These high-protein cottage cheese egg bites are soft, fluffy, and perfect for meal prep. They have a blended cottage cheese base and use a gentle soufflé baking method. They reheat well for an easy, protein-packed breakfast all week long.
Why Cottage Cheese Works
- Replaces the need for extra milk
- Adds moisture/prevents dryness
- Boosts protein
High-protein meal prep is trending hard right now, especially with cottage cheese in the dish. It works wonders with eggs. If you haven’t tried scrambled eggs with cottage cheese mixed in, I highly recommend you do.
I keep it chunky in scrambled eggs, but in this recipe, it would cause the chunks to sink to the bottom of the muffin pans. So it’s important to blend them very finely for egg cups.
How to Prevent Rubbery Eggs
I’ve come across many egg cups and egg bite recipes that turn out rubbery, so I decided to try my own hand at making them fluffy. I went the mini soufflé route to get that soft, fluffy inside.
Egg cups usually turn rubbery for a few simple reasons: overbaking, cooking at too high a temperature, or not having enough fat or moisture in the mixture. When eggs are exposed to high heat for too long, the proteins tighten up too much, squeezing out moisture and creating that spongy, rubbery texture.
That's exactly what this recipe is designed to fix. The blended cottage cheese adds moisture, fat, and protein, which helps keep the eggs tender instead of dry. Baking at a lower temperature also allows the eggs to set gently rather than seize up.
I also whip the egg whites, just like a soufflé, to get them to be lighter and airier so that it rises as it bakes.
So what does "done" actually look like? The centers should be set on top and puffed up from the pan. They will sink slightly as they cool, which is exactly what you want in soufflé-style baking.
Ingredients
- Bacon Slices
- Large Eggs
- Cottage Cheese
- Milk
- Gruyère Cheese
- Sharp Cheddar Cheese
- Dijon Mustard
- Salt
- Black Pepper
- Butter
- All-Purpose Flour
- Baby Yellow Potatoes
- Olive Oil
- Garlic Powder
How to Make Bacon and Gruyère Egg Bites
Baby Potato Wedges
- Preheat the oven to 425℉. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Spray it with nonstick cooking spray. (Don’t skip this. Olive oil alone does not prevent the wedges from sticking.)
- Cut potatoes into ¼ or ⅙ pieces to get small wedges.
- Add the wedges to the pan. Drizzle with olive oil and season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper to taste. Mix to coat.
- Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, stirring after 10 minutes. Set the oven to broil and cook an additional 2-3 minutes until they are golden brown.
Egg Bites
- While the potatoes cook, add diced bacon to a saucepan and cook until it begins to crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. Remove the grease from the saucepan, and save it for later.
- Once the wedges are done in the oven, preheat the oven to 350℉.
- Separate the egg whites and yolks. Add the egg whites to a bowl and set aside. Add the egg yolks, cottage cheese, milk, Gruyère, cheddar, Dijon mustard, salt, and black pepper to a food processor or blender. Blend until smooth.
- In the same saucepan used earlier, melt butter. Add flour and mix. Remove from the heat and slowly pour the cottage cheese mixture into the saucepan while whisking until smooth. Let cool for 5 minutes.
- Whip the egg whites on high speed with a hand mixer until they form glossy, stiff peaks. Fold the egg whites and bacon bits into the cottage cheese mixture.
- Spray a 12-tin muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add about ¼ cup to each (¾ full).
- Bake in the oven for 20-24 minutes, until the tops become lightly golden and are set. They will rise as they bake, and sink slightly as they cool. This is to be expected, just like a soufflé.
Meal Prep
- Add 2-3 egg bites to one side of the meal prep containers. In the middle, add potato wedges, and for cottage cheese, you will want to keep it separate until ready to eat unless you like to eat hot cottage cheese. Sprinkle the cottage cheese with crushed red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper.
Variations
- Bacon → sausage crumbles or turkey bacon
- Gruyère → cheddar only
- Add veggies (spinach, peppers, onions)
Storage
Store in the fridge for up to four days in airtight containers.
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High Protein Cottage Cheese Egg Bites
Ingredients
Egg Cups
- 4 Slices of Bacon diced
- 4 Large Eggs divided
- ½ cup Small Curd Cottage Cheese
- ¼ cup Milk
- ½ cup Gruyère Cheese
- ¼ cup Sharp Cheddar Cheese
- 1 teaspoon Dijon Mustard
- ¼ teaspoon Salt
- ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper
- 2 tablespoons Butter
- 3 tablespoons All-Purpose Flour
Potato Wedges
- 1 ½ pounds Baby Yellow Potatoes
- 2 tablespoons Olive Oil
- 1 teaspoon Garlic Powder
- Salt
- Black Pepper
Cottage Cheese
- 8 ounces Low-Fat Cottage Cheese
- Crushed Red Pepper Flakes, Salt, and Black Pepper optional topping
Instructions
Baby Potato Wedges
- Preheat the oven to 425℉. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Spray it with nonstick cooking spray. (Don't skip this. Olive oil alone does not prevent the wedges from sticking.)
- Cut potatoes into ¼ or ⅙ pieces to get small wedges.
- Add the wedges to the pan. Drizzle with olive oil and season with garlic powder, salt, and pepper to taste. Mix to coat.
- Bake in the oven for 20 minutes, stirring after 10 minutes. Set the oven to broil and cook an additional 2-3 minutes until they are golden brown.
Egg Cups
- While the potatoes cook, add diced bacon to a saucepan and cook until it begins to crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon to a paper towel-lined plate. Remove the grease from the saucepan, and save it for later.
- Once the wedges are done in the oven, preheat the oven to 350℉.
- Separate the egg whites and yolks. Add the egg whites to a bowl and set aside. Add the egg yolks, cottage cheese, milk, Gruyère, cheddar, Dijon mustard, salt, and black pepper to a food processor or blender. Blend until smooth.
- Whip the egg whites on high speed with a hand mixer until they form glossy, stiff peaks. Fold the egg whites and bacon bits into the cottage cheese mixture.
- Spray a 12-tin muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray. Add about ¼ cup to each (¾ full).
- Bake in the oven for 20-24 minutes, until the tops become lightly golden and are set. They will rise as they bake, and sink slightly as they cool. This is to be expected, just like a soufflé.
Meal Prep
- Add 2-3 egg bites to one side of the meal prep containers. In the middle, add potato wedges, and for cottage cheese, you will want to keep it separate until ready to eat unless you like to eat hot cottage cheese. Sprinkle the cottage cheese with crushed red pepper flakes, salt, and black pepper.
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