What do vegetarians actually eat? Part one: Breakfast
In the 18 years I’ve been vegetarian (gosh is it that long? My vegetarianism could buy wine in a pub!), I’ve been asked this question more times than I can count: What do vegetarians actually eat?
Of course, if you’re veggie, you’ll know how ridiculous a question it is. It’s not like we just chomp on lettuce all day long (in fact I eat very little lettuce). Vegetarian options are almost limitless.
But, for people who know nothing but the standard meat and two veg, vegetarianism can be a hard concept to understand.
To help out these uncomprehending meat-eaters, I thought I’d write a little mini-series of posts to help answer their questions – starting with what do vegetarians actually eat for breakfast? (lunch and dinner will come later!)
Hopefully these three posts will help people to understand that there’s so much more to vegetarianism than just rabbit food. And, I’m hoping they’ll also be useful to any vegetarians who may be in need of some new ideas. It’s so easy to get stuck in a rut, eating the same few things over and over again (especially when it comes to breakfast!) – so perhaps these posts will offer some new ideas or remind you of an old favourite. Some of the ideas below link to actual recipes, and others are just there for inspiration.
So next time you’re asked whether you truly do survive just on cabbage and carrots, feel free to point people towards this post. Hopefully it will help them to see just how many options we vegetarians have (and remember to come back soon for the lunch and dinner versions of this post)!
What do vegetarians actually eat for breakfast?
– Porridge (oatmeal) with honey, jam, chocolate spread, or just a bit of brown sugar. Can be cooked on the hob, or in the microwave if you’re in a rush – or, make your own instant version from scratch, which just needs hot water.
– Yogurt with fresh or frozen fruit – my personal favourite are frozen blueberries. I also often sprinkle a few chia seeds over my yogurt.
– Chia pudding – just mix some chia seeds with milk, and they swell up to give a pudding-like mixture.
– Cottage cheese with honey and fruit – I’ve been obsessed with cottage cheese since January! It’s a great high-protein alternative to yogurt.
– Smoothies – either a green smoothie or a plain fruit smoothie, made with milk or yogurt for protein. I also like to add a few oats for a heartier breakfast.
– Cereal – I genuinely love Bran Flakes, but sometimes also have Weetabix or muesli. Usually with milk, sometimes with yogurt.
– Veggie scramble – a variety of vegetables cooked into scrambled eggs or scrambled tofu. I like to serve mine on toast.
– Frittata, filled with whatever veggies you fancy and baked until set. Cook it at the weekend and it will be great for the next few days’ breakfasts.
– Overnight oats – basically like cold porridge. Just mix some oats with milk and flavourings the night before, and it’s ready by morning.
– Fruit salad
– Beans on toast – proper British baked beans from a tin (like you can see in the photo below), not just any old beans! Or you can even make your own if you’re feeling fancy.
– Veggie bacon or veggie sausage sandwich – my personal favourite brands are Quorn and Cauldron, but most supermarkets do own brand stuff these days, so it’s worth trying a few kinds to find your favourite.
– Eggs benedict (poached eggs served on an English muffin, topped with Hollandaise sauce) – use sautéed spinach or vegetarian bacon for a perfect veggie version!
– Baked eggs – just crack an egg into a ramekin with whatever veggies or cheeses you fancy, and bake until the whites are set. Serve with toast for dipping!
– Breakfast burrito – make a batch and keep them in the freezer! They’re really high in protein, so good if you have a busy day ahead.
– Fried / scrambled / poached eggs on toast
– Granola – great sprinkled over yogurt!
– Avocado toast – especially topped with a fried egg.
– Toast with jam or peanut butter (or both!)
– Croissants, English muffins, crumpets, bagels, etc. – spread with butter and honey.
– Veggie hash – potatoes fried up with whatever veggies you like the look of, and finished off with a fried egg.
What have I missed off the list? Feel free to offer up more inspiration in the comments!
