Make these pretty vegan 4th of July breakfast parfaits to start your fourth off with a bang! They're quick and easy, only taking about 15 minutes to make. Natural colorings create the featured red, white, and blue, making these parfaits a colorful, nutritious treat. This recipe satisfies a dairy-free, gluten-free, vegan, plant-based, whole-food lifestyle.
I'm so happy to share this easy and very festive recipe with you. It's the ideal breakfast to fuel the kids before a packed 4th of July holiday. Parade, classic car show, street fair, pig races, barbecue, dunk tank, auction, beach bonfire, fireworks show - whatever you have planned for the day, you can set the tone from the start with these nutritious, delicious parfaits for breakfast. You'll be eating them within about 15 minutes and kicking off the day beautifully. Really, you're just a blend-stir-scoop away from eating these sweet treats, and after you try them, you may end up making them all summer long!
I hope you have a fun, safe holiday filled with love and kindness.
Natural red, white, and blue coloring
It's full of red, white & blue splendor without any artificial dyes. Really! Strawberries are all you need for the red, and the blue is represented with blueberries and natural blue powder - either blue majik (used here), which is a spirulina extract, or blue butterfly pea flower powder. You can often find both now at health food stores. They don't really add flavor, but boy do they add color!
Parfait layers
Textures and sweet flavors are plentiful in these parfaits.
A red & blue fireworks display appears on top of the parfait, thanks to the creamy whipped cream and a little strawberry essence, plus the sweet-tart pop of blueberries.
Digging down, you'll find the smooth yogurt juxtaposed with the crunch of granola and chia seeds, and finally, that icy-cold strawberry sorbet with little berry chunks throughout. Berry good!
Let's make a 4th of July parfait
Ingredients, Substitutions, Steps
Frozen strawberries, maple syrup or date syrup, and a vanilla or neutral plant-based milk make up the strawberry layer. Lately, I've been using oat milk; any you like should work well. This layer is blended into a smoothie for the base.
Between the red and white layers is a granola layer. Use any you like. I like to choose one that is berry or vanilla to fit the theme. Chocolate Berry Granola could be used, omitting the chocolate and cacao powder if you want it to be more neutral in color. Your favorite cereal or even rolled oats could be used if you don't have granola.
The white layer is a plant-based yogurt. Vanilla ideally, but plain will work, too.
The blue layer is very blue, thanks to a layer of blueberries and blue majik or butterfly pea flower powder stirred into a second layer of yogurt. Chia seeds are also stirred into this yogurt layer, appearing like little stars inside the blue. Either black (used here) or white chia seeds will work.
Finally, the topping layer consists of your favorite plant-based whipped cream topped with more blue powder, a drizzle more of the strawberry smoothie used for the base, blueberries, and strawberries. This combo creates a dazzling fireworks-like topping!
More 4th of July Recipes
4th of July Breakfast Parfaits
Equipment
- high speed blender or other blender
- 8-10 ounce glasses or jars
Ingredients
- 1 cup strawberries frozen
- ½ cup oat milk or other plant-based milk
- 2 teaspoons maple syrup or date syrup
- 6 ounces coconut yogurt or other plant-based yogurt, vanilla or plain
- ⅛ teaspoon blue majik powder* or blue butterfly pea flower powder
- 4 teaspoons chia seeds black or white
- ½ cup granola or cereal
- ⅓ cup blueberries fresh, washed
- ½ cup coconut whipped cream or other plant-based whipped cream
- 2 strawberries fresh, washed
Instructions
Red layer
- Place the strawberries, syrup, and milk in a high-powered blender. Slowly turn it to high, then use the tamper to push the strawberries into the blade until small pieces are formed. Set the mixture aside.
White layer and blue layer
- Divide the yogurt into two bowls. Add the blue powder and chia seeds to one of the bowls, stirring until the color is well distributed.
- Begin to layer the parfaits in the glasses or jars. For the bottom layer, divide all but a few spoonfuls of the strawberry mixture between the two.
- Sprinkle ¼ cup granola into each glass, covering the strawberry mixture and chia seeds.
- Spoon the white yogurt around the outer edge of the granola so it can be seen well from the outside, dividing it between the two.
- Place the blueberries evenly over the white layer.
- Spoon the blue yogurt around the outer edge over the blueberries, same as the white yogurt, dividing it between the two.
- Top each with a scoop of whipped cream. If you want to keep it whole food, plant-based, you can omit or use an appropriate whipped cream.
- Garnish with blueberries, a sprinkle of blue powder, and the remaining spoonfulls of strawberry mixture.
- Serve immediately.
