Addictive Crispy, Cheesy Bacon, Mushroom and Spinach Breakfast Bites

I’m always trying to create fun ways for my kids to kick start the day and like any parent, I’m keen for them to try and get as much healthy nutrition, particularly for a really important meal like breakfast.

But please don’t get me wrong! These little addictive morsels are certainly not confined to kids. These are such a nice brunch treat for adults, or packed in a picnic hamper or, certainly for me, they make a really tasty treat in a packed lunch. The different combinations of gentle spice really do bring all the ingredients to life and to amp up the tastiness, I like to spread some divine boursin cheese over the top, served with a fresh platter of peppery rucola and you have an easy lunch sorted in no time.

This is also a perfect recipe for leftovers, such as sausages, ham, or even steamed vegetables – you can truly create whatever combination you want. This is especially a festive Christmas recipe for me, as I always end up using the little devil-back chipolatas (if there a few hiding under the turkey somewhere and no-one has seen them!) the next day for breakfast. In this recipe, I’ve gone for a classic breakfast combo of mushroom, spinach and cheese. But I’ve added chorizo when the mood takes me, sundried tomatoes and even olives when I want to turn this into more of a canapé. I then use the same recipe but bake in tiny mini muffin cases… so have a go at your own combinations and you won’t be disappointed.

Makes 12 muffin pan size bites

Ingredients
Method

6 eggs

250 gms of bacon, chopped into small pieces

1 cup spinach finely chopped

½ cup spring onions finely chopped

1 punnet of mushrooms finely sliced

1 cup half Mozzarella and half cheddar cheese grated

¼ cup of thick double cream

Salt and black pepper for seasoning

2 tsps oregano

½ tsp Spanish paprika

1 handful of parsley (optional)

¾ tsp cumin

1 tbs olive oil

Heat your oven to 180 degrees centigrade.

Heat the olive oil in a large wide frying pan, over a medium heat.

Toss in the garlic and fry gently for a few seconds, taking care not to brown. Now add the spring onion and fry for a minute or two.

Next add the mushrooms. Fry these gently for 3-4 minutes or until just beginning to soften. Take these out of the pan into a bowl and set aside.

Replace the same pan on the heat and add the bacon. Fry until starting to crisp. If you do need to add a small glug of olive oil, do so, but most of the time the bacon fat will render out. Now toss in the chopped spinach and stir fry for a few minutes or until softened.

Add these to the spring onion – mushroom mixture.

In a separate large bowl, crack all your eggs and whisk lightly. Add the cream, salt and freshly cracked black pepper, 1 tsp of the oregano, paprika and cumin powder. Mix well until perfectly combined.

Now add half the cheese mixture and all the spring onion-mushroom and spinach bacon mix. Fold all of this together gently, trying not to overbeat. I added parsley here too – but this is optional.

Place some muffin cups in a muffin tin. Place a small ladleful of the egg mixture into each muffin cup and sprinkle over some of the mozzarella-cheese mixture. Sprinkle over some more oregano.