Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, as it fuels you and get you ready for the day ahead. Plus, in our book it’s the yummiest!Don’t be surprised, however, when first weaning your baby if they aren’t that interested to start with. All many babies will want at first is milk and a cuddle. When they are ready to join in however, here are a few fun suggestions that may just bring a smile to their face!

 

Monday Muffins

Easy to make and bound to go down well. Just make sure you don’t eat them yourself before handing them over to your little one! Read on further down for the recipe.

Tuesday Treat

A good helping of Porridge oats gently cooked to a creamy texture served with maple syrup or honey ears if your little one is over 12 months, if not then use some lovely pureed fruit. Use different combinations of foods and eye/mouth shapes to create different expressions..

Wicked Wednesday

Aaaargh, scary! But very good for you! We all know that eggs are great for growing babies and toddlers. Compliment with tasty baked beans and cheesy teeth for an interesting new look. Halved olives on tomatoes work perfectly for eyes. You could even add in some toast slices for hair…

Fruity Thursday

Chop up fruit to make it easy to hold and eat and use the dippy ears for yoghurts and purees. The possibilities are endless!

Frittata Friday

You’ll have trouble not pinching here. Halve a frittata cross-ways to form the eyes (or use 2 if you’re sharing), add olives for pupils, a couple of slices of mushroom for lips and your favourite sauces (or beans) for dippy ears. Pucker up!

Saturday Pancakes!

Yay – it’s the weekend – time for pancakes! Use a couple of small ones for eyes, with banana slices and blueberries, create a raspberry mouth and maple syrup or honey ears if your little one is over 12 months, if not then some lovely fruit purée. Delish!

Sunday Smiles

Bold Egg slices (with a dash of brown sauce) for eyes, a mushroom slice for a nose, a wonky chipolata sausage for a mouth (curve it with the aid of a cocktail stick when you cook it). and baked beany ears. The perfect start to a lazy Sunday...

How to make!

Here are a few general ideas for great breakfast foods with a few pointers on how to make the various bits and bobs.

Fruit

Remove the core and cut apples and pears into halves or quarters, or give them whole with the core removed (choose softer varieties at first and/or heat in the microwave to soften). Cut avocado, melon and pineapple into wedges and offer nectarines and apricots in halves or quarters (with stone removed). Soft berries such a raspberries and strawberries can be given whole, but grapes should be halved and blueberries crushed slightly to soften them. Cut bananas in half lengthways.

Yoghurt

Perfect when used as a dip for fruit on its own with a pre-loaded spoon or by using a spoon as a dipper. Swirl in some fruit purée for a lovely rippled effect.

Pancakes

Easy to hold and go well with 100% fruit spreads such as St Dalphour or Maple Syrup/Honey for babies and toddlers over 12 months. They can also be stored in the fridge or freezer and re-heated later.

Eggy Bread

Beat an egg with a little milk and dip 2 slices of bread into it. In a frying pan, heat a little butter or oil and fry the eggy bread. Cut it into pieces. Perfect for holding

Cheesy Omelette

Mix an egg with 1-2 teaspoons of grated cheese. Heat a little butter in small frying plan and let it cook for a couple of minutes until set on the base, flip it over and let it cook for a further minute. Leave to cool and then slice into easy to hold strips.

Porridge

Mix half a cupful of porridge oats (not jumbo) with half a cup of water and a half a cup of milk. Stir over a low heat until thickened. Sweeten with a little fruit puree and/or a few sultanas.

Carrot Muffins

Easy to make and store and just as delicious whether sweet or savoury muffins are perfect for weaning and also for packed lunches for toddlers. Sift 150g of self-rising flour into a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Melt 60g butter in a small pan and allow to cool a little. Grate 2 medium carrots and zest 2 oranges with the juice of one. Add in 2 large beaten eggs and the melted butter. Pour the mixture into the flour and fold together lightly. Spoon into 12 x large muffin cases and make for 10-15 mins on 190°C/Gas Mark 5 until golden and springy to the touch.
Alternatively replace the carrots and orange zest with 4 very ripe bananas and half a teaspoon of cinnamon or mixed spice.

Frittata

Melt a bit of butter in 1 cavity of a muffin pan, grate in a little cheese, add a few bits of ham, or a few slices of mushroom or a little chopped tomato and add a beaten egg. Cook at 200°C/Gas Mark 6 for 12-15 minutes until puffed and golden.

We hope you like our breakfast ideas and we would love to hear from you if you have any suggestions of your own. Send in your pics here!