22 Trader Joe's Breakfast Hacks To Make The Best Meal Of The Day Even Better

If your love affair with Trader Joe's is falling flat because you believe you've exhausted every grocery item they sell at this point in your adult life, it's time to consider some hacks for changing up your meals. Seasoned TJ's shoppers know that many of the grocery items can be used in combination with other grocery items to create fresh meals that go beyond the obvious intended use. And when it comes to Trader Joe's breakfast items, there are so many ways to spice up your relationship with the store that you thought you knew.

Once you unlock your mind to the possibilities of mixed groceries, your love for the store will be recharged and reinvigorated. Once you realize that you can put cookie butter in your oatmeal, or eggnog in your french toast, you'll never shop the same way again. You're an adult and there are no rules. Though you might already know that you can put Everything But The Bagel Sesame spice mix on anything in the world, you maybe didn't know that you can put chocolate nut milk in your coffee or add apple cider to your bread mix, and now you do.

Below, you'll find a list of other TJ groceries that mix well together. Some hacks are inspired by Trader Joe's recipes, some from TikTok, and others simply come from my own breakfast arsenal. Enjoy them and let them inspire you to create your own delicious concoctions.

1. Acai Smoothie Bowl

Trader Joe's has its own acai smoothie bowl recipe, but you can improvise with your favorite ingredients. All you need to do is slightly defrost an acai smoothie packet, place the contents in a bowl and decorate with your favorite toppings. Add fresh fruit, dried fruit, granola, seeds, or even cereal to achieve your desired crunch and texture. Or, throw it in the blender it and blitz it until smooth for a drinkable on-the-go option.

2. Chia Pudding

To make chia pudding, all you need is chia seeds and milk, so you can get as creative as you want here. This image features Trader Joe's personal golden coconut milk chia pudding, but you can use regular milk, nut milk, soy milk, rice milk, or even chocolate milk. Then you can add spices and sweeteners to taste like cinnamon, turmeric, honey, vanilla, and more. Combine the contents, pop it in the fridge and allow the chia to absorb the liquid and plump up. When you're ready to eat, you can top it off with fruit, coconut shavings, maple syrup or even cocoa nibs if you're looking for something extra sweet.

3. Cookie Butter Oatmeal

The genius combination of cookie butter and oatmeal is all on Trader Joe, but you can sub the cookie butter for just about any soft spreadable treat you like to spice it up. I like adding nut butters, jams, and other sweet spreads to add some fun flavors to my breakfast oats. You can also add fruits, nuts, and seeds for added texture and nutritional value. If you add the spread while the oats are still quite hot, it mixes well, incorporating the spread into every bite.

4. Egg Salad Toast

Trader Joe's makes a great ready-to-go egg salad, so if you don't have time to make your own hard boiled eggs in the morning, this is a great option. Toast some bread or Trader Joe’s Everything Ciabatta Rolls, add a piece of lettuce or cheese and spread on some of the egg salad for a superfast egg breakfast that doesn't involve any cooking.

5. Bagels & Lox

You don't need to go to an expensive deli to get a New York-style bagel sandwich. Add your favorite cream cheese spread to a bagel of your choice and top with TJ's smoked salmon. If you're looking for even bigger flavor, opt for TJ’s Everything Bagel-Style Lox.

6. Protein Powder Pancakes

Trader Joe’s has a great blueberry protein powder recipe, but you can mix in whatever protein powder you like to beef up your breakfast. Or, add whatever fruit your want to its basic protein powder pancake recipe to fine tune your pancake experience. To add even more protein, spread nut butter on your pancakes in lieu of maple syrup.

7. Mediterranean Avo Toast

Avocado toast is a classic, but if you're tired of it or looking for ways to add more protein to your breakfast, add a layer of hummus on your toast. The flavor combination is amazing, and if you top it with chopped veggies, a fried egg, or just Everything but the Bagel seasoning, you'll have a restaurant-level breakfast for a fraction of the price.

8. Overnight Eggnog Oats

Trader Joe's has a special yogurt overnight oat recipe, but you can add its delicious eggnog to make a festive overnight oat breakfast, or your favorite milk instead. To really dress it up, add some nutmeg, cinnamon, and chia seeds for some extra nutritional value. All you have to do is combine the oats, eggnog, and seasonings before bed and leave it in the fridge until morning.

