Leftover Ham and Cheese Breakfast Muffins
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Leftover Ham And Cheese Breakfast Muffins are a scrumptious and convenient way to repurpose your leftover ham into a wholesome morning meal. These savory, protein-packed muffins combine the irresistible flavors of ham, cheese and lots of veggies, in a portable, easy-to-prepare format that’s perfect for busy mornings.
Easy Leftover Ham And Cheese Breakfast Muffins Recipe
Ready to transform your leftover ham into a delectable breakfast treat? Look no further than these scrumptious Ham and Cheese Breakfast Muffins that are sure to delight your taste buds! Not only are they perfect for those busy mornings when you need something quick and nutritious, but they also make a fantastic snack option. The beauty of this recipe is that it’s versatile and allows you to get creative. Feel free to toss in your favorite veggies, herbs, or even mix and match various types of cheese to make these muffins uniquely yours.
In just a few easy steps, you’ll have a batch of warm and savory muffins bursting with protein and flavor. The best part is that these little gems are freezer-friendly, so you can always have them on hand for a satisfying meal or snack anytime you need it. With this scrumptious and simple recipe, you’ll soon find that making the most of your leftover ham has never been easier or more enjoyable.
Why You’ll Love These Ham And Cheese Breakfast Muffins
- Easy Recipe! It takes just 10 minutes of prep time to whip these yummy handheld breakfast muffins together, requires no fancy ingredients, or special cooking skills.
- Breakfast Deliciousness! Made with fluffy eggs, savory ham, cheese, and hearty hash browns, these ham and cheese muffins are super delicious and full of flavor with each bite.
- Versatile Recipe! This recipe is the perfect make ahead on the go morning meal for busy weekdays, but it’s also great for potluck brunches and early office meetings.
- Eggs – We’re using quite a few eggs today, 6 in total. If your eggs are on the smaller side feel free to add a 7th.
- Veggies – Onions and bell peppers. I used a red and green bell pepper today for lots of color and zing.
- Ham – This is the perfect way to use up leftover ham. Sometimes you just have to re-purpose last nights dinner, and this is a delicious way to do it!
- Potatoes – I wanted to keep this recipe nice and quick so I’m using a bag of frozen cubed hash browns today. They taste totally scrumptious and cut the preparation time in half.
- Milk – For some moisture, use whichever fat percentage you’d like.
- Cheese – Freshly shredded cheddar cheese to get some super melty cheese in every single bite.
- Hot sauce – Totally optional if you’re not a big fan of spice – but completely necessary for adding some great complexity to the breakfast muffins.
- Seasoning – Salt and pepper to taste.
Let me show you how to make these tasty leftover ham and cheese breakfast muffins. They’re super easy!
First, preheat your oven to 375°F and give a 12-cup muffin pan a good spray with cooking spray to avoid sticking.
Grab a large skillet and heat up some olive oil over medium heat. Toss in the chopped onion and let it cook for a couple of minutes until it gets a bit soft. Now, add the chopped bell peppers and hash browns to the skillet. Give it a sprinkle of pepper and stir everything together. Cook it for about 5 minutes, or until the potatoes start to get a little crispy.
Throw in the chopped ham and cook it for just a minute to warm it up. Then, transfer the whole mixture to a big bowl and let it cool for a few minutes.
In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, and hot sauce. Pour this egg mix over the cooled ham and veggie mix. Add the shredded cheese and give it all a good stir.
Now, use an ice cream scoop to fill each muffin cup with the mixture. You can fill them right to the top, and you should have enough for all 12 muffins. Pop the muffin pan in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. You’ll know they’re done when they’re set and have a nice golden color on top.
After taking them out of the oven, let the muffins cool in the pan for a couple of minutes before transferring them to a cooling rack.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use a different type of cheese?
Yes, you can easily swap the cheddar cheese for another type of cheese like mozzarella, Monterey Jack, Swiss, or Gruyere. Feel free to get creative and use a combination of your favorite cheeses.
Can I add other vegetables to the muffins?
Absolutely! You can customize the recipe by adding other vegetables like spinach, mushrooms, zucchini, or tomatoes. Just make sure to cook or sauté them before adding them to the mixture, especially if they release a lot of moisture.
Can I make these muffins vegetarian?
Yes, simply omit the ham and add more vegetables or a vegetarian protein source like cooked and crumbled veggie sausage or tofu.
Can I use fresh potatoes instead of frozen hash browns?
Yes, you can substitute fresh potatoes for the frozen hash browns. Grate or cube the potatoes, then cook them in the skillet as directed in the recipe. You may need to adjust the cooking time to ensure the potatoes are cooked through.
