Quick and Healthy Breakfast Smoothies

This year my family is facing a new reality. Solomon and Celia will be in middle school and high school, and mornings as we've known them will vanish. In Montgomery County, Maryland, where we live, as in many other school districts, middle and high school kids begin their day much earlier than their elementary schoolmates. The irony is that the earlier school schedule kicks in just as the natural body clock of these formerly early risers starts to shift to a later schedule.

One big worry about the loss of morning hours is finding time for a healthy breakfast. School busses screech up to our corner before 7:00, which leaves little time for a leisurely bowl of cereal over the sports pages or comics. When thinking about filling breakfasts for our active kids, I look for foods with protein and whole grains to keep them full until lunch, and without too much sugar or artificial colors, which can slow them down.  We don't rule out traditional lunch and dinner foods, such as cold pizza or quesadillas, or even healthy varieties of protein bars and muffins in a pinch.

Below are some breakfast ideas that can fuel our growing (and groggy) children during those hectic mornings on the go: 

• A sandwich of rice cakes (or a whole wheat bagel or tortilla) with a thick layer of peanut butter, and all-fruit jelly or sliced bananas in the middle. 
• A bagel with cream cheese and smoked salmon, or a whole grain English muffin with melted Cheddar cheese (add a slice of tomato or avocado for the more sophisticated teenage palate.) 
• Hard-boiled eggs alone, or diced and mixed with cubed and buttered toast or cheese. 
• Egg sandwiches, such as these On the Go Egg Muffin Sandwiches.  
• Healthy homemade muffins, such as these Blueberry Raspberry Oatmeal Muffins. (Muffins can be baked in advance and stored in the freezer to keep them tasting fresh.) 
• Yogurt with dry cereal or granola, and/or fruit, or even instant oatmeal mixed in.    
• Bags of homemade trail mix with nuts, raisins (or other dried fruit), sunflower seeds, whole grain cereal or popcorn, and even semi-sweet chocolate chips. 
• Breakfast smoothies: Store the unblended smoothie (made with yogurt, fresh or frozen fruit, and juice, or peanut butter, banana, milk and chocolate syrup) in the refrigerator overnight, and blend it in the morning. 
• Once you know your child is fortified with a nutritious breakfast, you can breathe a sigh of relief as the school bus pulls away, knowing that though your nest is emptier, your child's stomach is fuller; just do yourself a favor and don't look at their room! 

What are your kids' favorite quick and healthy breakfasts for busy school days?