3 Simple and Healthy Vegan Breakfast Ideas

August 17, 2020

I'm Chef Eduardo, and I'm a plant-based chef.

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I've been a professional chef for over 10 years and now I'm sharing my knowledge and helping people learn how to cook with plants to make them delicious!

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It can be frustrating not to know what to have for breakfast, especially if you’re needing to eat something in a hurry. Too often we’re either rushing out the door or (these days) rushing to a Zoom call, and we can’t spend forever thinking about what to eat. And often, we’re stuck eating the same thing day in and day out because we know it’s easy and comfortable.

We’re giving you 3 simple and healthy breakfast recipe ideas to change up your mornings, or maybe get you out of your comfort zone with what you’re used to eating. Each of these has its own benefits, so choose what works best for you and what you’re looking for in a breakfast meal. You can change up these recipes and customize them to your liking, or use them as a springboard for ideas of your own.

healthy vegan breakfast ideas

 

Whatever you decide to eat in the morning, you want to make sure it’s a nourishing meal. Breakfast is extremely important, as it’s the first meal your body gets after a long period of rest and restoration, so give it the good stuff!

Each of these recipes contains nutritious whole foods.

HEALTHY BREAKFAST Tips

Before we get into the recipes, I just have a few more tips for maintaining a healthy breakfast routine:

  1. Plan ahead!

    The best thing you can do to save time and not have to make rushed decisions about breakfast is to plan ahead. This is a LIFESAVER for weekday breakfasts especially, when you might not have as much time as you’d like for breakfast. There are many awesome breakfast meals (like the Cinnamon Bircher Muesli down below!) that you can make a batch of ahead of time so that you don’t have to worry about cooking or putting something together every day, you can just grab-and-go. Similarly, planning out your breakfasts for the week or even the next few days is super helpful. It puts less strain on your brain in the morning and allows you to just get right to it.

  2. Rotate your breakfasts

    This is something I struggle with a lot because when I find something I like I tend to stick to it, but you have to rotate your breakfasts! Don’t always have the same thing every day. Even if it’s a healthy choice, too much of something can be 1) boring and 2) not as helpful to your body as you think. You want to make sure you’re getting a variety of different minerals and vitamins throughout the week.

  3. Don’t be too hard on yourself!

    Most importantly, don’t be too hard on yourself. If you’re not eating the healthiest of breakfasts, don’t put yourself down or compare yourself to others, because that’s not going to get you anywhere. The key is progress. Maybe you start swapping out butter for coconut oil one week, then add more fruit to your yogurt the next. Little changes over a long period of time can make a huge difference. So take it at your own pace, know your own path, and celebrate your victories, both big and small.

Check out the video and recipes down below.

  

 

vegan bircher muesli breakfast

CInnamon Bircher Muesli

This is one of my favorite breakfasts and one that I eat most days. The best thing about it is that it’s a make-ahead recipe, so make it once and you have breakfast for the next 3 days. How awesome is that!

It’s packed with nutritious foods like oats, hemp seeds, flax seeds, and chia seeds. Plus, you’re getting some good fruit in there with the apple and orange juice, and especially if you’re using fresh fruit as toppings! Don’t despair if you don’t have all the ingredients listed here, you can leave out hemp, flax, or chia—use whatever you have on hand. Also, feel free to add sunflower seeds or dried fruit like raisins or cranberries to the mix.

 

Cinnamon Bircher Muesli

Makes 3 cups (about 3 servings)

1 cup freshly-squeezed orange juice or water

1/2 cup apple, shredded

1 cup oats

1/2 cup hemp seeds

1/8 cup flax seeds

pinch sea salt

3 tbsp chia seeds

1 tsp cinnamon

1 cup plant-based milk

maple syrup, to taste

plant-based yogurt, to taste

Toppings:

fresh fruit

granola

nut or seeD butter

 

  1. Add all ingredients to a bowl and mix well to combine. Cover and refridgerate overnight.

  2. The next morning, place about 1 cup of the mix into a bowl and add the amount of yogurt you want. I like to put enough so that I can thin out the muesli to get a pudding-like consistency.