Loving all this lush breakfast ideas, would happily eat all of them:-)
“My vegetarianism could buy wine in a pub” Ha ha ha ha ha ha! Brilliant. Now I need to think of all my vegetarianism (24 years) can do :-)
In 1 year it could rent a car ;)
What a lovely and educational post, I never really put much thought into what vegetarians eat for breakfast but it looks like it’s just the same as I do as I rarely have things like bacon for breakfast. I am more granola, porridge and overnight oats
I’m not a vegetarian but I love vegetables. I eat meat because every time I tried not to, my blood tests weren’t very good. I actually never have meat for breakfast, and I’m one of those who never skip breakfast, I simply love it! So thanks for the ideas, my favorites are oatmeal or yoghurt with fruit. I’d love to try chia seeds, but I wonder what they taste like. A friend told me they tasted like soap (!) to her.
Haha I’ve never thought they taste like soap! I’ve not tried chia pudding yet, but I do enjoy them sprinkled over yogurt or cereal.
YES! I love this post SO much. People ask me all the time “what do you even eat? salads?” Today someone asked what kinds of sandwiches I can even eat. What kind of question is that!? Looking forward to this series!
Haha well after I write the lunch post you’ll have to send it to them ;)
These all look so tasty!! I’m not vegetarian but don’t think meat at breakfast is necessary so would happily have any of these options in the morning. I’ve never had cottage cheese before but veggies seem to be obsessed with it so maybe I should..
I only discovered cottage cheese earlier this year but it’s quickly become a favourite :) If you like squeaky cheese you’ll probably like it!
Ooh those baked eggs sound delicious! Although I’m not a veggie, most of my breakfasts are vegetarian xxx
There are more choices on here that I thought I would have as a non-vegitarian! I will definitely be trying some of these out!
Wow what a collection – I cannot believe that in this day and age, people are so uneducated to believe that vegetarians remain undernourished because of a lack of meat. Overnight oats are my go to breakfast – veggie or not!
Wow that’s made me hungry, I love vegi food. Salads are yummy if you know what you’re doing.
Oh wow, some delicious options int here. I’m a meat eater but really struggle with breakfast dishes anyway, so these have given me some great ideas. x
I love this post! I’m also vegetarian and I’m always being asked what it is I eat or if I really do just eat salad all the time. I’m looking forward to reading the rest of your instalments!
I get asked all the time what I eat as I have been a vegetarian for most of my life. I think it has become much easier over the years particularly when going to a restaurant as so many have added veggie options to their menus. Breakfast is always difficult , I do not eat eggs and don’t really care for breakfast food so I usually just have some fruit and some almonds or an english muffin with peanut or almond butter.
I love weird nut butters. I had some hemp seed butter recently that was amazing!
Great feature, and so many delicious breakfast ideas. I find breakfast the easiest meal to be veggie, as so many breakfasts are veggie anyway. Looking forward to the breakfast and dinner posts.
Such a gorgeous collection of recipes! Vegetarian foods don’t need to be dull, as you illustrate regularly! yum!
Vegetarians really have some delicious breakfast options. I’ve considered going vegetarian before. I’d probably start off on a meal plan.
I’ve been veggie for 4 months now and I always eat avocado and tomato on toast when I eat breakfast! Great list, I will have to try chia pudding!
Ooh how are you finding vegetarianism? :)
I’m finding it quite easy :) There’s so many different meat alternatives and veggie options which is so helpful!
Yay! Hope you will find some recipes you like the look of round here too :)
I’d be the worst Vegetarian, I don’t like most healthy foods and I love meat too much. But I think it’s ridiculous when people ask what do vegetarians eat, it’s just complete ignorance most of the time! I really need to start eating breakfast, I’m one of those naughty ones who doesn’t bother and starts my eating day at lunchtime. Some great options here, really craving scrambled eggs now
Yes to be honest I do skip breakfast more often than I should, it’s my least favourite meal of the day so I sometimes prefer to wait til lunch. Bad habit though!
I want to try overnight oats as they might make life a tad easier in a morning and the baked eggs look delicious x
That veggie hash looks delicious! I’m not vegetarian and yet that was basically a list of everything I eat for breakfast! Although there’s some great healthy breakfast inspiration in this post that I’d love to try!
OMG AVOCADO TOAST IS SO GOOD NOM NOM. It makes me laugh when people ask me what I eat as if being a vegetarian means that you have no choices when it comes to food lol!
