10 Vegan Breakfast Ideas (Compilation #43)

I guess my sweet tooth came roaring back; you'll find marshmallows and chocolate here this time. But it's still primarily a fall-into-winter sort of compilation, so there's a good amount of savory things with veggies, too. 

1. Yogurt and Coconut Ambrosia Salad (Gluten Free, Soy Free)

Although I don't tend to buy fresh berries in winter, I had some leftover from a work meeting, and I wanted to take advantage of all the goodies. I also, for reasons I don't fully comprehend myself, had just purchased some vegan mini marshmallows. I hadn't had marshmallows since before I became vegan, and they were calling to me. What better, then, than ambrosia salad? Traditionally, ambrosia uses dairy products, often whipped cream, but I loved this version, which relied on some protein-heavy non-dairy vanilla yogurt. I added shredded coconut, marshmallows, sliced banana, clementine segments, and the fruit I'd brought home so it wouldn't go bad over a weekend--blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, mango, and pineapple. Then, being a developing food artist, I topped my salad with some reserved ingredients, so they'd pop out and everything wouldn't be muted under the creamy dressing, but that's totally up to you.

This was absolutely amazing. I had it with toast to round out the meal, and hot tea to keep myself from freezing because I had this on a cold morning.

2. Wheat Pancakes with Apple Butter Walnut Sauce

The absolute best basic vegan pancake recipe I have ever found is from Nora Cooks. One morning, I decided to make them with 1/3 of the flour being whole wheat flour, to give myself a more flavorful base for a special topping: apple butter walnut sauce! The pancakes turned out beautifully as usual; that recipe is such a gem. You'll find the basic inspiration for the sauce at Musselman's, but I used an unsweetened apple butter and doubled the walnuts and cinnamon. This is an amazing fall breakfast. I rounded out the meal with a glass of soy milk.

3. Citrusy Spiced Apple Cider (Gluten Free, Nut Free, Soy Free)

When it's cold, I want to drink hot things, but sometimes I like to branch out from herbal tea. A long term favorite of mine is to mix some apple cider and orange juice (up to half and half, but usually about 3/4 cup cider to 1/4 cup orange juice) and simmer it with a cinnamon stick. Occasionally, like you see it here, I add a whole clove and a slice of lemon or two. You'll need something else to round out your meal, of course, and I find this a great accompaniment to a grilled peanut butter and jelly sandwich. (Of course, that meal won't be gluten and nut free; be sensible and follow your own dietary requirements.)

4. Pumpkin Grits with Creamy Spinach Mushroom Sauce (Gluten Free, Nut Free)

Have you had my recipe for this savory porridge yet? If you love a bowl of mush (and I love a bowl of mush myself), this is definitely worth trying. It's so soothing on a cold morning.

5. Cauliflower Hash Browns (Gluten Free, Nut Free, Soy Free)

I had some cauliflower that needed using up, and I'd had my eye on this recipe from Healthier Steps for a while, so I took the plunge, and they were amazing. Are they hash browns? If you're expecting something potato like, not exactly, because they aren't that starchy. But they have a wonderful crispy outside and a creamy cauliflower inside, and they hold together beautifully with chickpea flour and arrowroot starch. I can't wait to try similar cooking methods with different veggies. To round out my meal, I had a veggie scramble using JUST Egg and a vegan sausage patty. If you need to avoid allergens, know that I'm only referring to the hash brown when I list them as gluten free, nut free, and soy free; please ensure that whatever you choose to go with them is appropriate for your own needs.

6. Blended Pumpkin Chia Pudding with Vanilla Greek Coconut Yogurt, Pumpkin Seeds, and Pomegranate Arils (Gluten Free)

It had been a while since I made a chia pudding, so when I had a bit of pumpkin to use up, I found this recipe from Bite Out of Life Nutrition. I made it in my blender, of course, because I don't do well with the texture of non-blended chia puddings, and it turned out great. I found it went really well with some vanilla Greek coconut yogurt I had on hand, and some pomegranate arils from my freezer and a few pumpkin seeds made it prettier.

7. Sweet Potato Steel Cut Oats with Pecans (Gluten Free)

Leftover cooked sweet potatoes often find their way into my breakfast. When I had a bit on hand, I found this recipe from Simply Quinoa and scaled it down to make a single serving, using soy milk as the milk in the original recipe. I drizzled a few tablespoons more soy milk on top and added some chopped pecans, as the recipe directs. This was a great way to start my day.

8. Maple Pecan Banana Muffins

I've made all sorts of banana-focused baked goods, but this one was extra special! I found the recipe at Baker by Nature, and it was perfect for a chilly weekend morning when I had some very ripe bananas hanging around. I didn't add the optional glaze, but I did top my muffins with extra chopped pecans and a sprinkling of brown sugar before baking. They were decadent and pretty sweet, so I don't think I would want them every morning, but sometimes, I'm just in the mood for what is essentially cake for breakfast (or actual cake, as you'll see below). All the flavors go so well together in this, and the muffins turned out super moist and soft in the best way, with a bit of a crispy top from the caramelized brown sugar. One of these muffins with a big glass of soy milk is plenty to tide me over until lunch, but I do also usually have fruit, too, to balance everything out.

9. Cheesy Hash Brown Breakfast Casserole (Gluten Free, Soy Free)

I had some frozen shredded hash browns hanging out in the freezer, so I decided to make a half-version of this recipe from Eat Plant-Based. It relies on a very 2017 vegan cheese sauce--the infamous potato/carrot/onion/nutritional yeast/cashew-based cheese sauce--which every vegan influencer was making in 2017 and which we should probably revisit from time to time because hey, hidden veggies and CHEESE! This is a very good option on a cold morning if you can prep it and stick it in the oven while you go do something else. I had a serving of this casserole with some veggie sausage links and toast and it was a perfectly satisfying meal.

10. Banana Cake with Chocolate Peanut Butter Frosting

Very rarely, typically when I'm having a staycation, I will bake and frost a little cake, and just have that for breakfast for a few days. But this one--which I made over my Thanksgiving retreat--is a particularly nice breakfast option with a glass of soy milk, because there is peanut butter to make it slightly more protein-heavy and bananas to give me a punch of potassium. I added some slices of fresh banana (which I actually just ate before the cake itself, but hey, presentation is important). This is a once or twice a year thing for me but I always love it. (I wouldn't love it if I did it all the time; that's just how life goes.) I used a recipe from Domestic Gothess for the cake itself, cut in half and baked in an 8x8 glass casserole dish, but skipped the frosting listed there in favor of a simpler, just-as-good one I veganized from Taste of Home.

What are you having for breakfast these days?