Updated on March 16, 2015
Ham and Egg Cups
See. I don’t only make dessert. Yes, these are made in a cupcake pan, but they are NOT dessert. I have made these for a MOPS (Mothers of Preschoolers) group and have catered the breakfast for the Pinewood Derby at our church for the last few years, and these Ham and Egg Cups have been wildly popular. WILDLY. For the Derby breakfast, I am asked to make finger foods, and these fit the bill perfectly. They are quick and easy to prepare, have very few ingredients, and are packed with protein. Of course, these are a great breakfast option paired with some toast, pancakes, fruit, or yogurt, but they can also be served for a light lunch or even supper. My kids are always THRILLED when we have breakfast for supper, so these go over well anytime of the day at my house. These are simple and yet fancy enough to serve to breakfast guests. They would also make a great “grab and go” option. You can prepare several ahead of time, and then just reheat them in the microwave; they still taste great!
*These are also great for kids to help make. They can put the meat in the pan, and if they know how to crack eggs, you could have them crack the eggs in a separate bowl and then pour them into the cupcake pan when you know there are no broken shell pieces. If they break a yolk, the eggs may not look quite as pretty, but they will still be fine. My oldest daughter loves being able to make/help with these.*
Ham and Egg Cups
Ingredients:
- Eggs
- Lunch/deli meat style meat of your choice. I have always used Land O’ Frost smoked ham.
The slices are the perfect size for the pan, and so far everyone has liked the flavor. Black Forest Ham or turkey would be great options too. - salt and/or pepper to taste (optional)
- parsley flakes to fancy it up a little (optional)
- cooking spray
Directions:
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees. (If your oven is already on a higher temperature for something else, you can just adjust the timing down.)
- Spray the cups of a standard cupcake pan with cooking spray for the number of ham and egg cups you plan to make.
(Alternately: if you are only making a few cups and don’t want to dirty your whole cupcake pan, you can also make these in individual ramekins or custard cups.) Aren’t cupcake pans the worst thing in the world to have to wash? - Place one slice of meat in each cup. Don’t worry too much if the meat wants to fold a little; it doesn’t have to be perfect.
- Crack an egg into each cup, on top of the meat. Again, don’t worry if the meat doesn’t cooperate entirely and egg seeps over the side of the slice of meat. It will all still come out o.k.
- Add salt, pepper, and some parsley flakes to taste if you desire.
- Bake in the preheated oven for 14-17 minutes depending on how done you like your eggs to be. My goal is for the yolk to be firm but not dry, so 16 minutes comes out great. At 16 minutes, the eggs are just slightly wobbly when you shake the pan gently. The ones made in the custard cups took an extra 1-2 minutes.
- Let the cups cool for a minute or two and then they should easily pop out of the pan with a fork or even your fingers.
Source: A kids’ cookbook we checked out from the library years ago.
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Does bacon work?
I haven’t tried bacon for this, but I have seen other similar recipes that use it. You may want to pre-cook the bacon a bit to make sure it gets done enough. The egg itself forms part of the cup, so I think the strips of bacon as opposed to a solid piece of ham would still work.