Since the average breakfast sandwich is loaded with processed ingredients (and animal products) it might come as a surprise that vegans can enjoy breakfast sandwiches too!
Thankfully, making your own breakfast sandwich at home is shockingly easy, and just as satisfying and delicious as any fast food sandwich. Not only can you make your sandwich completely vegan (Yes!) and customized exactly to your preferences, you can load it up with as many healthy ingredients as you want!
PS: With a teensy bit of prep ahead of time, making your own breakfast sandwich at home is actually quicker than stopping at the drive-through!
So let's get started!
First things first, you need to choose your base. Almost any bread-type product will make a good base for your breakfast sandwich. Some more traditional options might be English muffins, bagels, or biscuits. Feel free to try something different though! Wraps and flat breads can make a nice variation..
Bases:
- English muffins (Ezekiel 4:9 Sprouted Grain English Muffins - these are my personal favourite!)
- Wraps (see our Scrambled Tofu Breakfast Wrap recipe)
- Vegan baking powder biscuits
- Bagels
Next, you need to choose a source of protein. A breakfast that's high in protein will help to keep you satiated throughout the morning and provide some lasting energy to tide you over 'til lunch.
There's A LOT to choose from when you look for vegan protein sources that are fit for a breakfast sandwich. My favourites are scrambled tofu + tempeh bacon, or smoked tofu with a sprinkle of salt.
Proteins:
- Scrambled tofu (for that traditional egg-y breakfast sandwich)
- Tempeh bacon (smoky maple bacon flavour) - $4.99 per package
- Smoked tofu, sliced - $3.49 per package
- Tofurky slices (hickory smoked flavour) - $4.99 per package
- Daiya Cheddar Style Shreds - $4.99 per package *not technically protein
Adding veggies is a great way to boost the overall nutrition of this meal. I love loading mine with all of the ingredients below. Butter lettuce + perfectly ripe avocado + thinly sliced tomato is a simple but amazing combination. I find it the sandwich easier to eat if you cut your veggies nice and thin.
Vegetables:
- Leafy greens - butter lettuce and/or baby spinach are my go-tos.
- Tomato, thinly sliced
- Avocado, mashed or sliced
- Green bell pepper, thinly sliced
- Red onion, thinly sliced
Ah, condiments - this is where you can really spice up your breakfast sandwich. Mix a little sriracha into vegan mayo for a creamy yet spicy kick of flavour. I love a hefty dose of guacamole with a thin layer each of hummus and mayo. Feel free to experiment!
Condiments:
- Hummus (my favourite store-bought variety)
- Vegan mayo
- Yellow mustard/Stone-ground mustard
- Sriracha
- Guacamole
Still need more reasons to try making your own breakfast sandwiches at home? Alright, here ya go!
- They're 100% vegan
- Perfect to take on the go
- Loaded with over 19 grams of protein
- Totally customizable (make it gluten free by choosing GF varieties of English muffins and tempeh)
- You have complete control over the ingredients used
- They're super healthy (choose a sprouted grain base, scrambled tofu, and load em up with veggies!)
- Affordable! The recipe below works out to $2.56 per sandwich, cheaper than grabbing one at the drive-through.
- They're so easy to make! Simply prep some veggies, toast an English muffin, make a batch of scrambled tofu, and assemble!
- Great for meal prepping - Prep your ingredients ahead of time, you'll just have to heat them up and assemble!
I think that should have you convinced that you need to make a vegan breakfast sandwich ASAP!
*$2.56 is the divided cost of the ingredients to make one breakfast sandwich using the recipe below in Canadian dollars (without Daiya.) Your total will be different depending on your location and available ingredients.
Approx. cost breakdown:
English muffin $0.66
Scrambled tofu $0.56
Tempeh $0.53
Avocado $0.34
Butter lettuce $0.25
Tomato $0.05
Hummus $0.12
Mayo $0.05
Cheddar-style Daiya shreds (optional) $0.25
Total: $2.56 per sandwich
Easy $3 Vegan Breakfast Sandwich
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 5 minutes
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 1 1x
- Category: Breakfast
- Cuisine: Vegan
Description
This recipe is for my personal favourite sandwich combo: scrambled tofu + tempeh bacon + avocado + lettuce + tomato. This breakfast sandwich is not only vegan (and totally customizable) but also easy to make and costs less than going through the drive-through! Talk about a breakfast you can feel good about.
Ingredients
Base
- 1 English muffin
Protein
- ¼ cup scrambled tofu
- 2 strips tempeh bacon
- sprinkle of Daiya cheese
Vegetables
- 1-2 leaves butter lettuce
- 2 slices of tomato
- 2-3 slices of ripe avocado
Condiments
- roasted garlic hummus, to taste
- guacamole, to taste
- vegan mayo, to taste
Instructions
- Make a batch of scrambled tofu (here's the recipe), set aside.
- Sauté the tempeh bacon according to the package instructions. I usually cook mine in a little bit of coconut oil and brown for a couple of minutes per side. Set aside.
- Lightly toast your English muffin.
- Spread one side of your English muffing with a light coat of vegan mayo. Spread the other side with some roasted garlic hummus.
- On one half add 1 scoop of scrambled tofu and 2 slices of tempeh bacon (I usually cut my slices in half and then use between 1 ½ to 2 slices per sandwich). If you're using Daiya, add a sprinkle on top of the tempeh bacon.
- If the ingredients have cooled down a little, quickly pop it in the microwave for 15-30 seconds before adding the fresh veggies.
- Make sure your sandwich is nice and hot before opening it up and adding 1-2 slices of butter lettuce, 1-2 slices of tomato, sliced avocado, and a pinch each of salt and pepper.
- Enjoy!
Cheryl
Love the Sprouted Grain English Muffin that you recommend !
★★★★★
Alaa
Great Article and very helpful for beginners. Could you post some recipes with Mediterranean food ingredients ?
Brittany
That sounds great, I'd love to give that a try! Thank you ♥
Danielle
I'm not the only one who combines one side vegan (spicy) mayo & one side hummus!! I couldn't decide breakfast today so a tofu English muffin sammich it is!!
Brittany
Sounds delicious to me Danielle! (And YES YES YES to spicy mayo + hummus!) Enjoy!
amy
Yum!
Brittany
🙂
Kim knight
I use" earths island" vegan cheeses they are a lot better tasting than daiya
Brittany
Thanks for your recommendation!