Start your day with this nutritious breakfast salad that’s loaded with everything you love: roasted veggies, crispy bacon, avocado, and topped with a fried egg.
Salad for breakfast? Yes. Perfect for days when it’s too late for breakfast but not late enough to call it lunch; this recipe will keep you full for hours!
It’s a delicious combination of flavors and textures, and runny egg yolk makes it downright amazing.
Benefits of Salad for Breakfast
Unlike plain salads meant to bulk up a meal, this breakfast salad is loaded with nutritious ingredients that not only taste good but are good for you! Everything from dark leafy greens and veggies, avocado providing healthy fasts, and a fried egg (or two) adding protein; it’s a balanced meal all in one bowl.
The roasted veggies and crisp greens provide fiber and great texture, which helps keep you full and feeling your best throughout the morning. And eggs are an inexpensive protein, that when cooked over easy, with a yolk also adds a touch of sweetness and flavor to the salad.
Let’s not forget the sliced avocado that provides benefits of healthy fats and satiate the appetite, you’re going to want to make this salad on repeat.
While you can eat it first thing in the morning, I find this breakfast salad recipe to be an ideal meal to break a fast whenever I’m practicing intermittent fasting. The eggs give it a breakfast feel and the hearty salad won’t weigh you down after a fast.
And if you want to learn more about how I practice intermittent fasting and how you can incorporate it into your busy lifestyle – check out my intermittent fasting guide for women.
It includes an in-depth guide for beginners on intermittent fasting with a one-week meal plan of delicious ideas to break your fast and keep you fueled!
Building a Nutrient-Dense Breakfast Salad
To build a breakfast salad, you’ll need nutrient-dense ingredients that complement a bed of greens.
Here’s everything you’ll need to make this breakfast salad:
- sweet potato: packed with beta carotene, which our bodies convert to vitamin A. Plus, roasted sweet potatoes give off that sweet potato fry flavor- without the added fat.
- red bell pepper: a great source of vitamic C and their crisp, sweet flavor makes them even better.
- olive oil: to coat the veggies before they in the oven.
- seasonings: keepin’ it simple with garlic powder, salt, and black pepper.
- salad greens: this could be arugula, spinach, or a blend, the darker the greens the more vitamins.
- bacon: because it’s delicious, makes everything taste better, and essential for breakfast.
- eggs: a source of healthy fats and protein.
- avocado: more healthy fats, particularly omega-3 fatty acids, and a great fiber source.
How to Make a Breakfast Salad
Grab those ingredients, and let’s build this salad!
- Prep the veggies
Cube the sweet potatoes into 1-inch pieces. Slice the red bell peppers. - Preheat the oven to 400F
Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper. - Bake the veggies
Place the veggies onto the baking sheet, toss with olive oil, and seasonings. Bake until the sweet potatoes are tender and golden brown. - Meanwhile
Place a large handful of greens in a bowl. - Fry an egg or two
Grease a non-stick pan with cooking spray and cook the egg(s) sunny-side up or over easy. - Assemble
Top each bowl of greens with roasted veggies, eggs, bacon, and avocado. Grab a fork and eat up!
I also made a video to show you how easy this breakfast salad comes together.
Can you Prep a Breakfast Salad Ahead?
This breakfast salad can be prepped ahead, up to the fried egg and avocado, which I recommend adding just before you serve.
- Roast the veggies
- Cook the bacon
- Place the salad greens into meal prep containers and top with room temperature veggies and bacon.
- Refrigerate for up to 3 days.
- When you’re ready to serve, fry an egg and top over the salad with avocado.
If you’re packing this salad to the office and don’t have a way to fry an egg, use soft-boiled or hard-boiled eggs instead. These can be added to the salad when assembling them into containers.
Check out this post for more tips to build meal prep salads that stay fresh.
Making the Best Breakfast Salad
Below are a few tips to make sure this breakfast turns out incredible and stays fresh if you are prepping it ahead.
Hot or cold?
You can enjoy this breakfast salad either hot or cold. I find it tastes better hot, but if you prepped these salads ahead, the salad base (mixed greens, veggies, and bacon) tastes delicious straight from the fridge topped with a fried egg and avocado.
How Long Does it Keep?
The salad base (mixed greens, veggies, and bacon) is good for up to 3 days. The salad should be eaten immediately after adding the fried egg and avocado.
Swapping Ingredients
Use any of your favorite veggies like mushrooms, green bell pepper, cauliflower, or regular white potato instead of red bell pepper and sweet potato.
If you aren’t a runny egg yolk fan, replace them with hard-boiled eggs- you want to keep the protein. The bacon can also be swapped for your favorite breakfast sausage- that’ just YUM!
Can I Add Dressing?
The runny egg yolk acts as a ‘dressing’ for this salad, but if you make this salad with hard-boiled eggs, toss it in a light vinaigrette, like my balsamic vinaigrette.
Healthy Breakfast Salad Recipe
Ingredients
- 2 medium sweet potatoes, cubed
- 1 red bell pepper, sliced into strips
- Olive oil
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- Black pepper, to taste
- 6 cups arugula or baby spinach or green blend
- 4 strips bacon, cooked and coarsely chopped
- 4 eggs
- 1 avocado, peeled and sliced
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 400F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
- Place the sweet potato and bell pepper onto the baking sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with salt, garlic powder, and black pepper. Toss to combine.
- Bake for 20-25 minutes or until the sweet potatoes are tender when poked with a fork. Remove from oven and set aside.
- Assemble the salads by placing a large handful, or two, of greens in each bowl.
- Spray a non-stick pan and cook eggs sunny side up over medium heat.
- Top each bowl of greens with roasted veggies, fried egg, bacon pieces, and avocado slices.
Kimberly
I LOVE a good yolky fried egg, but I’d never thought to make a breakfast salad with one on top! Genius, a new favorite for sure.