Eggy Vegan Breakfast Sandwiches

These vegan breakfast sandwiches are absolutely delicious and super satisfying! Made with "eggy" chickpea flour patties, smoky tempeh bacon, and spicy cashew cheese, they're loaded with flavor and great for make-ahead breakfasts.

A vegan breakfast sandwich sounds like one of those things that can be really good, or really, really terrible.

So which are these? Well, I'll say this: I served them to my family for brunch a while back, and I was pretty nervous. Vegan breakfast sandwiches (even the really, really good variety) can be weird  to non-vegans, and we've got a few in the fam.

But you know what? They LOVED them. I was pleasantly surprised when every plate of sandwich fillings was picked clean.

Vegan "Eggs"

While there are many ways to go about making vegan eggs, this particular variety is made with chickpea flour.

Chickpea flour has a naturally savory flavor that works well for eggy recipes. It also can be whipped into a batter and cooked up into little patties that fit perfectly into an English muffin.

While tofu often works best for dishes like tofu scramble and quiche, chickpea flour batter is perfect for omelette-style recipes, like this stuffed vegan omelet and vegan egg foo young.

But isn't this just a pancake made from chickpea flour? Someone always asks this, and the answer is that yes, it is. But with the right seasonings, it these little pancakes can taste pretty eggy when stuffed into a sandwich.

How to Make a Vegan Breakfast Sandwich

Cashew Cheese

Make this first so it's ready to go when you're ready to assemble the sandwiches. Soak some cashews overnight to soften them up, then drain and rinse them.

Stick them into a food processor, along with some hot sauce, non-dairy milk, and salt. Blend until smooth!

Eggy Patties

Whisk your dry ingredients together in a bowl: chickpea flour, nutritional yeast, baking powder, spices, salt, and pepper. Whisk in some water and soy sauce.

Tip: for extra eggy flavor, use kala namak (also known as black salt) instead of regular table salt.

Heat up some oil in a skillet, then drop the batter in by about ¼ cupfuls. You want to make your patties just about the same diameter as an English muffin. Cook the patties for a few minutes on each side — just like pancakes!

Additional Fillings

I included a few slices of tempeh bacon in my sandwiches. This is totally optional, and adds a few extra steps to the recipe, but it's so worth it in my opinion!

Feel free to use whatever additional fillings you like in your sandwiches. I went with some baby spinach and salsa, but hot sauce, avocado, or sliced vegan cheese would all be delicious.

Now just assemble your sandwiches and dig on in!

Vegan Breakfast Sandwich Tips & FAQ

• This recipe makes more cashew cheese than you'll probably need. I don't recommend cutting down on the batch size, unless you have a very small blending device. If you have leftovers, try it as a dip or sandwich spread. It's also freezer-friendly — just seal it up and it should be good for 3 months.
• What brands of English muffins are vegan? Watch out, because many popular brands (like Thomas's) are not. Try Trader Joe's, Dave's Killer Bread, or Ezekiel brand. And feel free to use toast, bagels or pita bread instead!
• Can these sandwiches be made gluten-free? Yup! Just use gluten-free tamari instead of soy sauce, and gluten-free English muffins (or toast if you can't find vegan gluten-free muffins).
• Where can I find chickpea flour? Look for it in the gluten-free baking aisle at your store. You can also try the international foods section — chickpea flour is used in a lot of Indian recipes. It might be labeled as gram or besan flour.
• Where can I find nutritional yeast? Check your store's natural foods section, or try a place like Whole Foods.
• What is kala namak and where can I find it? Kala namak is a type of salt with a high sulfur content, so it tastes and smells like eggs! I buy mine online, but you can generally find it at Indian markets as well.
• Meal prep options! Depending on how much time you have, try one of these:
  • Assemble the sandwiches without greens and store them in sealed containers in the fridge (up to 3 days) or freezer (up to 3 months) then thaw (if needed), zap or heat in the oven (around 350°) until hot. You can add greens before serving if you like.
  • Store each of the components for these sandwiches separately, then heat and assemble the sandwiches when you're ready.

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5 from 2 votes

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Eggy Vegan Breakfast Sandwiches

These vegan breakfast sandwiches are absolutely delicious and super satisfying! Made with "eggy" chickpea flour patties, smoky tempeh bacon, and spicy cashew cheese, they're loaded with flavor and great for make-ahead breakfasts.

Course Breakfast

Cuisine American

Keyword vegan breakfast recipe, vegan eggs

Prep Time 20 minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes

Soak time (cashews) 4 hours

Total Time 4 hours 40 minutes

Servings 6

Calories 468 kcal

Author Alissa Saenz

Ingredients

For the Spicy Cashew Cheese

• 1 cup raw cashews, soaked in water 4 to 8 hours, drained and rinsed
• 2 tablespoons vinegar-based hot sauce (such as Cholula), plus more, to taste
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened and unflavored non-dairy milk, plus more as needed
• ½ teaspoon salt

For the Eggy Chickpea Patties

• ⅔ cup chickpea flour
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast flakes
• ½ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ teaspoon ground cumin
• ½ teaspoon paprika
• ¼ teaspoon turmeric
• ¼ teaspoon Kala namak (for eggy flavor, can substitute table salt)
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• ½ cup water
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon olive oil (or high-heat oil of choice)

For the Sandwiches

• 4 vegan English muffins, split and toasted
• ½ batch tempeh bacon (optional)
• ½ cup baby spinach
• Additional fillings or sauces of choice, such as salsa, ketchup, sliced vegan cheese, avocado, etc.

US Customary - Metric

Instructions

To Make the Spicy Cashew Cheese

1. Place all ingredients into the bowl of a food processor fitted with an s-blade. Blend until smooth.

2. Taste-test the mixture and adjust the seasonings to your liking. Thin the mixture with additional milk if it seems too thick. Blend again.

To Make the Eggy Chickpea Patties

1. Whisk the chickpea flour, nutritional yeast, baking powder, cumin, paprika, turmeric, kala namak and black pepper together in a small bowl.

2. Whisk in the water and soy sauce.

3. Coat the bottom of a medium skillet with olive oil and place it over medium heat.

4. Give the oil a minute to heat up, then pour about ¼ cup of batter into the skillet, making an approximately 3-inch patty. Repeat for as many patties as you can fit into the skillet without crowding.

5. Cook the patties for 3 to 4 minutes, until bubbles form in the center, then flip and cook about 3 to 4 minutes more, until set and lightly browned.

6. Remove the patties from the skillet and transfer them to a plate. Repeat the process until all of the batter is used.

To Assemble the Sandwiches

1. Slather the inside of one or both halves of each muffin with the spicy cashew cheese, then layer and stuff with the eggy patties, tempeh bacon (if using), and spinach on the bottom halves, along with any additional fillings you choose.

2. Serve.

Recipe Notes

Nutrition information is for 1 sandwich including tempeh bacon and 1 tablespoon of cashew cheese.

Nutrition Facts

Eggy Vegan Breakfast Sandwiches

Amount Per Serving (1 sandwich)

Calories 468 Calories from Fat 158

% Daily Value*

Fat 17.5g27%

Saturated Fat 2.8g14%

Sodium 1189mg50%

Potassium 751mg21%

Carbohydrates 55.8g19%

Fiber 9.7g39%

Sugar 7.7g9%

Protein 21.8g44%

Calcium 203mg20%

Iron 7mg39%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.