What's for Breakfast? Ham and Green Onion Egg-Buns!

For a nutritious breakfast-on-the-go or a special addition to a picnics, breakfasts, or brunch spreads, these Ham and Green Onion Buns are a winner. They are simple to make (just layer everything in muffin cups), and are packed with oats, eggs, and bits of ham and green onions for a savoury punch. (Skip to recipe.)

My husband says our chickens are prima donnas because they only lay eggs when they want to.

I think they are just exercising their prerogative as females and occasionally taking a break from all that productivity. After all, a girl's gotta put her feet (or her wings) up sometimes!

And so, in order not to put too much pressure on those poor, overworked birds, I went and - gasp - bought some  eggs! A few cartons of pure egg whites, to be exact. My curiosity got the better of me and I just had to try them. Egg whites in a carton are handy dandy - no cracking of shells, no drizzles of sticky egg whites on the countertops, and no yolks to use up. (But don't talk to Raymond about the economics of buying eggs when you have 25 hens sitting in the henhouse, happily eating chicken feed and taking life easy!)

I have been making these quick and tasty breakfast buns lately. Recipes for them keep popping up on Pinterest, but most are made with just eggs and bits of filling. I felt the need to up the fiber content in these, so I played around with them a bit, and . . . we have a winner! They are teenager-approved. In fact, this morning I made a muffin tin full for Andreas and his friend, thinking I'd have some left over for this weekend's lunches - and they polished off all 12 of the buns while I had my back turned. The only thanks I got was two sheepish grins and two thumbs up.

I have made these breakfast buns with whole eggs (fresh from the henhouse) and also with the aforementioned carton of egg whites - both work well and are almost equally tasty.

Your choice:

Egg whites from carton = convenience and lower cholesterol.

Whole eggs = slightly richer taste and all the nutrients from the egg yolks.

The beauty of these breakfast buns is that they keep very well in the fridge. Make a batch on the weekend and you can have breakfasts or lunches all week (just hide them behind the cabbage head or mayonnaise jar). The buns only need a short reheat in the microwave, but they are also quite tasty at room temperature.

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Kitchen Frau Notes: I use deli ham and green onions, but you could substitute with any meats you have around. (Our stores now have a 'natural slections' line of deli meats available, made with all natural ingredients and no nitrates - yay!) Other deli meats or sausages or minced leftover meat would be fine. You may have to add a bit of salt if you use unsalted meat. Otherwise, these breakfast buns don't need salt because the ham and the cheese provide enough saltiness. If you don't have green onions, you could substitute finely minced regular onion, too.

If you use a muffin tin, grease it well with oil, butter or cooking spray. Silicone muffin cups make clean up a breeze. Give them a misting with cooking oil spray and they will easily come clean with soapy water. If you choose not to grease them, turn them inside out to clean them and give the ridges a quick swipe with a kitchen brush.

Any cheese works for the topping - even a crumble of feta cheese or goat cheese. To make these dairy free, omit the cheese or substitute it with a small spoonful of nutritional yeast flakes sprinkled on top of each bun.

Ham and Green Onion Buns

• ¾ cup (80gms) old-fashioned (large flake) rolled oats, gluten free if necessary
• ½ cup minced deli ham (about 80 gms / 4 slices)
• ½ cup (120ml) finely minced green onions (3-6, depending on size)
• freshly ground black pepper
• 10 large or extra-large eggs (or 2 cups/500 ml pure egg whites)
• about 3 oz (70-80gms) cheese - I like gouda or havarti cheese
• 2 to 3 teaspoons chia or sesame seeds for garnish, optional

Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180°C).

Generously grease a 12-muffin tin with oil or cooking spray. (Or use silicone muffin cups coated with cooking spray.)

Finely mince the green onions and the ham.

Place one tablespoon rolled oats in each muffin cup. Then top with the chopped ham and green onions, divided evenly among the muffin cups. Sprinkle each one with a good grinding of black pepper.

Beat the eggs and put them into a spouted measuring cup or pitcher to make them easier to pour. You should have about 2 cups (500ml).

Divide the eggs or egg whites evenly among the 12 muffin cups - they should be half to two thirds full. (Silicone cups will be a little fuller than that.)

Cut the cheese into slices about 1½ inches square. Place one slice on top of the egg mixture in each muffin cup. Sprinkle with the chia or sesame seeds to garnish.

Bake in the preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until each bun is puffed up into a nicely rounded dome and starting to get golden brown around the edges. If you use the silicone muffin cups, you may need the longer time to cook them.

Let the buns rest in the pan for 5 minutes to shrink away from the sides of the tin slightly. Then run a butter knife around the edges to loosen them, and work the bottoms loose from the pan. Remove the breakfast buns from the tin or pop out of the silicone cups and serve immediately, or let cool on a rack and then store in an airtight container or small sandwich bags in the fridge, ready for lunches during the week. They last well for at least 5 days.

Ham and Green Onion Buns are perfect for eating out-of-hand when you are on the run, in packed lunches, for picnics, or for part of a breakfast or brunch spread.

Makes 12.

Guten Appetit!

 

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You might also like these other breakfast ideas:

Baked Oatmeal

Pumpkin Pie Granola

Crepes

Mangoes and Blueberries in Yogurt Cream

Irish Cheese Toasties