Easy Meal Prep Breakfast Egg Muffins (with Bacon & Spinach!)

These savory and delightful egg muffins are packed with tender spinach, sharp cheddar cheese, and crispy bacon, creating a perfect grab-and-go breakfast or snack. I find them absolutely irresistible and they make busy mornings so much easier and tastier. Think of them like little individual frittatas bursting with delicious ingredients, ideal for meal prep or a simple, satisfying bite.

When I was focusing on a low carbohydrate way of eating, I discovered how much I truly enjoyed incorporating eggs into my meals. A particular favorite of mine was making a straightforward frittata with bacon and eggs. It wasn’t just simple to put together, it was incredibly filling and tasted wonderful. Eating it, I never felt like I was restricting myself or eating typical “diet food”.

It almost seems too good to be true sometimes. How can something so utterly delicious potentially help you reach your health goals? Yet, it really can happen.

Recently, I got the idea to make those beloved frittatas, but scaled down into a more convenient form. I whipped up a batch of these delightful Spinach and Cheese Egg Muffins for breakfast and they turned out absolutely amazing.

They contained all the elements I loved in my standard frittata, like savory bacon, sweet onion, and rich cheese. I made sure to add in some fresh spinach too for a lovely splash of color and that extra boost of iron.

Ingredients You Will Need

You will find the complete recipe details with exact amounts and step-by-step directions available at the close of this post.

• Bacon
• Onion
• Cheddar cheese
• Spinach
• Eggs

How to Prepare Spinach and Cheese Egg Muffins

Here are the steps I follow to make these wonderful egg muffins.

Step One: Begin by warming your oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Take a standard size muffin pan and give each cup a generous coating of cooking spray. Set the prepared pan aside for now. Ensuring each cup is well-sprayed is key to easy removal later.

Step Two: Crack the eggs into a large mixing bowl. Grab a whisk and beat the eggs until they become a little bubbly and frothy. This helps create a light texture in the finished muffins.

Step Three: Carefully add the shredded cheese into the bowl with the beaten eggs. Use a spoon or spatula to gently stir everything together until it is just combined. Resist the urge to overmix at this stage. Set this bowl off to the side.

Step Four: Get a frying pan hot on your stovetop over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and bacon to the pan. Cook this mixture for approximately 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. You are looking for the bacon to become nicely crispy and the onion to soften and turn translucent. Next, add the fresh spinach to the pan and stir it in with the bacon and onion mixture. Continue cooking for about 3 minutes more, or until the spinach has wilted down significantly. Remove the pan from the heat and allow the cooked mixture to cool for about five minutes. Cooling prevents the hot mixture from cooking the raw eggs too quickly when combined.

Step Five: Pour the slightly cooled spinach and bacon mixture into the bowl containing the egg and cheese. Stir everything together really well until all the ingredients are thoroughly mixed and distributed evenly throughout the egg base.

Step Six: Gently ladle the combined egg mixture into the prepared muffin pan cups. Be careful not to fill the muffin cups too high. Aim to fill them about two-thirds or three-quarters full to prevent overflow as they bake. Place the pan into your warmed oven and bake for 15 minutes. The egg muffins are ready when they look set and are lightly golden around the edges.

Step Seven: Take the pan out of the oven when baking is complete. Let the egg muffins cool right there in the pan for about 5 minutes. This cooling time helps them firm up slightly before you attempt to remove them.

Step Eight: To get the muffins out of the pan, use a small knife or a thin spatula and carefully run it around the edge of each muffin. This helps loosen them so you can gently lift them out. Serve these delicious egg muffins immediately while they are warm for the best flavor and texture.

Essential Kitchen Tools

Having the right tools at hand will make preparing this recipe much smoother.

• Muffin pan
• Ladle
• Mixing bowls
• Whisk

Can I Substitute Frozen Spinach in These Egg Muffins?

Yes, absolutely. I chose to use fresh baby spinach for this recipe because I really like the texture it provides. However, you can definitely use frozen spinach if that’s what you have on hand or prefer. If you opt for frozen spinach, it is crucial to thaw it first and then squeeze out as much excess water as you possibly can before you mix it into the other ingredients. Skipping this step can make your egg muffins watery.

While I lean towards fresh, when I am in a pinch or just don’t have fresh spinach, I have reached for frozen many times and it works wonderfully. It still contributes that lovely, bright green color to your egg muffins, helping them look just as appealing.

Can These Egg Muffins Be Made Suitable for Vegetarians?

