These easy Baked Eggs with Bacon, Spinach and Cheese (doesn’t have to be goat cheese, I actually make them most often with feta!) only require a handful of ingredients, but they look and taste like something you’d eat for brunch in a fancy hotel or restaurant. The original recipe came from my friend Kelsey Nixon’s cookbook, Kitchen Confidence. Whether you just want to feel fancy on a random weekday or you want to impress your family for Easter brunch, these baked eggs are guaranteed to do the trick!
Ingredients Needed
This is just a preview of ingredients and method, keep scrolling for full printable recipe.
- Eggs
- Applewood smoked bacon
- Baby spinach
- Apple Cider Vinegar – Use a good quality organic apple cider vinegar, like Bragg’s for best flavor.
- Coarse ground mustard
- Goat cheese or Feta – or even a few crumbles of Boursin cheese would be so great.
- Baguette slices
- Salt and pepper
How to Make Baked Eggs with Bacon, Spinach, & Goat Cheese
- First you’ll cook up some bacon. When it’s done, drain and crumble it and set it aside.
- Dip a paper towel in those bacon drippings and use that to grease 4 ramekins. Make sure to reserve another tablespoon of drippings for the next step.
- Saute some spinach in the reserved bacon drippings. While the spinach is wilting, whisk together some coarse-grain mustard and apple cider vinegar. When the spinach wilts, remove from heat and toss with the vinegar/mustard mixture and a little salt and pepper.
- Crack an egg into each ramekin then divide the spinach mixture between the ramekins. Topped with crumbled bacon and pop in the oven until the whites are set.
- While the eggs are cooking, slice up a baguette. I like to drizzle these with a little olive oil or spread with some butter (or you could use more bacon drippings here!) and place them back in that same skillet you already used for your spinach (just wipe it with a paper towel first). You can also pop them under a broiler to toast.
- When the eggs are done, remove from the oven, season with salt and pepper, and top each one with cheese. Serve immediately with toasted baguette slices.
Storing and Other Tips
- These are best eaten fresh! If you have leftover ingredients, store them separately in the fridge so they’re ready when you want to make more.
- If you’re making a larger batch, Be sure to spread your ramekins out on a large baking sheet with adequate space for even cooking.
Frequently Asked Questions
You can, but at your own risk! Eggs can explode from microwave cooking, even after the microwave is off, so I recommend taking some precautions. Prep your ingredients ahead of time so they are ready to go. Grease a ramekin and add a little splash of water, less than a tablespoon. Crack in the egg and top with the spinach and bacon. Place a microwave-safe plate (something with some weight, like ceramic) on top of the ramekin in the microwave and microwave for 30 seconds. Take a peek and microwave in 15 second increments until the egg reaches desired doneness. In my microwave this is about 45 seconds total. Let the egg rest for 10-15 seconds before removing the plate each time you check it to make sure you’re safe from pops and explosions of hot egg! There will be a little extra moisture cooking the eggs this way. You can dab it up with a paper towel if you’d like. Top with goat cheese and serve with toasted baguette slices.
These are best eaten fresh, but you can store your spinach mixture and cooked bacon separately in the fridge for easy prep when you want to make more.
Sure. Feel free to mix up the toppings! Crumbled sausage, roasted red peppers, mushrooms, or tomatoes would all be great additions.
Baked Eggs with Bacon, Spinach, & Goat Cheese
Ingredients
- 4 eggs
- 6 slices bacon
- 4 cups baby spinach
- 2 teaspoons apple cider vinegar
- 1 teaspoon coarsely ground mustard
- 2 ounces goat cheese or feta cheese crumbled
- Toasted baguette slices
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 400℉. Cook your bacon, either in a skillet or in the oven. To cook in the oven, lay out in a single layer on a foil-lined baking sheet and cook for about 20 minutes or until done. When the bacon is done cooking, drain it on paper towels. Dab another paper towel in the drippings and grease 4 ramekins with the bacon drippings. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the drippings and either save the rest for later or discard them.
