Breakfast · American

Veggie Egg Muffin Cups

Name: Veggie Egg Muffin Cups
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 15 min
Total time: 25 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: american
Ingredients: 10 large eggs; 0.25 cup (60 ml) milk; 0.75 tsp salt; 0.25 tsp black pepper; 1 tsp olive oil, plus more for the tin; 2 cups (60 g) baby spinach; 1 red bell pepper, diced small; 2 green onions, sliced; 0.75 cup (85 g) shredded cheddar cheese, divided

Egg muffin cups are the breakfast I bake every Sunday without thinking about it anymore, the way some people always have bananas on the counter. Twelve golden cups, half eaten warm out of the oven with the kids hovering, half packed for the week. They reheat in 30 seconds and they taste like an omelet you did not have to stand over.

The formula is simple and hard to mess up: 10 eggs, a cup and a half of vegetables that have been cooked dry first, a handful of cheese, and salt. The one rule that matters is that vegetables go into the pan before they go into the eggs. Raw spinach releases water while baking and gives you pale, weepy cups with a soggy bottom. Wilted, squeezed, dry vegetables give you fluffy ones.

They puff dramatically in the oven and sink as they cool, which is not a failure, it is just eggs being eggs. Photograph them hot if you care about looks; eat them any time if you care about breakfast.

Jump to recipe

By the TasteBoard team. Timed in a home kitchen, with total time added up and safe temperatures checked.

Photo: @Kelly Sue / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0

30 min promise: 25 min total
Prep: 10 min
Cook: 15 min
Total: 25 min
Servings: 6
Course: Breakfast
Calories, about: 130 per serving

Ready in 25 min, honestly. No hidden waiting.

Instructions

1Heat the oven to 350 F (175 C). Brush a 12 cup muffin tin well with oil, including the rims, or use silicone liners.
2Heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook the bell pepper 3 minutes, add the spinach in handfuls, and stir until it is fully wilted and no water sits in the pan, about 2 minutes more. Spread the vegetables on a plate to cool for 2 minutes and blot any moisture with a paper towel.
3Whisk the eggs, milk, salt, and pepper in a large bowl until completely smooth.
4Stir the cooled vegetables, green onions, and half the cheese into the eggs.
5Divide the mixture evenly between the cups, they will be about three quarters full, and sprinkle the remaining cheese over the tops.
6Bake 14 to 16 minutes, until the centers are set and an instant read thermometer in the middle cup reads 160 F (74 C). They will puff high and then settle as they cool. Run a thin knife around each cup and lift them out. Eat warm or cool completely on a rack before storing.

Tap a step to mark it done, saved on this device only. Timer buttons count down right here and beep when time is up.

Why you will love it

25 minutes, mostly hands off, and the oven does the flipping a stovetop omelet would demand.
A week of grab and go breakfasts from one muffin tin.
Vegetarian, gluten free, low carb, and about 130 calories a cup.
Eggs baked to a safe 160 F (74 C) right in the tin, with a thermometer check in the steps.
Endlessly variable, so nobody gets bored by Thursday.

Tips

Squeeze the spinach against the side of the pan as it wilts, then blot it again on the plate. Every drop of water you remove now is a soggy cup you do not get later.
Fill the cups only three quarters full. Eggs rise like a souffle and will crown over onto the pan.
Grease the tin more than feels necessary. Eggs cement themselves to bare metal, and a well oiled tin releases them with one knife pass.
Reheat from the fridge for 30 seconds in the microwave, straight from frozen for 60 to 75 seconds.

Swaps and variations

Ham and gruyere: what changes: brown bag lunch territory. Use 0.75 cup diced ham, which needs no pre cooking, and gruyere for cheddar.
Mushroom and goat cheese: what changes: a softer, more grown up cup. Cook the mushrooms until their liquid evaporates completely.
Dairy free: what changes: skip the cheese, add 2 tbsp nutritional yeast for savoriness, and use olive oil as written.
Bacon and cheddar: what changes: cook 4 strips until crisp, crumble them in. Bacon fat means you can skip the olive oil.

What to serve

Toast and fruit, for an actual sit down breakfast instead of grab and go.
Salsa or hot sauce on the side, the way eggs like it.
An orange, because the plate could use the color.

Storage and reheating

Fridge: 4 days in a sealed container, layered with paper towels to absorb moisture. Freezer: 2 months, frozen solid on a tray first so they do not stick together, then bagged. Reheat refrigerated cups 30 seconds in the microwave or 8 minutes at 350 F (175 C) in the oven; frozen cups need 60 to 75 seconds. Always reheat to 165 F (74 C) at the center before eating.

Calories shown are an estimate from standard ingredients, not medical advice. Brands and amounts change the number.

Questions cooks actually ask

Can I use paper liners?

Silicone works better. Paper liners bond to egg proteins and half the muffin leaves with the paper. A well oiled metal tin or silicone cups are the tools that actually release.

Why did my egg cups turn rubbery?

They overbaked or got reheated too long. Pull them the moment the thermometer reads 160 F (74 C), and reheat in short bursts. Eggs tighten and squeeze out water the longer they cook, so treat them gently.

Can I add meat without cooking it first?

Only fully cured or pre cooked meats like diced ham. Raw bacon, sausage, or ground meat must be cooked before it goes in, both for safety and because the short bake cannot cook them through.

How many is a serving?

Two cups make a solid breakfast with fruit, one cup is a good snack. The batch of twelve covers three breakfasts for two adults, which is exactly how the week tends to go.

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Veggie Egg Muffin Cups

Instructions

Why you will love it

Tips

Swaps and variations

What to serve

Storage and reheating

Questions cooks actually ask

Cook something similar next

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Keep exploring

All breakfast recipes

American recipes

Vegetarian recipes

Gluten free recipes

Low carb recipes

High protein recipes