13 Best Breakfasts

Here's a secret you may not know: breakfast is my favorite meal of the day! It's one of the few things that I feel comfortable playing around with in the kitchen. When I first went GF, breakfast was a confusing whirlwind of expensive cereal and frozen waffles. Now I know that the possibilities are literally endless! I am more of a savory person, so I don't do waffles or pancakes too often (unless I get a waffle iron for Christmas!) but I eat eggs almost every day. So here's my round-up of my favorite, easy breakfasts from the year!

1. Scramble up some eggs with dried thyme and a few pats of vegan butter for extra decadence. Isa's Brooklyn home fries from Vegan Brunch make a perfect addition! Boiled potatoes get pan fried with peppers and onions, then doused in ketchup (post photo taking). Here is my favorite slow-cooked, creamy scrambled egg recipe!

 2. Make a tofu scramble with things in your fridge! Crumble tofu in a pan, mix with some hummus/mustard and other spices, then later add chopped kale and vegetables. We served this with leftover baked sweet potatoes since it was the day after Thanksgiving!

3. One thing I love doing is taking leftovers from dinner and using it for breakfast. We had some leftover wonder fries and avocado from dinner. We paired it with our usual polenta grits and pan fried some very tasty Italian tofu. Or put it in a wrap and drizzle with miso mayo! The possibilities are endless. Also, creamsicle mimosas are a must.

4. Leftover greens hanging around in the fridge? Cook them for breakfast! Seriously. Kale has become a staple of our weekend breakfast feasts. I posted the recipe here, and you will not regret it! Runny eggs and hot sauce doused kale are a perfect match. 

                       
 5. Fritters, patties, whatever you want to call them. These are a great addition to any breakfast! I had some leftover turnips from the farmer's market, so I used them to make these turnip potato patties! We usually make oven fries to go with breakfast, but fritters have been a nice change. I've also grown fonder of eggs over easy lately, as opposed to our usual scrambled ones.

6. Omelets! Yes this is the folded version, because I can't perfect the French triple-folded one, but it's still delicious. Here are my favorite combinations: 
mushrooms, thyme, vegan butter//harissa paste, cilantro, sauteed onion//sauteed onion, kale, garlic//fresh basil, tomatoes, garlic//mushrooms, garlic, soy sauce, dash of sesame oil. 

 7. If I haven't annoyed you already about how good this Cajun grit bowl is, and how stupidly easy it is, you should definitely make it. This is one of the few things I can pull together before classes start. I'm also mildly obsessed with polenta corn grits and eat them all the time. 

8. I have to admit, making pancakes just isn't my forte. But these flourless pumpkin pancakes are ridiculously easy to make! Even before class! The eggs will also keep you full, unlike regular pancakes which just make me sleepy. One can of pumpkin puree will give you pancakes all week! 

9. My favorite snow day breakfast: tea, toast, mushroom green onion egg scramble + garlic roasted sweet potatoes.

10. Tofu scramble will forever be the easiest thing to make on a lazy weekend morning. This tofu puttanesca scramble is easy, delicious, and filling. I love the mix of capers, olives, and tomatoes with garlicky salty tofu. Serve with buttery grits for a complete meal!

11. Sometimes I just want a smoothie for breakfast because it's too hot to cook (or I'm too lazy). Over the summer, I fell in love with this strawberry lime smoothie and made it almost every day. I find that lime juice is just enough to flavor it, and no, the citrus doesn't curdle the almond milk. It's the most refreshing smoothie out there!

12. I love taking seasonal produce and using it for breakfasts. Here, I sauteed some zucchini, onions, garlic and kale, then scramble with eggs and topped with cilantro. Avocado toast makes it the most perfect breakfast, of course! 

13. I looove oatmeal. It kills me that so many people think it's gross. But homemade oatmeal, which I only started making this year, is so easy and not mushy like packaged oatmeal. One of my favorites is blueberry chai, or here is orange blueberry almond. Slow-cooker oatmeals are also perfect, because it's done right when you wake up for breakfast! How awesome is that? Kathy Hester's blog (and recipe books) are chock full of wonderful vegan slow-cooker oatmeal recipes!