If you have a big eater like me, making a breakfast that will fill your child up in the morning can be a real challenge. Although my little guy looks like a lightweight, he has been known to put away three to four bowls of cereal in the morning. This makes breakfast one of those meals that can really add up in our grocery budget.
Since his school year started, I am getting up early with him and have been making affordable breakfasts a priority in our house. Eggs, bread, oatmeal, and milk are inexpensive ingredients that I am trying to work into our morning meals.
One thing that I know my children really love is milkshakes. When I happened upon this recipe for banana cream pie smoothies, I knew that this would be a thrifty solution to get my kids fueled in the morning… in a really fun way.
When I got home from the grocery store, I sliced bananas and put them in this little dish in our freezer for our smoothies in the morning. I can get a whole bag of bananas at Aldi for $.99. I also bought the large tubs of low fat vanilla yogurt to add to the smoothie mixture. This is also an affordable steal compared to those small containers of yogurt. One tub equals approximately four batches of smoothies (eight smoothies in all).
To round out the meal, I make one or two slices of whole grain toast with a little smear of peanut butter on it. The kids love the combination and feel like they are getting a special treat in the mornings. I love to have one of these myself because they fill me up in the morning and have been a nice addition to my “only coffee” routine.
Just as one more fun idea to add to your morning routine, my son gets to choose his favorite breakfast on Fridays. They have a, “Fun Friday” at school where they get to wear their school t-shirt instead of a uniform. To go along with that theme, I make a “Fun Friday Breakfast.” He gets to choose what the breakfast will be that morning and all other days, I get to choose based on our time constraints. Can you guess what he chose this week?
I highly recommend adding this fun and thrifty smoothie to your morning routine!
Banana Cream Pie Smoothie (Courtesy of Cooking Light Magazine, makes 2 servings or 4 smaller servings)
1 cup sliced ripe banana (about 1 large)
1 cup vanilla low-fat yogurt
1/2 cup 1% low-fat milk
2 tablespoons whole wheat graham cracker crumbs (about 1/2 cookie sheet- we have been omitting this ingredient)
1 tablespoon nonfat dry milk
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 ice cubes (about 1/4 cup)
Graham cracker crumbs (optional)
Arrange banana slices in a single layer on a baking sheet, and freeze until firm (about 1 hour). Place frozen banana and remaining ingredients in a blender. Process until smooth. Sprinkle with graham cracker crumbs. Serve immediately.
Nutritional Information
Calories: 216 (12% from fat)
Fat: 2.8g (sat 1.5g,mono 0.8g,poly 0.3g)
Protein: 9.8g
Carbohydrate: 39.3g
Fiber: 1.9g
Cholesterol: 9mg
Iron: 0.4mg
Sodium: 145mg
Calcium: 315mg
Although it probably doesn't meet your budgetary requirements, we buy the Whole Foods brand 365 Whey Protein Powder. I have been making my kids a similar smoothie with frozen banana, a little protein powder, milk and yogurt (plus a little chocolate powder) for years. My kids are super-skinny and always complained of hunger 45 minutes after they ate cereal (all carbs) for breakfast. This whey powder has 16g protein per scoop, with no added sugar!
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I love smoothies! They are a great way to get extra fruit and even veggies in the kids too.
We do "green smoothies" a lot. We put baby spinach in with a lot of fruit and a little water or juice. The fruit taste dominates and it makes them a fun bright green. Well unless you use red fruits… then they are brown. LOL
I've been getting fresh peaches from the farmers market lately and making tons of peach/banana/spinach smoothies.
Oh and leftover smoothies make great popcicles!
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Do the bananas get brown in the freezer? Or does it even matter since you are putting them in a smoothie?
I have been making strawberry/banana, but this smoothie looks like a nice change.
Thanks for sharing!
~Liz
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CE & Mama K- Thank you so much for sharing your smoothie ideas- I love those! I may have to try the protein powder especially after I workout. Thanks for the ideas!!
Liz- It really depends on how ripe your bananas are in when they go in the freezer. I let them get ripe, but not brown. The riper they are, the sweeter the smoothie though
I hope you guys like this one!!
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FANTASTIC idea! My oldest is NOT a breakfast eater, so it's a challenge to get something in her tummy before I drop her off at school. She would love something like this though. Yummy!
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Great idea. Sounds tasty and easy. I'll have to run it past my girls.
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I like a pinch of cinneman in mine
Pam, South Bend
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Pam- That sounds like a great addition!! YUM!
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Looks great!
Dian
http://www.GroceryShopForFREE.com
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Amy, you have come through again!!
Thanks! I can't wait till breakfast – I think I'm going to put the pb in the blender and add a smidge of choc. syrup, too – for me!!! 
I have 2 overripe bananas on the counter and wanted to make something yummy….enter MOMADVICE!
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This looks delish, we love smoothies!
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MMMM….Sounds delicious! Love your smoothie glasses too! Too cute!!
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Amy M.- I found those over at the Dollar Store and got four of them for our family. I love those little glasses!
Thanks, everyone, for all of the smoothie ideas. I think I am going to try some of your ideas too!!
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I wanted to let you know that I made your recipe for breakfast this morning. When I told my kids they were having milkshakes this morning, they both thought it was some kind of trick. After they tried them, they loved them! My son asked where his mom went!
Thanks for the great ideas.
Blessings,
Jodi
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Jodi- Oh, that is so good to hear! I am glad they were a hit and that the kids thought they were getting a fun treat. You are definitely the coolest mom on the block now
Love it!
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Could you use plain yogurt instead, and sweeten it up with something? I can't get vanilla where I live, and I wonder if honey, or another sweetener would work?
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Tracy- I definitely think you could do this with plain yogurt. Try adding an extra teaspoon of vanilla and a tablespoon of honey to the mixture. Let me know how it turns out!
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Delicious!! I threw in some flax seed and caramel syrup and I actually had the graham cracker crumbs! My kids (including the 13 y/o!) could not get enough!! Thanks!
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yum! I just made this to get rid of an expiring banana. Didn't have vanilla yogurt but Boston Cream Pie worked in a pinch!!
I definitely suggest adding in the graham crackers…gives it the pie crust feel!
Oh, and if this was supposed to make 2 servings, I'm a piggie. I drank it all in one glass!
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