30 Bountiful Breakfast Recipes Worth Waking Up For

No meal carries more controversy than breakfast. Skip it or prioritize it? Breakfast as a king or light and breezy? Grain-free or a hearty bowl? Smoothies and juices detoxifying or harmful? With so many questions, this one simple meal can be confusing.

Well, what if you threw all the rules out the door and brought breakfast back to the table under your own terms? After 20+ years in the health and fitness industry, working with clients and researching the science, here is what I recommend when it comes to breakfast on a plant-based diet:

• Eat your first meal when you are truly physically hungry. Never force it, rush it, or hold off based on a preconceived notion of when you are “supposed” to eat. There is research recommending (daily) fasting which would encourage waiting as long as possible between your last meal the day before and your first meal of the next day. On the flip side, there is also science to support eating smaller meals every few hours. Yet, only you know you. So honor your body and eat when your body wants to eat. So long as it is not “toxic hunger,” your body will be your perfect guide for when and how much to eat.
• Whether you want just fruit for breakfast, dinner for breakfast, or anything in between, go for it! There is no perfect food or magic meal makeup that is ideal for everyone. Again, hone in on your instincts for what you prefer. Some mornings may feel like a smoothie morning while others may inspire a heartier dish.
• Look at your overall diet to balance your meals. Focus on getting your 6 Daily 3’s and the Plant-Based Food Guide Pyramid and Plate and simply structure your meals around that.
• Eat mindfully. Tuning into hunger and satiety signals and also noticing how your body feels after you eat specific foods will give you all the answers you seek about what you need. Also, chew well, eat with the fewest distractions possible, and taste your food. These are practices that improve with time, but they are gifts that will support your health over a lifetime.

With the rules removed, there are infinite options available for your fave first meal-of-the-day.  If you are a smoothie person, you can enjoy one of these 20 scrumptious smoothies. Here are a few grain-free breakfasts. Or, you can explore one of these 30 game-changing (oil-free, sugar-free) choices:

1. Vegan Salmon Bagel by Green Evi

2. Magnificent Maple Granola by The Jazzy Vegetarian

3. Chickpea Flour Scramble (*Swap vegetable broth or water for oil*) by Vegan Richa

4. Peanut Butter and Raspberry Jam Porridge by Rainbow Nourishments

5. Creamy Rice Pudding by Dreena Burton

6. Spicy Tofu Scramble by Lazy Cat Kitchen

7. Red Pesto and Kale Porridge by Green Evi

8. Vegan Superfood Breakfast Bars by Contentedness Cooking

9. Chocolate Waffle Fruit Pizza by Feasting on Fruit

10. Mango Lime Chia Pudding by Get Inspired Everyday

11. Cinnamon French Toast and Potato Shallot Frittata (Double Whammy!) by Dreena Burton

12. Vegan Chickpea Flour Omelette by Strength & Sunshine

13. Apple Muffins with Pumpkin Seeds by The Jazzy Vegetarian

14. Chocolate Pudding Breakfast Bowl by A Dash of Compassion

15. Green Chia Pudding by Veggies Save the Day

16. Turmeric Steel Cut Oats by Vegan Richa

17. Carrot and Coconut Breakfast Bowl by Green Evi

18. Pumpkin Seed and Chocolate Chip Oatmeal Breakfast Bars by Dreena Burton

19. Cranberry Apple Spice Overnight Oatmeal by A Dash Of Compassion

20. Vegan German Chocolate Pancakes by Fragrant Vanilla Cake

21. Blueberry Swirl Buckwheat, Amaranth + Walnut Porridge by Eggplant & Olive

22. Everyday Quinoa Breakfast Bowl by Contentedness Cooking

23. Breakfast Tacos by My Plant-Based Family

24. Fluffy Vegan Pancakes by Feasting on Fruit

25. Vegan Chocolate Zoats ( *Omit Agave*) by Vegan Heaven

26. Strawberry Banana Baked Oatmeal Bites with Chocolate Chips by Veggie Inspired

27. Snickerdoodle Energy Bars by Get Inspired Everyday

28. Chickpea Pancakes with Dried Tomato Sauce by Green Evi

29. No Bake Brownie Energy Bites by Jessica in the Kitchen

30. Black Forest Overnight Oats by A Virtual Vegan

For more, check out my lists of 50 five-ingredient, whole-food, plant-based recipes and 60 vegan gluten-free recipes!