons of oil. Add around 1/3 of a cup of cold water, mix the batter and shape it into a ball. Cover the dough with a wet cloth, and leave it to rest at room temperature for at least 30 minutes (preferably longer). Heat your oven to  200  degrees Celsius. Thinly roll out the dough with a rolling pin on a work surface sprinkled with a little flour. Transfer it to a lightly-oiled round shallow tart mold (diameter about 20 cm). Raise the edges of the dough with your fingers. Stab the dough with a fork in several places and bake it in a pre-heated oven for  about 10-15 minutes. During that time prepare the filling: wash nettle, which is a better option, or chard, remove the fat stems, and drop it in a pot with boiling water and cook it for about 3 minutes. Cool the chard and cut it finely. Whisk with a mixer a full flattened spoon of wholemeal with a little bit of water so you get mass similar to whipped sour cream. Combine this mixture with a tablespoon of olive oil, chopped cheese, chard and minced garlic, and spread it all over a pre-baked crust. Bake in the oven for  another 15  minutes.

If you have run out of inspiration for new recipes, you will find our ideas for a quick and healthy breakfast for children developed by our experts-associates within the "ABCs of Better Me" program.   

If you have run out of inspiration for new recipes, you will find our ideas for a quick and healthy breakfast for children developed by our experts-associates within the “ABC of Better Me” program.

Oatmeal porridge with fruit

Oats are rich in antioxidants such as vitamin E, zinc and selenium. However, oatmeal is best known for its rich fiber content, which is why it has a lower  “glycemic index“, which is important for regulating blood sugar levels. Instead of ready-made store-bought oatmeal and wonderful “cereals for children” with added aromas, hydrogenated vegetable fat (pure trans fat) and, of course, sugar,  we advise you to buy oatmeal. You can cook them in water or milk, drain and mix them with hazelnuts, walnuts, chopped bananas, apples, strawberries, blackberries or dried fruit and your oatmeal is done!

You can also grind oatmeal and use it as flour for making pancakes.

Ingredients:

  • 50 g of oatmeal
  • 20 g of almonds or walnuts or hazelnuts
  • 1 banana
  • 30 g cranberries
  • 30 g of red grapes
  • 1 teaspoon of honey
  • 1 kiwi

Preparation:

Leave a glass of water to a boil and pour it over the oatmeal. Add almonds or walnuts or some dried fruit. Let stand for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, slice the banana and kiwi and prepare the  decoration of the porridge. Kids will enjoy this healthy and quick breakfast!

In addition to breakfast, you can also give your children seasonal vegetables: spring onions, radishes, lettuce, cucumber, tomato, paprika.

Hummus – chickpea spread  

Hummus is a nutritious spread, which goes perfectly over bread like vegetable pate. It is full of protein, minerals and vitamins. Hummus is one of  the most delicious ways  to include cooked chickpeas on the regular menu.

Put the chickpeas in the water for at least 12 hours, then wash and drain them. Transfer them to a pot, pour the water over and cook covered for about 40 minutes, or 20 minutes in a pressure cooker.

Ingredients:

  • 3 cups of chickpeas, pre-cooked according to the basic recipe
  • 4-5 tablespoons tahini (sesame butter)
  • 2-3 cloves of garlic
  • 2-3 tablespoons of lemon juice
  • 2-3 teaspoons of ground cumin
  • salt to taste
  • pepper, cayenne pepper, chili – to taste

Preparation:

Grind chickpeas, tahini, garlic, lemon, cumin and a little salt or tamarind thoroughly and add some water to make a homogeneous mixture. The mixture should not be too thick to be spread on bread. Add pepper, a little ground pepper or chili, if you wish, for adults who like hot. Also, a tablespoon of olive oil can be added too.

With breakfast, you can also give your children  seasonal  vegetables: spring onions, radishes, lettuce, cucumber, tomato, or pepper.

Fruit added to breakfast instead of sweets

Banana, in addition to reducing the desire for sweets, is the best source of starch, a healthy carbohydrate that makes us full for a long time. Adding a ripe chopped banana to cereals or oatmeal will give it a  natural  sweetness  and replace sugar.

Kiwi can be used to  decorate  a  cheese  sandwich  and enrich it with vitamin C, potassium and copper, and is also good for digestion due to its fibers. It should be mandatory in  frappes  and  fruit  salads  with strawberries, bananas, oranges and other fruits.

Blueberries,  strawberries  and  raspberries, fresh in season or frozen out of season, are the perfect addition to cereals and yogurt or mixed in frappe, for a quick breakfast. This fruit contains anthocyanins in its colors, ingredients that have antioxidant properties, vitamins and fibers.

One of the main conditions for the proper development of every child is a balanced and adequate diet. That is why, through the “ABCs of Better Me” program, we are working on the adoption of good eating habits in preschool and at home. You can support our work  on this link.