Certainly. If you want to make this recipe vegetarian, simply leave out the bacon entirely. When you are frying the onions in the pan, remember to add a little bit of oil or butter to the pan to cook them since the bacon fat won’t be there.

The great thing about making egg muffins is that there really are no limits to the ingredients you can include. You can essentially use almost any ingredient you enjoy. I have prepared these in many different ways in the past, often just using whatever ingredients I happen to have available in my kitchen at the time.

How to Properly Freeze Spinach and Cheese Egg Muffins

One of the aspects I genuinely appreciate about these specific egg muffins is how perfect they are for preparing meals in advance. You have the option to bake a large batch of these, let them cool completely, and then freeze them to have quick and easy breakfasts ready for future busy mornings.

Just bake your egg muffins according to the instructions and let them cool down completely to room temperature. Once they are cool, you can transfer them into an airtight container or a bag designed for freezing. What I personally like to do is place one or two egg muffins into smaller sandwich-sized bags first, and then put those smaller bags into a larger freezer bag.

This method ensures I have perfectly portioned egg muffins that I can simply grab and reheat in the microwave for a rapid breakfast solution.

How to Reheat Frozen Egg Muffins

When you are ready to reheat these egg muffins from the freezer, take out the desired number and place them onto a microwave-safe plate. For one or two egg muffins, you will typically need to microwave them for about 30 seconds to a minute. Be sure to stop the microwave and check how warm the eggs are during this time.

If they are not heated through, you can continue heating them for a little bit longer. Once the egg muffins are warm all the way through, you can serve them just as you normally would. Just be careful not to over-cook the eggs in the microwave, as doing so can cause them to become tough and rubbery.

How Long Can You Store Spinach Cheese Egg Muffins in the Refrigerator?

Because this particular recipe includes meat in the form of bacon, it is recommended that you store these egg muffins in the refrigerator for no more than three days. If you plan to keep them longer than that, it is best to discard them.

If you make a large batch, you could easily enjoy some of them fresh from the refrigerator over a few days and then freeze any that you do not plan to eat within that timeframe.

Why Do My Egg Muffins Sometimes Stick?

The most important factor in preventing your egg muffins from sticking to the pan is ensuring you use a very generous amount of cooking spray in each and every muffin cup. If you do not coat the cups thoroughly, you will likely find that your finished egg muffins are extremely difficult to remove from the pan.

I have also found that using paper cupcake liners doesn’t really help; the egg mixture still tends to stick to the paper. In my experience, using a bare metal muffin pan is the best option. Just make certain you liberally coat it with cooking spray, and that should provide enough non-stick surface to help the eggs release easily.

Helpful Pointers for Making Egg Muffins

Here are a few tips that I find useful when making egg muffins.

• Consider using ingredients that are already prepared to cut down on your preparation time. This could include pre-cooked bacon, cheese that is already shredded, or even pre-chopped onions.
• If you want to reduce the calorie count, you can make these using only egg whites. Alternatively, you could use a mix of half egg whites and half whole eggs.
• Feel free to experiment with different toppings and mix-ins to create unique flavor combinations for your egg muffins.

How Can You Prevent Muffin Eggs from Deflating?

Unfortunately, regardless of what steps you take, you will notice that your egg muffins will deflate a little bit after you remove them from the oven. This is just a natural part of the process as they cool down, and it is not something you can truly control or prevent completely.

Despite them going a little flat, they will still taste absolutely incredible and provide a delicious way to start your mornings or enjoy a quick protein boost.

Exciting Variations for Egg Muffins

The possibilities for customizing egg muffins are truly endless. Here are a few ideas to inspire you.

• Protein Ideas: This category offers infinite choices. Feel free to mix and match different meats to give your egg muffins exactly the flavor profile you desire. Options like Canadian bacon, various types of sausage, or spicy Chorizo work wonderfully.
• Vegetable Ideas: You can mix and match your favorite vegetables and toss them into your egg mixture. Make sure to chop them into relatively small, bite-sized pieces so they fit nicely within the muffin cups. Good choices include different colored peppers, more onions, broccoli florets, or mushrooms.
• Cheese Ideas: Think about swapping out the type of cheese used to significantly alter the flavor. You could try a cheese with a bit of a kick, like pepper jack, or perhaps a sharp and tangy Swiss cheese.

Give these delightful egg muffins a try the next time you are looking for an easy and satisfying breakfast or snack. I have been making these for quite some time now, and they never fail to hit the spot. Plus, they offer a nice and hearty way to fuel your body and help you tackle a busy day ahead.

Common Questions About Egg Muffins

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