- In a skillet (the same one you cooked the bacon in if you used a skillet), heat the reserved drippings over medium heat, then add the spinach. While the spinach is wilting, whisk together the vinegar and mustard. Stir the spinach frequently until wilted- it happens fast!, then remove from heat and add the vinegar/mustard mixture. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
- Carefully crack an egg into each ramekin. Divide the spinach evenly among the ramekins, then crumble the bacon and add that. Place the ramekins on a baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes or until the whites are just cooked through and the yolks are still runny. Keep a close eye on them because all ovens cook differently and you'll want to pull them right when they're perfect, and not over done.
- While eggs are cooking, slice up a baguette. I like to drizzle with olive oil or bacon drippings, or spread with a little butter and place them oil-side-down in that skillet you've already been using to toast until golden.
- Remove eggs from the oven, season with salt and pepper, and divide the cheese evenly among the ramekins. Serve immediately with slices of toasted baguette.
Notes
- These are best eaten fresh! If you have leftover ingredients, store them separately in the fridge so they’re ready when you want to make more.
- If you’re making a larger batch, Be sure to spread your ramekins out on a large baking sheet with adequate space for even cooking.
Nutrition
Questions & Reviews
Sounds Great!
I have to say this looks amazing. I will try this. Just need to get some goat cheese. Wonder if feta would work as well.
You are the only one I know who also buys Wright Bacon. That is my only choice when I shop. I don’t always get the Applewood though. And I have to go through all the packages to make sure I get the right width bacon. Some are way to wide. I do prefer the narrow. But the thickness is perfect. And I always microwave. Two pieces per paper towel and a cover of a papert towel and then on to a paper plate. If using more bacon, just layer accordingly. Two pieces with this bacon, is 2 minutes, 45 seconds. We like it well done.
Ya know…ya can’t go wrong with goat cheese & bacon! Are you kidding!? BTW, I don’t like eggs either unless they’re diguised in lots of cheese & other goodies. Ya know like bacon or sausage or onions, mushrooms, etc
Ooh! I have this cookbook, and it was one of the top ones on my list of things to try soon. Glad to see a great review 🙂
I have loved Kelsey since her Food Network star days, too. I really like her new show, too.
These sound so amazing. I may even be tempted to try goat cheese for the first time!!
However, when I was reading through, the spinach sounded amazing and was making my mouth water. Kate, would you say that this spinach could be doubled as used as a side dish or are the flavors too concentrated to stand alone?
You TOTALLY could make the spinach for a side dish on its own. In fact, it might have been my favorite part. And that’s saying a lot because I loved all of it.
Yay! I know your dislike for making side dishes, so this should be a good one! I’m thinking with pork. I gotta admit our olive oil and garlic saute of spinach is getting kind of old.
funny girl! I have the OPPOSITE aversion to eggs…if I see the slightest hint of ‘runny’, I will send it back to the kitchen. Puke. When I order in restaurants, I always specify that my eggs must be dry…ha! Would this be as tasty if you baked them all the way through?
Totally your call. Honestly, if that’s how you like your eggs cooked, I bet you’d love it–maybe you could scramble the egg and mix it all together and then bake it kind of like a mini frittata?
I am the same way. My mom always cooked our fried eggs with a runny yolk. One time my friend slept over and we had eggs and she was completely disgusted by the yolk. I think it was from that time on that I started having to break the yolk and cook it through–you know, peer pressure. I decided awhile back to try a runny yolk again and I just could not do it. I love eggs, but I have to have them cooked all the way! I’m sure all foodies would look down upon that, but who cares anyway! 🙂
I just have to say, you crack me up! I love your sense of humor!
I agree! You always make me smile! And I’m having this for lunch today! Yum.
Thanks so much, you guys!! 🙂
Runny egg yolk with fresh crusty bread is one of the most amazing things in the world. These sound glorious!
I love baked eggs. A really quick way to have a healthy meal, especially if you fill it with veggies.
I totally understand the weird egg adversion you have. I crave them occasionally, but if someone asks, I usually say I dislike them. This recipe looks great though, can’t wait to try it!