Healthy Vegan Breakfast Swaps: Crave This, Try That

Going vegan doesn’t mean giving up your favorite eats, you just have to know the recipes and products that will help you make the switch to healthier living

Breakfast has always been my favorite meal of the day. There are so many fun, creative, and healthy ways to “break your fast” in the morning.

What has been said for centuries still remains true, breakfast is the most important meal of the day. Now, this is still important for those who intermittent fasting. Breakfast is just a term used for your first meal of the day. So, whether you eat “breakfast” at 9:00 AM or 12PM, it is important what you put in your body after your “rest and digest” phase.

So, you have started your health journey, maybe you’ve decided to go more plant-based or full vegan but you don’t know how to switch from the things you love to…plants?

Well luckily for you, recipes have been developed to help you on your plant-based journey that will increase your daily nutrient intake without sacrificing taste and flavor. These recipes are so revolutionary, that you’ll find you will start craving these foods instead.

The most important part about these recipes are they are home-made. Health journeys are often multi-faceted. You have to make or change habits that will ensure your success in defeating or preventing disease, and healing from ailments. Some of these habits include learning something new like basic cooking skills, or giving yourself extra time in the morning to whip up a quick meal instead of running into McDonald’s or Starbucks for a similarly quick, but high in sugar, fat, and calories meal.

Let’s get into the recipes:

Crave This? Egg Sandwich

This “sandwich” is made with completely processed ingredients. Some of which are known carcinogens to the body and can cause serious detriment to our inner organ systems and create disease. This small sandwich contains almost half your daily allowance of sodium and saturated fat, and nearly all your daily allowance of bad cholesterol (LDL cholesterol).

1.      Try That: Chickpea Flour “Egg” Sandwich (Vegan & GF)

Ingredients:

• handful of Baby spinach, Leaves

  1. 1/8 tsp Garlic powder

  2. 1/2 chopped Red bell pepper

  • 1/4 tsp Baking powder

  • 1/4 cup Chickpea flour

  • 1/3 cup Water

  • 1 tbsp Nutritional yeast

  • 1/4 tsp  Black pepper

  • 1/4 tsp Salt

  • 1/4 tsp Turmeric

  • 1 tbsp Olive oil

  • 2 tbsp Cheese, Vegan

  • 1 Killer’s Dave’s English Muffin

  • Toppings: avocado, tomato, lettuce, microgreens, vegan mayo (OPTIONAL)

Recipe:

If you can’t find chickpea flour it is super easy to make it yourself. Just buy dried chickpeas and blend them in a blender or food processor until smooth. Measure out 1/4 cup of the chickpea flour and mix with the water. Add the baking powder, chopped red pepper, spinach, garlic, salt, pepper, turmeric, and nutritional yeast. Mix together.

In the same non-stick pan, heat the remaining 1/2 tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat, brushing it all over the pan to prevent the omelette from sticking. Pour the chickpea omelette batter in the pan, tilting the pan into circular motion to spread it as you will do for crepes. Cook for 3-4 minutes, the omelette is cooked when the sides are dry and it's not wet in the center.

Toast the English muffin and add your optional toppings to the bread. Place 1/2 the cooked omelette on the bread and keep the other half for tomorrow or eat it with the sandwich.

Crave This? Apple Strudel

This small apple pie packs 230 calories, 11 grams of fat, 6 grams of saturated fats, 14 grams of added sugars, and NO nutritional value.

Apple pie was my favorite dessert growing up. I love the taste of warm, softened apples and flavorful spices. Apple’s are naturally super sweet and when cooked in a pastry, nothing could be better. However, apples with spoonful’s of sugar and processed ingredients are not worth the price your health will pay. Luckily, there’s a better way…

2.      Try That: Apple Pie Oats (Vegan & GF)

Ingredients:

• 1/2 large green apple

• 1/2 cup Rolled oats

• 1 tbsp Lemon juice

• 2 tsp Maple syrup, pure

• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon

• 1/2 tsp Nutmeg

• 1 pinch Sea salt

• 2/3 cup Plant-based milk

• 2 tbsp Water

• 1 tbsp Ground flax

Recipe

Chop up the apple into small cubes and mix all the ingredients into a tightly sealed mason jar. Shake the jar and place in the fridge overnight or for at least 4-5 hours. You can leave overnight oats in the fridge for days. When you’re ready to eat the oats, you can eat them right out of the jar or place in a bowl with a tbsp of vegan Greek yogurt and a sprinkle of chia seeds.

