Very-Veggie Breakfast Bowls are full of fresh veggies, and protein-packed eggs. This meatless, vegetarian breakfast recipe satisfies!
In the Midwest it’s very common to have a protein, vegetable, and non-vegetable starch like bread or pasta at every meal. Not wrong, not right – it just is! That said, my husband and I recently wondered what would happen if – gasp! – we didn’t eat a starch with each meal (trust me, we talk about more riveting topics than starches!)
I took it as a personal challenge to increase our daily vegetable intake AND ALSO not miss the empty calories of unnecessary starches.
Like serving a baked sweet potato instead of a side of pasta at dinner. Or pairing a bowl of soup with salad instead of a roll at lunch. Or swapping a muffin for a Very-Veggie Breakfast Bowls in the morning!
Veggie Packed Breakfast Bowls
Riced cauliflower, which makes an excellent replacement for hash browns, is sizzled up then topped with eggs scrambled with greens and mushrooms, a dousing of salsa or hot sauce, and a generous dollop of Lazy Girl’s Guacamole.
Plant-based (though if you want to add bacon I’ll totally look the other way!), gluten and dairy-free, filling, but most importantly so, so satisfying. This breakfast is the definition of feel good food.
Cauliflower rice is having a moment right now. Like, there’s nothing it can’t do. Except be wine. That’d be nice! Anyway, it’s so versatile, and not only do we use it in place of actual rice around here, like in my Cauliflower Fried Rice, but it also makes an awesome replacement for hash browns.
Nothing against the humble potato, which is of course a vegetable and undeniably delicious, but good hash browns require a ton of oil or butter to make them breakfast-worthy. Cauliflower on the other hand? Just a tiny drizzle will do ya, plus you reap the dozens of nutritional benefits that come along with eating this super food.
There are several options for making and/or procuring cauliflower rice: send the florets through a food processor fitted with the grating blade, grate the head on a box grater, or purchase a bag of fresh or frozen cauliflower crumbles from the store.
Of course cauliflower rice doesn’t get crispy like hash browns, but the experience is similar. It’s all about the visual with this dish, and once the cauliflower is sauted, it’s a dead ringer for its potato counterpart.
Best of all? This meal is super easy to throw together and although I’m labeling them “breakfast bowls” I’ve eaten this dish for every meal of the day. Vegetable power, baby!
Start by adding a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil to a large skillet over medium heat. Add 4oz sliced mushrooms then saute until they release their water. After the liquid has evaporated season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper then saute until the mushrooms are golden brown, and remove to a plate.
Add another drizzle of extra virgin olive oil to the skillet then turn the heat up to medium-high. Add 1-1/2 cups cauliflower rice, season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then saute until crisp-tender, 4-5 minutes.
Remove the cauliflower hash browns to your serving bowl then turn the heat back down to medium and add the mushrooms back into the skillet along with 1 chopped green onion and a handful of a baby spinach blend, or baby spinach. Saute until the greens have wilted, then add 2 eggs that have been whisked and scramble.
Scoop the scrambled veggie eggs onto the cauliflower rice then top with a big spoonful of salsa and my Lazy Girl’s Guacamole, aka 1/2 avocado mashed with lemon or lime juice, garlic powder, and salt.
Pair with a cup of coffee, cold OJ, or big cup of water to jump start your day the healthy way – with VEGETABLES! Enjoy!
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1/2 avocado
- 1/2 lime
- garlic powder, salt, and pepper
- 2 eggs
- extra virgin olive oil
- 1-1/2 cups cauliflower rice, fresh or frozen
- 4 oz mushrooms, sliced
- 1 small handful baby spinach
- 1 green onion, chopped
- salsa, for serving
Directions
- Add avocado, a drizzle of lime juice, garlic powder, salt, and pepper to a small bowl then mash with a fork and set aside. Whisk eggs with salt and pepper in a small bowl then set aside.
- Heat a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil in a 10" skillet over medium heat. Add mushrooms then saute until they release their water. After the water has cooked off, season mushrooms with garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then saute until golden brown. Scoop into a bowl then set aside.
- Turn heat up to medium-high then add another drizzle of extra virgin olive oil to the skillet. Add cauliflower, season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then saute until crisp-tender, 4-5 minutes. Scoop cauliflower into your serving bowl then set aside.
- Turn heat back down to medium then add the mushrooms back into the skillet along with the green onions and baby spinach. Saute until spinach is barely wilted, 30 seconds, then add whisked eggs and scramble. Scoop mixture on top of sautéd cauliflower hash browns then top with mashed avocado and salsa.
Nutrition
Nutritional values are estimates only. Please read our full nutrition information disclaimer.
