post

Breakfast Casserole Muffins Recipe

July 30, 2012 By 13 Comments

Every Sunday at church we have breakfast during Life Group after the service.  Last week I wanted to contribute with something MADE… instead of just running by the grocery store on the way to snag something from the bakery like I normally do.    I wanted something hot and nutritious… not just sugary.   I hopped online but could not find exactly what I was looking for.  So I just threw everything I wanted together and hoped for the best.  Thankfully, it was.

Our Life Group has about 30 people each week, so this recipe will yield exactly 36 muffins.   However, even if you are just cooking for your family, you can still make this recipe, as it is quick and easy, and they freeze and reheat perfectly!  This is another recipe that I will make over and over to give my girls a great nutritious breakfast before school!

Breakfast Casserole Muffins

Ingredients:

  • 12 eggs
  • 1 bag frozen hashbrowns, thawed
  • 2 1/2 cups cheddar cheese
  • 1 1/2 cups cottage cheese
  • fresh cooked bacon, crumbled

Scramble eggs in a bowl.  Add other ingredients, saving a handful of cheese to top with, and mix well.  Spoon into heavily greased muffin tins and sprinkle cheese on top.  Bake at 375* for 20 minutes or until eggs are done and potatoes and cheese are starting to brown.  Serve hot.

This recipe was a HUGE hit at Life Group and just about everyone asked for the recipe.  I love the idea of having a “breakfast muffin” with more substance than sugary bread.   It is the perfect size to heat up and take on the go, and is not messy like all of these ingredients would be on their own.

I am making breakfast for our Life Group again tomorrow… this time a little bit differently, but the same concept.  There was one thing missing from making this the “perfect all inclusive breakfast muffin”… check back tomorrow and see what it is! :)


post

Taco Cupcakes – Another Pinterest Success

May 21, 2012 By 11 Comments

I absolutely love Pinterest for finding amazing dishes that real people are cooking and sharing the recipes for.   I have found some new family favorites (like the Cowboy Casserole) and enjoyed experimenting with new ideas and making up new concoctions.

Months ago when I saw the Taco Cupcakes I knew I wanted to try it out.  But, like most things on Pinterest, I repinned… and never looked at again.  This week while shopping I noticed a package of won tons and remembered the Taco Cupcakes.  I grabbed my iPhone – with the Pinterest app – and next thing I knew I was grabbing the ingredients.  There were about 5 different pins for Taco Cupcakes – all with a little bit different ingredients.  So in true Diva fashion I just basically threw them all together in one.  It was perfect.

Why Taco Cupcakes?  Besides the fact that they are absolutely ridiculously delicious, they are CUTE.  And remember my Lasagna Muffins?  It’s PORTION CONTROL PEOPLE.   Eat one… two at the max… and voila!

Taco Cupcakes

Ingredients:

  • 1lb ground chuck
  • taco seasoning
  • 1 can black beans, drained
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 jar chili con queso
  • 1 jar mild salsa
  • 1 package won top wrappers
  • shredded cheese
  • sour cream or guacamole (optional)

Brown your meat and drain well.  Add water, taco seasoning, and black beans.  Let cook down until all water is dissolved.  (this part is important – too watery and your wontons wont hold up right.  TRUST ME)  Set aside.

Grease your muffin tin and gently press a wonton wrapper into each muffin.  Try not to poke holes in them with your nails like yours truly did.  Then begin by putting in a layer of chili con queso, then meat mixture then salsa.  Add another wonton wrapper and repeat, topping “cupcake” with shredded cheese.  Cook for 15-20 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and wonton wrappers are brown and crispy.

Let cool for a few minutes before adding the “icing” of sour cream or guacamole.  (or both!) Serve with homemade Spanish Rice.

For those of you who learn better with pictures:

The girls absolutely LOVED these little “cupcakes” and even my Dad came over to say hi and enjoyed one himself.   And I always share my concoctions with my neighbor, whose boys attacked the plate upon my arrival.  (funny, it was “taco night” at her house too)

I loved how they easily fit right into a large Tupperware container to save for lunch tomorrow, and I was able to really monitor the amount that I ate, because it was really only the size of a cupcake.

Next time I am going to add in some corn and maybe some Rotel – kinda like my Taco Soup …. but in a cupcake!


post

Portion Control Lasagna – Lasagna Muffins

April 10, 2012 By 15 Comments

I couple months ago I saw “Lasagna Cups” on Pinterest and fell in love.  Lauren from Lauren’s Latest had some pictures that would make your mouth water so I knew I had to try it.   After all I love making all kinds of things in muffin tins – especially my Breakfast Casserole Muffins!

Lauren shared a great traditional lasagna recipe that she used for her lasagna muffins, but I decided to make my Almost Famous Turkey and Spinach Lasagna instead.   They were AMAZING.