Crave This? Kellogg’s Cereal

Not only is sugar the third ingredient in this cereal but there are a shocking 21 grams of added sugars in just 1 CUP of this cereal. It is so important to not consume so much sugar in the morning because it sets the precedent for what you will be craving the rest of your day. If you spike your insulin in the morning, your body will want to continue to consume sugar in order to rid the body of all the insulin it made during the first meal you ate. This cereal also contains brown sugar syrup, malt flavor, and natural flavor.

3.      Try That: Homemade Granola Cereal + Cashew Milk (Vegan & GF)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups oats use certified gluten free oats if necessary

• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

• ¼ cup almond butter

• ¼ cup pure maple syrup

• ½ teaspoon cinnamon

• ½ teaspoon vanilla

  Recipe:

  Preheat oven to 375 and line a baking sheet with parchment paper. In a large mixing bowl, toss oats together with the cinnamon and set aside. Combine almond butter and maple syrup in a small saucepan and, over medium low heat, melt them together, stirring every so often to make sure it doesn’t stick to the bottom or burn. Stir in the vanilla and pour the mixture over the oats. Stir until well combined. Spread the mixture onto your baking sheet and sprinkle with sea salt. Toss with your fingers and flatten out the mixture until flat and even

  Bake for about 10 minutes, checking that it is not burning. When it starts to really turn brown along the edges you are good to go. I stored mine in a large mason jar with a lid.

Crave This? Starbuck’s Carrot Cake Muffin

This muffin contains almost 500 calories! Way too heavy on your digestive system to start off your day. Not to mention the ingredients…

Canola oil, which is a known source of trans fat. The amount of sugar is crazy: Sugar, brown sugar, candied ginger, corn starch, and molasses. That is 30 GRAMS of sugar in one food item which is way above the standard daily value and definitely the heath threshold.

Potentially worse is the fat content. 23 grams of fat including saturated and TRANS fats. Trans fat consumption is a confirmed leading contributor to high cholesterol and high blood pressure.

4.      Try That: Homemade Carrot Bread (Vegan)

Ingredients:

• 2 cups of flour (whole wheat, oat flour, almond flour)

• 1 teaspoon of baking soda

• 2 teaspoons of baking powder

• pinch of salt

• 1 teaspoon of cinnamon

• 1/2 cup of maple syrup

• 1 cup of almond milk

• 6 tablespoons of nut butter- I typically use peanut butter

• 2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

• 2 medium bananas, mashed

• 3/4 cup of grated carrot (I use a medium grate but you can also finely grate them)

• 1/2 cup of chopped walnuts or pecans plus more for topping if desired (you can also omit the nuts completely)

Recipe:

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees F and generously grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan.

1. Sift together the flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt, and cinnamon.

2. Stir in the milk, nut butter, maple syrup, vanilla extract, and mashed banana. Stir until well combined.
   Gently stir in the grated carrot and nuts.

3. Spoon the mixture into the prepared loaf pan and top with a few more chopped nuts if desired

4. Bake for 45-52 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the middle comes out clean.

5. Let cool slightly and ENJOY!!

Crave This? Chocolate Muffin

The ingredients and nutrition facts are extremely similar to that of the carrot cake muffin. With an average of 36 grams of sugar and 15 grams of fats, this muffin comes packed with unhealthy ingredients. Not to mention the sugar spike I spoke about earlier that contributes to imbalance in the body.

5.      Try That: Cookie Dough Baked Oats  

Ingredients:

• 1/2 cup Almond milk

• 1 tbsp Maple syrup

• 1/2 a banana

• 1 cup Oats

• 1 tsp Baking powder

• 1 1/2 tbsp Chocolate chips

• 1 Small pinch Sea salt

• 1 1/2 tsp Vanilla

• 1 1/2 tbsp Cashew butter (optional)

Recipe:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place all ingredients in a blender and blend until you make smooth batter. Stir in chocolate chips and pour into a small bowl or ramekin. Top with additional chocolate chips. Bake for 20 minutes and then let cool for 10 minutes.

Want to try a more plant-based diet but don’t know where to start? Let’s get you on a meal plan to tackle your goals and help you learn more about the foods you should be eating, and the foods you should be omitting. Click below to sign up for your FREE consultation.