There’s nothing better than surprising the special mom in your life with a special breakfast in bed. And there’s nothing more special than her walking into the kitchen and wondering if a flour tornado didn’t blow through. This Mother’s Day, stick to a simple breakfast so mom can enjoy delicious food without feeling the need to scrape up dried jam from the floor during the special holiday.
Isn’t breakfast in bed your mom’s favorite? Don’t worry! In addition to being easy to clean up, there are some dinner ideas that require minimal ingredients and preparation so the kids can help prepare the Mother’s Day meal.
If you need some easy ideas to change up your Mother’s Day brunch or dinner this year, try these:
1. Yogurt bar
Breakfast in bed sounds great until you spill orange juice on your freshly washed sheets or get syrup on your pajamas. You don’t want to disrupt your mom’s celebration too much, so prepare a yogurt bar for her to make it a little less chaotic. All you need is a container of her favorite yogurt (although traditional vanilla is great for yogurt bars) and lots of fun toppings.
Place plenty of toppings on a separate plate. Choose from:
-Granola
-rolled oats
– Fruits: strawberries, blueberries, banana slices
-Nuts: walnuts, pecans, almonds, pistachios
-cookie crumble
-honey
-Coconut flakes
– dark chocolate chips
-Maple syrup
-brown sugar
-traditional sugar
Preparing the topic allows children to participate without getting too excited and cleaning up.
2. Classic pancakes and eggs
If you want to choose a more traditional method, you can serve classic pancakes and eggs for breakfast. Our family found some organic, clean pancake mix at our local grocery store. Or you can make your own dough. (There are plenty of easy recipes online, so it’s not as difficult as you might think.)
Add scrambled eggs on the side and you’re done. (Bonus points if you can buy locally sourced, fresh eggs, as they taste creamier and have a much longer shelf life.)
But if you want to change things up by giving your children some fun, ask them to decorate their mother’s pancakes with whipped cream, chocolate chips and fresh fruit. Fair warning: This may be a chore, but make sure you do all the cleaning as well as preparing breakfast and brunch. This way, moms can enjoy happy memories with their children without having to deal with the hassle of cleaning up afterward.
(Want more fun? Find fun pancake recipes with cheesecake fillings, jams, cereals, and more!)
3. Favorite fun drinks and treats
One of the coolest ways my husband surprises me is when we stop by my favorite coffee shop and order a pink strawberry drink with two chocolate chip cookies. It’s not just a pep talk. It’s also his way of showing me that he remembers the small details about who I am and what brings me simple joy.
This Mother’s Day, why not give her your favorite sweets? If the place you can buy her favorite sweet treats isn’t open on Sunday, buy it the day before and save it as a surprise. (If she loves cold drinks, ask her not to pour her drink over ice, so it will keep in the fridge without getting watery.)
4. Fruit bouquet
Does your mom love fresh fruit? Surprise her with a homemade fruit bouquet on Mother’s Day morning. Decorate wooden skewers creatively with her favorite fruits to look like flowers. This is a fun, no-mess, and easy breakfast or brunch idea that kids can easily get involved with.
(You could go a step further and have the children decorate vases with fruit flowers.)
5. Chicken, steak and shrimp kebabs
I like breakfast, but I don’t like breakfast. Are you curious about the dinner menu for Mother’s Day? If your mom is the same, prepare a fun dinner for her to enjoy. One of the easiest, healthiest, and most flavorful dishes to make is chicken, steak, and shrimp kababs. You know which meat your mom likes best, so cut them into small pieces and layer them on metal skewers between fresh red, green, and orange peppers.
Cook on the grill until the meat is ready (note that shrimp cook much faster) and serve over white jasmine rice with your favorite green vegetables (grilled asparagus is best) or a fresh salad.
This hearty yet light, slightly colorful and fun meal is perfect for celebrating the arrival of spring or celebrating mom.
6. Rosa Pasta
Want to make a delicious pink pasta dish for your mom? Mix marinara and Alfredo sauce, warm in a skillet with butter and salt, and pour over cooked bowtie pasta. (If you want meat, add ground beef or chicken.)
It’s a fun and cute dish that’s easy to make and will add a splash of color to your dinner table.
7. Mesquite pork tenderloin
No one loves one-pan dinners more than moms who don’t want to worry about a messy kitchen. Why not share this recipe with your girlfriend? I first learned about the Mesquite Pork Tenderloin recipe when a friend from the same life group brought it to me as part of her postpartum meal. It’s nothing more than fresh pork tenderloin, patted dry, coated with olive oil, and evenly seasoned with smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper. Some people like to add chili powder.
Add chopped pumpkin and zucchini to this and bake at 400 to 425 degrees for 20 to 30 minutes. You can also serve it with white rice or salad, depending on your mother’s preference.
It’s a simple preparation that just requires the kids to add spices and chop vegetables, but it won’t make your kitchen look like a construction site.
Mother’s Day made simple
In today’s culture, motherhood is anything but simple. Too many voices, both digital and in-person, make moms feel like they’re failing. She’s always counting the things she’s not doing right, whether it’s not preparing enough organic meals, giving her kids too much screen time, not reading a devotional every morning, or skipping brushing her teeth every now and then.
Motherhood, as we’re always learning, feels messy. And being a mother is tricky because we actually learn something new every day. We are learning to apologize to our children when we are wrong, and to teach them how to accept and extend the mercy and grace that God has for us.
These are the hard lessons we learned and will pass on to our children. Mother’s Day can feel complicated and heavy, so why not make it a little simpler? Let her know that she is deeply loved by both you and her father by treating her to a special breakfast, brunch, or dinner.
Happy Mother’s Day to all the moms! May you feel so loved this holiday!
Photo credit: ©Getty Images/Andersen Ross Photography Inc
Peyton Garland is a writer, editor, and mom of a boy who lives in the beautiful foothills of East Tennessee. For more encouragement, subscribe to her blog Uncured+OK.
