Most important meal of the day

these make-ahead breakfast recipes are perfect for busy mornings
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16 Make-Ahead Breakfast Recipes For Busy School Mornings

Because frozen waffles are getting boring.

by Samantha Darby
Updated: 
Originally Published: 

There are few things that make me feel more like a mom than sending my kids off to school with a hearty, filling breakfast in their bellies. But seriously — time is a constraint. Some days we’re lucky to eat a frozen waffle as we run out the door or a cold bowl of cereal, but I’m always looking for new make-ahead breakfast recipes to have on hand for those busy school mornings.

Meal prep breakfast ideas can feel a little overwhelming, but these make-ahead breakfast recipes really aren’t too difficult. And what’s even better — they are all major crowd pleasers, so you don’t have to worry about trying to prep a bunch of meals that your kid’s going to turn their nose up at. These make-ahead breakfast recipes include sweet and savory options, and all of them are pretty packed with fiber and protein to keep you and your kids nice and full and satisfied all morning long.

You can prep a lot of these make-ahead breakfast recipes on a Sunday and serve them throughout the week with some simple reheating, or prep the night before if you don’t have any leftovers so there’s a whole new breakfast each day. But no matter what, enjoy something a little different and extra tasty with these make-ahead breakfast ideas.

1Breakfast Enchiladas

Tired: breakfast burritos

Wired: breakfast enchiladas

I’m obsessed with this breakfast enchiladas recipe featured on Yummly. With tons of veggies and goodies inside — including black and pinto beans, eggs, and sliced sausage links — you can fully wrap these up and prep them the night before and then just heat them in the oven in the morning. Eat on the leftovers all week long for a great, hearty breakfast.

2Fruit & Yogurt Parfaits

A parfait is one of the easiest breakfast meals anyway, but these meal-prep fruit and yogurt parfaits featured on Yummly are so great. It’s the perfect way to go ahead and layer your fruits and yogurt into jars for the week ahead, and then just keep the granola in a separate container. Kids and adults alike can just grab the jar out of the fridge and have a breakfast fully ready to go.

3Breakfast Sandwiches

Breakfast sandwiches are always a hit, and these freezer-friendly breakfast sandwiches from Damn Delicious are so great for a make-ahead breakfast. You can play around with the ingredients a bit, but these are a cinch to pull together on the weekend and only take a couple of minutes to warm up each morning.

4Banana Baked Oatmeal Cups

I love a good baked oatmeal recipe, and these banana baked oatmeal cups from Gimme Some Oven are so delicious. Like a teeny tiny loaf of banana bread, all crunchy and bread pudding-esque with lots of texture. These are full of fiber and protein, too, so they’ll keep you and your kids full all morning long.

5Breakfast Taco Scramble

There seem to be a plethora of Mexican-inspired breakfast meals, and here’s another great one! These breakfast taco scrambles featured on Yummly are so filling and delicious, featuring potatoes, ground turkey, eggs, and plenty of cheese and seasonings. Again, you can totally customize these, and make plenty of them on the weekend to last all week.

6Blueberry Muffins

Nothing beats a warm blueberry muffin. Try whipping up a big batch of these blueberry muffins featured on Yummly and just warm them up in the morning and add butter (or eat cold as you run out the door, it all counts).

7Tater Tot Breakfast Casserole

Who doesn’t love tater tots? Now you can pop them into this overnight tater tot breakfast casserole from Mel’s Kitchen Cafe. The recipe is full of the usual suspects — cheese, sausage, and eggs — but you can substitute and customize your tater tot casserole to fit your family’s needs. Just throw it in the oven in the morning and you’re good to go.

8Peaches & Cream Breakfast Bake

When you really just want pie for breakfast, there’s this peaches and cream breakfast bake from Half-Baked Harvest. It’s so good straight out of the oven (and it’s made with Bisquick, so it’s very fast to whip up), but it’s also amazing cold, so it really is just the quickest breakfast to have on hand.

9Gingerbread Oatmeal Cups

OK, we need another oatmeal cup on this list, and this recipe for gingerbread oatmeal cups featured on Yummly is one of the best. With only a handful of ingredients, this recipe is the perfect warm, spicy, and chewy make-ahead breakfast.

10Peanut Butter Chunky Monkey Overnight Oats

Overnight oats are insanely popular, but these peanut butter chunky monkey overnight oats featured on Yummly are basically dessert in a jar. Coconut, banana, mini chocolate chips, and peanut butter? So delicious, and a great way to get in a lot of fiber and protein in the morning.

11Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

You’ve heard of cinnamon rolls, but have you heard of her bestie pumpkin cinnamon rolls? I’m so excited to try this recipe from Averie Cooks — you can prep everything and even let the dough rise the night before and then just throw them in the oven in the morning for the perfect, decadent, fall breakfast.

12Strawberry Breakfast Pastries

This is an Instagram-worthy make-ahead breakfast, and I can’t wait to try them. With just five ingredients, these strawberry breakfast pastries can be fully made in advance and then just reheated when you’re ready to eat. Experiment with other fruits if you want, but nothing beats the classic strawberry.

13No-Bake Breakfast Bars

If mornings are crazy hectic, whip up these no-bake breakfast bars featured on Yummly and just grab and go out the door. There are just nine ingredients, yet these are full of fiber and protein for a nice, hearty, quick breakfast.

14Strawberry Oatmeal Smoothie

Strawberries are taking center stage again with this incredible strawberry oatmeal breakfast smoothie featured on Yummly. You can either whip it all together the night before and keep in the fridge/freezer, or just go ahead and fill your blender with the ingredients and keep in the fridge and then just hit blend in the morning. It’s so filling!

15Bacon, Egg, & Cheese Muffins

I love a one-handed breakfast like these bacon, egg, and cheese muffins featured on Yummly. You can make a ton in a short amount of time, and they’ll be a major crowd pleaser for both kids and adults.

16Dessert Oatmeal

OK, one more shout-out for baked oatmeal. This peanut butter brownie baked oatmeal from Budget Bytes is basically a breakfast dessert. It’s so good and not overly sweet, and your kids will totally flip for it.

Whether you want to plan these make-ahead breakfast recipes for busy school mornings or even a weekend brunch, they’re definite crowd pleasers and a nice change from cereal and scrambled eggs.

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