Baked Eggy Breakfasts

I love having eggs for breakfast. Lately it has been difficult for me to eat anything but eggs for breakfast. In the interest of variety and health, I force myself to eat cereal a couple of times a week.

Eggs can be so much more than scrambled or hard-cooked. I got more excited about cooking eggs ever since I saw an episode of Cooking for Real on Food Network with Sunny Anderson. In the episode, Sunny made Huevos Rancheros, which is a general term for eggs served Mexican-style, usually on tortillas with salsa, and served with re-fried beans, avocado, or pretty much any other Mexican side normally reserved for lunch/dinner. I'm not 100% positive what an authentic Mexican breakfast would be, but I don't think Sunny's main goal was to be authentic with her recipe. All I can tell you is that it's delicious.

Instead of frying the eggs like regular Huevos Rancheros, Sunny has them baked in ramekins with Mexican flavors. As you can see in her recipe, she makes a salsa and a bean puree, but basically you can use your favorite salsa recipe, or whatever leftovers you have on hand!

Here are some huevos waiting patiently in their ramekin to be topped with the rest of the ingredients, as in Sunny's recipe.




I would recommend layering the following inside a ramekin, from bottom to top: a tortilla (cut to fit inside the ramekin) with re-fried beans spread on top, two eggs (cracked right in there!), salsa (either pico de gallo or tomatillo), cheese (if you please), and then topped off with another cut tortilla with re-fried beans (this time bean side down). Then just brush the top with melted butter and bake for about 35 minutes in a 350 degree oven. After it comes out of the oven, you can even top it with more salsa and sour cream for a gorgeous and delicious presentation.

The success of my first attempt at
baking eggs in a ramekin inspired me to experiment with other combinations, like mushrooms and onions with cheese, and tomatillo salsa instead of tomato. You can even bake eggs in halved bell peppers, just be careful not to overstuff them, because the eggs will expand in the oven. Baking eggs, whether in an edible or non-edible vessel, makes not only a deliciously filling breakfast, but also a beautiful presentation if you are trying to impress someone.


I hope you will embrace the non-fried egg as a breakfast staple!