Broccoli MiniQuiches

This crustless mini quiche recipe is a new one I saw on MyFitnessPal; I switched it up somewhat, added this, changed this out, but kept the broccoli. These are yummy high protein breakfast (or not - fly in the face of convention: DO YOU!!)  bites at a super low 29 calories each, check it oot!

You will need:

2 1/2 c broccoli florets (measure in a glass measuring cup. Trust me, I lub you!)
1 Tbsp unsalted butter
1/4 c red onion, chopped finely
1 clove garlic, minced finely
Salt, pepper
4 eggs
1 c egg whites
30g (1 oz) low-fat old cheddar cheese (go for old, older is always wiser. and tastier)

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit, and prep!

Chop your onion, mince your garlic, grate your cheese and de-floret the broccoli should you not have bought them in conveniently floretted 8 pound Costco-size bags. Put in a glass measuring cup. Spray a mini-muffin tin well with oil. Then spray it again. And some more. Right around the edges. There you go. Oil that mofo like it's your birthday present.

Add some water to the broccoli, about an inch or so, and microwave on high for 4 minutes. Does anyone ever microwave on medium? I'm curious. Those settings seem superfluous to me: I don't cook in a microwave because I want to gently raise the temperature, I WANNA EAT NOW. But I digress.

Meanwhile, melt the butter in a non-stick saucepan and add the onions over med-low heat. Cook, gently stirring, for 3 minutes. Add in the garlic, saute for one more minute. Just until you can smell it!

Drain the smoking hot broccoli carefully and add to the pan for one more minute.

Dump all this in a bowl and smush the broccoli with a fork. Ish. It doesn't have to be perfect. Stir in the salt and pepper to taste; divide between the 24 mini muffin cups. That you oiled. You oiled, right? Good!

In a pourable vessel, like a big measuring cup, whisk the eggs and egg whites together and then pour evenly into the muffin cups on top of the broccoli. Top with the cheese.

Bake for 15-20 minutes, leave in the pan for 5 minutes after and then remove and cool on a wire rack.

Look at em!!

No, I mean, REALLY look at them!

Sooooo close

Wee thought they were the prettiest cupcakes EVAH. Disappointment, thy name is Wee

 Enjoy!

Breakfast Potato Pie

I make this when visiting my folks, I love potatoes like I love air: in my mouth, please. It is more of a throw-together than a hard and fast recipe, but a great way to use up leftover baked or roasted potatoes. I love this with any cheese (see note above re: potatoes) but brie is my all-time favourite. Have not figured out how to work that into lifestyle; goat cheese it is!

You will need:

2 tsp vegetable oil
1 c roasted or baked potatoes, about half a pound
1/2 small onion, chopped finely
1 c red pepper, chopped roughly, about half a pepper
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp salt & pepper
2 green onions, sliced thinly
4 slices deli ham, about 55-60g, chopped
2 oz crumbled goat cheese or 1/2 c low-fat grated cheddar (not non-fat, that's disgusting)
6 large eggs
1/4 c homogenized (3.25 percent) milk
2 Tbsp Parmesan cheese (NOT powdered), about half an ounce

First, prep! Okay, no, first heat your oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Then prep! Cut your potatoes, red pepper and ham into bite-sized chunks, crumble / grate your cheese. You can just chunk the cheese, that leaves nice little pockets of oozy goodness throughout. Slice your green onions, chop your onions finely and mince the heck out of the garlic. Spray a pie plate, preferably ceramic, with as much oil as you have. Lots. And then a little bit more.

Warm the oil in a non-stick frying pan on medium high, add the potatoes and thyme, cook until they have a nice crunchy crust, about 3 minutes. Don't stir very often, you want the potatoes to have time to really brown on a side or two.

Reduce the heat to medium; add in the onions and red pepper, cook for three minutes until almost softened. Add in the garlic and cook for one more minute, until you can smell it.

 

Remove from heat and pour the potato mixture into the extremely well-oiled pie plate.

In a small-ish bowl, mix together the green onions, ham and goat / reduced-fat cheese. Dump on top of the potato mixture in the pie plate.

Looks like a ham-kaleidoscope!

Sprinkle on the salt, pepper and a little more thyme. In the now-empty bowl, beat the eggs with the milk until well blended. Pour the eggs into the pie plate and sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese.

Bake for 20 minutes, until the egg is set and the cheese is melted.

This makes 4 servings, at 233 calories each. Add a nice fruit salad and some whipping cream and voila! Brunch! Under 500 calories and super fast.

Enjoy!!


Equipment Corner:

Not much today, but I do love my ceramic pie plate for brunch-y type quiches. Mine is so pretty but enormous (again, not a dude, so not a metaphor) so is best for crust-less recipes like this.