Plant-Based Breakfasts to Fuel Your Day
Looking for a better way to kick-start your day? Whether you're a committed vegan or just trying to incorporate more plant-based options into your diet, you have dozens of choices for eating fresh fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and plant-based proteins in the morning. Made with healthy, whole-food ingredients, the ideas for breakfast I provide below can keep you full and satisfied all morning. And if your mornings are hurried, you can either batch-cook early in the week or choose options that can be made very quickly.
Whole Grains for a Filling Breakfast
Whole grains are an essential component of a balanced plant-based diet, providing complex carbohydrates, fiber, and a range of vitamins and minerals to support your energy levels and overall health. Incorporating whole grains into your breakfast can help keep you feeling full and satisfied until lunch.
Oats for Breakfast
Oats are a popular whole grain choice. They’re rich in soluble fiber, which can help lower cholesterol levels and regulate blood sugar levels. The more intact the oat grain you eat, the more slowly the oats will digest, keeping you feeling full and feeding the microbiome in your colon.
Oat groats are whole oat kernels or “intact grains.” They are the healthiest way to eat oatmeal. See here for how to prepare them in the Instant Pot, slow cooker, or stovetop.
Steel-cut oats are kernels that have been cut into a few pieces each. See here for how to prepare them in the Instant Pot, slow cooker, or stovetop. For flavorful variations, make my Apple-Cinnamon Steel-Cut Oats or Overnight (or Instant Pot) Chai-Flavored Hot Cereal. In my Plant-Based Anti-Inflammatory Cookbook, I feature a scrumptious “Gingerbread Steel-Cut Oats with Pears” recipe on page 64.
Old-fashioned rolled oats have been sliced and rolled. While not as slow-digesting as the two types above, they still offer great health properties and are quick to make.
If possible, avoid quick-cooking and, especially, instant oatmeal. These oats digest quickly and don’t provide as much advantage for health. Instant oatmeal packets usually contain significant sugar as well.
Add toppings to your oats like flaxseed meal, chia seeds, hemp seeds, berries, other fresh fruit, date paste, date syrup, dried fruits, nuts, or anything else that sounds good and adds nutrients and variety.
Quinoa and Other Grains for Breakfast
Quinoa is another excellent whole grain to include in your plant-based breakfast rotation. Quinoa is a complete protein, meaning it contains all nine essential amino acids that the body cannot produce on its own. It's also high in fiber, iron, and magnesium.
Cook a batch of quinoa, then heat about a cup of cooked quinoa with plant-based milk for a hearty breakfast, with added fruit, seeds, nuts, and other superfoods to round out the meal.
Check out my quinoa breakfast bowls with apples for a fancier option (perfect when you have overnight guests).
You can add cooked quinoa into baked goods like muffins and pancakes for added nutrition.
You can also use leftover rice for a warm, comforting breakfast – just heat about a cup of cooked rice (brown rice preferred) with plant-based milk and then add any fruits or superfoods you like.
Toast for Breakfast
Toast made with whole-grain bread can be fast, delicious, and nutritious. Think of “plant diversity” with your toast, using toppings to load your system with micronutrients from many plant species.
The toast can start with:
Avocado
Hummus
Nut butter
For savory toast, consider adding a few nuts or seeds, vegetable slices (tomato, cucumber, bell pepper, onion, etc.), greens, sprouts, olives, capers, and/or spices. For sweet toast with nut butter, consider date pieces, other dried fruit, fresh fruit, seeds, shredded coconut, cinnamon, and other spices.
Plant-Based Protein for a Hearty Breakfast
Protein plays a crucial role in building and repairing tissues, supporting muscle growth, and maintaining overall health. While many omnivores associate protein with animal products, there are plenty of plant-based protein sources that can help you meet your daily needs and create a hearty and satisfying breakfast.
Tofu for Breakfast
One popular plant-based protein option is tofu, made from soybeans and very versatile. Tofu, like quinoa, is a complete protein. Using it in a starring role or as a stealthy ingredient in other foods makes for a healthy protein-filled breakfast.