More Cauliflower Rice Recipes
Low-Carb Bacon-Cheddar Cauliflower Chowder
Low-Carb Cauliflower Cream Cheese Soup
Sheet Pan Sausage and Peppers with Parmesan-Garlic Cauliflower Rice
Sweet Chili Coconut-Lime Grilled Chicken with Coconut-Lime Cauliflower Rice
I am a long time reader of your blog and really enjoy so many of your easy, delicious and healthy recipes. This looks great! I just feel that some if the information you’ve provided to your readers is incorrect. Carbohydrates, like pasta, rice, bread, and other grains are definitely not “devoid of nutrition.” Carbs provide our body and our brains with much needed energy. They contain fibre, protein, and a range of vitamins and minerals. Sweet potatoes, white potatoes, and other starchy vegetables are also a great choice, but so is whole grain pasta, brown rice, and *gasp* even white flour based carbs. I just wouldn’t want your readers to think they needed to shun all “starches.” Thanks!
I totally agree with you Dara, and it was never my intention to insinuate that people should give up ALL non-vegetable starches. I personally couldn’t because I love GF white bread and pasta too much! That sentence in particular was more to show how we could replace the foods I listed – muffins, rolls, and pasta – with vegetables when and if we could. Totally a suggestion though. I am not a nutritionist nor dietitian and I would never tell anyone how to eat. Thank you for your thoughtful feedback!
Hi Kristin, I’m a Registered Dietitian and I just wanted to play a bit off what Dara said here! Starches are extremely important to our diet- I know you of course know this! There is nothing wrong with having a starch at every meal, and is in fact promoted! Just of course, choosing whole grain pasta over white pasta, for instance, is preferable. So at breakfast, honestly you should eat that starch, it provides necessary fuel for the day! Just aim for a slice of whole grain bread vs white bread. Also, as a side note, sweet potatoes are a starch! They do provide more nutritive value than a side of white pasta however, you were right there!
Genius! I totally thought these were hashbrowns when I first saw the photo…and I’m a sucker for veggies with guac ;) Nothing better than that creamy/crunchy combo!
This looks so good! I’ve tried mashed cauliflower before instead of potatoes, but I’ve never thought about using it for hash browns. Cool idea!
Yum, can’t wait to try this! Just made your cauliflower fried rice last night and it was soooo good!
So glad to hear it, Erica!! Let me know what you think of the dish if you get a chance to try it! :)
I made your cauliflower fried rice (with chicken) last night for dinner and it was a big hit! I realized that I lost the grater for my food processor, though, so box grater it was. Not going to lie, I was scared for my knuckles. Substitute for potatoes? Brilliant!
I hear you – I have a few scars on my knuckles from the ol’ box grater!
Thanks for the idea! I have done a very similar breakfast scramble using grated sweet potato instead of regular hash browns. It was also good!
Love sweet potatoes for breakfast! I just made spiralized sweet potatoes with bacon and eggs today. :)
I’ve been using Bird’s Eye (frozen) since it steams in the bag from Hy-Vee!
Thanks for the recommendation, Stacey – I didn’t know Bird’s Eye had a version!
YES! I did a post on cauliflower rice recipes the other week! It’s such a staple in my diet. I make cauliflower rice stir fries and my take on ‘risotto’ every week!
I have been wanting to try cauliflower risotto! Do you have a specific recipe you love?
Nice how you incorporated cauliflower into breakfast! And I like the no-starches, as I now cook almost all breakfasts cause wife is pregnant and wants to easier pass her 1 hour glucose test.
Ah, gotcha – yes this is a great dish for her then! Congrats to you guys!
I can’t wait to try this recipe! Ever since I did Whole30 a few years ago I’ve been all about having vegetables for breakfast. You should see the looks I get from co-workers when I’m heating up leftover stir fry or having a salad for breakfast. Think I’ll also try your sheetpan sausage & peppers for breakfast too!
Yes, that recipe is perfect for breakfast!! The leftovers reheat really well too. :)
This post couldn’t have come at a better time! I have been trying to eat more veggies vs. starches in the AM, and was beginning to tire of squash as the base vegetable. Can’t wait to try this recipe!
Perfect! Let me know if you try it, Kristi!
Is there a reason you’ve switched to using garlic powder instead of garlic salt in your dishes?
Ben bought a big jar of garlic powder so I’ve been trying to use it up. Additionally Ben is watching his salt intake so garlic powder is a great way to get the flavor of garlic without having to add any additional salt.
This looks delicious! I was going to make a frittata for dinner tonight, but I’m pretty sure I have all the ingredients on hand to make this instead. I love the idea of using the riced cauliflower as a hash brown style base. Thanks for the inspiration!
You bet, Lauryn! I hope you love it! :)
I made this dish. I didn’t have mushrooms and my avocados weren’t ripe enough to mash but OMG this is delicious!!! Thanks didn’t even miss meat!!