So, if you’ve read our blog for awhile, you know I have this thing with eggs. I hate them. But I can’t leave them alone. Kind of like those dysfunctional boyfriends that, had Facebook been around when I had boyfriends, I would have Facebook stalked and then accidentally friended, and then we would have gone out and three bites into it, I’d remember why I hated him. The eggs. Whatever.
But the weirdest thing happened.
I discovered that my aversion to eggs is pretty much limited to scrambled eggs. And egg whites–no bueno on the egg whites. I mean, I have to do things in moderation, and I can’t have them every day or just, like, straight-up eat a hard-boiled egg, it has to be in something (THAT stems from the time I took a Bible as Literature course in college and we had a Passover Seder and we had to eat a whole hard-boiled egg at once and I lost my metaphorical lamb bone, but I digress.) But I have found that as long as I don’t think too much about it, I love a perfectly cooked runny egg. I even crave them. Who am I?
Kelsey Nixon (like the famous Kelsey Nixon who I have adored since she was on The Next Food Network Star) recently sent Sara and I copies of her cookbook, Kitchen Confidence. Now…she sent us cookbooks, but we’re not getting compensated in any way and, to be completely honest, we get a lot of cookbooks and we almost never write about them. This was the first one I’ve seen in a long time where I seriously wanted to make just about everything. If you like our cooking style (fresh, flavorful, easy, cooking largely from scratch when we can, family-friendly, not a lot of weird ingredients), I’m willing to bet you’d love her book, too. And no one paid me to say that. 🙂
So anyway.
One of the recipes that really grabbed me was her recipe for baked eggs. It only has a handful of ingredients, but it looks and tastes like something you’d eat for brunch in a fancy hotel or restaurant. One other thing I love about it is that it has some serious staying power–I ate it for lunch and I felt amazing, like I had truly fueled my body. I didn’t have the mid-afternoon slump, I wasn’t rooting around for the Nutella or ice cream at 2:30, I just felt good. Which was awesome.
You’re going to need 4 ramekins…
(I got these from Pier 1 during a retail therapy session after a child’s eye doctor appointment sponsored by Satan. Which is kind of a rant in and of itself, but just a general nutshell-ish piece of my mind: If you’ve ever been a baby or toddler, you were probably sometimes tired, hungry, and/or loud and your mother probably had to occasionally take you places she would rather not have, so instead making snarky comments, just be nice. Being nice is never the wrong decision.)
You’re also going to need 4 eggs (yes, there are 6 here; I had some OCD-ish issues with leaving two of the holes empty), some applewood smoked bacon (really, probably any decent bacon will do the trick, but I splurged on this thick-cut applewood bacon and it was fabulous), and some goat cheese.
Goat cheese is a polarizing ingredient.
People either really love it or they hate it. I enjoy it, but with reservations–it has such a strong flavor that it can’t be the star of the show. There have to be enough complementary flavors going on that the goat cheese plays a supporting role. A little goes a long way. Luckily, this recipe calls for just a little goat cheese. I really, really recommend leaving it in there–it really rounds out the flavors so nicely. BUT. If you just absolutely cannot do goat cheese, you could use feta or even a little bit of cream cheese.
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Cook your bacon, either in a skillet or in the oven (which is my favorite way, even if it takes a little longer). When the bacon is done cooking, drain it on paper towels. Dab another paper towel in the drippings and grease 4 ramekins with the bacon drippings. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the drippings and either save the rest for later or discard them.
Next, you’re going to need 4 cups of baby spinach, 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar, and 1 teaspoon of coarse-grain mustard.
Can we talk for a second about two of my favorite ingredients in the universe? Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar and Zatarain’s Creole Mustard. You’ll find lots of people who swear up and down that Bragg’s Apple Cider Vinegar will cure cancer and establish world peace, people who drink it straight up to lose weight and kill strep without antibiotics. I don’t know about those claims, but IÂ do know that I love it. You know how you can get the clear apple juice in the big bottles and store them in your pantry for forever, and then you can get the jugs of pressed apple cider that have to be refrigerated and taste like a fresh apple? That’s kind of how regular apple cider vinegar is compared to Bragg’s. It tastes amazing and adds a lot of life and flavor to marinades and salad dressings. I’ve found it in the natural foods section of my Kroger grocery store and I know you can find it at places like Whole Foods.
