Savory Breakfast Muffins

Okay, who doesn't need another new breakfast option?  This one is just too cool.  It's a savory breakfast muffin with an egg baked into the center of it.  yes, that right . .  a whole egg baked into the middle of each muffin!  Mind.Blowing.

I saw these originally over at Jo and Sue.  And I also viewed their inspiration for the muffin at Recipe Tin Eats.  Here is my version.  What makes mine different?  I made mine a lower-fat version by using reduced fat cheddar cheese, omitting the oil and using applesauce instead (it adds no flavor), as well as lessening the amount of bacon and cheese.  If you want to go with the original version, more power to you!  I just wanted to 'healthy-ize" these a bit.  I also want to try them with spinach and Swiss cheese . . but that's for another day.  

Enjoy.  These are just too yummy to not make!

Savory Breakfast Muffins
with Bacon, Cheddar and Chives

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1/4 Cup Bacon Pieces (I used real bacon pieces that you buy in the salad fixin' aisle at the grocery store)

1/4 Cup Chives

4 oz Reduced Fat Cheddar Cheese, Shredded

1 and ¼ Cup Flour

1 Teaspoon Baking Powder

¼ Teaspoon Baking Soda

½ Cup Buttermilk

½ Teaspoon Salt

1 Tablespoon + 2 Teaspoons Lite Sour Cream 

2 Tablespoons No-Sugar Added Applesauce

5 Eggs (1 for the muffin batter and 1 ea for the center of each muffin)

Instructions:
Step 1:  Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.  Prepare your extra large muffin tin by lining it with paper liners and spraying them with pan spray.  Remember, this will make 4 extra large muffins.

Step 2:  In a large bowl, add all the dry ingredients:  flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt.  Mix together.
Step 3:  To the dry ingredients, add the chives, bacon and cheese.  Stir.
Step 4:  In a seperate bowl, stir together the buttermilk, lite sour cream, applesauce and 1 egg.  Mix until well combined.
Step 4:  Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients and mix until just combined.

Step 5:  Place 3 tbsp of the batter into each of the 4 muffin tin holes. Flatten the batter by tapping the tin against the counter a few times.
Step 6:  Make a divot in the center of each muffin batter (so the egg yolk settles in the middle). Crack an egg into each hole.
Step 7:  Divide the remaining batter between each hole to cover the egg. Don't dump the batter right on top of the yolk - you may break it that way.  Rather, I found it best to place about 3 tablespoons of batter around the edge of each muffin, which kind of forced the yolk to stay in the center.  Then, with any batter left in the bowl, I placed it on top of the yolks.  I then dipped my finger in water and gently spread the batter of each muffin so that it covered the entire egg.

Step 8:  Bake for 20-25 minutes, until the begin to brown.  Remove from oven and let rest for 5-10 minutes.  Serve warm.


Note:  I've made these a few times now and am really loving them.  I did a second version with bacon, Swiss and spinach.  They were definitely tasty, but weren't as visually appealing.  I had one yolk break and ooze out during the baking process . .. I think my frozen spinach poked it.  As well, of all things, when I pulled the these ones out of the tin, the liners were wet.  I'm sure it was from the batter/spinach - I used frozen spinach that is IQF (not the block spinach) - and I am sure it was from the extra moisture.  They were completely cooked though and mighty delish.