You never know what will happen once your day starts, and if you happen to be abducted by aliens, you’ll be happy that you had your breakfast at least! Even if you don’t have an extra-terrestrial encounter, you can use the extra time to do what you love… like sew! That’s why I love easy batch cooked breakfasts.

Breakfast can be complicated

I’m a breakfast enthusiast, but I don’t want to be in a time crunch in the morning and I do not want to be figuring breakfast out at 4am.  Breakfast is a logistical feat in my home.

First, my husband leaves for work very early and he always brings his breakfast to eat during his break at work. As for myself, I always eat breakfast before leaving home. I do not want to get up any earlier than necessary to make breakfast happen.

Meanwhile my toddler eats her breakfast with different family members in different locations on different days, depending who she spends the day with.  Finally, whoever is with her sometimes needs breakfast, too.

Breakfast can be expensive

If you stop for breakfast every morning, and it works for you, that’s great! Enjoy it! However, if you are looking for a way to save money or not have an extra errand in the morning, batch cooked breakfasts could be for you.

That being said, even if you are one person at home, this method can work for you.  I have done it in the past. It’s true that you deserve a delicious breakfast on easy mode, too! Many of these recipes even freeze well!

MAke time for what you love

If you are cooking breakfast everyday, you have to prepare, cook, serve or pack and clean up everyday. By using the make-ahead recipes below, I have streamlined the whole process.

I only cook once and make the bulk of my mess that one time. Everything is ready to be served or packed to go. Furthermore, minimal dishes are used on a daily basis and can usually go in the dishwasher. Most importantly, I do not have to waste mental energy on figuring out what on Earth I am going to make. I have therefore gained more time to sew!

Whatever you like to do, it’s time to spend less time on drudgery and enjoy your leisure time more.

Simplify mornings with batch cooked breakfasts

Above you read some of the reasons I batch cook breakfasts that keep well in the fridge or freezer and can easily be reheated or eaten at room temperature later. One of these breakfasts lasts our extended family for 3 to 4 days and then I make another.  The great thing about these is you can half, double or triple them depending on the crowd you are feeding.

Batch cooked breakfast check list

When choosing which recipes you want to batch cook, ask yourself if the recipe meets these criteria. 

• Keeps well in fridge or freezer
• The fridge or freezer has room to store this recipe for a few days
• Can be packed the night before
• Travels well for packed lunches
• Easy to reheat and/or can be eaten at room temperature
• There is a means to reheat the breakfast where it will be eaten, if necessary
• Scalable for family size from 1 to whatever number of people are going to enjoy it!
• Variety: different from last week’s breakfast
• Something you or your family actually like to eat
• Meets you or your family’s dietary needs
• Is there any other criteria you need to consider?

Taking a minute to think about this will help ensure that your hard work doesn’t go to waste.

A few examples of bad ideas for batch cooked breakfasts

You make a huge dish of something you never had before

This is a bad idea because maybe you just won’t like it and you will have wasted a lot of time, effort and ingredients. If you want to try something new, make a smaller batch on the weekend or for a “breakfast for dinner” night to try it out before you make a big batch.

Something super difficult to store, pack or reheat

Maybe eggs, sunny-side-up, are not the best thing to batch cook for breakfast.

Not everyone will eat THIS Batch Cooked Breakfast

You are trying to minimize your work load. I avoid breakfasts that not everyone will like when possible because even one different breakfast makes more dishes to wash later. At the very least, I make sure anyone who needs to be cooked for can and will eat the breakfast.

Ideas, inspiration, recipes For Batch COoked Breakfasts

Here are some of the batch cooked breakfasts that are on heavy rotation in our home. Your home is different from mine, so if these don’t work for you, there is a whole internet out there for you! Many of these recipes have no or low amounts of added sugar, but you can add sugar to suit your taste!

Muffins

Muffins are great for batch breakfasts. There is a huge variety of recipes out there for every dietary need. Moreover, you can freeze them, transport them, reheat them or eat them at room temperature. We like to combine ours with other easy elements you can find in the list below to make the breakfast more filling.

Click here for my Beet and Blackberry Muffins recipe adapted from The Lean Green Bean.