My other favorite (here, at least) is Zatarain’s Creole Mustard. Unlike other whole grain mustards, it has a good sandwich-y consistency (as in good on sandwiches, not like it has the consistency of bread and lunch meat, because that would be weird) and it’s not spicy at all. If you can’t find it locally (Zatarain’s is a national brand, but you still might not be able to find it everywhere), you can buy it online here (and Amazon, but unless you want to buy a case of twelve, the pricing is a little out of control.) The other option is that Walmart (right?! Yeah.) has a really incredible coarse-grain mustard that tastes a lot like Creole mustard. It’s in a squeezy bottle, just with the sandwich stuff, and it says…wait for it…”Great Value Coarse-Grain Mustard” on it.
Anyway.
In a skillet (the same one you cooked the bacon in if you used a skillet), heat the reserved drippings over medium heat, then add the spinach. While the spinach is wilting, whisk together the vinegar and mustard.
Stir the spinach frequently until wilted, then remove from heat and add the vinegar/mustard mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper (I actually used Chipotle Tabasco sauce to season it and it was amazing).
Carefully crack an egg into each ramekin.
Divide the spinach evenly among the ramekins, then crumble the bacon and add that.
Place the ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes or until the whites are just cooked through and the yolks are still runny (I baked mine for 13 minutes and they were a tiny bit overdone, so keep a close eye on them). While the eggs are cooking, slice a fresh baguette (you can make one at home if you want!) Remove from the oven, season with salt and pepper, and divide the goat cheese evenly among the ramekins. Serve immediately with slices of toasted baguette.
Makes 4 servings.
Nutrition Information (for JUST the egg cup, baguette not included; calculated using thick-cut bacon.)
Calories: 235
Fat: 14.6
Protein: 13.2
Fiber: .7
Carbs: 1.2
WW Points Plus: 5
Baked Eggs with Bacon, Spinach, & Goat Cheese
- Total Time: 35 minutes
- Yield: Serves 4
Description
These individually portioned egg cups area versatile addition to any breakfast menu. They are easy enough for slow weekend mornings, yet elegant enough for a holiday brunch with company.
Ingredients
4 eggs
6 slices applewood smoked bacon
4 cups baby spinach
2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon coarsely ground mustard
2 ounces goat cheese, crumbled
Toasted baguette slices (we used a sourdough baguette)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
Preheat your oven to 400 degrees. Cook your bacon, either in a skillet or in the oven. When the bacon is done cooking, drain it on paper towels. Dab another paper towel in the drippings and grease 4 ramekins with the bacon drippings. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the drippings and either save the rest for later or discard them.
In a skillet (the same one you cooked the bacon in if you used a skillet), heat the reserved drippings over medium heat, then add the spinach. While the spinach is wilting, whisk together the vinegar and mustard. Stir the spinach frequently until wilted, then remove from heat and add the vinegar/mustard mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Carefully crack an egg into each ramekin. Divide the spinach evenly among the ramekins, then crumble the bacon and add that. Place the ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes or until the whites are just cooked through and the yolks are still runny (We baked ours for 13 minutes and they were a tiny bit overdone, so keep a close eye on them). Remove from the oven, season with salt and pepper, and divide the goat cheese evenly among the ramekins. Serve immediately with slices of toasted baguette.
- Prep Time: 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Oven
- Cuisine: Breakfast
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 egg cup, no bread
- Calories: 235
- Fat: 15
- Carbohydrates: 1
- Fiber: 1
- Protein: 13
Questions & Reviews
It looks lovely I will Triy it the weekend thank you
These are amazing. I’ve made them four times in four days. My whole family groans with happiness as we eat it. Saving the leftover bacon and the bacon drippings makes this a quick 15 minute meal on a busy week night.
I have diabetes type 2 so I am always looking for good breakfasts that are not full of carbs. I like baked eggs and eat poached eggs often. I am looking for ideas of things I can make at work in the microwave. This helps me NOT eat donuts and things when people bring them in ;-{ Have you ever tried making these in a microwave? If so, any time suggestions?
thanks for any help or ideas you can share.
I like my yolks runny. On fried eggs if there is frazzle under them, I can’t take it. My Grandma couldn’t see well. She would make me fried eggs
that were literally brown—like brown sugar color—on both sides. I loved her so much, I ate them. No I gagged them down. What a trooper I was at 5 yrs old now that I think of it. I never recovered from those hard cooked fried eggs.
I haven’t made this just yet. But just wanted to say that the bacon you are using is the only bacon I buy. And I do it in the microwave on paper towels which is place on a good paper plate. The you can use those paper towels to grease those adorable ramekins.
Made these Sunday night and I’m making them again tonight. Oh man, what a delicious recipe!! The mustard vinegar ‘dressing’ on the spinach adds such a nice flavor. Thanks for sharing!
Wow! Such a pleasant surprise to see a recipe from Kitchen Confidence on OBB! This makes my month!!! I’m so glad you like the book and I sincerely appreciate your genuine support. It means the world to me! xo
Ok, I just have to say that you are hilarious and I too have been to many Dr. Satan appointments. You guys are real moms and I love it!
