Most parents have sleepless nights, hectic mornings and laundry that doesn't get folded. Cutting corners where you can means spending more time with family. But, serving quick, nutritious, home-cooked meals will improve your family's health and your budget.
Here, Tori Wesszer, foodie and registered dietitian, shares her tips and meal ideas to make busy mornings less stressful.
Pull out the crockpot before bed to make oatmeal for the morning. You can jazz it up with your family's favourite toppings.
Freeze leftover smoothies in icepop moulds. These are awesome in the summer for kids to eat for breakfast. They think they're eating a dessert rather than a mom-approved nutritious meal.
Go for tried-and-true scrambled eggs with whole grain toast. It's an easy breakfast that takes minutes to make, and if you pair it with a cup of orange juice you get potassium, folate and 100 per cent of the daily quota of vitamin C.
Prepare as much as possible the night before to leave more time for connecting with your family. This will set a happy and healthy tone for the day.
This is one of her favourite breakfast recipes that can be made the night before in just a few minutes:
Creamy Orange Chia Pudding
Serves: 6
Prep time: 5 minutes
Setting time: 4-24 hours
Ingredients:
1 1/4 cups Florida Orange Juice
3 cups vanilla unsweetened almond milk
1 cup white chia seeds
3 tbsp maple syrup
1 tsp grated orange zest
1/4 tsp vanilla
thinly sliced Florida Orange peel for garnish (optional)
Directions:
1. Whisk all ingredients together in a large bowl. Let stand for 10 minutes and whisk again.
2. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or overnight, then dish it up and serve. Garnish it with a fresh orange peel if desired.
Tori Wesszer is a registered dietitian and founder of the Fraiche Nutrition blog.
Find more recipes at www.floridajuice.com/ca.