Breakfasts for fussy eaters — beyond cereal & toast

Breakfast is often a great meal for fussy eaters. They have become hungry overnight (breaking the fast) plus the foods we offer frequently tick boxes.

Picky eaters prefer the expected and the uniform, which is why breakfasts are often a win. Many options are pre-packaged like cereal and so our child knows what to expect as they are the same day-in-day-out.

Last week we looked at ways we could entice a fussy eater to change up their cereal or toast. Making small changes is always advisable so we are not stuck serving the same thing over and over again, and they are not burning patterns that are challenging to shift.

Although toast and cereal are probably the most commonly accepted breakfasts, there are many other foods eaten by picky eaters and that we may be able to introduce.

I’m all for thinking outside of the box!!

Again, my favourite words of caution. Yes, what we serve is important, but there are many other factors that enable a food hesitant child to be able to eat a new food.

Although there are many suggestions below, our approach, the language we use, the dynamics around food and feeding and our child’s general level of comfort, will all have an impact on how readily they accept something.

Let’s look at some breakfast options and how we can present them to our children.

Yoghurt

Many fussy eaters are okay with yoghurt for breakfast. If so, can we make some small changes to encourage them to accept difference — which in time, leads to new?

1. Yoghurt with additions. Are we able to sprinkle something small onto the yoghurt? Mixing is often tricky for fussy eaters, which is why it’s important to practice.

Some sprinkles, some raisins, or some choc chips, for example.

2. Fruit. Even if we have a fruit eater, the more often we serve it, the more often it gets eaten. If our child is a ‘smooth’ only yoghurt kid, pieces of tinned, frozen, or fresh fruit that they put in themselves may be a win.