I have egg issues too! I saved can’t do any of those “mug cakes” because they’re always too eggy. And runny yokes give me the jibblies.
Just went and ordered her cookbook and I am so excited for it to get here! Although hubs thinks I should wait to look at it til my birthday in 6 weeks! Ha yeah, that’s not happening! Silly husband!
thanks for calculating the WW+ points!!! my mouth was watering while reading this, and i was trying to figure out how many points it would be. i am making this ASAP!!!!
I made this for lunch and used kale instead of spinach, because I like spinach raw but not cooked and I like kale cooked but not raw 🙂 It was delicious! I loved scooping up some of the runny egg with bread.
I’ll be making this for lunch a lot 🙂
Hahaha! You had me seriously laughing at the eye appointment sponsored by Satan comment! And the OCD issues with the eggs in the container. You are hilarious.
I HATE eggs. But I crave them, too. I’m with you on that weirdness. I could NEVER eat a hard boiled egg… makes me gag just typing this. But sometimes I just boil an egg to make an egg salad sandwich just because I think it sounds so good. It’s really weird. I’m totally going to try this recipe tomorrow. Thanks for sharing it. And I’m glad I’m not the only person who has a crave/hate relationship with eggs. I always wonder if it’s because I’m not getting enough protein? LOL.
This looks amazing!!!
I love how you keep it real with parenting. I love your sarcasm and wit….totally makes my day! “Eye appointment sponsored by Satan” – too funny….and I’ve been there!!
And the recipes are always good. Thanks!
Sounds Great!
I have to say this looks amazing. I will try this. Just need to get some goat cheese. Wonder if feta would work as well.
You are the only one I know who also buys Wright Bacon. That is my only choice when I shop. I don’t always get the Applewood though. And I have to go through all the packages to make sure I get the right width bacon. Some are way to wide. I do prefer the narrow. But the thickness is perfect. And I always microwave. Two pieces per paper towel and a cover of a papert towel and then on to a paper plate. If using more bacon, just layer accordingly. Two pieces with this bacon, is 2 minutes, 45 seconds. We like it well done.
Ya know…ya can’t go wrong with goat cheese & bacon! Are you kidding!? BTW, I don’t like eggs either unless they’re diguised in lots of cheese & other goodies. Ya know like bacon or sausage or onions, mushrooms, etc
Ooh! I have this cookbook, and it was one of the top ones on my list of things to try soon. Glad to see a great review 🙂
I have loved Kelsey since her Food Network star days, too. I really like her new show, too.
These sound so amazing. I may even be tempted to try goat cheese for the first time!!
However, when I was reading through, the spinach sounded amazing and was making my mouth water. Kate, would you say that this spinach could be doubled as used as a side dish or are the flavors too concentrated to stand alone?
Oh, and I totally hear you on the baby part. Mine is 8 months and just wants to get out of the cart/stroller and crawl around.
You TOTALLY could make the spinach for a side dish on its own. In fact, it might have been my favorite part. And that’s saying a lot because I loved all of it.
Yay! I know your dislike for making side dishes, so this should be a good one! I’m thinking with pork. I gotta admit our olive oil and garlic saute of spinach is getting kind of old.
funny girl! I have the OPPOSITE aversion to eggs…if I see the slightest hint of ‘runny’, I will send it back to the kitchen. Puke. When I order in restaurants, I always specify that my eggs must be dry…ha! Would this be as tasty if you baked them all the way through?
Totally your call. Honestly, if that’s how you like your eggs cooked, I bet you’d love it–maybe you could scramble the egg and mix it all together and then bake it kind of like a mini frittata?
I am the same way. My mom always cooked our fried eggs with a runny yolk. One time my friend slept over and we had eggs and she was completely disgusted by the yolk. I think it was from that time on that I started having to break the yolk and cook it through–you know, peer pressure. I decided awhile back to try a runny yolk again and I just could not do it. I love eggs, but I have to have them cooked all the way! I’m sure all foodies would look down upon that, but who cares anyway! 🙂
I just have to say, you crack me up! I love your sense of humor!
I agree! You always make me smile! And I’m having this for lunch today! Yum.
Thanks so much, you guys!! 🙂
Runny egg yolk with fresh crusty bread is one of the most amazing things in the world. These sound glorious!
I love baked eggs. A really quick way to have a healthy meal, especially if you fill it with veggies.
I totally understand the weird egg adversion you have. I crave them occasionally, but if someone asks, I usually say I dislike them. This recipe looks great though, can’t wait to try it!