Favorite Easy Breakfast Recipes

These healthy and easy breakfast recipes mainly rely on pantry staples to help you use what you might have on hand, but they are also just delicious. Find oatmeal, muffins, bars, and more.

Easy Breakfast Recipes

Whenever we’re juggling the morning rush (even on days when we’re not actually going anywhere!), I find that simple recipes and ideas are really the way to go.

And I don’t think you need to cook breakfast everyday, but if you’re wanting some options, these easy breakfast recipes are my favorites.

TIP: Scroll down to see my fav non-recipe quick breakfast ideas too!

Healthy Breakfast Ideas

Each of these breakfast recipes has whole grains, low added sugars, kid-friendly flavors and super basic ingredients. And if you ever come across an ingredient that you don’t have or don’t recognize for some reason, please comment on the recipe to ask and I’ll help you find an alternative.

Using pantry basics like applesauce, oats, flour, cinnamon, vanilla, maple syrup or honey, and the occasional ripe banana, you can make any of these recipes to share with the kids.

They all can be made ahead if you want to serve some today and some on a later day and almost all have allergy modifications. And I hope these help you stick to your food budget, too.

(You may also like my sunflower seed butter recipe or my ultimate guide to meal trains.)

Applesauce Muffins

These happy little Applesauce Muffins are packed apple-cinnamon flavor, whole grains, and vitamins. They’re a perfect healthy snack or breakfast for kids to make ahead and serve throughout the week.

Favorite Applesauce Muffins

Perfectly spiced and just sweet enough, these Applesauce Muffins are a yummy breakfast or snack. We like these on their own, topped with nut or seed butter, or even with a smear of cream cheese. See what your littles like!

Favorite Applesauce Muffins

Instant Oatmeal, 6 Ways

Make an assortment of flavors of instant oatmeal in minutes and have delicious breakfast options ready and waiting for the whole family.

Easy Instant Oatmeal

You can make a handful of containers ahead of time, then pull them out for easy breakfasts when you need them. Or, make and serve all at once.

Easy Instant Oatmeal

Healthy Pumpkin Bread

This bread has the classic flavor and moist crumb of a traditional Pumpkin Bread, but with half the sugar. It stores well too in the fridge or freezer, and uses a full can of pumpkin!

Healthy Pumpkin Bread (Lower Sugar)

This bread has the classic flavor and moist crumb of a traditional Pumpkin Bread, but with half the sugar. It stores well too! (Heads up: There's a full can of pumpkin puree in this, so it takes a little longer to bake.)

Healthy Pumpkin Bread (Lower Sugar)

Apple Raisin Oatmeal

Made with just a few wholesome ingredients, this Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal cooks up fast and easily—which is exactly what you want in a toddler breakfast! (Though P.S., I love it just as much for myself.)

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal with Raisins

You can double this recipe to make a larger batch to warm up and serve throughout the week.

Apple Cinnamon Oatmeal with Raisins

Applesauce Granola

Learn how to make granola with this super easy Homemade Granola that relies on a lower baking temperature to avoid the risk of burning—and increases the chances of a completely fool-proof and delicious batch!

Easy Homemade Granola (Added Sugar Free)

This healthy granola recipe uses applesauce for sweetness and bakes at a lower temperature to lower the risk of burning around the edges. Plus, find an option to make it without added sugar id desired.

Easy Homemade Granola (Added Sugar Free)

Healthy Cinnamon Muffins

You can make these mini muffins ahead and serve them throughout the week, or even stash half of the batch into the freezer for later! All with basic pantry staples.

Mini Cinnamon Muffins

Made with a base of applesauce and whole grain flour, these easy mini muffins are sweet enough to taste like a treat!

Mini Cinnamon Muffins

Breakfast Bars with Jam

With wholesome ingredients and not a lot of added sugar, you can bake up Healthy Breakfast Bars to serve for breakfasts or snacks throughout the week. And they are SO good!

Healthy Breakfast Bars with Jam

Use Sunbutter to make these nut-free. You can cut these into smaller bars if desired. If you want them a little softer, serve them at room temperature rather than chilled.

