Vegan Toast Toppings: Delicious Dairy-Free Spreads And Alternatives

There are endless options for vegan toast toppings, whether you're a sweet or savoury person. Some classic toast toppings include peanut butter, avocado, hummus, and beans. For those with a sweet tooth, maple syrup, agave syrup, and chocolate sauce are all delicious options. If you're looking for something more savoury, try sliced tomatoes with balsamic vinegar, or nutritional yeast sprinkled over avocado. For a protein-filled option, top your toast with tofu scramble, beans, or tempeh bacon.

Nut butter

When it comes to spreading nut butter on your toast, the possibilities are endless. For a classic combination, simply spread a generous amount of your favourite nut butter onto toasted bread. If you're feeling adventurous, try one of these tasty variations:

• For a sweet treat, top your nut butter with sliced fruit like bananas, apples, or strawberries. You can also add a sprinkle of ground cinnamon or a drizzle of maple syrup for extra flavour.
• Create a savoury delight by spreading nut butter on your toast and topping it with sliced cucumbers, tomatoes, or avocado. Add a sprinkle of chopped nuts or seeds for some extra crunch.
• Indulge in a chocolatey delight by combining nut butter with chocolate sauce or cocoa powder. Spread this mixture on your toast and top it with sliced bananas or strawberries for a decadent breakfast or snack.
• Make a protein-packed snack by spreading nut butter on your toast and topping it with a layer of mashed chickpeas or white beans. This combination will keep you full and satisfied for longer.

Hummus

You can make your own hummus or buy it from the store. If you want to make your own, all you need are chickpeas, tahini, lemon, olive oil, and seasonings. One source recommends peeling the chickpeas first, as it makes the hummus creamier.

When it comes to bread, you can choose any kind you like. However, a sturdy, hearty bread with a large slice and a good amount of surface area works best to hold the hummus and toppings. You can toast the bread to add a nice texture contrast with the creamy hummus.

There are endless options for toppings. You can keep it simple with a sprinkle of salt and pepper or get more creative with ingredients like avocado slices, red onion, jalapeno, lime juice, or red pepper flakes. You can also try different types of hummus like roasted red pepper hummus, beetroot hummus, or lemon and dill hummus.

• Avocado Hummus Toast: Avocado slices, chopped cilantro, lime juice, red pepper flakes, and flaky sea salt. You can also add sliced red onion and jalapeno.
• Mediterranean Hummus Toast: Chopped cucumber, chopped tomatoes, chopped olives, chopped parsley, crumbled feta cheese, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. You can also add chopped red onion.
• Tomato Basil Hummus Toast: Fresh tomato slices, fresh basil, balsamic glaze, salt, and pepper. You can also add sliced fresh mozzarella.
• Banana Honey Hummus Toast: Sliced banana, honey or maple syrup, and cinnamon. You can also add sliced apples and chopped walnuts.

Avocado

To make the perfect avocado toast, start by choosing ripe avocados that are firm but indent easily when pressed. You can enjoy your avocado either sliced or mashed. If you prefer it mashed, simply scoop out the flesh and use a fork, masher, or food processor to achieve your desired texture. To add some extra flavour to your mash, you can include a dash of miso, garlic powder, and agave.

For the toast, it is recommended to use white or wheat bread, sliced thickly (about half an inch) so that it can hold the weight of the toppings. Toast your bread until it is golden brown and crunchy.

Now, it's time to assemble your avocado toast. Spread the avocado on the toast, and if you're slicing it, you can brush the avocado with lemon or lime juice to prevent discolouration.

