As I’ve mentioned before, mornings around here are kind of crazy. I like to give the boys a good breakfast, though, and cereal is just not something I want to contemplate with three boys five and two. So, I try to keep things ready to go quickly in the mornings, especially since Crispin starts chanting “breakfast time breakfast time” as soon as he hits the ground in the morning. He keeps up that chant until he’s in his high chair with a plate in front of him, so you get the idea: time is of the essence. We have a few tried and true make-ahead breakfasts, and I’ll share my waffle recipe below, too.
- Strawberry Oatmeal Muffins – I shared this recipe last week, and Corbie’s already requested it again. They are easy, freeze well, and are yummy.
- Cranberry Nut Protein Bars – It’s easy to keep the ingredients for this on hand, and it’s also easy to modify. I usually sub more pecans for the pumpkin seeds and sub dried cherries for half the cranberries. They also are portable, and since I like to eat in the car on the way to drop the boys at school, that’s a plus.
- Crock Pot Oatmeal – We all love oatmeal in this house. It may be the one thing we all agree on. I love the chewy/crunchy texture of steel-cut oats, but I thought I hated oats cooked overnight in the crock pot until I came across this tip somewhere: cook the oats on the warm setting (if you have one) rather than on low. This keeps them from getting too mushy and losing that great texture. This is really more of a technique, and you can sub in any dried fruits or nuts that you like. My boys go nuts for this.
- Refrigerator oats – This is my favorite breakfast, hands down. It is ridiculously easy to make, so yummy, and there are endless variations you can make. I have to admit I haven’t tried any variations because to me, this berry version is perfect. To be honest, I don’t like sharing it with my boys, and they always request seconds (and thirds).
- 15-Minute Breakfast Pizza – OK, so this is pushing the boundaries of what I would call a healthy breakfast, but I have some serious bacon lovers in my house, and everything in moderation, right? I look at this as more of an occasional treat, but it could be easily made healthier with a whole-wheat crust and maybe some veggies for part of the bacon.
And now, my waffle recipe. I like having a big batch of waffles in my freezer; they’re great for breakfast, but I also make sandwiches with almond butter and bananas, strawberries, etc., and pack them in lunches.
And here’s the part where I confess that I’m a weirdo who bought a vintage 1960s waffle iron from eBay. I wanted something really big so I don’t have to stand at the waffle iron forever, and I didn’t want a Teflon surface. I try to avoid it, and I also think it keeps the waffles from getting sufficiently crispy on the outside. Let me tell you: this thing makes the best waffles. It took a little fiddling, and several ruined breakfasts where I was scraping batter off with a butter knife, until I figured out that modern waffle recipes don’t have enough fat for non-nonstick waffle irons.
So I found the original directions for my waffle iron online (is the Internet not awesome?) and modified the recipe slightly. These are so good. They are higher in fat than most waffles, but I use coconut oil, so it’s a healthy fat, and we skip the butter and just put fruit on top (okay, except for maybe one or two with some butter and maple syrup fresh off the iron).
Did you notice that the original recipe called for the eggs to be separated? Yeah, the directions go something like: beat the egg yolks for one minute at speed 8, add sifted ingredients and beat at speed 4 for two minutes, beat for a minute longer at 8, incorporate shortening and beat at 4, perform a sun salutation facing an eastern window, and so on (okay, not that last one). Anyway, that’s not happening here. I am sure that beating your egg whites to stiff peaks and folding in would make these even better, but I’m quite happy with these as is. The 60s were a different time, were they not?
Homemade Frozen Waffles
3 cups white whole wheat flour
4 tsps baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 tsps sugar
2/3 cup coconut oil
2 cups milk
4 eggs
1. Preheat your waffle iron.
2. Combine all ingredients and whisk until smooth.
3. Pour batter onto waffle iron. I need about 2 cups of batter to fill my iron, but you may need to eyeball it. Cook according to your waffle iron’s settings. Makes approximately 12 large waffles.
