Breakfast is probably the most important meal of the day.   Yet, while kids are tired in the mornings and rushing around to get ready for school, it is sometimes tempting to offer a donut, toaster pastry or other nutritionally devoid treat.   Don’t give in to that temptation.   You want your child to do well during their school day so help them out by starting their day with some nutritious food and breaking the “cereal routine” somedays.   Following are some recipes that can be made ahead or are quick and easy and they will give your children a good start to their day.   All of these recipes are also suitable for diabetics.
Kids love muffins.   So make up a batch of these Oatmeal-Blueberry Muffins.   Oats and blueberries are a couple of our best food products and here they are combined into a tasty muffin.   Add a small carton of yogurt for a quick and tasty breakfast.   If mornings are hectic for you, make the muffins before hand and warm before serving for breakfast.  
OATMEAL-BLUEBERRY MUFFINS
1 cup + 2 tbsps flour
6 ounces uncooked regular oats
1 tbsp baking powder
2 tbsp Equal Sugar-Lite
1/2 tsp salt
1 cup skim milk
1 egg or 1/4 cup egg substitute
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 cup fresh blueberries
Vegetable cooking spray
1 tsp ground cinnamon
In a medium mixing bowl, combine flour, oats, baking powder, Equal and salt.   Make a well in the center of the mixture.
In a small mixing bowl, combine milk, egg and oil.   Add to the well of the dry ingredients.   Stir just until dry ingredients are moistened.   Gently fold the blueberries into the mixture.   Spray 12 muffin cups with vegetable oil spray.   Fill each cup 2/3 full of the batter.   Sprinkle cinnamon over the tops of the batter.   Bake at 425 degrees for 20 to 25 minutes or until lightly browned.
French Toast Strata needs to be refrigerated overnight making it perfect if you like to make breakfast preparations the night before.   Hop up in the morning, remove from the ‘fridge, pop in the oven and breakfast is served by the time you are ready to face the day.   For diabetics, add a couple strips of bacon or a sausage patty or link.   There are apples in the strata so a fruit is incorporated into this meal.
FRENCH TOAST STRATA
1/3 cup granulated sugar substitute (I use Splenda)
1 cup egg substitute
2/3 cup skim milk
3/4 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp maple-flavored extract
8 slices cinnamon-raisin bread
2 cups apples, peeled, cored, sliced thin
1/4 cup low-fat cream cheese
1 tbsp granulated sugar substitute (for this I use Equal Sugar-Lite)
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  Spray an 8-inch square baking pan with non-stick cooking spray.
In a medium mixing bowl, blend together 1/3 cup granulated sugar substitute, egg substitute, milk and extracts.   Tear bread into small pieces and toss into egg mixture.   Add apples.   Coat the bread evenly with mixture and pour into prepared pan.   Cut cream cheese into 8 pieces and place strategically over the top of mixture.   Blend cinnamon with 1 tablespoon of sugar substitute and sprinkle over the strata.   Cover and refrigerate overnight.  
Next morning preheat oven to 350 degrees.   Remove strata from fridge and bake 40-50 minutes or until lightly browned and set.   Serve immediately while hot.
Carbs 20g, Protein 7 g in each 1/8 of strata serving.
Our Strawberry Spread is great spread on toast, bagels, etc.   Your child will feel so special knowing you made this delicious spread for them.
STRAWBERRY SPREAD
1 qt fresh strawberries
3/4 cup cold water, divided
2 tbsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp cinnamon
3 tbsp cornstarch
1 cup Equal Sugar-Lite
Wash, hull, finely coarsely chop berries.   Combine in a small dutch oven or other heavy saucepan, strawberries, 1/2 cup water, lemon juice and cinnamon.   Bring mixture to a boil, stirring well.   Dissolve cornstarch in the remaining cold water and add to the boiling mixture.  Reduce the heat and simmer a couple of minutes or until mixture thickens, stirring occasionally.   Remove from the heat and cool.   Stir in Equal after mixture has cooled down.  
NOTE:  This is good spread on toast or used as you might use jelly or jams.  
1 tbsp = 11 calories, 3 g carbs, trace protein
For a different way to serve ham and eggs and entice your child to eat something they might otherwise not want, try our Mini Ham and Cheese Frittatas.   Your child will love the idea of their own little muffin cup meal.   And you will have served them a good breakfast.
 MINI HAM & CHEESE FRITTATAS
1/4 lb cubed fully cooked lean ham
1 cup shredded fat-free cheddar cheese
1 1/2 cups egg substitute (or 6 eggs)
4 egg whites
3 tbsp minced chives
2 tbsp skim milk
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.   Coat 8 muffins cups with nonstick cooking spray.
Divide ham evenly among the 8 muffin cups.   Top ham with cheese.   In a large mixing bowl beat eggs or egg substitute with egg whites.   Beat in the chives, milk, salt and pepper.   Pour this mixture over the cheese in muffin cups.   Each cup should be about 3/4 full.   Bake 22-25 minutes or until a knife inserted near center comes out clean.   Carefully run a knife around edges to loosen.   Remove from pan and serve warm.
Enjoy!
 

