Cottage Cheese Egg Casserole (High Protein Breakfast Bake)
Eggs and cottage cheese blended smooth, then mixed with cheddar, onion, mushrooms, and bell pepper and baked at 350F until the center is set. Blending is what keeps the curds out of the finished slice. It bakes in about 35 minutes and slices into squares for the week.
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 260kcal
Equipment
- 8x8 baking dish
Ingredients
- 6 pieces Whole Eggs
- ½ cup Cottage cheese blended
- 2 cloves Garlic minced
- 1 cup Cheddar cheese shredded
- ½ cup Onion chopped
- ½ cup Mushrooms optional, chopped
- ¾ cup Bell pepper optional, chopped
Instructions
- Heat the oven. Preheat to 350°F and grease an 8x8 baking dish, corners included. Egg welds itself to a dry corner, and that is the difference between lifting out clean squares and excavating them.
- Smooth the cottage cheese. Run the cottage cheese in a food processor for about 30 seconds, until completely smooth with no curds left. Scrape the sides down halfway through, since it climbs and sits there. This is what makes the finished slice custardy instead of grainy, so keep going until you cannot see a single curd.½ cup Cottage cheese
- Combine everything. Transfer the cottage cheese to a large bowl. Whisk in the eggs, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then fold in most of the cheddar along with the onion, mushrooms, and bell pepper. Hold back a handful of cheddar for the top. Taste the mixture before the vegetables go in, while you can still fix the seasoning.6 pieces Whole Eggs, 2 cloves Garlic, 1 cup Cheddar cheese, ½ cup Onion, ½ cup Mushrooms, ¾ cup Bell pepper, ½ cup Cottage cheese
- Transfer to the baking dish. Pour it in and spread it level, nudging the vegetables so they are not bunched in one corner. Scatter the reserved cheddar over the top.
- Bake. 30 to 35 minutes at 350°F. Done is when the edges are set and lightly browned and the center jiggles as one piece rather than sloshing. An instant-read thermometer in the middle should hit 160°F.
- Rest and serve. Give it 5 to 10 minutes before cutting. Eggs keep setting as they cool, and slicing straight from the oven makes even a correctly baked casserole weep onto the plate.
Notes
- Smooth the cottage cheese fully. Any curds you can still see in the food processor will be visible in the finished slice. Scrape the sides down and run it again if you are unsure.
- Taste before the vegetables go in. Cottage cheese and cheddar vary a lot in salt by brand. Adjust at the bowl stage, because once it is baked the only fix is salting the plate.
- Shred the cheddar yourself if you can. Pre-shredded is coated in starch to stop it clumping, and that starch can leave a faint grain in the melted top.
- Doubling means a second pan, not a deeper one. Twice the depth overcooks the edges before the center sets. Use two 8x8 dishes or move to a 9x13 and add about 10 minutes.
- Adding spinach or extra vegetables? Wring frozen spinach dry and cook down anything watery first. The base recipe works with raw vegetables at this size, but more vegetables means more liquid than the eggs can absorb.
- Storage: Cool completely before covering, or condensation drips back onto the top. Keeps 4 days in the fridge, 2 months frozen in individually wrapped squares.
Nutrition
Calories: 260kcal | Carbohydrates: 6g | Protein: 20g | Fat: 17g