Healthy Breakfast Bars with Jam

Vanilla Whole Wheat Waffles

These Mini Whole Wheat Waffles are always a hit for breakfast with my kids and I love that they have extra protein, fiber, and whole grains…and don’t need any hard to find ingredients.

Vanilla Whole Wheat Waffles

These Vanilla Whole Wheat Waffles are always a hit for breakfast with my kids. You can make these mini or full size. (Making them mini takes longer so do what works best for you!)

Vanilla Whole Wheat Waffles

Sugar-Free Banana Muffins

Ripe bananas make these mini muffins taste best. You can even use thawed frozen bananas if that’s what you have!

Sugar-Free Banana Muffins

Be sure to use very ripe bananas (with lots of brown spots!) for the best flavor and natural sweetness. (I updated this recipe December 2020 to ensure the most reliable results. The original version of this recipe is the “Egg-free” option in the Notes if you loved that. In the main recipe, I reduced the oil, added an egg, increased the baking soda a smidge, and reduced the baking time. They’re great!)

Sugar-Free Banana Muffins

Easy Banana Oatmeal Muffins

With just a handful of nutritious ingredients, you can bake up super healthy Banana Oatmeal Muffins to share with the kids. Bonus: These store so well in the fridge for days!

Banana Oatmeal Muffins (SO Good!)

With just a handful of nutritious ingredients, you can bake up super easy Banana Oatmeal Muffins to share with the kids. For the best flavor and sweetness, use bananas with a lot of brown spots. Bonus: These store so well in the fridge for days!

Banana Oatmeal Muffins (SO Good!)

Baked Oatmeal Cups

Make oatmeal a little more fun to eat with this finger food version. It’s a great way to use dried or frozen fruit!

Baked Oatmeal Cups

Transform plain oats into a yummy and easy-to-eat finger food with this baked oatmeal cups recipe. You can double the recipe to make more if desired.

Baked Oatmeal Cups

Easy Overnight Oats

Overnight Oats are a perfect recipe to make ahead. They packs protein, probiotics, vitamin C, fiber, and healthy fats—and all you need to do to make this recipe is stir the ingredients together and let it hang out in the fridge while you sleep!

Easy Overnight Oats with Applesauce

You can easily double (or triple!) the recipe to make more servings. It uses a 1 to 1 ratio of yogurt to applesauce so you can easily scale it up. Mix these up the night before you plan to serve them.

Easy Overnight Oats with Applesauce

Oatmeal with Fruit

Learn how to cook oatmeal with ANY fruit you have on hand, whether fresh, dried, frozen or canned! Plus: It’s easy to make and reheat for easy breakfasts!

How to Make Oatmeal with Fruit

The base recipe makes a large amount so you can use it throughout the week. Feel free to cut it in half to make less, or just make one serving at a time using the instructions in the NOTES section below.

How to Make Oatmeal with Fruit

Quinoa Pudding

With a few ingredients and a straight forward cooking method, this creamy quinoa pudding is a delicious toddler breakfast you can enjoy too!

Easy Quinoa Pudding

This creamy Quinoa Pudding can be served warm like oatmeal or cold like rice pudding. Sweeten to taste, if desired, and top with fruit or stir in a fruit puree to serve.

Easy Quinoa Pudding

Easy Breakfast Ideas (without Recipes)

Add a side of fruit and/or milk to any of these ideas to round out the meal.

1. Cottage cheese and granola
2. Cottage cheese and fruit
3. Cereal with milk
4. Cereal with yogurt
5. Hard-cooked eggs and crackers
6. Hard-cooked eggs and toast
7. Freezer waffles with nut or seed butter
8. Freezer waffles with yogurt for dipping
9. Granola bar and milk
10. Granola bar and smoothie
11. Granola and yogurt
12. Omelet with toast
13. Omelet with sliced cucumbers
14. Oatmeal with fruit
15. Oatmeal with sweet potato
16. Toast with avocado
17. Toast with egg
18. Toast with nut or seed butter
19. Toast with cheese
20. Scrambled eggs and dry cereal
21. Scrambled eggs with tortillas
22. Snack bar and milk
23. Snack bar and yogurt
24. Whole grain muffin and milk
25. Whole grain muffin and fruit

What are your go-to easy breakfast recipes? I’d love to hear so please comment below to share!

This post was first published March 2020.