Egg Breakfast ‘Muffins’
GLUTEN FREE · DAIRY FREE OPTION · NUT FREE · PALEO · VEGETARIAN OPTION
These breakfast muffins are officially my new favourite thing! I eat them anytime, not just for breakfast. They are a great batch-cooking option as they keep well in the fridge for a couple of days, and you can even freeze them if needed, so you have a brilliant grab-and-go breakfast ready. Each muffin is truly a little pocket of delicious goodness, packed with nutrients, and they really do sustain you and keep hunger at bay. Ok, I have to go make some now…
INGREDIENTS
Zucchini
Super hydrating, zucchini contains high levels of valuable potassium and other essential electrolytes and phytonutrients. Believe it or not, one medium zucchini has over 50 percent of your daily vitamin C needs, making it a great immune-boosting food. The pectin fibre in zucchini is also anti-inflammatory and can even help soothe the lining of the gut.
Pancetta
As if the protein provided by the eggs wasn’t enough, the addition of pancetta ups it that bit further, and adds a lovely saltiness and an extra texture to these muffins.
Eggs
Eggs are breakfast royalty, and have in more recent years finally started to shake off the inaccurate stigma of raising cholesterol levels! These muffins are the perfect antidote to grabbing a less nutritious, but faster, breakfast option because you don’t have time to cook eggs first thing in the morning. Make them ahead of time, and you’re good to go!
Rocket (Arugula)
Rocket has a refreshing zesty, ‘peppery’ taste which I absolutely love! Not just for use in salads, rocket is a good source of folate, vitamins A, C and K, and has something like eight times more calcium than iceberg lettuce. So, choppety chop!
Parsley
Parsley is what you could call a ‘quiet’ superfood. Often underestimated or associated with frivolous food garnishes (which we usually throw away or relegate to the plate’s ‘rim of shame’), it’s actually packed with nutrients, including vitamins A, C and K.
This recipe calls for fresh parsley, but if you wish, you can sub with 2/3 tbsp dried parsley. Or, just add more rocket in its place.
Feta
Being Greek, I feel the need to clarify to the world that feta - REAL feta - is made from sheep’s milk, or a combination of sheep and goat milk, not cow’s milk! It’s a completely different taste profile, and the trained palate (in other words: any Greek, or other frequent consumer of real feta) can immediately taste the difference.
The creamy saltiness of this cheese is a great little addition to these muffins.
Salt & pepper
Add any salt sparingly. The use of both feta and pancetta already adds a good amount of saltiness so it’s not really necessary to add extra.
Chives (optional)
Chives are one of my favourite things to add to any egg dish. However, if you want to make the muffins low-FODMAP, leave these out.
CHANGES & SUBSTITUTIONS
Make it dairy free
Simply leave out the feta or, if you still want a hit of cheesiness, replace it with the same quantity of nutritional yeast flakes.
No rocket? No problem!
Spinach makes a great substitute for rocket here.
Bacon instead of pancetta?
You can easily substitute bacon for the pancetta, you will just need to cut it into small pieces. I buy pancetta in little pre-chopped cubes so it’s ready to go and saves me a step.
Make it vegetarian?
Easy peasy! Just leave out the pancetta.
EGG BREAKFAST 'MUFFINS'
Ingredients
- 3 cups grated zucchini
- 3/4 cup pancetta
- 3 eggs
- 1/3 cup rocket, finely chopped
- 2 tbsp parsley, finely chopped
- 1/4 cup crumbled feta
- salt and pepper, to taste
- 2 tbsp chives, finely chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 190°C.
- Place the grated zucchini in a bowl, sprinkle with salt and leave to stand for 10 minutes.
- In the meantime, add the pancetta to a small pan and cook for a few minutes on medium heat, until cooked through. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Squeeze the zucchini with your hands to extract the excess water, and place onto a clean tea towel. Twist the towel over the sink to drain even more water. Place in a large bowl.
- To the bowl with the drained zucchini add the rest of the ingredients and mix until well combined.
- Portion out the mixture into a muffin tin, with or without paper casings.
- Bake for 15 minutes.
- Allow to cool a little before serving.
Notes:
· For a dairy-free option, replace the feta with 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast flakes, or leave out altogether.