These Mini Egg Muffins with cheese and veggies are a go-to for quick and easy toddler breakfasts on busy mornings. These savory muffins are packed with nutritious ingredients and are so quick to bake up—and they work so well to make ahead.
Mini Egg Muffins
Rich in protein and fats that toddlers need, eggs are a wonderful toddler food. You can make a batch a batch of the egg muffins one day and keep them in the fridge until you need them. My family loves eggs all sorts of ways, but I love this recipe since they are so perfect for quickly reheating come meal time.
Having these breakfast egg muffins in the fridge, just ready and waiting to be reheated for a quick breakfast (or lunch) is a total time-saver.
They’re also delicious enough to make for a holiday breakfast, such as Easter or Christmas, to share with the whole family.
Table of Contents
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Ingredients You Need
For this recipe you’ll need the following ingredients ready to go.
- Eggs: The base of this recipe is large eggs. You can use whichever type you prefer.
- Cottage cheese: This adds moisture, calcium, and protein to the recipe. It blends right into the batter.
- Shredded cheese: You can use cheddar cheese, mozzarella cheese, or another shredded cheese your family enjoys.
- Shredded butternut squash, grated carrot or minced broccoli: Or another vegetable that you like.
- Minced or grated fresh onion or onion powder: Either of these add a little more flavor to the mixture.
- Parmesan cheese: I like to add Parmesan cheese (or Pecorino Romano) cheese for additional flavor in these egg muffins.
TIP: These are packed with protein and have a nice dose of veggies in the mix that are easy to chew. And they boast a solid dose of calcium, plus vitamin A from the eggs, cheeses, and squash.
Step-by-Step Instructions
Here’s a look at the process involved in this easy recipe so you know what to expect. Scroll down to the bottom of this post to see the full recipe.
- Stir together the ingredients.
- Add your veggie of choice
- Spoon into the greased muffin cups.
- Bake! Remove from oven, let cool for about a minute, then use a knife to gently loosen the cups from the pan. Cool a bit and serve warm or store to serve later.
TIP: The batter comes together really quickly as all it requires is some easy grating and stirring. You can whip these up whenever you have a spare 15 minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
We like these with both grated raw or leftover roasted butternut squash and sweet potato, shredded raw carrots or chopped broccoli florets. Use whichever you have or prefer. You could also add snipped spinach or kale or finely chopped bell pepper or mushrooms.
You can cut in half or serve whole for baby to gnaw on baby led weaning style. Their semi-soft texture also means that they are great for babies, younger toddlers or toddlers still getting the hang of more complex textures.
(In fact, this was the recipe that helped a friend of mine start to wean her daughter off of a feeding tube!)
When buying eggs for toddlers, know that from chickens with access to grass and pasture typically have more of these healthy poly- and monounsaturated fats than conventional eggs. Look for the terms u0022free rangeu0022 and u0022grass-fedu0022. Eggs—any way they are raised!—are also a good source of B12, which is particularly important for toddlers who don’t eat meat.
The batch is relatively small so you won’t have leftovers lingering forever (though they actually freeze really well should that be an issue). Store them, once cooled, in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days. Serve cold or warm for a few seconds in the microwave.
Each is a two-bite affair for my girls and they almost always insist on dipping them in salsa or ketchup. (I love them on top of salads!)
I’ve made this recipe a lot over the years and the one time the muffins stuck was when I brushed on oil, rather than using nonstick spray. So do use the spray if you can. And use a good nonstick muffin tin.
You’ll also want to let them cool for a few minutes in the pan, then use a paring knife, if needed, to help loosen the edges.
How to Store
Store them, once cooled, in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-5 days. Serve slightly warmed up or at room temperature.
Best Tips for Success
- We like these with both grated raw or leftover roasted butternut squash and sweet potato, shredded raw carrots or chopped broccoli florets.
- Add snipped spinach or kale or finely chopped bell pepper or mushrooms to these egg cups if you’d like instead of squash.
- Chop up as desired for babies or younger toddlers.
