Oven Baked Egg Bites

Here’s my copycat version of Starbuck’s Sous Vide Egg Bites, only instead of cooking them in a sealed hot water bath (sous vide), mine are baked in the oven so anyone can make them. In all honesty, I haven’t tried the Starbuck’s egg bites, but my kids have and they say these are equally delicious. You be the judge.

Start by lining a high quality cupcake pan - I HIGHLY recommend these 100% food-grade silicone cupcake liners because eggs are notoriously sticky and they’ll bake onto the metal pan like cement. These liners can be reused over and over and over, and you don’t even have to spray them with nonstick cooking spray. The egg bites will slip right out of them, I promise. ***Be sure read the bottom of this page to learn how to choose the right silicone liners.

Back to the recipe - to ensure an even distribution of ingredients, I like to divide the bacon and half of the scallions evenly among the 12 silicone liners…

Then place the eggs, cottage cheese, heavy cream, 3/4 cup shredded cheese, and sriracha (or ketchup if you don’t like spicy heat) in a bowl. I used a wide bowl so I could get photos, but you should choose a bowl that is more deep than wide to minimize splashing (even better, use a quart size deli container).

Use an immersion blender to combine the egg mixture. The cheese does not need to be completely blended - it’s fine if small bits remain.

Alternatively, a blender may also be used to combine the ingredients, but blenders tend to incorporate a lot of air so be sure to mix on low speed and allow the mixture to rest for about an hour before using, to allow the air bubbles to dissipate.

Pour the egg mixture evenly into the silicone liners.

Top with the remaining cheddar cheese and scallions.

Bake in preheated oven for 15-20 minutes. Rest for 5 minutes before serving. Enjoy!

Items used to make this recipe:

(affiliate links)

• silicone cupcake liners https://amzn.to/3sWp52E

• commercial cupcake pan https://amzn.to/3U2jMe8

• immersion blender https://amzn.to/3WsCMEk

• quart deli containers https://amzn.to/3NtsZcV

---

Oven-Baked Egg Bites

makes 12 egg bites

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

Filling:

• 6 ounces bacon, cooked and crumbled

• 2 scallions, sliced

Egg Mixture:

• 4 large eggs

• 3 ounces shredded cheddar cheese

• 1/2 cup 4% cottage cheese

• 1/4 cup heavy cream

• 1 tablespoon sriracha (or ketchup)

Garnish

• 1 ounce shredded cheddar cheese

• 2 scallions, sliced

Directions

• Preheat oven to 400F and place rack in center position.

• Line a high quality cupcake pan with 12 silicone liners (see note below on choosing the right silicone).

• Divide bacon and 2 scallions among the liners.

• In a deep mixing bowl of quart-size deli container, use an immersion blender to combine the eggs, cottage cheese, heavy cream, 3 ounces of shredded cheddar cheese, and sriracha.

• Pour the egg mixture evenly into the silicone cupcake liners,

• Top each with the remaining cheddar cheese and scallions.

• Bake for 15-20 minutes; remove from oven and rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Macros: each egg bite contains 126 calories, 8g protein, 10g fat, and 1g net carb.

Variations

Salmon and Capers - For the filling, use 1/2 ounce of cooked salmon and 1/2 teaspoon drained capers. For the egg mixture, omit the sriracha, and add 2 tablespoons onion and chive cream cheese and 1 teaspoon ground black pepper Garnish with sliced scallions before baking (no cheese). Smoked salmon can be used, but reduce to 1/4 ounce per cup (it’s very salty).

Spinach and Mushroom - For the filling, use 6 ounces of cooked, chopped, and squeezed dry spinach, and 3 ounces of finely chopped and sautéed mushrooms. For the egg mixture, replace the sriracha with 1/4 teaspoon garlic salt and replace the cheddar cheese with shredded mozzarella. Garnish with cheese and sliced scallions before baking.

Ham and Broccoli - For the filling, use 6 ounces of finely chopped cooked ham and 3 ounces cooked and chopped broccoli (be sure it’s not too wet). For the egg mixture, replace the sriracha with prepared mustard. Garnish with cheese and sliced scallions before baking.

Sausage and Kale - For the filling, use 6 ounces cooked breakfast sausage and 3 ounces finely chopped kale. For the egg mixture, omit the sriracha and replace the cheddar cheese with shredded pepper jack. Garnish with more pepper jack and sliced scallions before baking.