  3. Finish with toppings of your choice. I like fresh fruit, granola, and nut or seed butter.

vegan breakfast banana chocolate peanut butter smoothie bowl

Chocolate Banana Ice Cream

If you’re looking for a deliciously sweet yet refreshing breakfast, this is for you! This breakfast is perfect for those hot summer days when you just want something cooling and satisfying (although who doesn’t like a smoothie bowl at all times of the year?). I love having this after a workout as it feels like I’m treating myself—it tastes like a dessert!

Of course this is also fully customizable; the varieties of banana ice cream smoothie bowls are endless! Instead of chocolate, add spinach, spirulina, beet powder, or even your favorite vegan protein powder. You could also use 2 bananas and a bunch of other frozen fruit such as blueberries, mango, papaya, or dragonfruit. I like to add nut or seed butter for extra flavor and creaminess, but you can leave it out if you want, or add it as a topping. Make this smoothie bowl yours!

 

Chocolate Banana Ice Cream

Makes 1 serving

2-3 frozen bananas

1/4 cup cacao powder

2 tbsp creamy peanut butter

pinch cinnamon

pinch sea salt

TOPPINGS

granola

chopped dark chocolate

coconut flakes

  1. Add all ingredients to the bowl of a food processor and turn on to mix (NOTE: you might want to take the bananas out a liitle bit before the rest of the ingredients so that they have a few minutes to defrost a little and make it easier on your machine). Stop a few times to scrape down the sides of the processor bowl. Keep mixing until the bananas start to break down and become creamy. You can also make this in a high-speed blender, just make sure you have a blender stick to push the mixture towards the bottom.

  2. Once you have a homogenous creamy chocolatey mixture, transfer it to a bowl and smooth it down using a spoon or spatula to create a flat surface.

  3. Finish with your toppings of choice. I like granola, chopped dark chocolate, and coconut flakes.

 

healthy vegan breakfast tofu scramble

Chili Tofu Scramble

This is a great savory and satisfying option that you can have for breakfast, lunch, or dinner, but we love it for when we’re feeling like something savory in the morning. This is honestly such a staple in our house, and we love it served with corn tortillas and avocado, and it’s just as delicious on toast!

You can cube the tofu like we did here to give it a more chewy consistency, but you can of course smash it using a potato masher to get more of that “scrambled egg” texture. Whatever you do, make sure to use firm tofu. Firm tofu has had a lot more water pressed out of it than medium or soft tofu and that’s what we want. We don’t want to be adding more water to the dish. Instead, we want to let the tofu act more like a sponge and absorb all the flavors in the pan with it. Nobody wants mushy tofu on their toast!

  

Chili Tofu Scramble

Makes 2-3 servings

 

4-6 tbsp olive oil, for cooking

2 cloves garlic, sliced

1 large potato, cut into matchsticks or diced small

1” slice fresh turmeric, or 1/2 tsp ground turmeric

1 jalapeño, diced small

1/2 large white onion, diced small

2 large tomatoes, diced

1 block firm tofu, cubed

sea salt, to taste

freshly-ground black pepper, to taste

1/2 bunch fresh parsley, leaves picked and chopped

TO SERVE

2 sliced toasted bread or 2 warmed corn tortillas

1 avocado, sliced

hot sauce (optional)

  1. Heat a medium pan on medium-high heat. Add olive oil and garlic. Cook for about a minute, or until starting to turn golden. Add potatoes, stir to combine, and cook for about 2 minutes or until they start to turn golden on one side.

  2. Add turmeric and stir again, scraping the bottom if necessary to make sure the potatoes aren’t sticking. Add onion and jalapeño and cook for 2 more minutes, stirring to combine. Add tomatoes and tofu, cover, and let cook for 10 minutes.

  3. Season with salt and add parsley, stirring to combine.

  4. Serve on top of toasted bread with avocado, or with warm corn tortillas. Add hot sauce if desired.

  

Don’t forget to tag us on Instagram @eatogether.co and show us your creations!

 

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I'm Chef Eduardo, and I'm a plant-based chef living in New York City.

more about me

I've been a professional chef for over 10 years and now I'm sharing my knowledge and helping people learn how to cook with plants to make them delicious!

categories

learn how to master vegan cooking

find out more

categories

starters

events

snacks

sides

breakfast

dessert

mains

bread

sauces

nutrition

lifestyle

cooking

all the fun is happening on instagram

@vegancookingmastery