It’s no secret that eggs are a go-to ingredient for quick fix meals in my house. I’ve shared some of my favorites like, Huevos Rancheros, Eggs on Toast with Creamy Spinach Sauce, Egg-Stuffed Baked Potatoes, and many more. Omelets are especially great because you can really clean out the fridge and toss anything in there. I’ve always enjoyed a good egg dish, but really fell in love with omelets when I headed off to spend a year and a half in Brazil, to do missionary work for my church. I went straight from my cozy home in Seattle to the huge metropolis of Sao Paulo for 9 weeks of intensive language training before heading to my final destination in Curitiba, Brazil. We ate in the cafeteria in the training center and were not only immersed in Brazilian language and culture, but in the food as well, which was just as foreign to me as everything else. As a food lover, I adapted quickly and found I really enjoyed most of the cuisine (to this day I can’t go more than a few days without rice and beans!) but the rule was if there was ever anything you didn’t want to eat, you always had the option of asking the cooks for an omelet. That was one of the first Portuguese words everyone learned, and I found myself asking for omelets on a regular basis, not because of any aversion to the other food being served, but because they were so dang good. I’m sure it had something to do with the fact that they were ladled in copious amounts of butter and filled with ridiculous amounts of cheese. My friends and I would eat them with the soft, fresh rolls served with every dinner, kind of like a cheesy egg sandwich, and there was something incredibly comforting about it. I was far from home, away from my family, and suddenly completely immersed in a new country where nothing was familiar. Yet something about a hot, cheesy omelet wrapped up in a fresh piece of bread made me feel like I was right back home in my momma’s kitchen. That’s how a good omelet really turned into to genuine comfort food for me.
For this version, I wanted it to be healthy (this is under 200 cals!), but draw on all of the flavors of a ooey-gooey cheesy spinach artichoke dip.
You just need a few little artichoke hearts. If you’re like me and keep a jar in the fridge to use up on stuff like this, and salads, etc. then you’re good to go. If you’re thinking, “Crap Sara, seriously you want me to buy a whole jar of artichoke hearts to make a stinking omelet??” Then no fear. Just plan to make something that calls for the whole jar (or part of a whole jar) and you’ll never miss 3. I promise. Need some ideas? Try these:
1. Smoked Turkey and Artichoke Panini
2. Artichoke Parmesan Sourdough Stuffing
3. Tomato Artichoke Pasta
4. Baked Chicken-Bacon Alfredo
5. Garlic Artichoke Dip
6. Our traditional Spinach-Artichoke Dip from Our Best Bites Cook Book #1
Make sure you’re using marinated artichoke hearts; they’re packed in a mix of seasonings, vinegar, some oil, and awesome awesome flavor.
Here’s something else I almost always have in the fridge: Laughing Cow cheese. It’s my secret (not so much a secret anymore) to super creamy, flavorful, scrambled eggs- as well as the omelet we’re making today. Cream cheese kind of has the same effect, and you could use some low-fat cream cheese (regular or garlic-chive) in this recipe, but I really love these little wedges of Laughing Cow. The “light” ones have just 35 calories per portioned wedge. And admit it; buying cheese in a round is sort of fun. The cheese sort of just melts into eggs and you get little pockets of creamy melted cheese. Way more melty-cheesy-goodness than you would for 35 calories of say, grated cheddar. It’s awesome.
Since your omelet will cook super fast, it’s good to have everything ready. We’ve got all of the flavor components of a good spinach-artichoke dip here. A little chopped spinach, the artichoke, creaminess from the laughing cow cheese, and sharp flavor from just a touch of Parmesan.
Start by cracking your eggs in a small bowl. I know people like Bob Harper will tell you to make omelets with all egg whites, but I have to say I’m not a fan. I use a combination of one egg and 2-3 egg whites. That way you get the texture, richness and flavor from the yolk, but a drop in calories and bump in protein from extra whites. Give that a sprinkle of salt and pepper and a little pinch of garlic powder. I also usually add a tiny bit of water.