Tofu (usually silken tofu) in smoothies
Fancier vegan “egg” dishes such as omelets, eggs benedict, or frittata
Beans for Breakfast
Beans aren’t a common breakfast component in the U.S., but you can incorporate beans in a number of ways in the morning. You can:
Add white beans to a smoothie
Add white beans to oatmeal
Add your favorite beans to a tofu scramble
Make a savory breakfast bowl with beans, grains, and cooked greens
Make a red lentil pancake and add all sorts of toppings
Plant-Based Protein Powder
If you’re having trouble getting enough protein in your diet, consider adding a couple tablespoons of plant-based protein powder to a smoothie, to oatmeal, or to pancake batter. Pea protein, rice protein, hemp protein, and soy protein powders are the most common and can help boost the protein content of your breakfast. (See my post on protein needs.) The powders are processed foods, so ideally you can get enough protein in your diet from beans and other whole foods.
Fruits and Vegetables for an Antioxidant-Rich Breakfast
Fruits and vegetables at breakfast provide a wide range of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and fiber to support your overall health. On their own they might not fill you up for hours, so it's best to eat more than just fruit and/or vegetables for breakfast.
Fruit at Breakfast
Here are a few types of breakfast foods that can be packed with fruit. Make up your own recipe or try mine or someone else’s. It’s especially satisfying to eat fruit that’s in season – I especially love in-season strawberries in June, blueberries and blackberries in July, and peaches in August.
Smoothies: There are so many ways to make smoothies. I provide a template of base ingredients in my Glorious Whole-Food Smoothies recipe.
Chia pudding: Add lots of fresh fruit to your chia pudding.
Fruit bowl or fruit skewers: create your own combinations with whatever you have at home, especially in-season fruit.
Vegetables at Breakfast
Vegetables can be easily incorporated into your plant-based breakfast in creative ways.
You can add sautéed spinach, kale, bell peppers, mushrooms, and zucchini to tofu scrambles, breakfast burritos, red lentil pancakes, or savory breakfast bowls for an extra dose of nutrients and flavor.
You can also blend leafy greens like spinach or kale into your smoothies for a boost of vitamins and minerals without altering the taste significantly.
For a sweeter option, try baked sweet potatoes with maple syrup, dried fruit, and cinnamon.
Tips for Meal Prepping and Planning Your Plant-Based Breakfasts
Meal prepping and planning can be key strategies for making sure you eat nutritious and delicious plant-based breakfasts all week long. By preparing multiple servings ahead of time, you can streamline your morning routine and set yourself up for success in maintaining a healthy and balanced diet.
One tip for meal prepping plant-based breakfasts is to cook a large batch of steel-cut oats, quinoa, brown rice, or roasted sweet potatoes that you can easily incorporate into breakfast dishes. Another tip is to measure ingredients for a smoothie the night before and store them in your fridge or freezer. Having ingredients or recipes prepped and ready to go can save time and make it easier to throw together a quick and nutritious breakfast.
No Rules for my Breakfast!
I often eat dinner leftovers for breakfast. Or the remnants of recipe tests from the day before. Soup for breakfast? Yes. Salad? Not often. Assorted grains, proteins, and vegetables with a sauce? Oh yes. But sometimes I go on a steel-cut oats jag and make batch after batch for several weeks straight. I am not an “only savory” or “only sweet” kind of person when it comes to breakfast. I like everything.
One thing I do eat almost every day as part of my break is a Daily Habit Berry Smoothie Bowl (see page 71 in my cookbook, The Plant-Based Anti-Inflammatory Cookbook). I make it a point to eat at least a half-cup of berries a day, and except when in-season berries are plentiful, I rely on this frozen treat to supply my body with berry goodness.
If you’re not satisfied with your breakfast now, I hope you’ve found some of the above ideas useful. Breakfast can be a powerful source of energy for the day and set the tone for how you want to treat your body. It’s worth the effort to plan for breakfast and give yourself wholesome foods. It’s good for your health and those who depend on you.