Breakfast

(The Vegan Way)

Danishes, cinnamon rolls, biscotti, whatever sweet pastry I could scrounge up and a hot vanilla latte was my idea of a good breakfast before I went the way of a vegan. Breakfast. The first meal of the day should probably be a little more nourishing than a pastry and a cup of joe, but being vegan, eggs and bacon were definitely off the menu, so what is a girl suppose to do? Well here a few of my favorite vegan breakfasts.

Pancakes! I know, you're thinking how can you make vegan pancakes and still have ones that are fluffy and flavorful. Well, it is quite easy. I use the old standby Bisquick and the recipe on the box. I just substitute a half of a banana (squished really good) for the egg and use soy milk instead of cow milk. Mix it all up like normal and you have a delicious batter, but I make it even better by adding vegan chocolate chips or for a more healthy version I put pecans, walnuts, flax seed, dried blueberries, wheat germ, whatever I have in the pantry in a ziplock bag and smash them with a rolling pin or whatever I have handy. Add this little mixture to the batter and it makes a tasty and textured pancake that is great with hot pure maple syrup drizzled over the top.

A great Sunday morning special is hash browns, Heinz Vegetarian Beans, and whole wheat toast with a cup of hot tea. This makes a very tasty and filling breakfast - one of my favorites.

Then of course there is the old faithful - oatmeal. It doesn't have to be just plain, bland oatmeal either, you can dress it up by adding bananas and peanut butter, or brown sugar and pecans, or cinnamon and walnuts, you can even mix in a little jelly if your heart desires. Oatmeal is wonderful breakfast food; it is filling and gets your day off to a great start.

Last but not least is good old breakfast cereal and believe it or not there are a lot of vegan cereals out there and I'm not just talking about the expensive ones at the health food store. Here is a partial list of vegan breakfast cereals - so knock yourself out!

Apple Jacks Cocoa Puffs

Froot Loops Fruity Pebbles

Cocoa Pebbles Reeses Peanut Butter Puffs

Frosted Flakes Cheerios

Honey Nut Cheerios Frosted Cheerios

Multi-grain Cheerios Life Cinnamon

Life Corn Chex

Trix

Top your bowl of cereal with soy or rice milk (whichever you prefer) and add a serving of fruit, a slice of toast, and a cup of tea and you are good to go.

So, as I have discovered, eating a vegan breakfast isn't so hard after all and I have never eaten such easy and healthy breakfasts as I have since living the vegan lifestyle.