There’s a lot of recipes there I’ve eaten before :) sometimes, I’m not in the mood to at meat
This is such a good post. I’ve been vegetarian for 11 years and I always get asked what I have to eat. For breakfast I usually have granola or if i’m busy wholemeal toast and jam!
I find a vegetarian breakfast easy enough – it’s what I usually have! An egg of some kind with a piece of toast, cream cheese and Marmite (or Boursin cheese with black pepper), and another slice of toast with jam or marmalade (if honey, then also with butter). But I do find a vegan breakfast – on the occasional day I try to be completely vegan – quite difficult, and usually end up with either baked beans on toast or a peanut butter and banana sandwich.
Yes vegan is definitely trickier, but if you pick up some vegan milk then a lot of the options are doable :)
I expect they are, if I actually liked cereal enough to bother! Which I don’t…. home-made muesli, at a pinch, but really that is all.
I think having a vegetarian breakfast is really easy, there are so many options out there, I couldn’t think of anything else. Great collection of ideas!
Actually, when it’s a hot summer morning, I enjoy cold pizza in the morning, whether carry out or my own veggie pizza. If it is fall or winter, I will sometimes take the edge off temp wise.
Pizza for breakfast? I like your style ;)
Oh my you are making me hungry. Gosh
Ohh I am loving these sound of all these breakfasts, I could definitely try them all ;) x
I really want to try and become vegetarian. Also, I’d like to try Overnight Oats, they sound and look yummy! Your baked egg dish looks AMAZING! May have to give that a try. :D
I recently enjoyed a shashuka for breakfast. Used the traditional tomato base, but there are so many colorful options. Unfortunately, my wife would not join me. ?
That’s a shame, sounds delicious!
Great post!! Such wonderful ideas. Can we add the decadent breakfast choices? Pancakes, waffles, sweet rolls, potato latkes…yum!
I can’t believe I forgot about pancakes and waffles! Not something I ever have for breakfast (maybe dessert!) but good ideas nonetheless :)
I love over night oats. I have thought about that question before but then I look around shops and i see alot of things vegetarians can eat
I hate it when people think vegetarians and vegans can’t eat much and it must be boring. I love making omelettes, scrambled tofu, cereal and other things. Great options x
What a load of lovely veggie breakfasts! So many favourites and lots of new ones to try :)
I’m not actully a true vegetarian (I just prefer veggie food ?) and it shocks me that people can be so silly to ask that ?.
Anyway, onto breakfast. You’ve got my fave two up first (porridge and yogurt), they are also great together. I also find it fun to experiment with breakfast foods from other cultures. I sometimes grab breakfast at a Taiwanese place and they have some amazing vegetarian options, mainly street foods and the all important bowls of fresh hot soy milk (so much better than the store brought stuff).
I think some people are just so geared around meat and two veg that they’ve never even needed to think about vegetarian food! Luckily that’s slowly changing though and now a lot of people eat veggie meals every now and then without even noticing :)
What a great post, and your breakfasts sound lovely, I have friends who are vegetarian and I suppose I have never thought to ask this question as I have seen what they eat x
Fantastic post! There are countless number of delicious vegetarian recipes and meal combinations and you’ve proved that time and time again :) Love all these breakfast ideas!
Great idea for a blog post! So many options, I’m guilty of eating the same things I.e. Bircher muesli all week AKA the original overnight oats, porridge on Saturday and something non veggie on a Sunday. Hmm perhaps I need to shake up my weekend breakfast when I have a bit more time
I’m the same, I often resort to the same few things over and over. Writing this post was a nice reminder about just how many other options there are :)
What a fab post – looking forward to reading about lunch and dinner! Those baked eggs look super tasty. I’m hungry now!! Gahhhh!
What a lot of yummy breakfasts!!!! I love baked eggs but haven’t made them for AGES. I’d never though of having cottage cheese for breakfast either… i’ve rekindled my love of it piled up on toasted sandwich thins with soup, but may have to try it to start my day. Breakfast is my fave meal of the day!
Ooh I’ve never had cottage cheese with soup… It’s great for breakfast, makes a nice change from yogurt :)