• Fresh fruit: strawberries, blueberries, raspberries, mango, bananas, or apples.
• Vegan bacon and tomatoes: made from seitan, a protein-rich vegan meat substitute.
• Beans and salsa or Pico de Gallo.
• Salt, pepper, and chilli flakes.
• Vegan egg.
• Vegan cheese with hot sauce.
• Spiced chickpeas: mix cooked chickpeas with olive oil, smoked paprika, hot chilli powder, and salt to taste.
• Pickled red onions: thinly slice a red onion and add it to a jar with rice wine vinegar, maple syrup, lemon juice, lemon zest, and sea salt. Leave it to pickle for at least two hours or preferably overnight.
• Radish sprouts, baby rocket, or fresh coriander.
• Arugula, sliced tomatoes, and vegan bacon bits or tempeh bacon.
• Hummus and sprouts or crushed red pepper.

Feel free to get creative and experiment with different combinations of toppings to find your favourite avocado toast creation!

Vegan cheese

Choosing the Right Bread

The type of bread you choose for your vegan cheese on toast can make a big difference. If you're looking for a classic British-style cheese toastie, go for white sliced bread. It will give you that soft inside and crisp outside texture. Other options include bloomers bread, sourdough, wholemeal bread, or seeded bread for a healthier option.

Preparing the Bread

Toasting the bread before adding the vegan cheese can give it a good crunch and develop more flavour. You can simply toast the bread in a toaster or toaster oven, or you can heat a large non-stick skillet over medium heat and toast the bread for about 1 minute on each side until it's golden brown.

Selecting the Vegan Cheese

When it comes to choosing the right vegan cheese, there are a few options. You can opt for store-bought vegan cheese slices or shreds, but these may not melt as well. For a healthier and more meltable option, you can make your own vegan cheese spread. A popular choice is a vegan cheddar cheese spread made with cashews, carrots, tapioca starch, nutritional yeast, apple cider vinegar, sea salt, and spices. This can be spread on the bread and grilled or toasted until melty.

Adding Extra Ingredients

If you want to take your vegan cheese on toast to the next level, you can add some extra ingredients. Try mixing the vegan cheese with vegan cream cheese to make it extra creamy and melty. You can also add spices like garlic powder, onion powder, basil, or oregano to enhance the flavour. For a more indulgent option, you can mix in some vegan mozzarella cheese.

Cooking the Toasties

Once you have prepared the bread and spread on the vegan cheese, it's time to cook your toasties. If you're using an air fryer, set it to 180°C/350°F and cook the toasties for 3 minutes before adding the top slice. Then, cook for an additional 4 minutes until golden. If you're using a skillet, place the sandwich in the pan and cook until the bread is golden brown, about 2-3 minutes per side.

Serving Suggestions

Sweet spreads

There are many sweet spreads that vegans can enjoy on toast. Here are some ideas:

Chocolate Spreads

Vegans can enjoy chocolate for breakfast by spreading chocolate sauce, chocolate peanut butter, or even homemade chocolate pecan butter on their toast. For an extra indulgent treat, you can make a chocolate spread by mixing cocoa powder with peanut butter and adding maple syrup to sweeten.

Nut and Seed Butters

Peanut butter, almond butter, cashew butter, hazelnut spread, and sunflower butter are all delicious options for a vegan toast spread. You can also get creative and make your own nut butter at home, adding ingredients like sea salt, cinnamon, or maple syrup for extra flavor.

Fruit Spreads

Fruit jams are a classic choice for toast, and vegans can enjoy a wide variety of fruit flavors. Strawberry jam is a popular option, but you can find jams made from almost any fruit. For a healthier option, vegans can make their own jam by mashing ripe bananas and using them as a spread, or by making chia berry jam with fresh or frozen berries and chia seeds.

Sweet Condiments

Vegans can also use sweet condiments like maple syrup or agave syrup as a simple spread on their toast. These are great alternatives to honey and can also be used to make French toast.

Sweet Hummus

Hummus is not just for savory applications; it can also be made sweet. For example, a dark chocolate hummus can be made by flavoring hummus with cocoa and sweetening it with maple syrup. This can be enjoyed as a spread on toast, as well as a dip for fruit or pretzels.

Sweet Bean Spreads

Sweet bean spreads, such as a creamy white bean dip made with garlic and lemon juice, can also be enjoyed on vegan toast.

Frequently asked questions