Egg Puffs

Are they savory muffins or unusually shaped omelets? Maybe they’re a bit of both! Our egg puffs contain classic breakfast mix-ins such as mushrooms, green onions and cheese, but also hide secret ingredients you won’t typically find in your scramble, such as flour and baking powder. These help them rise and set more firmly.

The recipe is flexible, so you can include all your favorite veggies, or add bacon or sausage. With healthy cottage cheese in the mix, these savory bites make great weekday breakfasts for one, or they can feed the family for weekend brunch. You could also make egg puffs and put them in your cooler for camping; with extra protein from the cottage cheese, they’d be a great start to a day of hiking, biking or boating.

Egg Puffs Ingredients

• Mushrooms: Classic button mushrooms would work nicely, but there’s no reason not to get fancy if you want to. Try cremini mushrooms, or use oyster mushrooms or shiitakes for more flavor.
• Green onions: Also known as scallions, green onions give the puffs a savory bite. You can use both the green and white parts.
• Butter: You can use salted or unsalted butter. A portion will be used to saute the mushrooms, and the remainder will go into the beaten egg mixture.
• Flour: A small amount of all-purpose flour helps give these breakfast treats their structure.
• Baking powder: Baking powder puts the puff in egg puffs. Common double-acting baking powder begins to bubble as soon as it’s mixed into liquid, and then gets a second round of activity when it’s exposed to heat.
• Salt: Don’t forget the salt! Seasoning the egg mixture ensures that the recipe for egg puffs turns out savory and delicious.
• Eggs: Let the eggs come to room temperature so they blend more easily. Chilly eggs can slow down the cooking time.
• Monterey Jack cheese: Monterey Jack is a mild cheese that melts beautifully in egg dishes. If you want more zing, you could use pepper jack.
• 4% cottage cheese: Cottage cheese is a great source of protein, calcium and other vitamins and minerals, so it amps up the nutritional content of this egg puffs recipe. We like to use a full-fat cottage cheese for creaminess; if you choose one lower in fat content, you may want to strain excess liquid before adding it to the eggs.

Directions

Step 1: Saute the veggies

Preheat the oven to 350°F. In a skillet, saute the mushrooms and green onion in 1 tablespoon butter until tender.

Step 2: Make the batter

In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt. In another bowl, combine the eggs and cheeses. Melt the remaining 1/2 cup of butter and add it to the egg mixture. Stir the wet mixture into the dry ingredients along with the mushrooms and green onions.

Step 3: Bake your puffs

Fill 30 greased muffin cups three-fourths full of egg mixture. Bake for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Editor’s Tip: You probably won’t want to pour the batter into the muffin cups directly from your mixing bowl, so consider using a ladle or measuring cup to transfer it neatly and easily.

Step 4: Remove the puffs

Carefully run the knife around the edge of muffin cups before removing the puffs to serve.

Editor’s Tip: You may also want to let the egg puffs cool for a few minutes before removing them from the hot pan.

Egg Puffs Variations

• Make them meaty: Crumble cooked breakfast sausage or bacon into the egg mixture before pouring it into the muffin cups.
• Change the cheese: Want something sharper than Monterey Jack? Try an extra-tangy cheddar. You could also use grated Parmesan, Gruyere or fontina.
• Add other veggies: Toss spinach, bell peppers, cherry tomatoes or herbs in the pan when cooking the mushrooms. For delicate additions such as basil or spinach, add them to the saute pan and mix them into the mushrooms just before you turn off the heat. Just remember, if you add a bunch of additional ingredients, you may need to scale up the number of muffin cups you use, and it will change the eggs-to-filling balance in the final product.
• Use a liner: For an elegant presentation, line the muffin cups with store-bought or homemade puff pastry, or slices of prosciutto or ham.

How to Store Egg Puffs

Egg dishes are perishable, so you’ll want to move these to the fridge as soon as they cool. Just pop them into your favorite airtight container or a zip-top bag. They’ll last up to four days in the refrigerator. The USDA recommends reheating egg dishes prior to eating them.

Can you freeze egg puffs?

Yes, you can freeze egg puffs. This is an excellent meal-prep idea for breakfast bites throughout the week. After they cool, seal the puffs in a freezer-safe container and freeze them for up to three months.

How should you reheat egg puffs?

You can briefly reheat egg puffs in the microwave or pop them in a 350° oven for 10 minutes or until they’re heated through.

Egg Puffs Tips

How do you prevent egg puffs from sticking to the tin?

To keep the egg puffs from sticking to the tin, oil, spray or butter your muffin tins thoroughly before adding the egg mixture. Greasing the top of the tin helps, too, especially if the egg puffs puff up too much! If you own silicone muffin cups or liners, those would work beautifully. You could also try using parchment or muffin papers. However, eggs can stick to paper muffin liners, so spritzing the insides with cooking spray can help.

What else can you serve with egg puffs?

Egg puffs are just calling out to be accompanied by delicious spuds! You could whip up some crispy potato pancakes, skillet red potatoes or meaty home fries to serve alongside. If you don’t end up adding meat to the puffs, you could patty up some homemade pork sausage or simply crisp up some ham or bacon. On the other hand, if you haven’t souped up the veggie content of the puffs, sauteed spinach and peppers would be perfect.