Ride Food: Mini Egg Muffins

I can't believe I forgot to get pics of this (actually, yes, I can...I don't end up taking pics of half the stuff I should be), so just take my word for it they look pretty cute.  Next time I make them, I will snap a few pics.

Note: I haven't made these for an actual ride yet...but I've been doing rides long enough that I know what food I like and don't like, and I'm pretty confident these will end up on my "must-have ride food" list.

The original recipe called them "mini egg frittatas."  I'm calling them egg muffins, because they're made in a mini muffin pan.  The idea behind them is simple...scramble some eggs, toss some stuff like cheese, meat, veggies in there, mix it all up, pour it into mini muffins, bake, eat.  They're like crustless mini-quiches.

They probably took me about 15 minutes to put together, due in large part to the fact I kept getting interrupted by stopping and taking care of my box turtle.  Next time, it won't take a whole lot more time than whipping together a batch of scrambled eggs...which usually involves at least chopping/slicing ham and cheese.

And the next morning, I grabbed one of the leftovers...and they were delicious cold!  That clinched it: I'm going to start making these for ride breakfasts.  I already eat cold hard-boiled eggs as the main part of my ride breakfasts, and always have trouble choking down that strong, dry yolk.  (Go figure...the one and only time I ever have trouble eating, it's ride mornings.  Of course.)  These are moist, the eggs are well blended, and they can be as strong or as mild as you want to make them, depending on the additives.

And if I'm already taking the time to make hard-boiled eggs, wait for them to boil (and not forget about them), then wait for them to sit (and not forget about them), making these probably won't take a whole lot more time.  And they don't have to be peeled before eating.  (The only negative is it means I don't get to make deviled eggs or egg salad the way I typically do with my ride leftovers.)

This first batch I made, I added spinach-artichoke chicken sausage that was already precooked and I just chopped it into small cubes, parmesan cheese, and roasted broccoli all chopped up.  They're little, so make sure whatever you add has been pre-chopped into small pieces.

Here's the actual recipe, with some suggestions for add-ins:

Mini Egg Muffins

6 eggs

¾ cup parmesan cheese (the powdery, crumbled kind, not large shavings)

1 T mayo [this is to help bind the egg together...you don't taste it]

1 T Dijon mustard [could be omitted if you don't like the mustard flavor or it makes it too strong]

1 T flour

Pepper

Salt

Various additions:

1 chicken sausage, chopped into small cubes

Crumbled sausage or chorizo, pre-cooked and drained

Bacon, pre-cooked until crispy, then crumbled

Roasted broccoli

Spinach

Artichokes

Red Pepper

Sun-dried tomatoes

Basil

Goat Cheese

Cheddar Cheese

Ham, chopped

Swiss Cheese

Preheat oven to 350*.

Mix eggs until well-beaten.  Add next six ingredients and stir until combined.  Add selected additions and mix to combine.  Pour into a greased mini muffin pan.  A gravy ladle works well for filling the individual muffin wells.  Wells can be filled to the top.

Bake for 15-18 minutes.

Remove from oven and let sit for about a minute, then run a knife around the edges of the wells to loosen the egg muffins.

Makes one mini-muffin pan, or 32 mini muffins.  A typical serving is 6-8 mini muffins.