Almost Famous Turkey and Spinach Lasagna Muffins

  • 1 pound ground turkey
  • 1 can Campbell’s Cheddar Cheese Soup
  • 1 teaspoon Garlic Salt
  • 1 cup milk
  • 2 cups shredded sharp cheddar
  • 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
  • 1 pkg chopped spinach
  • 1 egg
  • lasagna noodles

Cook lasagna noodles “al dente” and lay out on wax or parchment paper to cool.  Spray a muffin tin with cooking spray and gently roll your noodles around your hand and place into muffin tin.  With remaining noodles use a child’s cup or cookie cutter to cut circles out of the noodles to be the “layers.”   Set aside.

Cook turkey completely and drain. Mix in soup, garlic salt, and milk until well blended. Set aside.

Thaw spinach under warm water and squeeze ALL excess water. Mix cheeses and egg. Pull spinach apart in pieces and mix into cheeses.  (Its best if you just take your rings off and go at it with your hands)

Beginning with a noodle circle, layer the circles, meat, and cheese mixture until “muffin” is full – making sure to end with the cheese so it will melt and be all bubbly at the top.

Cook at 350* for 20-30 minutes or until bubbly.   Muffins will easily pop out onto a plate.  Serve hot with your favorite salad and garlic bread.

These were such a huge hit for dinner – the girls loved them!  They were fun to eat and pull apart, and it was the perfect serving size.    They save perfectly – you can just pop them in a tupperware container and reheat them one by one.

Thanks to Lauren for the awesome blog post and thanks to Pinterest for helping me find her!   I know we will make these again and again!


post

Cinnamon Streusel Muffin Cake Pops

January 16, 2012 By 7 Comments

With today being a National Holiday, the girls were home from school and of course “starving to death” as soon as they opened their eyes.    Determined to give them something yummy and filling – and relatively quick since it is not a holiday for *me* – I grabbed my Babycakes Cake Pop Maker and headed for the cabinet.  I remembered getting a box of Betty Crocker Cinnamon Streusel Muffin Mix for Christmas… surely they can be Muffin Pops…. right?!

I mixed the Cinnamon Streusel just exactly how the box instructs – adding milk, eggs, and oil.   For the first batch I sprinkled the streusel on the top once the batter was put into the Babycakes Cake Pop Maker…. but it was a futile effort that really made no difference.

Once they cooked up the “crumbly” part was gone, so I just mixed the streusel in with the rest of the batter for the remaining muffin pops.  That worked much better. Make sure you spray cooking spray on your Babycakes Cake Pop Maker though – the first batch stuck a little more than normal cake batter normally does.

I cooked the pops for about 3 and a half minutes and they came out perfectly.   The box made exactly 48 muffin pops – which were almost all quickly gobbled up before they even had a chance to cool.  Yet again, thanks to my Babycakes Cake Pop Maker I was able to make the girls a yummy breakfast in just a few minutes flat.

Check out ALL of my recipes and ideas you can make in your Babycakes Cake Pop Maker by clicking here.

 


post

Breakfast Casserole Muffins… Take Two

October 24, 2011 By 15 Comments

Last week I told you about the Breakfast Casserole Muffins I made for my Life Group class at church.   They were a HUGE hit so I decided to make them again… but this time using sausage instead of bacon, and adding in a “missing ingredient.”  As someone who doesn’t like sausage all that much, I have to say I was surprised at just how much more I liked these!  And apparently the class did too as I took 48 this time and they ate every single one of them!

Breakfast Casserole Muffins

Ingredients:

  • 12 eggs
  • 3 small packages of pork sausage
  • 1 bag frozen hashbrowns, thawed
  • 2 cups cottage cheese
  • 2 cups cheddar cheese
  • crescent rolls… the missing ingredient!!

See, last week I told my Life Group that they were “Breakfast Muffins” and had everything you would normally order for breakfast, but all together in a muffin.  However, one of my buddies politely said …“where is the biscuit?”

Ah HA!!

Preparation:

First brown your sausage, breaking it up into the smallest bits you can.  Make sure ALL of the pink is gone.  Set aside.

In another bowl mix the eggs, cheese, and hashbrowns.  Gently mix to make sure all is well coated.  Gently stir in cooked sausage.  Set aside.

Spread crescent rolls and pinch together perforations to make one big sheet of dough.  Use a round cookie cutter (I used a glass… someone please tell Santa about me learning to cook after 30…) to cut little round “biscuits” to put in the bottom of a well greased cookie sheet.

Pour egg mixture over dough… and keep in mind, this one is gonna RISE!!

Bake at 375* for approximately 15 minutes or until egg is done and potatoes are browning.  Be careful not to overcook crescent rolls!  Muffins will easy pop out.  Serve hot.

Breakfast Casserole Muffins are great for big group gatherings or just for making at home to feed your family. My favorite part about these is that they are quick and easy, and so much more nutritious than a PopTart or danish, and easy to freeze and reheat one at a time!  My girls gobble them up every time I make them – and I can feel good about them getting a good source of protein before school.  The crescent roll is just what they needed to make them absolutely perfect.

NOW they are an entire breakfast… all in one little muffin.