Fluffy Spinach Egg Muffins

These spinach egg muffins are made using lots of fresh spinach accompanied by tangy feta and intensely savoury cheddar for a tasty, nutritious breakfast or snack. They are moist but also light and fluffy, simple to make and delicious the next day, too!

See also fluffy cottage cheese egg muffins!

Spinach egg muffins make a delicious alternative to omelettes, quiches and scrambled eggs. They are a fantastic make-ahead healthy breakfast or snack, perfect also to include in your weekend brunch menu. Each muffin contains approx. 98 calories and 7 grams of protein.

I used a simple method to make sure the spinach is truly the star ingredient in this recipe. It involved wilting the spinach before combining with the egg mixture rather than adding it raw. As a result, I was able to use a very generous amount of spinach - much more than most spinach egg muffin recipes call for.

These spinach and egg muffins are also light and fluffy thanks to the addition of flour and baking powder (very small amounts) which prevents them deflating too much (all egg muffins deflate to some degree as they cool). This means that they do not have a dense, rubbery texture!

Spinach egg muffins: ingredients and substitutions

• Spinach: I recommend using fresh baby spinach.
• Eggs.
• Feta: both eggs as well as spinach are delicious with feta (see also spinach and feta stuffed sweet potatoes).
• Cheddar: I used mature cheddar cheese, but you can use another semi-hard cheese if preferred (such as Monterey Jack, mozzarella, gruyere, or gouda).
• Yogurt: helps produce a fluffy texture. You can substitute sour cream if preferred.
• Flour: helps loosen the texture of the muffins, and absorbs excess moisture from the spinach. You can make them gluten free by using rice flour instead of wheat (as I have done in quinoa egg muffins).
• Baking powder: your muffins won’t be fluffy without it so do not skip this ingredient!
• Salt and pepper.

Step-by-step recipe instructions

1.Preheat the oven to 350 F/ 180 C/ 160 fan/ gas mark 4. Using either butter or non-stick cooking spray thoroughly grease your muffin pan. Set aside.

2. Prepare spinach: Chop the spinach as finely as you can. Heat a large non-stick pan, add the spinach and cook for a minute or so over a high heat (this is important!) until it wilts stirring all the time. The spinach will reduce in volume and turn a dark green colour.

• TIP: You can chop the spinach either by hand or in a food processor.

3. Cool spinach: Remove from the heat immediately and spread over a large plate. Set aside for a few minutes to cool. In the meantime, prepare the rest of the ingredients.

4. Prepare eggs: Whisk together the eggs and yogurt until the mixture is smooth.

5. Add cheese: Add both cheeses, salt and pepper and whisk in to combine.

6. Add spinach: Stir in the spinach (once cooled) using a whisk.

7. Add flour: Sift the flour and baking powder over the batter and stir in gently with a whisk. Do not overstir.

8. Bake muffins: Fill the muffin cases with the batter (not quite up to the top) and bake in the centre of the oven for 25 minutes. You should get 9 muffins.

• TIP: I like to pour the batter into the muffin cases using a small ladle with a spout.

9. Cool muffins: Remove from the oven and set aside to cool for about 10 minutes then run a flexible spatula or knife around each muffin (while still warm) and remove from the pan. Enjoy!

How to serve egg muffins with spinach

These healthy spinach egg cups are delicious on their own, but can also accompany baked beans, bacon, sausages, and other breakfast foods. Also delicious with smoothies (such as avocado or beet).

Optional add-ins

• Protein: finely chopped ham, bacon or sausage (1-2 tablespoons).
• Vegetables: finely chopped red bell pepper, scallions, or sun-dried tomatoes (1-2 tablespoons).
• Flavour: red pepper flakes or cayenne pepper.

TIP: I do not recommend adding ingredients containing a lot of moisture, such as fresh tomatoes, as these muffins are already quite moist.

Can I use larger muffin cases

I do not recommend it. I made a few batches of these egg spinach muffins in a ceramic pan, where the muffin cases have slightly wider bottoms than in a regular aluminium pan, and every time the spinach ended up gathering up at the top and sides. Using a regular sized muffin pan produces better results.

Top tips

• You can chop the spinach by hand or using a food processor (you may need to do this in 2 batches). Chop the spinach before wilting it (not the other way around) – whole spinach leaves are more likely to become soggy and aren’t easy to chop finely which means they won’t be evenly distributed throughout the batter.
• It is important to wilt the spinach quickly, over a high heat, so it doesn’t release too much water (it will still be a little moist which is fine).
• Once you’ve added the dry ingredients into the batter stir just to combine (do not overstir the batter).
• Grease the muffin pan thoroughly to prevent the muffins sticking to it (I used butter, but a non-stick cooking spray is fine to use, too).
• Wait about 10 minutes before removing your muffins from the pan, but do not let them cool in the pan completely (they’ll be more likely to stick to it).
• Run a flexible spatula/knife around the muffins before removing them from the pan.
• Leftover egg cups with spinach can be refrigerated, stored in an airtight container, for up to 3 days. Reheat in the microwave for a few seconds before serving (this is optional).
• Freeze in an airtight container for up to 3 months. Defrost in the fridge overnight or in the microwave.

More spinach breakfast recipes to try next

• Crepes with Spinach and Cheese Filling
• Quinoa Spinach Breakfast
• Fresh Spinach Quick Bread with Buttermilk
• Spinach Berry Smoothie 2 Ways

See also these other easy, delicious breakfast ideas including over 30 breakfast recipes with vegetables!

Recipe

Keep in touch!

If you make these spinach egg muffins I’d love to know how they turned out for you. Let me know in the comments below, thanks:)

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