- You can also pack these mini muffins in a packed daycare lunch or school lunch.
- Chop them up over salads for your own lunch.
- Try mozzarella instead of cheddar. Try ricotta instead of cottage cheese.
- Double the recipe and bake a whole pan of 24 mini muffins at once.
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I’d love to hear what you think of the recipe, so please comment below if you try these!
Mini Egg Muffins with Cheese and Veggies
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon onion, peeled and grated (or ¼ teaspoon onion powder)
- 1/2 cup butternut squash, finely grated (or leftover diced roasted squash, minced broccoli, grated carrot, or minced spinach)
- 2 eggs lightly beaten
- 1/2 cup cottage cheese (drained if needed)
- 1/4 cup shredded cheddar cheese
- 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 F and grease 12 mini muffin cups with nonstick spray very well.
- Stir together all ingredients in a medium bowl.
- Spoon into muffin cups, filling about to the brim.
- Bake for 18-20 minutes or until firm to the touch and golden brown around the edges.
- Let cool for about 5 minutes in the pan before serving to allow them to firm up a bit. Use a paring knife around the edges to help remove them if needed Serve warm or at room temperature.
Video
Notes
- Store in the fridge for up to 3 days in an airtight container or store in the freezer in a zip top bag and reheat for 30 seconds in the microwave before serving.
- We like these with both grated raw or leftover roasted butternut squash and sweet potato, shredded raw carrots or chopped broccoli florets.
- Add snipped spinach or kale or finely chopped bell pepper or mushrooms if you’d like instead of squash.
- Chop up as desired for babies or younger toddlers.
- You can also pack these egg and cheese mini muffins in a packed daycare lunch or school lunch.
- Chop them up over salads for your own lunch.
- Try mozzarella instead of cheddar.
- Try ricotta instead of cottage cheese.
- Double the recipe and bake a whole pan of 24 mini muffins at once.
Nutrition
This post was first published September 2017.
How long can I freeze these for?
About 6 months if in a freezer bag with as much air removed as possible.
Can l substitute with flax eggs my son has egg allergy
No, with recipes that have eggs as the main ingredient, that is not a good option.
Can we add more than one veggie to the mix?
Sure!
Sooo yummy: I ran out of time to make the full amount needed so I have leftovers of the mix. How long does the mixture last in the fridge before I have to throw it out?
I would say probably 3 days.
If we freeze them, what is the best way to reheat???
15 second increments on a heat-safe plate in the microwave is how I do it.
Is there a way to make dairy free egg muffins that freeze well? I’ve used nutritional yeast in regular eggs to get the cheese flavor, or I could try vegan cheese, but is the cottage cheese vital?
You can omit the cottage cheese and add another egg. Enjoy!
Just made these for my little one and she loved it.
My 10 month old son loves these—easy to make, tasty, has veggies in it. Win win!!
I want to make these but only have frozen vegetables. What should I do?
You can use them, just make sure they are in small pieces (so thaw just slightly and cut up if needed)
I loved these so much and so did my 9 month old! I love them so much I wanted to know how would I make full size muffins? Would I just bake them longer? Thanks!
My 13 month old granddaughter loved these egg bites. They are nice and soft so she is able to take bites without me having to cut them up in small pieces. They are delicious and healthy!
Thank you!
I’m so glad!
This recipe blew my mind. Delicious AND healthy. Thanks, Amy!
Finally an egg bite my little one will eat and that actually tastes great! I used Greek yogurt instead of cottage cheese (didn’t have any). Chopped up broccoli in food processor to cut down on time and like that it eliminates any vegetable chunks. No need for salt since the Parmesan and the other cheeses have salt. Definitely let them sit after for 5 minutes as the recipe recommends, so they can solidify.
Very tasty, my toddler and nieces love them, and they’re simple enough to make in one bowl, plus my 23 month old does all the mixing and can put them in the muffin tins herself, so it’s a great morning activity.
I use onion powder and use scissors to cut broccoli and spinach directly into the bowl – that way there’s not even a cutting board to clean!
So delicious and easy to make!