Works-For-Me-Wednesday: A Breakfast Menu “Routine”

Planning a menu can sometimes feel like drudgery. I find that I go through menu-planning phases – from the Mountaintop of Menu-Inspiration to the Valley of Absolutely NO CLUE! What works best for me is a sort of menu “routine.”

My weekly breakfast routine looks something like this:
– Saturday = pancake breakfast (cooked by my loving husband EVERY SINGLE Saturday)
– 3 hot cereal breakfasts
– 1 egg breakfast
– 1 muffin/toast breakfast
– 1 granola/yogurt breakfast

Within this outline, the details can vary, but it gives me a GREAT starting point.

The hot cereal breakfasts consist of some type of hot cereal (Red River, Cream of Wheat, oatmeal) with various toppings. Sometimes I’ll do a raisins and spice version; other times it’ll be a more exotic coconut and dried pineapple, etc. We usually have a glass of milk and a fruit alongside our cereal. It all depends on what is in my pantry and what’s on sale that week!

The egg breakfast has limitless possibilities. A personal favorite is a fried egg on English muffins with tomato slices and a glass of juice. The kids drink milk. I sometimes add a slice of cheese for the family if they’ll need an extra boost that morning. Or, scrambled eggs with all sorts of chopped veggies and basic buttered toast with a glass of juice. Or simply a fried egg with a muffin and a smoothie. Or biscuits and eggs and a fruit salad. Like I said, limitless possibilities.

The muffin/toast breakfast is a quick one. The muffins are prepared ahead of time so the morning of that breakfast, we can just grab one and go. I like to pair this breakfast with a smoothie or a fruit salad and a glass of milk. Very quick and simple is the key for this one. It usually ends up being our Sunday morning breakfast because we have to be out of the house much earlier than usual on Sundays.

The granola/yogurt breakfast is just that – homemade granola and yogurt with fruit. Another quick and simple breakfast.

So with my menu “routine” already in place, planning the breakfasts for each week are a little easier, even when I’m feeling uninspired. The routine is half the battle!

Stay tuned next week for my weekly lunch routine!

Works-For-Me-Wednesday is hosted by Kristen at We Are That Family.