Cheesy Egg Muffins

These Cheesy Egg Muffins are so tender and such a satisfying breakfast. The eggs and cottage cheese mixture combined with all sorts of delicious breakfast ingredients are baked in a muffin pan to make individual portions. These egg muffins are great for meal prepping for the week and freeze really well too.

I discovered this recipe more than a decade ago and have been making different versions of it for my family ever since. These egg muffins are cheesy, tender and are kind of like individual omelets with an endless possibility of fillings, such as sausage, ham, bacon, mushrooms, spinach, tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, broccoli, etc. Today I am sharing two options - Ham and Bacon for one meaty and hearty variation and a vegetarian version with onions, mushrooms and spinach.

Instead of baking these in individual portions, you can bake the egg mixture in a casserole dish. It makes for the most amazingly delicious and beautiful Breakfast Casserole. Serve these for brunch or overnight guests. It's so easy to put together but looks really spectacular and is always a big hit.

They are also great as leftovers and freeze really well too. Make a big batch, store it in your refrigerator and just reheat in the mornings.

Watch the Video of How To Make Cheesy Egg Muffins

Ingredients:

• eggs - I use large eggs for this recipe.
• cottage cheese - you can use ricotta cheese or farmer's cheese instead, although cottage cheese yields the best results.
• melted butter
• all purpose flour
• grated cheese - any cheese that melts well can be used, such as mozzarella, provolone, cheddar, Monterey Jack, Colby, etc.
• salt and ground black pepper
• filling options: ham, breakfast sausage or bacon need to be cooked in advance, most vegetables also need to be cooked in advance before adding it to the egg batter. Vegetables: onions, mushrooms, spinach, bell peppers, broccoli, asparagus, zucchini, etc.
• fresh herbs - chives, green onions, parsley, thyme, etc.

Cottage Cheese in Eggs? Will it taste like cottage cheese? Substitution options for Cottage Cheese

Cottage cheese is the secret ingredient in this recipe that makes the egg muffins or the breakfast casserole extra tender and moist. The cottage cheese will melt into the eggs and you won't taste the cottage cheese in them. Most people won't even guess it's in there.

Instead of cottage cheese, you can also use ricotta cheese or farmer's cheese. Farmer's cheese tends to be much drier in texture than cottage cheese, so I suggest adding 1-2 Tablespoons of sour cream, yogurt or milk in addition to the farmer's cheese.

Why Do the Vegetables Need To Be Cooked First?

Since the egg muffins will be baking in the oven, some people wonder why the vegetables need to be cooked first. Why not add them in raw, save yourself some time and dishes since they'll be cooked in the oven anyway.

Simply because there is not enough time for the vegetables to cook through. In the time that it takes the muffin batter to bake through, the vegetables will only begin to cook. They will still be raw. Vegetables also have a lot of excess moisture in them, so they will add too much moisture to the egg muffins, so the texture won't be right. Finally, cooking the veggies first will give them a much more delicious flavor. Sautéing gives them a much deeper and richer flavor. Without cooking the veggies, they will taste bland.

Making the Cheesy Egg Batter

• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line 2 muffin pans with liners. My favorite to use are parchment liners.
• If you need to cook the fillings, do that first, so that it can cool off slightly before you add it to the egg batter. (Cook the sausage, bacon, onions, spinach, peppers, broccoli, etc. in a skillet until cooked through, then set aside to cool.)
• In a large bowl, whisk the eggs until they are evenly mixed, then add the rest of the ingredients: cottage cheese, grated cheese, melted butter, all purpose flour, baking powder, salt and pepper. Mix to combine.
• Add the filling ingredients: chives or other fresh herbs, bacon and ham for the first muffins that I showed in the video. For the second flavor variety, add the cooked onion, mushrooms and spinach. Mix to combine.
• Scoop out the batter into the lined muffin pans. Bake for about 30-35 minutes.
• You should have about 22-24 muffins, depending on how much filling ingredients you use and how much you fill the muffin pans.
• Cool the muffins for about 5 minutes then remove from the muffins pans. Don't let the muffins cool off in the muffin pans. The condensation on the bottom will make the muffins wet and that's not tasty.

Ham, Bacon and Chive Muffins:

I usually use leftover bacon for this option, so I don't have to cook any of the filling ingredients. Cut up the ham, bacon and chives. Add to the egg batter and mix to combine.
Fill the muffin pans and bake for 30-35 minutes.

Spinach and Mushroom Cheesy Egg Muffins:

This is my absolute favorite option. The veggies in the egg muffins give it such a great flavor and since I really enjoy lots of veggies in my omelets too, I really like these veggie egg muffins and I also like making this into a breakfast casserole too.

• In a skillet, heat ½- 1 Tablespoons of butter or oil and add the chopped onion. Season with salt and pepper, and cook until the onions are tender, on medium heat, for about 5 minutes.
• Add the sliced or chopped mushrooms, season with salt, pepper and cook for another 5-7 minutes on medium high heat.
• Meanwhile, squeeze out all the excess liquid out of the frozen spinach, there is A LOT of liquid, and then add to the skillet. Season once more with salt and pepper and cook just for 1-2 minutes, until the spinach is warmed through. If you want to use fresh spinach, cut it up into smaller pieces and add last to the skillet. Cook until the spinach wilts, about 3-4 minutes. Cool to room temperature and then add to the egg batter.
• Scoop out and bake in the preheated oven for 30-35 minutes.

Storing the Cheesy Egg Muffins, Freezing and Reheating:

Store the egg muffins in the refrigerator in an airtight container for up to a week.

Freeze in an airtight container or freezer bag for up to 3 months.

You can reheat the egg muffins in the microwave or use a skillet or oven.

For the skillet method: add a splash of water to the skillet, add the muffins, cover and cook on medium low heat until the muffins are warm all the way through. The water won't make them watery - it will keep them moist and prevent them from burning. The water will create steam in the covered skillet and help to warm them through more evenly and quickly.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and place the muffins in the oven, covered. Bake until warmed through, 5-10 minutes.

More Breakfast Options:

• English Muffin Breakfast Sandwiches
• Meal Prep Breakfast Burritos
• Crispy Breakfast Potatoes in the Oven

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This recipe was originally published on May 4, 2012. I have clarified the instructions and added a video to make it even better. Enjoy!