Salmon & Spinach Egg Muffins

Here's a recipe for a tasty little, SIBO-friendly Egg Muffin that you can eat with your fingers. It's a fun way to combine protein and veggies: tasty, packable and portable.

Ever since I learned that egg muffins existed, I've been wanting to make some. This may sound weird, but due to its shape and size, I find that eating an Egg Muffin offers some of the familiar comfort I associate with eating real muffins. True confession: I miss muffins! But even almond flour or coconut flour muffins hurt my tummy. Egg Muffins, on the other hand present no such problem!

I made these today for the very first time and they came out great! If you try them, I hope you like them, too.

Salmon & Spinach Egg Muffins contain about 9 grams of protein each, supplied by both smoked salmon and eggs. If you add the optional cheese, protein count will be closer to 10 grams apiece. I ate two muffins for my mid-day "break-fast" meal and felt super satisfied all the way until dinner, with NO BLOATING.


Salmon & Spinach Egg Muffins

Makes 6
Serving Size: 1 or 2 muffins

Ingredients

6 large eggs (please choose organic, free-range or pastured!)
1 4-oz package smoked salmon, diced (or 1 cup crumbled leftover salmon)
1 cup chopped baby spinach
1 teaspoon dill weed*
several grinds of black pepper

Optional: 2 oz of grated cheese (consider aged cheddar, feta or brie)


Directions

Preheat oven to 350º F. Grease 6 muffin tins with fat of choice. (I suggest butter, ghee or coconut oil.)

In a medium bowl, beat eggs together well. Add remaining ingredients and stir to combine. (Note: salt is omitted due to saltiness of smoked salmon and optional cheese.) Ladle egg mixture into greased muffin cups. Expect them to be about three-quarters full after all the batter is divided.

Bake for 15-20 minutes. The tops will puff up like little golden chef hats! Remove from oven and allow to cool slightly before removing Egg Muffins from tin.

*Change up the herbs for a different flavor. Instead of dill, you could use tarragon and thyme, for example. ♥︎

Breakfast Sausage Skillet with Rainbow Peppers & Jasmine Rice

My friend Sarah and I met for our weekly Mount Toby jaunt this morning at 7:30 and went for a 1.5 hour hike on empty stomachs with just a cup of tea between us. Normally I'm good with only glycogen for fuel—I like tapping into those stores—but for some reason, trudging up that hill today felt hard and long. By the time I got home I was super hungry. So I made a Breakfast Sausage Skillet.

When it comes to healthy, fast and easy, cast-iron skillet cooking can't be beat.

To make this dish, sautée some chopped rainbow peppers and a diced chicken sausage in cooking fat of choice. (I happened to have bacon grease on hand, but you could use butter or coconut oil, too.)

When the peppers are soft and the sausage is beginning to brown, add a half cup of cooked jasmine rice and some chopped tender leafy greens such as chard, spinach or arugula. Stir and cook until the greens start to wilt.

When the greens start to wilt, push everything to the sides of the pan to make a ring. Add a little more fat to the bare pan surface in the middle, and crack an egg right in the center.

Cook the egg 2-3 minutes, uncovered.

Then cover the pan and cook another couple minutes until your egg is done the way you enjoy it. If you like, you can sprinkle a little grated cheddar cheese all over the top before covering the pan, too.

Note: covering the pan "bastes" the egg so it comes out with a white coating on top. If you prefer the classic yellow, sunny side up egg look, skip this step.

(And how about that yolk, my friends? That is the color of a fresh, local, pastured egg yolk. The deep golden yellow color means it is rich in eye-healthy, antioxidant lutein. And that it tastes delicious.)

Once the egg is cooked to your liking, add salt and pepper to taste. Transfer mixture to a plate or bowl and add a fresh green herb to garnish.

I used fresh chives from my spring garden, but parsley or dill would be nice, too.

 Bon appetit!

Breakfast of Champignons

What I really wanted this rainy Saturday morning was a muffin. A whole grainy Morning Glory muffin packed with raisins, walnuts and grated carrots and zucchini. The kind I used to love before I learned that grains were not my friend.

I knew where to get one, too. In fact, I was THIS close to getting in my car, 2nd Street Bakery bound, when...

I got saved. What saved me were two things. 1) The honest knowledge, based on experience, of how crappy I'd feel for the rest of the day (if not longer) if I introduced wheat into my body for breakfast. And 2) the knowledge that I could make myself a delicious, savory breakfast WAY more satisfying and digestible than some dumb old muffin with its sweet secret promises of pain and noisy farts to come. 

I had everything in the fridge for a veggie and cheese omelet. I made it, I ate it, I enjoyed it and my belly feels like a million bucks. Full, but functional. Going out for the whole day now and I won't be hungry till dinner. Feel like a champ. Mind over matter rocks. 

Mushrooms rock, too. Surprisingly nutritious and immune enhancing. Perfect for fall. Beats a flu shot any day.

What's in my bowl:

Portobello Mushroom & Cheddar Omelet

(made with 2 local pastured Eggs, Raw Goat Cheddar, Portobello Mushroom, Orange Bell Peppers, Roasted Garlic & Chard)

Organic Wild Mushroom Chicken Sausage

Avocado garnish. Yum. 

Unstuffed Peppers with Ground Beef & Spinach

Enjoy this savory dish at any meal. One pan cooking at its finest! Carrots and red bell peppers make it sweet, herbs make it fragrant. FODMAPS-friendly, SIBO safe.

Unstuffed Peppers with Ground Beef & Spinach

Ingredients

1 tsp coconut oil

1 small carrot, diced

1 small red bell pepper, seeded 

   and diced

½ pound grass-fed ground beef

1 cup baby spinach, chopped

½ teaspoon dried oregano

¼ teaspoon dried thyme

pink salt & black pepper to taste

2 Tbs minced fresh parsley

1/4 avocado, diced (optional)

Directions

In a cast iron frying pan, melt coconut oil over medium heat. Add carrots and cook for 3 minutes. Add beef and brown for 1 minute. Add red bell peppers and cook for 3 minutes, stirring. Add chopped spinach, oregano, thyme, salt and pepper. Stir and cook until spinach wilts, about 1 minute. When beef is no longer pink, mix in fresh chopped parsley and avocado (if using). Makes 2 tasty servings.

Bonus Tip

If you happen to have any pre-cooked winter squash or pumpkin hanging around, try stirring in a few tablespoons when you add the spinach—it provides a delightful sweet taste and smooth-texture note!