For July, Pre K Scholars is featuring the book, Little Pea by Amy Krouse Rosenthal. It’s about finicky eaters and has a creative twist on healthy versus not-so-healthy eating choices.

I don’t know about you but summer always seems to be about SUGAR! Everywhere I turn my kids are eating sugar—much to my dismay, I might add.

They get picked up for the junior lifeguards carpool and the mother driving hands them a glazed donut. We go to swim at a friend’s house and they get popsicles. Family dinner at our friend’s house ends with a homemade chocolate bundt cake filled with cream cheese and drizzled with a chocolate frosting. A night doesn’t pass without my children asking, “What’s for dessert?” And a day doesn’t go by where a sugar treat is not offered.

As I hesitate to accept, I hear my husband saying, “They are kids…it’s summer!”

But I’m the protein pusher in my family! My day starts off great if I know that I can get my kids to eat protein for breakfast. We have a family favorite that I want to share with anyone with kids; it’s fun, delicious, nutritious and can even be used as an educational tool for toddlers. All you need is:

1. Cookie cutters (shapes are fun)
2. Bread of choice
3. Eggs
4. Nonstick cooking spray
5. Frying pan and spatula

Use your cookie cutter to make shapes in the center of the bread; note that this will not work if the crust is broken. Place your bread and shaped piece of bread in the coated frying pan on a heated burner. Crack your egg into the hollow space of bread and let it cook to desired texture. Flip! Add salt if wanted. Once it is the texture you desire remove from pan.

Use the shaped piece of bread to “dunk” into the yolk. Voila! You have a fun dunking egg with toast. The kids love picking the shape of their choice and it has even turned into a great shapes lesson for my four-year-old twins. It is also a festive breakfast for holidays. We did hearts for Valentine’s Day and stars for the 4th of July!

You will feel great knowing your kids have had a lttile protein to start their day. Enjoy!