When it comes to feeding my family their lunches, I like to alternate between hot and cold sandwiches. During the hot summertime months, I like to use my toaster oven to make the recipes, but you could certainly use a conventional oven too. You could serve a simple side salad, some fresh veggies, a hot soup or a few fresh fruits. Tuna Burgers1 can tuna, drained1/3 cup reduced-fat mayonnaise1/8 cup onion, finely chopped2 hard boiled eggs, chopped1/2 cup sour creamCheddar Cheese, shredded2 hamburger bunsIn a medium sized bowl, combine all of the above ingredients together, except for the cheddar cheese until well blended. Split the 2 hamburger buns so that you have 4 halves. Spread the tuna mixture evenly on the bun halves and sprinkle the cheddar cheese on top. Place them on a baking sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven or toaster oven until they are bubbly and hot, approximately 8-10 minutes. Spam Sandwiches1 can of Spam, chopped into pieces1/2 lb. American Cheese1 small onion, finely chopped1/4 cup green olives1 small can tomato paste4 hot dog rollsPlace cheese, Spam meat, onions and olives in a blender and blend until ingredients are chopped up and well blended together. Pour in the tomato paste and blend for 30 additional seconds. Spoon mixture into the hot dog rolls and then wrap each roll in aluminum foil. Place foil packs on a baking sheet and bake in a 350 degree oven for 25 minutes, let cool slightly and then serve warm. Devil Ham Sandwiches1 green pepper, finely chopped1 small onion, finely chopped1 lb. sharp cheddar cheese, shredded1/4 cup catsup4 tablespoons sweet pickle relish5 ounce can deviled ham1/2 cup sour cream1/4 cup melted butter4 hamburger rollsIn a medium sized bowl, combine all of the above ingredients together except for the rolls. Place the filling equally into the 4 hamburger rolls and then wrap the rolls in aluminum foil and place on a baking sheet. Bake the foil packs in a preheated 350 degree oven for 12 minutes.

Product DescriptionAre a hurry, too tired to cook just for themselves, or just looking for something like a microwave meal or take frozen food full of fat, salt and preservatives? Busy people want a real oven baked dinner without all the fuss (not to mention leftover!). Solution? Toaster's confidence, which is to bake, roast, toast, and broil small portions of food, efficiently and economically. This amazing spectacle of a cookbook. . . More>>
Pop It in the Toaster Oven: From Entrees to Desserts, More Than 250 Delectable, Healthy, and Convenient Recipes

Feeling under-the-weather? Too exhausted to cook something good? Still wanting tasty food? There’s a quick solution and its two feet away from a possible frying-related accident: the oven. Thanks to oven recipes, steaming, hot food is now often readily available, and can be reused for an amount of times. Oven recipes have been around for as long as the oven itself. In 3200 B. C. , settlers among the Indus Valley Civilization were already reported to have had ovens in their mud and brick houses. However, the Greeks initially utilized the oven for bread-making, so you could say that the first oven recipe was one for bread, As a result, over seventy different kinds of bread had been developed in Ancient Greece alone. After the Greeks progressed onto making various cakes and pastries, the oven became popular around the world. Nowadays, no kitchen is complete without a standard cardboard box-sized oven, and no food results from it without an oven recipe. Oven recipes have no clear-cut definition, but naturally they require the usage of an oven. It is often assumed that oven recipes do not involve any other technology used for cooking, but most of the time, that is not the case. One may fry, grill, boil or use any other method of cooking for the ingredients, as long as using an oven is the last step before achieving the final, tasty product. Ovens are used for roasting and heating food; therefore, most oven recipes cover either pastries (most of which are baked) or meat products, such as casseroles. The highlight of oven recipes is the wide range of food one can produce from just one kind of technology. A common misconception for oven recipes is that they are all difficult to make, as well as time-consuming. When thinking of them, people usually think of cakes, pies, roast beef, and casseroles. However, most do not realize that a lot of them are simple. In fact, some oven recipes include recipes for toast, brownies and even covers food made from leftovers, such as fish and chips. A roast beef may be expensive to cook, but simple toast for breakfast, thanks to the toaster oven, costs less than a dollar to make. Another advantage to oven recipes is the reusability factor. As mentioned earlier, leftovers are common ingredients for the easiest recipes. Extra beef or pork can just be thrown into a casserole, while other foods can simply be reheated in a microwave oven. If a dish can’t be consumed entirely, leaving it in an un-operated oven will keep it safe from ants, and it won’t rot quickly. Oven recipes are easy ways to save money, especially when on a tight budget. One of the few disadvantages is that, with leftovers, the quality of food may not be as good as before. Also, ovens require a lot of grease, vegetable oil or butter to operate, and most results of oven recipes are quite oily. However, oven recipes cover their fair share of healthy food. You just have to find the right recipe!