Healthy Kid-Friendly Breakfast
In the book, She Became, a young girl seeks out the path of learning and dreams about changing the world. After reading this book with my children, I became inspired to create a yummy, nutritious breakfast food/snack recipe.
What’s even better is that it turned out to be vegan, no eggs required. With this healthy breakfast brownie recipe, my kids unknowingly eat vegetables and other things that are good for them.
Now, even my picky kids can have an extra dose of protein. Which is great as they go out and learn how they too can change the world.
Now, I try to cook and eat using healthy recipes. Unfortunately, my efforts are often foiled by my kids picky eating habits (it doesn’t help that some of my children are sensory sensitive and on the autism spectrum). So when I was thinking about how I could make a healthy breakfast food/snack that they would actually eat, the answer came to me…add M&M’s.
Picky Eater Strategy
For that healthy food purist, yes I know that M&M’s are not considered healthy. However, the bright colors and the fact that M&M’s are a candy of choice in my house make it so my kids don’t notice the actual healthy ingredients (pumpkin, black beans, and hemp/flax seed), and something healthy actually makes it into their system.
Why Hemp Seeds
You might ask, “Why use hemp seeds? Aren’t they related to things my children shouldn’t be ingesting…like ever?”
After researching hemp seeds, I discovered that they are a high source of protein, and since one of my children doesn’t like to eat meat or anything that has sufficient protein, I decided to add them in. As for the second question, the answer is yes and no.
Yes, hemp seed is related to cannabis, but it isn’t the same thing and doesn’t really contain any of the harmful chemicals that makes its cousin illegal. I found some hemp seed at my local Walmart, so it is pretty safe. Medical News Today has a great article about the different benefits of using hemp hearts, click here to learn more about it.
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Vegan-Friendly
Because I didn’t use any egg or dairy, this recipe is 100% animal product free (check your brownie mix to make sure there’s no dry milk in the ingredients if that is something you look for), so it is great for vegans.
Another question I get is why I call these breakfast brownies since there is nothing breakfasty about them. There’s a couple of reasons behind this. First off, your brain needs protein to function, and since mornings around my house are kind of crazy, I like to have something the kids can grab and go as they head off to school, especially something that is healthy.
Chocolate for Breakfast
Also, I don’t know about you, but sometimes my ‘breakfast’ is raiding the cookie jar or delving into whatever goodie was leftover from the night before. This is a much healthier option than a three-layered chocolate cake.
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Breakfast Brownies
Healthy, vegan friendly breakfast brownies recipe. Great for picky eaters and busy people on the go.
- 1 box Brownie Mix
- 1 can black beans (drained and rinsed)
- 1 can 15 oz pumpkin
- 1/4 cup hemp seed/ flax seed
- 1 package M&M baking chips
- 1 cup water
Open up the can of black beans, drain and rinse.
Put black beans and water into blender. Blend until smooth.
Combine dry brownie mix, pumpkin, hemp/flax seeds into bowl.
Add black bean mixture to other mixture. Then add M&Ms.
Place mixture into greased glass pan or silicon muffin molds. Bake at 350 degrees for 30-35 minutes, or until cooked through.
Take it out of the oven. Congrats! You’re done!
If you would like to find out more about She Became, click here to read a book review.