---

How to Choose the Right Silicone

Have you ever heard of the pinch test? It’s an easy way to find out if silicone utensils or bakeware are made of 100% pure silicone or a cheaper version which contain plasticizers (aka fillers). Stay away from the cheap versions - they’re not very nonstick and they often give off strong chemical odors/flavors, especially when heated. Pure silicone is extremely nonstick and doesn’t have the same issues with odors/flavors. Manufacturers don’t always tell you if their products are pure silicone so here’s a quick way to tell the difference. Pinch the silicone between your thumb and forefinger - cheap silicone that contains plasticizers will develop a white stress mark where pinched (similar to bending plastic). If you see that white stress mark, move on to another brand.

Better than OG's Zuppa Toscana (Hearty Tuscan Soup)

It's that crazy time of the year when the weather doesn't quite know if it should be warm or cold.  Perfect soup weather - not that I need cold weather to enjoy soup, but it does seem a bit more appropriate when there's a chill in the air.   

A dear friend recently had surgery so I volunteered to bring her dinner.  She and I occasionally have lunch together and every time we've eaten at Olive Garden, she's ordered the Zuppa Toscana.  I’ve had it once or twice, and think it’s ok, but it’s so watery. I knew I could come up with a much heartier version.  

The verdict, I received an email saying they loved the soup and one family member proclaimed it the best soup she'd ever had.  I don't know about that, but who am I to argue?  

Start with sweet Italian sausage (although hot sausage works equally well if that’s what you like).  I bought links and removed the casings.

Break up the sausage as it cooks.  This awesome tool works so well for breaking up clumps of ground beef, turkey, and sausage.

The sausage is done when no traces of pink remain.

Remove the cooked sausage from the pan, leaving the rendered fat in the pan.

In the same pan, saute the onions (and garlic if using) in the rendered sausage fat.

When the onions are translucent, add the potatoes.  I cut my potatoes into small pieces so they'd cook fast, but you can leave them in larger slices like the restaurant does if you prefer.  I forgot to add my carrots at this point (you'll see my fix for that later, but you can add them now).

Return the sausage to the pan and add the chicken stock and bacon (regular or turkey bacon).  Simmer until the potatoes are tender.

When the potatoes are tender, add the chopped kale.

The kale will wilt down quite a bit.

This is where I realized that I had forgotten to add the carrots earlier so I put them in a microwave safe container, with a little of the chicken stock from the pan, and I cooked them for a few minutes to soften before adding them to the soup.  That little bit of extra color adds so much!

Just before serving, stir in the heavy cream and chopped fresh parsley.

View fullsize

How good does that look?  Don't forget to taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper if needed.  Enjoy!

Items used to make this recipe:

(affiliate links)

• meat chopper thingy https://amzn.to/3sSr3kz

• enameled cast iron braiser https://amzn.to/3fp5BAU

• my favorite knife https://amzn.to/34n8zju

• the world's best vegetable peeler! (not good for lefties) https://amzn.to/3r8ZhQQ

---

Hearty Tuscan Soup (Zuppa Toscana)

Printable Recipe

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 pound sweet Italian sausage

• 1 large yellow onion, peeled and diced

• 3 cloves garlic, minced

• 2 pound russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch slices (or dice if you need them to cook faster)

• 2 large carrots, peeled and minced

• 1/2 cup chopped cooked bacon

• 5 cups chicken broth (homemade is best - try my easy recipe here)

• 3 cups chopped kale (no stems)

• 1 cup heavy cream

• salt and pepper to taste

• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley

• optional: 28 ounces canned cannellini beans, rinsed and drained

Directions

1. Remove sausage from casing if purchased in link form.

2. In a large pan, heat oil and brown sausage until cooked through, breaking up large clumps as you go; remove from pan and reserve.

3. In same pan, saute onions in the rendered sausage fat until translucent; add the garlic and sauté 30 seconds more.

4. Add potatoes, carrots, sausage, bacon, and chicken broth; simmer over medium heat for 20-30 minutes or until carrots and potatoes are tender.

5. Add chopped kale; simmer for another 10 minutes.

6. Stir in heavy cream and adjust salt and pepper if needed.

7. Stir in chopped parsley and optional cannellini beans just before serving.

Note

• For an even more hearty version, add a can or two of rinsed and drained cannellini beans about 5 minutes before serving.