Vegan Breakfast Protein Parfaits

Alisa Fleming ~ In an attempt to increase the ratio of protein in my breakfasts (it’s so easy for me to go heavy on the carbohydrates in the morning), keep the added sugars in check, and simultaneously make the first meal of the day more interesting, I created these vegan breakfast protein parfaits! They’re of course naturally dairy-free and egg-free, but I’ve kept them gluten-free, too, just for kicks.

These vegan breakfast protein parfaits are super-easy to throw together (minutes!) and can be customized using whatever ingredients you prefer. Consider this an idea guide for something more exciting than breakfast cereal or protein shakes.

For variety, I started with a selection of Simply Bars. For my needs, these are the best high protein bars that are low in sugar and dairy-free. I used the bar flavors as a guide to create some fun parfaits.

Lemon-Berry Vegan Breakfast Protein Parfait

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup unsweetened or low sugar dairy-free yogurt
• 4 to 5 lemon stevia drops, or sweetener to taste (I use NuNaturals)
• 1/2 teaspoon amino acids (I use L-Glutamine) or 1 tablespoon of your favorite protein powder (not included in protein count below), optional
• 1 Lemon Coconut Simply Protein Bar, crumbled
• 1/2 to 1 cup fresh berries

Method

1. Whisk the yogurt with the stevia or sweetener and aminos or protein powder, if using.
2. Layer the parfait in a glass, starting with half of the yogurt mixture, followed by half of the crumbled protein bar, and half of the fresh berries. Repeat the layers to use up all of the ingredients.
3. Grab a long spoon and dig in!

Nutrition Facts not including berries: 225 cal, 6.5g fat, 4g sugars, 21g protein

1 Cup of Blackberries adds: 62 cal, 1g fat, 7g sugar, 2g protein

Peanut Butter Chocolate Vegan Breakfast Protein Parfait

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon natural peanut butter or sunflower seed butter
• 1 to 2 tablespoons water or milk alternative (optionally sweetened)
• 1/2 teaspoon amino acids (I use L-Glutamine) or 1 tablespoon of your favorite protein powder (not included in protein count below), optional
• 1 banana, thinly sliced
• 1 Peanut Butter Chocolate Simply Protein Bar, crumbled
• 1 to 2 tablespoons mini dairy-free chocolate chips, optional

Method

• Whisk the peanut or seed butter with the water or milk alternative and aminos or protein powder, if using. You can make it thin or thick as you like. I go for 2 tablespoons or more of water to make it drizzle-able.
• Layer the parfait in a glass, starting with half of the sliced bananas, followed by half of the crumbled protein bar, and pouring on half of the nut or seed butter mixture. Repeat the layers to use up all of the ingredients.
• Top with dairy-free mini chocolate chips, if desired.
• Grab a long spoon and dig in!

Nutrition Facts not including chocolate chips: 359 cal, 12g fat, 18g sugars, 20.5g protein

1 Cup of Mini Chocolate Chips adds: 75 cal, 5g fat, 7g sugar, 1g protein

More Vegan Breakfast Protein Parfait Ideas

Now that you get the gist of it, here are some other flavor combos I have come up with using my favorite dairy-free high protein bars:

• 1 Cinnamon Pecan Simply Protein Bar + 1 diced apple + cashew or pecan butter
• 1 Cocoa w/ Raspberry Simply Protein Bar + fresh raspberries + unsweetened yogurt + mini dairy-free chocolate chips
• 1 Caramel Peanut Simply Protein Bar + 1 diced apple + peanut butter + ground cinnamon

What are some of your favorite parfait flavors? Feel free to share – we can always use more ideas!