These breakfasts range from no-cook picks like the Breakfast Parfait and the Hummus and Veggie Wrap to egg dishes like the Summer Veggie Omelette that need a pan and a plate, and where you’ll eat decides which one fits.
If you’re eating in the car or on the way to work or school, pick something you can hold in one hand, like the Sausage Breakfast Burrito, the Hummus and Veggie Wrap or Nutty Apple Slices.
Seated at a table, you can take on the Smoothie Bowl or any of the egg dishes, even with a blender or pan to wash afterward.
A few lean on the night before, such as overnight oats that soften in the fridge while you sleep, so check which ones need prep ahead.
1. Breakfast Parfait
Yogurt, fruit, and granola layered in a glass jar take about as long to assemble as they do to eat. Spoon the yogurt in first, add the berries, and put the granola on top so it stays crunchy.
A little chocolate over the top turns it into a treat. Screw a lid on the jar and it rides in a bag to work or school.
2. Smoothie Bowl
Thick enough to hold a spoon upright, a smoothie bowl keeps its toppings on the surface instead of letting them sink.
Use less liquid than you would for a drinking smoothie, and blend spinach with a banana so the banana covers the greens.
Pour into a bowl, then add granola and blueberries. You will wash a blender, so this suits mornings you eat at home, not ones you eat in the car.
3. Avocado Toast with Egg
Start the bread toasting before anything else, because the eggs need your attention. Scramble them over low heat and pull the pan off while they still look glossy; they finish cooking on the plate.
Mash the avocado straight onto the toast with a fork, add a pinch of salt, and spoon the eggs over it.
Halved cherry tomatoes add some acidity. It is a tight 5 minutes, and you will have one pan to wash.
4. Hard-Boiled Egg Avocado Bowl
Eggs boiled earlier in the week are what make this a 5-minute bowl. Cook a batch, keep them in the fridge, and the morning job shrinks to slicing.
Halve the eggs, then pair them with sliced avocado and add whatever crunch and salt you have on hand, such as cucumber, cherry tomatoes, olives, or crumbled feta.
Finish with olive oil and a shake of your favorite spice. Starting from raw eggs, this one won’t fit your time.
If you keep your fridge stocked with hard-boiled eggs at all times, you might even be able to make this satisfying bowl in less than five minutes.
— SELF
5. Sausage Breakfast Burrito
Make four or five of these at once and a rushed morning stops mattering. Use precooked sausage, scramble the eggs, and roll everything into a tortilla.
Setting the rolled burrito seam-side down in a hot skillet for a minute or two on each side crisps the outside.
Diced peppers or onion can go in with the eggs if you want vegetables. Wrapped burritos reheat in the microwave when there’s no time for a skillet.
6. Summer Veggie Omelette
Broccoli and red pepper cut small soften quickly in the pan, so the omelet never waits on the vegetables. Leftover cooked broccoli is an even faster route.
Cut the finished omelette into wedges or strips and eat it with your hands on the way out.
In summer, diced zucchini or tomato can replace the broccoli. Pat wet vegetables dry first so the eggs set instead of turning watery.
7. Overnight Oats
Mix rolled oats with milk or yogurt in a jar the night before, and breakfast needs no cooking at all. The oats soften in the fridge while you sleep, so the morning job is just the toppings.
Any nut butter adds richness, a drizzle of honey sweetens the oats, and a spoonful of cacao nibs gives a slightly bitter crunch.
Stir the nut butter in right before you eat, since it sinks into the oats and loses its texture if it sits overnight. Spoon it cold, or give it 1 minute in the microwave if you want it warm.
8. Nutty Apple Slices
Peanut butter on toast with apple slices on top gives you crunch, creaminess, and a little sweetness in one hand-held bite. Sourdough holds up well under the weight, and a dusting of cinnamon does most of the flavoring.
The home cook who made this one air fried the apples first, which softens them and brings out their sweetness.
That adds time you may not have, so slice them raw on rushed mornings. A maple drizzle on top is optional.
9. Hummus and Veggie Wrap
Spread hummus in an even layer over the middle of the tortilla, since it acts as the glue that keeps the fillings from sliding out.
Pile the fillings in a strip down the center and leave about 2 inches bare on each side, so the wrap folds shut without tearing.
Fold in the sides and roll it tight, then cut it in half so it is easier to hold.
Wrap it in foil or parchment and it travels well, with no utensils and no pan. Pat the tomatoes dry first so the wrap doesn’t turn soggy before you reach the door.
10. Scrambled Egg Toast
Chives and red pepper flakes do the work here: one adds a mild oniony freshness, the other a slow heat, and together they make plain scrambled eggs taste finished.
Snip the chives with kitchen scissors so there is no cutting board to wash.
Hearty brown bread is a good base because it stays firm under soft eggs. Top with the chives and a pinch of flakes.
11. Scrambled Eggs with Avocado
Blueberries next to eggs sound odd until you taste them. The sweet, slightly tart berries cut through the richness of the eggs and the creamy avocado, and there is nothing to cook or chop beyond the eggs.
Rinse a handful of berries, slice half an avocado, and scramble the eggs last so they land on the plate hot.
A pinch of salt on the avocado helps. This plate has no bread, which suits a morning when you want something filling without toast.
