Ham and Egg Breakfast Cups

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope everyone's having a great weekend. Here in New York, this is the first weekend that we've had really nice spring weather two days in a row, so I've really been enjoying that.

Anyway, I'm really excited to share this recipe! Last week, I was asked about breakfast recipes and I realized that I didn't have many! Breakfast is one of my favorite meals, but unfortunately it doesn't always get the attention it deserves from me. Most days I wake up, get ready for work in a sleepy daze, and take the train to the city. By the time I have my coffee in hand and I'm settled at my desk, I usually just heat up some oatmeal and call that breakfast (not knocking oatmeal - it's delicious - but it can get a little boring day after day).

That's what's so great about this recipe - it's really easy (seriously, minimal effort required), super fast, and the leftovers can be refrigerated and eaten for breakfast all week. 

One thing you will need is a muffin tin - if you don't have one, I bet those paper cupcake holders would work just fine, but I can't guarantee it because I didn't try it.

Anyway, once the oven is preheated, you start by spraying the muffin tin and lining each cup with a slice of ham. (Note: I only have a 6-muffin tin, so this recipe yields 6 servings. If you have a second tin, or don't mind baking in two shifts, it can easily be doubled to yield more).

In a small bowl, mix together your filling. The beauty of this recipe is that you can basically add whatever you want to the eggs here and customize the filling to your liking. I used green bell pepper, onion, salt, and pepper - very simple, but I love the combination of peppers and onions, especially with eggs. A tip, though: if you want to go a little crazy with the veggies (or if you want to add a meat, like bacon or sausage or something), reduce the amount of egg a bit. Too many add-ins and there will probably be too much to fit in the cups.

So anyway, once you have your filling, distribute it evenly among the ham-lined muffin cups. I found that it helps to spoon it in, rather than try to pour it in.

Top them off with some shredded cheese - because why not? - and then pop them in the oven.

The result is delicious, cheesy, veggie-filled, muffin-shaped egg cups wrapped in crispy sweet ham. They're REALLY good. I had two for breakfast (with a little ketchup, since I grew up always putting ketchup on my eggs and omelettes) with some coffee and was fully satisfied - they're pretty filling.

The leftovers are in a tupperware in my fridge, ready to come to work with me this week for a much-needed break from oatmeal.

So that's that - as always, feedback is appreciated! 

Until next time!

Ingredients

• 6 slices (about 2 1/4 oz) Oscar Mayer honey ham
• 1 cup liquid egg whites (equivalent to whites from 6 eggs)
• 1/4 small green pepper, chopped fine (about 3-4 tbsp)
• 1/4 small sweet onion, chopped fine (about 3-4 tbsp)
• Salt and pepper (to taste)
• 1/4 cup reduced fat shredded cheddar cheese (or cheese of your choice)

Serving size: 1 breakfast cup

Weight Watchers PointsPlus value: 1

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Spray a muffin tin with nonstick spray. Line each muffin cup with a slice of ham. Set aside.
3. In small bowl, mix egg whites, green pepper, and onion. Season with salt and pepper and mix to combine.
4. Distribute the egg mixture evenly among the ham cups (it helps to use a spoon for this), then sprinkle the shredded cheese over the tops.
5. Bake for 22-25 minutes until egg is no longer runny. Serve warm.

Nutritional information