Now if you’ve never mastered the omelet, here’s my tips. First, start with a smaller pan- I’m making an omelet for one here so I’m using an 8″ nonstick pan. Heat it to medium heat (water should bubble up when it hits it) before you add those eggs. If I wasn’t counting calories and aiming to make this light, a great omelet starts with a hunk of melted butter swirled to coat the bottom of the pan. But alas, today a quick spray of olive oil will do the trick. Pour in your eggs and they should immediately start to set (but not brown) turn down your heat if they’re sizzling too much. Immediately take a rubber spatula and gently scrape from the outside edge, in, letting the uncooked egg run onto the area of hot, open pan. Does that make sense? You’ll want to rotate your pan and do that several times around the entire pan until there’s not a lot of egg “running” around anywhere.
At this point, I often pop a lid on the pan, just for a quick moment, to trap some steam in there and help set the top so it’s not gooey. You just want to be careful to not overdo it either. Keep in mind, the top will look glossy even when set so you might want to touch it to see how done it is. Just before it’s set, dollop the cheese on like you see below. It’s really soft, so you just want to kind of drop little clumps on top. Sprinkle on the spinach, the artichokes, and the Parmesan cheese. Give it a little sprinkle of salt and pepper, too. At this point I usually put that lid back on and remove the pan from heat and let everything melt together.
If all else fails, and the top of your omelet doesn’t set before the bottom is overdone, you can always pop it under the broiler really quick.
Use a spatula to gently release the omelet from the pan and slide it onto a plate, either open faced or folded.
You get tangy, flavorful artichoke hearts, slightly wilted spinach, the punch from the Parmesan, and pockets of creamy cheese.
It’s so reasonable calorie-wise, ringing in under 200 calories, that you can still add a half and orange and a slice of whole grain toast and have a really filling meal.
It’s so decadent, you’ll never feel like you’re eating healthy. Just another example of how good-for-you food doesn’t have to lack in flavor or appeal!
{Healthy} Spinach Artichoke Omelet
Recipe by Our Best Bites
Ingredients
1 whole egg
2 egg whites
1 tablespoon water or milk
kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper
pinch of garlic powder
1 wedge Laughing Cow cheese, regular or garlic herb
1/2 cup chopped fresh spinach leaves
3 marinated artichoke hearts, diced
1 tablespoon fresh shredded Parmesan cheese
Instructions
Heat an 8-inch nonstick frying pan to medium heat. Whisk together egg, egg whites, and water, and add a sprinkle of salt, a few cracks of pepper, and a pinch of garlic powder.
Spray pan with nonstick spray (or brush with olive oil). Add egg mixture and swirl to coat bottom of pan. Use a rubber spatula to slowly scrape from the outside edge of the omelet inward, letting runny eggs flow to bottom of pan. Do this several times, then place a lid on the pan and turn heat to low. Cook until top is just barely set. Drop small dollops of Laughing Cow cheese on top, followed by chopped spinach, artichoke hearts, and Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle top with additional salt and pepper and then slide onto serving plate (either folded over, or open faced.)
Serves 1.
Nutritional Info
Calories: 198, Protein: 18 g, Fat: 11 g, Carbs: 5 g, Fiber: 3 g
Add a piece of whole grain bread and a half an orange for under 350 cals total!
Questions & Reviews
That looks too good to be true! ??
How have I never seen this recipe?! It looks amazing, I’ll have to make it tomorrow. I love spinach and eggs. I never thought of putting artichoke hearts in there, but it sounds great!
I made this for lunch. My 5-year old loved it, too. I left the artichokes out of hers, but not mine! YUM!
I made this for my husband and I after church for lunch. (Kids wouldn’t touch it but that’s ok!) We both enjoyed it quite a bit, very flavorful. Loved the idea of using the laughing cow cheese cubed and adding chopped spinach. For those opposed to marinated artichoke hearts, I think the non marinated ones would work just as well. Delish and will make again and again.
Sara, your last picture of the omelet on the plate with the toast and orange is awesome! The orange has a hear in the center! I never had artichoke before I tried your Tomato Artichoke Pasta (fantstic) and now my husband and I are big fans of artichoke. I am excited to try this omelet in our family. Thanks for posting this!
Just made this, and have to admit that the marinated artichokes sort of overwhelmed the rest of the omelet. Still yummy, but next time I’ll try and drain them more or something.
