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Simple breakfast Egg Muffins (copycat Starbuck’s egg bites) are loaded with flavor from the cheese and bacon and plenty of protein from the eggs and cottage cheese. These remind me of our favorite Quiche Lorraine only without the crust!
Here’s what you need to know:
- Egg muffins are easy to make with common ingredients.
- You’ll need a muffin tin and a blender for this recipe.
- They keep well in the fridge for up to 5 days.
- Egg muffins can be frozen for up to one month.
- Rewarm leftovers straight from the freezer! There’s no need to thaw first. Simply microwave at 50% power.
- Substitute other cooked meats for the bacon. Try diced ham with Swiss cheese in place of the Monterey Jack. Cooked crumbled breakfast sausage is also a great choice.
- Make a vegetarian version by omitting the bacon and adding sautéed diced mushrooms, bell pepper, red peppers, onions or even blanched broccoli. Any of your favorite veggies will work, even seeded diced tomatoes.
- In place of the Monterey Jack you can use cheddar, Parmesan feta, hot pepper cheese, Gouda or any of your favorite cheeses.
- Substitute sliced green onions for the chives.
- Use half eggs and half egg whites.
- Don’t skip the hot sauce! 😋
Starbuck’s Egg Bites Copycat
Full disclosure: I’m not a fan of fast food and have never tried an egg bite from Starbuck’s. While traveling recently I saw egg bites on Starbuck’s morning menu and found the idea fascinating. I looked up the ingredients on their website and decided to recreate the recipe at home. How hard could it be?
I’ve been making a similar easy breakfast recipe for years using a mini-cast iron skillet and a low-carb tortilla for a crust. I load it with spinach, onions and cheese then pour over a mixture of eggs and cottage cheese. This is very similar only easier to make.
Light and Fluffy Egg Muffins
Combining the eggs, Gruyère and cottage cheese in a blender helps give these muffins their light and fluffy texture. If you don’t have a blender, use an immersion or stick blender. If you don’t have either one, no worries, just use a whisk. They’ll still be great to eat.
I have not tested these egg muffins in a mini muffin pan. I think they would be difficult to make as the bacon and cheese would take up most of the muffin tin wells. You can however, divide all these ingredients between 12 muffin wells instead of 9 for smaller egg muffins. Be sure to reduce the baking time.
Great for meal-prep
If you’re like me and like to batch cook once and eat for a few days, this is going to be your new favorite recipe. I always snicker at the term “meal-prep.” We used to call it leftovers!
Whatever you call it, these egg muffins are great for any occasion. They’re perfect served warm or even room temperature making them great for breakfast, brunch, gatherings and holidays. Enjoy!
More protein-packed breakfast ideas
- Make-ahead Breakfast Burritos with Eggs, Cheese and Spinach
- Breakfast Strata
- Farmers’ Market Quiche
- Crustless Asparagus Cheese Pie
- Blueberry Greek Yogurt Pancakes
Egg Muffins
Ingredients
- 4 slices thick uncured bacon cooked crisp and chopped
- ¼ cup Monterey Jack or cheddar cheese shredded, divided (1oz)
- 8 large eggs
- 1 cup small curd cottage cheese (226g)
- 1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese (4oz)
- ⅛ teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon fresh ground black pepper
- 1 teaspoon hot sauce like Cholula or Tabasco plus extra for topping
- 2 tablespoons thin sliced chives for topping
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325℉. Lightly grease a 12-cup muffin tin with vegetable cooking spray or brush with olive oil.
- Cook, drain and chop the bacon. Sprinkle 3/4 of the bacon (3 slices) into nine (9) muffin tin wells. Top with half the shredded Monterey Jack cheese.
- In the carafe of a blender combine the eggs, cottage cheese, Gruyere, salt, pepper and hot sauce. Blend until combined. Gently pour the egg mixture over the bacon and cheese in the nine muffin wells.
- Top each with a few drops of hot sauce, the remaining bacon, Monterey Jack cheese and chives.
- Bake immediately for 25 to 30 minutes or until the eggs puff up and pull away from the sides of the pan. The muffins deflate after a few minutes. This is normal.
- Serve warm or room temperature. Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Freeze egg muffins for up to one month well sealed in an airtight container. Rewarm muffins in the microwave at 50% power for 1 minute. Repeat for 30 seconds if needed.
Recipe Notes
- If using cured bacon omit the added salt
Nutrition
Farmers' Market Quiche
A tasty, fresh vegetable quiche filled with zucchini, onions, tomatoes and cheese. Fresh picked herbs and a flaky crust make this a wonderful addition to your brunch table!
View this Recipe
Classic Quiche Lorraine
A classic French tart filled with a delicious savory custard with smoky bacon and creamy Gruyère in a flaky pastry crust.
View this Recipe
Breakfast Strata
A delicious make-ahead, overnight breakfast or brunch casserole with hearty chunks of Italian bread, spinach, onion, ripe cherry tomatoes and rich Gruyere cheese.
View this Recipe
Karen Sambell
SOOOOOOO darn good !!!!
Tricia Buice
Thank you Karen! I agree 😁
Marjorie
What is the Egg Muffin serving size? Is it 1 or 2 muffins? Starbucks Egg Bites are a 2 pack, so I am assuming it would be 2 but it would be helpful to know when capturing daily nutrition information. Thank you for the great recipe!
Tricia Buice
Hi Marjorie. The serving size is one muffin. The recipe makes nine but each is pretty low calorie with high protein. Enjoy two for under 330 calories with 28g of protein!
Larry
They look and sound delicious.
Tricia Buice
Thanks Larry! Hope you get the chance to make these sometime.