This Breakfast Falafel Salad is a quick, savory, filling and healthy vegetarian breakfast idea. Looking for what to do with falafels? You'll love this easy and healthy falafel salad. Made with Greek yogurt dressing.
This post is sponsored by Cauldron.
A quick, savory, filling and healthy breakfast can be hard to come by. But this Breakfast Falafel Salad checks all those boxes. It's a healthy vegetarian breakfast idea that is easy to make.
I chose falafels as the main ingredient in this breakfast salad because falafels are packed with protein. It is also a versatile ingredient since it is vegetarian-friendly.
It's no real surprise when they say falafels are one of the most widely-consumed foods in the Middle East. Although I wouldn't call this breakfast salad an authentic Middle Eastern breakfast per se, it is certainly inspired by Middle Eastern tastes.
This Falafel Salad makes is healthy vegetarian breakfast
Breakfast Falafel Salad is a:
- quick breakfast, especially if you use store bought falafels and packaged salad leaves.
- savory breakfast packed with flavor. Falafels are filled with fragrant spices, and this homemade Greek yogurt dressing is tangy.
- filling breakfast. Falafels are made with chickpeas, which is a great plant-based source of protein and filling (Cauldron falafels are made with nearly 60% chickpeas!). Plus, this salad is topped with hard boiled eggs to give this vegetarian breakfast even more protein.
- healthy vegetarian breakfast idea because you are getting plenty of fiber in the morning.
This Breakfast Falafel Salad probably falls under the category of unique breakfast ideas, and you might not ever have thought of having falafels for breakfast before. But I encourage you to give it a try and get creative with your breakfasts and brunches.
Why is this a breakfast salad? You can make this recipe any time of the day, but I call it a breakfast salad because it has everything you would want in a healthy vegetarian breakfast. This recipe is loaded with fresh veggies, protein, fiber and taste.
How to make this easy Falafel Salad
Making this breakfast falafel salad is so easy. Ingredients you'll need:
- Your favorite falafels (I use Cauldron falafels)
- Your favorite salad leaves (I use a mix of baby greens)
- Some other vegetables (cucumbers, purple cabbage, carrots are all great choices)
- A hard-boiled egg
- Greek yogurt, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, salt and pepper -- to make your own salad dressing
This easy Greek yogurt dressing is adapted from my everyday salad dressing
To take inspiration from more traditional breakfast foods, the tangy salad dressing is made with Greek yogurt. It's a very simple salad dressing - whisk together Greek yogurt, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, and some salt and pepper.
You can add in more Greek yogurt to make it more creamy if you'd like. It's really tangy when you eat it straight from a spoon, but once you add it on some salad leaves, it mellows down. Don't over dress your salad though.
Putting this falafel salad together with the Greek yogurt dressing
This is a very light salad dressing, so you can either toss the salad leaves in it, or you can just quickly pour some the dressing on top after you have plated the salad. Either way works fine.
Taste and test as you add on the salad dressing though. Since it's a tangy and flavorful salad dressing, you don't want to add too much at the start.
I kept the falafels whole in the photos so you can see them clearly. This is also how I serve this breakfast falafel salad to other people too.
To quickly make this breakfast salad, you can toss it all in one big bowl, crumbling the falafel
However, when I'm home alone, I dump all the ingredients into a big bowl, crumble up the falafels with my fork and mix it around. I do the same with the egg and egg yolk, and mix the salad all together. The salad becomes a bit of a huge mess, but it's tasty!
Essentially the plated falafel salad is my going out look, and the at home bowl falafel salad is my PJ-look. Sorry, no one gets to see that PJ-look today.
Falafels came on my breakfast radar because I was looking for a vegetarian option that could replace ham, bacon and sausage in the morning.
Have falafels in the morning for a filling vegetarian breakfast
I wanted something savory that had protein too. One morning, it dawned on me that falafels would make a great breakfast option!
Because falafels are very versatile, they do the trick in a lot of otherwise meaty breakfast dishes. Falafels also aren't made with the nitrates and preservatives that you find in bacons, hams, and sausages.
In fact, these falafels by Cauldron are completely vegan and made without GM ingredients. It's a great swap for otherwise common breakfast meats.
Falafels are a delicious vegetarian option to use in place of bacon, sausage, and ham
Falafels do contain salt, but I find that they generally contain less salt than other breakfast meats. So without the nitrates, and with the lower sodium content, falafels tend to be a healthier breakfast option.
Unfortunately, while you aren't going to be able to replace breakfast meats with falafels one for one in recipes such as breakfast casseroles, it does work well being paired with something savory like frying an egg.
You can easily make a very healthy vegetarian breakfast using falafels. And compared to other vegetarian meat alternatives, I definitely prefer to just use falafels when I'm after a vegetarian breakfast idea.
What to do with falafels - Ideas on how to eat falafels
Falafel salad is one of the most common ways we eat falafel in our home. But if you have any leftover falafels after making this recipe, there are a million other ways you can use up the falafels.
Here are some breakfast ideas that use falafels
Falafels are delicious on their own - cold or warmed up in the microwave, especially if you are after a breakfast on-the-go. You can also crumble falafels over scrambled eggs, or crumble falafels into an omelette.
A couple of falafels crumbled up also make a delicious savory oatmeal topping. And they sit very nicely in breakfast sandwiches or wraps.
Other easy recipe ideas that use falafels
We happily eat an entire box of falafels making this breakfast salad. However, if you find yourself with extra falafels, here are a few other recipes that can help you use them up:
Enjoy this vegetarian breakfast idea and happy eating!
Breakfast Falafel Salad
Print RecipeIngredients
- 1 bag salad leaves (I use baby leaf greens) (6 ounces / 170 grams) - washed
- 6-8 whole falafels
- 2 large hard-boiled eggs - peeled
- red cabbage (approx ½ cup) - washed and shredded
- cucumber (approx ¼ of a regular-sized cucumber) - washed and chopped
For the Greek Yogurt Dressing
- 1 ½ tablespoons Greek yogurt
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- ½ teaspoon honey
- ¼ teaspoon coarse sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
Instructions
- In a bowl, whisk together the Greek yogurt, olive oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, sea salt and pepper.
- Arrange the salad leaves evenly on two plates, and top with falafels, egg, red cabbage, and cucumber. Drizzle on as much dressing as desired. Alternatively, place all the salad ingredients in the bowl and toss with the dressing. Serve immediately.
Elena says
What a great breakfast idea! I will certainly give it a try