First breakfast is one of the most important meals of the day. This is how we do it.
In another time of my life, breakfast was often distinctly broken into #1 and #2 – the breakfast that I enjoyed before I went out for a huge morning mission on my bike or skis or trail runners, and the one that I enjoyed after. There was always something special about days where you were going to need a First Breakfast. It means something big and adventurous was in store.
Over the past few months, as little Leo has shifted his schedule ever so slightly, I’ve become reacquainted with First Breakfasts as a different kind of adventure reveals itself; navigating the needs of your toddler, before you have the opportunity to make them breakfast. It’s been a delicious chapter so far.
Leo is generally an excellent sleeper; he still naps long and late in the afternoon, wakes to eat dinner and rage for a few hours, then falls back to sleep and sleeps well all night long. Only rarely is he up before we are, but when he is, it’s often because he’s excited, or hungry. And, anyone who has a small child knows that a hungry child in the early morning hours is pretty much the worst way to start the day. An unfortunate scenario that can be easily avoided by having something delicious on hand.
The first few random times that he woke early I was completely caught off guard. Luckily, there were graham crackers. But over the past few months, as this early-morning-Leo thing has been happening, I’ve started thinking about ways that I can actually give him something intentional and awesome first thing in the morning instead of defaulting to a snack that doesn’t really pack any punch. Plus, in my minds eye, I WANT to be the mom that has something delicious on hand for breakfast every morning. We’ve made banana bread, baked oatmeal, fancy new granola, even different homemade cereals. But the day I realized that “pop tarts” were something I could make and freeze ahead was a day that I got weirdly excited about my kid waking me up at the crack of dawn.
Maybe you aren’t the person who used to break breakfast into stages. Maybe you’re the person who skips this meal all together. Let me be the person that reminds you that breaking your nighttime fast is critical to dialed hormone production and metabolic/mitochondrial function and so much more. Skipping breakfast, in fact skipping any meal to the day, is a sure-fire way to really wreak havoc on your digestive system, microbiome, and subtle energetic pathways as well as your metabolism.
Breakfast is so important, yes, I’m telling you to eat it twice!
…are the best thing to happen to early morning adventures AND toddler mornings. Flaky, crust, sweet apple butter, and a portable shape. Just a few ingredients that come together simply and easily – is there anything better?
It might seem that feeding a “pie” to a toddler first thing in the morning is irresponsible. But, actually, not so – these pies don’t have any added sugar to speak of. Which means that if you’re using whole grain heirloom flour, you’re weaving in a lovely dose of minerals and nutrients as well as protein and fiber, and this fiber is doubled down by the apple butter. So “decadent” and so necessary!
If you don’t have apple butter, you can use apple sauce. Or jam, or nutella, or cinnamon sugar or or or. The sky is the limit!
Making your own pie crust might feel intimidating, but don’t let it push you off of trying this one. Making your own pie crust – especially if you own a food processor – is SO EASY. And rewarding! I like to use a food processor to make mine, which ensures that the butter stays very very cold, which ensures that the dough doesn’t stretch or produce lumpy, frumpy little pies. The processor also makes the pie crust a breeze – so fast, and so foolproof.
I wasn’t exactly sure how my toddler was going to respond to a little hand pie – textures, flavors and not being graham crackers and all that .But he LOVED them, just the way that I love having a little stash of frozen handpies in the freezer for early mornings when I want a little treat too. I just pull one out, pop it in the toaster to refresh it, and commence a simply special day.
Whether you make a batch of these pies for your own adult adventures (like the airport as seen below!) , or you make them for your little people and your sanity, I hope you love them.
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