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These delicious vegetarian breakfast ideas are packed with flavor, protein, and nutrients to start your day right, from savory skillets to hearty pancakes!

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Looking to start your morning off meatless? I’ve been eating exclusively vegetarian breakfasts for over a decade, and I’ve learned that there are so many filling plant based ways to start the day that deliver on both flavor and nutrients. From breakfast skillets and scrambles to overnight oats and smoothie bowls, they’re all colorful and delicious.

As the author of a vegetarian cookbook, here are all my favorite vegetarian breakfast ideas to start the day! Many of the recipes are also vegan, and they range in effort level based on your level of morning energy. (You can also reference my list of 20 Mediterranean Diet Breakfast Recipes for more ideas!)

My Top Vegetarian Breakfast Ideas

Building a Balanced Vegetarian Breakfast

When planning your morning meal, I aim to include three key components: protein, complex carbohydrates, and healthy fats. Protein might come from eggs, Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, or beans. Complex carbs can be oats, whole grain bread, or potatoes. Healthy fats come from nuts, nut butter, avocado, or cheese.

This keeps you satisfied until lunch without that mid-morning energy crash. For example, overnight oats topped with peanut butter and berries hit all three categories in one bowl.

Make-Ahead Vegetarian Breakfast Options

The secret to eating well on busy mornings is preparation. The baked oatmeal, mini frittatas, breakfast cookies, and granola above all store beautifully and reheat in minutes.

You can also bake a batch of muffins or a pan of oatmeal that will carry you through the week. Having these ready-to-grab options helps so you’re not tempted to skip breakfast or reach for something less nutritious.

About the authors

Alex & Sonja

Hi there! We’re Alex & Sonja Overhiser, authors of two cookbooks, busy parents, and a real life couple who cooks together. We founded the A Couple Cooks website in 2010 to share simple, seasonal recipes and the joy of cooking. We now offer thousands of original recipes, cooking tips, and meal planning ideas—all written and photographed by the two of us (and tested on our kids!).

Leave a Comment

10 Comments

  1. Victoria says:

    LOUD AND WRONG
    do ur research
    eggs aren’t VEGAN and ARE VEGETARIAN

    1. You are correct! This is a post about vegetarian breakfast recipes, so it includes eggs. For vegan breakfast ideas, you can try our Vegan Breakfast Ideas post!

  2. Anonymous says:
  3. Anonymous says:

    Egg is a veg item? :'(

  4. celtic says:

    Eggs are NOT vegetarian.

    1. Lori says:

      Some do. Everyone research B4 u decide to freak out.

  5. Sanjana Vijayabaskar says:

    Vegetarians don’t eat eggs. Their animal product consumption is limited to dairy. Vegetarians who eat eggs do it by choice and are the exception, not the norm.

  6. Kirti Singh says:

    Plzz suggest any pure india vegetarian breakfast recipes…..