If your kids scrunch up their noses each time the porridge bowl comes out at the breakfast table, then it might seem like a daily chore to get them excited about an oatie breakfast.
How to make porridge exciting for kids
Even as adults, it’s so easy to get bored of the same breakfast day-after-day, so it’s no wonder kids need a bit of variety to keep them enthusiastic about oats. We’ve collected some of our favourite kid-friendly breakfast recipes to jazz up a normal bowl of porridge. From a smiley face made from raisins, to a cheeky swirl of pure dark chocolate, here’s a whole host of ideas that you can keep in your breakfast cupboard!
Fabulous Fun Fruit
Of course, fruit is the obvious choice for topping a bowl of porridge, especially for children, as it supplies vital nutrients and energy youngsters need to grow. Getting older kids involved in picking and preparing their favourite fruit for their porridge can be a great way to nurture their skills in the kitchen as all great (and fun!) lessons to be had.
Top Tip: Mash up berries such as raspberries and blackberries and swirl into porridge for a multicoloured fruity twist on your plain oats.
Try these:
- Pink Porridge with Mashed Raspberries
- Purple Porridge with Mashed Blackberries
- Green Monster Porridge with grated courgette stirred in (Intrigued? more information on Courgette Porridge here)
Serving porridge with a smile
The morning rush can be a testing time for most families, serving porridge decorated with a smiley face is sure-fire way to lighten the mood around the breakfast table (especially if you’ve prepared some of the ingredients the night before).
Top Tip: Raisins for a smile, coconut shavings for hair and grapes for eyes - the options are endless - why not have a family competition to see who can make their porridge look most like mum or dad!
Sweet, Spice and all things Nice
As the nursery rhyme goes, ‘Sugar, Spice and all things nice, that’s what little girls are made of’ - a little bit of extra sweetness and spice goes a long way when it comes to encouraging kids to eat their porridge. Although, this might seem like cheating a little bit, adding sweet toppings to porridge is certain to get the children wolfing down their porridge. Even reserving the sweet toppings as a once a week treat could be something to look forward to!
Top Tip: A sprinkle of raw brown sugar is a healthier alternative to white sugar.
Try these!
- Peanut Butter - swirled in for a nutty boost of protein
- Nutella
- Brown Sugar
- Honey
- Dark Chocolate
Variety is the spice of life! Adding a sprinkle of cinnamon or nutmeg can be the ideal extra flavour to swirl through your porridge. As an added bonus, spices have real health benefits, with cinnamon boasting anti inflammatory properties as just one example.
Try this! If your kids are keen on carrot cake, why not replicate the flavour with these spices
- Cinnamon
- Cardamon
- Nutmeg
Vegetables
Vegetables are perhaps a less obvious choice of topping, although some vegetables do give off a sweet flavouring, such as sweet potato or pumpkin. Combining these vegetable toppings with a pinch of spice can really add to the number of vegetables your kids are getting each day.
Try this! For a Halloween themed breakfast, why not pre-cook some pumpkin with cinnamon and nutmeg until it is really soft, then puree to be kept in the fridge to be stirred into your kids morning porridge. Go one step further and get the kids to decorate their orange hued bowl with a spooky pumpkin face. Check out our Porridge Buddha Bowl post for more ideas on how to really make a meal out of your mornings