Pancake cake

Have you made sheet-pan pancakes? This is a little bit like that, but instead, we make them a little thicker in a glass baking dish.

Click here for Banana Pancake Cake recipe adapted from these recipes from Once Upon a Chef and The Seasoned Mom.

Strata

Strata is a delicious way to use any leftover bread or buns or day old bread from the discount shelf at the grocery store. You can change the fillings depending on what you have!

Click here for my Strata recipe adapted from A Spicy Perspective.

Baked oatmeal

There are a zillion baked oatmeal recipes online with textures varying from muffin-like to porridge-like.  The one I have here is vegan and tends more towards to a porridge consistency, but if you add an egg, it will muffin-up!

Click here for my vegan Applesauce Baked Oatmeal recipe adapted from Two Peas & Their Pod.

Easy ways to complete batch cooked breakfasts

You may need to add things to your breakfast to make it more complete for your family.  Here are some ideas of things you can add into the recipe while you make it or add on the side:

• Nuts and seeds
• Nut or seed butters
• Yogurt
• Hard boiled eggs
• Cottage cheese
• Tofu
• Paneer
• Cheeses
• Meat
• Fruit
• Applesauce
• Breads, English muffins, bagels
• Roasted potatoes

The recipes

Beet and BLackberry Muffins

Makes 2 dozen

Ingredients

• 2 cups of cooked chopped beets
• 2 eggs
• ½ cup of sugar (add more for a sweet muffin. These are not very sweet.)
• ½ cup of milk
• 2/3 cup of canola oil
• 2 tsp vanilla
• 1 cup white flour
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 cups of quick oats
• 1/3 cup of hemp hearts
• 2 tsp cinnamon
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 ½ cups of fresh blackberries.

Method

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Line or grease muffin tins.
3. Combine all wet ingredients in a food processor and mix until smooth. 
4. Combine all dry ingredients in a large bowl. Toss the berries in the dry ingredients to coat.
5. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients with a wooden spoon until just incorporated.
6. Gently scoop batter into muffin tins.
7. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes.

 

Banana Pancake Cake

Makes 1 10”x15” glass baking dish. You can use a 9”x13” but they will turn out thicker and require a longer cooking time.

Ingredients

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 5 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 ripe bananas
• 4 eggs
• 2 ¼ cups of milk
• ½ teaspoon of vanilla
• 3 tablespoons of melted butter

Method

1. Preheat oven to
2. Grease a 10”x15” glass baking dish.
3. Whisk together dry ingredients in large bowl.
4. Mash banana and mix with wet ingredients.
5. Mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until just combined.
6. Pour into glass baking dish and bake for 15 minutes.
7. Cut into as many servings as you want!

Strata

Makes one 9”x13” baking dish.

Ingredients

• 4 cups of cubed day old bread (I used half of a loaf of homemade sandwich bread)
• 1 red pepper
• 1 green pepper
• 1 small onion
• 1 stalk of celery
• 8 large eggs
• 2 cups of milk
• 1 cup of shredded cheese (your choice)
• Salt and pepper to taste.
• Any extra fillings you want!

Method

1. Grease the 9×13 baking dish.
2. Rip the bread and put into the bottom of the dish.
3. Sautée the veggies and salt and pepper to taste.
4. Meanwhile, mix the eggs and milk. Add salt and pepper to taste.
5. When the veggies are finished put them on top of the bread with any extras you want.
6. Sprinkle the veggies with cheese.
7. Poor the egg mixture over the top.
8. Cover and let sit for 1 hour to overnight.
9. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
10. Bake for 60 minutes or until done.
    
    

Applesauce Baked Oatmeal

Makes one 9”x13” baking dish.

Ingredients

• 4 cups of quick oats
• 1/3 cup of hemp hearts
• 3 tsp ground cinnamon
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 3 cups oat milk
• 1 cup unsweetened applesauce
• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 2 flax egg
• As much vanilla as you want
• Add in any toppings you want

Method

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Grease 9”x13” baking dish.
3. Mix all the ingredients together in a bolw.
4. Pour into baking dish.
5. Bake for 35 minutes or until done.