I had this for breakfast this morning. Oh my yummy!!! It’s 5 pp+ for the omelette in case anyone is doing WW. Thanks for the great tasting healthy recipes. 🙂
Very creative recipe, the only type of omelet I tried preparing in my life was : eggs with tomatoes and it was very delicious… looking forward to try your recipe!
We love eggs around here too! It’s nice to have a yummy, new recipe. Thanks!
My husband loves artichokes-I think this will be a hit! Thanks so much for posting calorie-conscious recipes-just what I need! I love checking your site and it’s nice that I can actually make what your posting even though we’re”dieting”
I just love your blog and can’t wait for my daily ‘fix’! I get so inspired by you and we are eating so much healthier now. Love, love, love all the low cal, healthy and DELICIOUS recipes! Thank you so much! And this is just one more very tempting dish. I may have to sneak the artichokes in on my husband, but what a flavor burst!
Mmm this looks great! It’s going on the dinner menu for next week (we do breakfast for dinner once a week or so).! I am also counting calories, so this is perfect. Do you have a favorite whole grain bread? I have tried several, but have found that many taste a little (lot!) like cardboard! Thanks 🙂
I hear ya on the cardboard, Liz! So my absolute favorite whole grain bread is Dave’s Killer Bread. Have you tried that one? It comes in a lot of different styles; I usually buy the green label one (whatever that is!) Kind of a funny website (from a guy with an interesting story- good for him) but he makes some dang good bread! Where I live I buy it at WinCo and Fred Meyer.
i want to make this for dinner tonight, it look incredible!
Looks tasty. And I believe my Fred Meyer and Winco both have an “olive” bar that also has marinated artichoke hearts (and these awesome little sweet-slightly-hot peppadew peppers), so that would be an option to get only a few if necessary. That’s what I’ll do, anyway!
ooh, good idea Jaime. My store has that as well.
Thanks! I’d love to see more Brazilian recipes as well! My mother in law is from Curitiba, do you know any Maurao’s? If so, they are probably related to her.
I do know Maurao’s from Curitiba- does she live there now?
No she moved to the US a long time ago. She lives in UT. But do you know Jose Mourao or Edina Mourao or Karina Mourao? I don’t know them very well but they have come to visit a few times but not knowing the language it’s hard to communicate. My husband can speek with them. We hope to go there someday but have to get kids off missions and out of college first so it will be a while 🙂
This looks delicious! And your blue plate is GORGEOUS! I love it!
Loving the recipies with calorie info! Keep it up!
My husband served in Curitiba from January 2003 to 2005. I wonder if you guys were there at the same time!? I am glad that you include awesome brazilian recipes in your books like the limeade and Pao de Queijo and your black bean soup. I try to make him black beans and rice at least once a week in a big batch so he can have the leftovers once or twice. He does occaisionally get up from the table and fry an egg to slap on top (which sounds kinda gross to me, but hey, whatever floats your boat). Do you happen to have a recipe for (excuse the spelling, my husband didn’t know how to spell it but the guess is-) coxhinas (sounds like co-sheen-yo’s)??? I have made a few attempts based on what he thinks he remembers, but they aren’t exactly right, and I don’t know how to fix them.
Looks like your hubby was there right after me. I do make coxinhas! I’ve had a lot of requests for those so I’ll have to post a recipe some time.
I worked at a restaurant for a very short amount of time. haha One of the things I learned was that once everything was folded up just spray about a tablespoon of water into the pan, pop the lid back on and steam until the water was gone. It never affected the flavor and was set up every time.
Do you know how much fiber is in this?
3 grams
I love all of the healthy recipes. Keep them coming. This looks great!
This looks awesome! Funny thing I went on my mission to Franc, which is another big omelet place, but I used to hate eggs and when people served us omelets I had to oversalt them and gag them down. We’ve been making a lot of green eggs and ham, which started out as a simplified your mini ham and egg cups and quickly morphed into scrambled eggs with spinach and ham in them. This omelet would be like a delicious grown-up version of that. Artichokes are going on my grocery list so I can make this soon.
Oh my gosh this looks so yummy!! And great photos.
Carlee
Almost Endearing