10 Vegan Breakfast Ideas (Compilation #15)

I imagine that if I were not in pandemic mode, and struggling every day not to miss the things I can't get, I wouldn't have such a variety of breakfasts to share, even though I did set a 2020 goal to try a new breakfast once a week. Every cloud has a silver lining, I guess! The first half of these breakfasts were before I went into my election season spiral of overwhelmed-ness and despair, while the second half came either in the midst of it or in the season of hope and anxiety afterward. It hasn't taken me this long to put together a breakfast compilation in a rather long time, but I'm back to fun breakfasts and I don't think the next round will take so long.

1. Banana Cream of Wheat

I kept one of my headed-toward-too-ripe bananas out of the freezer and made a vegan version of this recipe from the Anti-June Cleaver blog. It had a pretty strong flavor of bananas, in a way that is very distinct from having a cold banana-based breakfast. I got full really fast from this and ended up saving about 1/3 of the porridge for another day.

2. Raspberry White Chocolate Waffles

Even though I hadn't yet purchased myself a new waffle maker (mine is tiny and it takes a while to make a batch), I couldn't resist this recipe for Raspberry White Chocolate Waffles when I saw it at the Holy Cow! blog--especially since my grocery delivery came with mostly-smashed raspberries rather than whole ones. (Perils of pandemic shopping.) These were really good. I think the maple syrup I had with them was overkill, because I could easily have just had these as they were. They were definitely sweet enough! But it was Sunday, after all, the day of elaborate breakfasts to push away the feelings of impending doom, so it was fine.

3. Banana Split Oatmeal (Gluten Free)

Basically, I veganized the recipe for Banana Split Oatmeal at A Taste of Madness. I had some trouble with the "Nutella" chocolate syrup because I was using Justin's chocolate-hazelnut spread, which doesn't melt into an easily drizzled consistency, so I mixed it with some chocolate syrup. It took some trial and error but I got there. If you make this, you can do that, just use chocolate syrup, or maybe try some of the less-"healthy" vegan versions of Nutella. In any case, this was a really fun breakfast! You can't see the oatmeal but I promise it's there under the fruit, almond milk yogurt, peanuts, cacao nibs, and chocolate syrup.

4. Peanut Butter-Strawberry "Quesadilla" and Yogurt Dip

I was watching one of those mesmerizing Mind Over Munch YouTube videos of bento box compilations and Alyssia made something she called a "Peanut Butter-Strawberry Quesadilla." One probably shouldn't call something without cheese a quesadilla, but the methods are similar: Spread peanut butter on one half of a flour tortilla. Top peanut butter with strawberries. Fold and cook in an oiled skillet until golden on both sides. I served mine with a dip I made of almond milk yogurt and bee free honey.

5. Berry Quinoa Breakfast Bowl (Gluten Free)

I found this recipe on Not Enough Cinnamon. It's a quinoa porridge topped with (in my case) almond milk yogurt, banana slices, chia seeds, a bit of shredded coconut, and cacao nibs. There is something so dramatic about the color contrasts in this that I love. Quinoa makes such a wonderful breakfast, too.

6. JUST Folded Plant Egg, Veggie Ham, and Cheese on an English Muffin

I'm sure you've seen other breakfast sandwiches similar to this, but if you haven't tried JUST folded plant eggs on yours, you may be missing out! (I am not sponsored. I am really truly excited about this stuff.) I made this sandwich with an English muffin, the JUST folded egg, some Chao original non-dairy cheese, and Yves veggie ham. I found I liked the sandwich better if I buttered the English muffin with a bit of margarine (margarined, then?) but it was truly wonderful either way. If no vegan egg substitute has satisfied your cravings yet, this might.

7. Cinnamon Apple Breakfast Barley

As the chill of fall settled in, it was time for something that felt more like fall, so I veganized this recipe from Holly Grainger. Though I cut it down to make one serving, it was still pretty heavy for me; I would probably eat about half of the barley next time and add more apple. I added some soy creamer and maple syrup when I ate this and that really took this porridge to the next level, but may also be why I interpreted it as heavy!

8. Maple Cornmeal Banana Bread with Chocolate Hazelnut Spread and Pecans (Gluten Free)

On an endless quest to use up all the bananas I end up with in quarantine (it's either no bananas or ALL THE BANANAS), I decided to try this unusual recipe for maple cornmeal banana bread at Feasting on Fruit. It was okay, but it needed something. The thing it needed was some chocolate hazelnut spread and a sprinkling of chopped pecans; it was then an absolute delight. If you're looking for a gluten free recipe without any specialty ingredients, this is for you--it uses oat flour (i.e., oatmeal blizted in a food processor) and cornmeal. It does ask for tapioca flour but you can substitute cornstarch for that easily, as the recipe suggests.

9. Chick'n Biscuit

Make some biscuits. I'm lazy so I usually use the only vegan ones I know, the Pillsbury Southern Homestyle Original in a can. While they bake, bake a chick'n patty (this was Boca). When both are done, split and butter the biscuit with some margarine and have yourself a breakfast sandwich probably most famous at Chik-fil-a (but without all the issues that come along with Chick-fil-a or with the meat and dairy).

10. Red White and Blue Breakfast Pizza (Gluten Free)

I took the base I had made for my Strawberry-Lemon Breakfast Pizza and made a slightly different version of it with raspberries and blueberries. The "sauce" for the pizza is still vanilla soy yogurt. These flavors go so well together! If you have a moment of American patriotism (I have been known to feel a surge of it occasionally these days), this is a good breakfast. If not, it's still a good breakfast, and red, white, and blue is, after all, the color scheme for flags of many lands.