9. Waffle PB&J

TJ waffles are easy and delicious, but what makes them more delicious and more commuter-friendly is when you cover them in nut butter and jam and turn them into PB&J sandwiches. If you want to go extra sweet, use cookie butter, or if you want a more adult-jam, try TJ’s epic fig spread.

10. Egg Tacos

Breakfast tacos are so versatile. In Trader Joe's recipe, they use TJ’s soy chorizo, but you can pack it however you like. For a vegetarian option, you can stick to eggs, beans, cheese and veggies, for a meat option you can swap in bacon or ground beef, and for a vegan option you can sub in tofu and add binding potatoes in lieu of cheese.

11. Everything But The Bagel Rice Cakes

Trader Joe's Everything But the Bagel Sesame seasoning is a fan favorite, it gives everything you put it on the flavor of an everything bagel. If you're not in the mood for a full bagel, or you want a gluten-free option, sub in rice cakes for bread and get all the same flavors without the hassle.

12. Festive Cornbread French Toast

Any bread will do when you're making french toast, but if you want to make something seasonally festive, use this cranberry cornbread mix, which is also gluten-free. Dunk each slice in a mixture of egg and milk (try chocolate milk or eggnog if you want it sweeter) and cook on a skillet until lightly browned.

13. Pesto Egg Breakfast with Vegan Kale, Cashew, and Basil Pesto

Try this play on the pesto egg TikTok trend, but with Trader Joe’s vegan pesto. Heat up the pesto in a pan, and use it to fry the egg. When the yolk is cooked to your liking, stack the egg on top of a Trader Joe’s hash brown and some burrata cheese.

14. Coffee and Stroopwafels

For a quick and easy breakfast, place your Trader Joe’s Stroopwafel Dutch Caramel Waffle Cookies on top of your cup of hot coffee for a couple of minutes. This will make the cookies soften and a little melted, and you’ll be able to enjoy them in a brand new way.

15. Hash Brown Sandwich

Tired of a traditional sandwich? Replace the bread with Trader Joe’s hash browns. You’ll need to heat up two of the frozen hash browns in a toaster, airfryer, or oven. When those are about done, start cooking your egg in a pan as if you’re making an omelet. Following the TikTok breakfast sandwich trend, coat the hash browns in egg on each side, and then place them on top of the egg you are cooking in the pan. When the egg is cooked, flip it so the hash browns are touching the pan. Then, you can fold them into a sandwich after you add fixings like cheese, avocado, and salsa.

16. Breakfast Burrito

Another TikTok breakfast hack, but with Trader Joe’s ingredients. Scramble a couple of eggs in a bowl and add the Everything But the Bagel Sesame Seasoning Blend. Cook the mix in a pan with butter. Add cheese, and then place a tortilla on top of the melted cheese. Flip the tortilla on its back so the egg is on top, then add more cheese, bacon, and hash browns, and fold your burrito.

17. Peach Bellini

This simple recipe from TJ's website will make you ditch your go-to mimosa. Make a purée of Trader Joe’s frozen peaches in a blender, and then add a tablespoon of the mixture to your glass. In the same glass, pour yourself some of the Trader Joe’s Secco Peach Bellini, and add some mint for garnish.

18. Scallion Pancake Elevated

The scallion pancakes are already quite good on their own, but next time you make them, try adding a fried egg and some Sriracha hot sauce on top for some extra flavor.

19. Ube Mochi Pancake Mix Donuts

The seasonal Ube Mochi Pancake Mix is back, and it’s all anyone is talking about. But instead of using it to make pancakes or waffles, try using it to make donuts. Reddit user dailywaffleblog made 11 donuts using 1.5 cups of mix, and the results look amazing.

20. Egg Frittata Breakfast Sandwich

Try the Trader Joe’s Egg Frittata with Swiss cheese and cauliflower on an English muffin, with a couple slices of cheese (havarti is recommended).

21. Shredded Potato Waffles

If you’re bored of eating TJ’s hash browns and shredded potatoes just the way they are, try making a waffle out of them. Use a waffle iron and place the shredded potatoes in it to cook with TJ’s Fancy Shredded Mexican Blend cheese, and eat your choice of breakfast meat.

22. Vegan Tortilla Wraps

For a full breakfast vegan meal, make an omelet with an egg replacement like JUST Egg, and eat it with some Trader Joe’s Jicama Wraps with vegan shredded cheese on the side.

With a little bit of creativity and planning, you can mix and match your groceries to get way more out of them that what's advertised.