Expert Tips
- Grease the muffin pan well. Be sure to generously spray the muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray or grease well with oil to prevent the muffins from sticking to the pan.
- Let the ham cool. The ham mixture needs to come to room temperature before mixing it together with the egg mixture. If it’s too hot it will start to cook the eggs, which you don’t want.
- Use an ice cream scoop. You can easily portion the batter out into the muffin pan with a large ice cream scoop. It’s an easy way to make sure the muffins are uniform and cook more evenly.
Storing Leftovers
You can store the cooked breakfast muffins in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 3-4 days. Reheat them in the microwave or oven before serving.
Freezer
Allow them to cool completely, then place them in a freezer-safe container or zip-top bag. They can be stored in the freezer for up to 2-3 months. To reheat, thaw them in the refrigerator overnight and then warm them up in the microwave or oven.
Other Recipes Perfect For Leftover Ham
- Leftover Ham and Cheese Penne
- Leftover Ham And Bean Soup
- Olive Ham and Cheese Loaf
- Ham and Cheese Pockets
- Leftover Pistachio Pesto Turkey Sandwich
- Hawaiian Ham and Cheese Stromboli
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Leftover Ham and Cheese Breakfast Muffins
Video
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 large onion (chopped)
- 1 medium red bell pepper (chopped)
- 1 medium green bell pepper (chopped)
- 2 cups frozen hash brown potatoes (cubed, 1 bag)
- 2 cups leftover ham (chopped)
- ½ teaspoon pepper (ground)
- 6 large eggs
- ¼ cup milk
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce (optional)
- 2 cups cheddar cheese (shredded)
Before You Begin! If you make this, please leave a review and rating letting us know how you liked this recipe! This helps our business thrive & continue providing free recipes.
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 375℉. Spray a 12 cup muffin pan with cooking spray.
- Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook for about 2 minutes until it starts to soften.
- Add the chopped bell peppers, hash brown potatoes and season with pepper. Stir everything together and cook for about 5 minutes until the potatoes start to brown.
- Add the ham and cook for another minute until the ham heats through. Transfer this mixture to a large bowl and let it cool for about 5 minutes.
- In a smaller bowl whisk the eggs, milk and hot sauce together. Pour this mixture over the ham mixture. Add the shredded cheese and stir everything together.
- Using an ice cream scoop fill each muffin tin with the egg and ham mixture. You can fill all the way to the top, and you should have enough for 12 muffins.
- Place the muffin pan in the preheated oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes or until set and the muffins start to get golden on the top.
- Let the muffins cool for a couple minutes in the muffin pan before transferring to a cooling rack.
Notes
- I did not use any additional salt in this recipe because the ham is salty enough for my taste but feel free to add salt if needed.
- Grease the muffin pan well. Be sure to generously spray the muffin pan with nonstick cooking spray or grease well with oil to prevent the muffins from sticking to the pan.
- Let the ham cool. The ham mixture needs to come to room temperature before mixing it together with the egg mixture. If it’s too hot it will start to cook the eggs, which you don’t want.
- Use an ice cream scoop. You can easily portion the batter out into the muffin pan with a large ice cream scoop. It’s an easy way to make sure the muffins are uniform and cook more evenly.
Nutrition Information
Notice: Nutrition is auto-calculated for your convenience. Where relevant, we recommend using your own nutrition calculations.
Wow, these are so easy to do and SO delicious! They are so good I printed out several copies to give to my friends because I know they’ll love them too.
So glad you enjoyed them!
These were delicious! My family loved them. I will certainly make this recipe again. I made them the night before, re-heated in the microwave for a good, quick breakfast.
These are sooooo delicious! No leftovers! Will try them with some Italian sausage.
Made these today and they’re super tasty. I thought they could use a bit of salt but my husband thought they were perfect. The recipe was easy but the hash browns started to stick to the pan as they browned so maybe a bit more oil, or use non-stick? I had some left-over white wine in the fridge so added a splash to de-glaze the pan and that loosened all the yummy brown stuff. Bet these would be delish with sausage! FYI, the recipe made enough for 18 muffins in my tins.
These are the bomb. Have made them several times and given them to different friends and family members and the comments are always the same. My grandsons are always begging for me to make them so they can have them for breakfast before going to school and as a quick pick-me-up after their football games. This is certainly an easy recipe. You can use bacon or sausage as well as ham. Sometimes a use a combination or all three. I also use real potatoes and steam them to save time. Thanks for such a great idea.
So glad you guys are enjoying these. 🙂
Yum!
I made these breakfast muffins for my family after having lots of leftover ham after Christmas and they were unbelievably delicious. Everyone raved about them! Thanks so much for sharing!
Hi! I was wondering if you tried freezing them and reheating while frozen. I was curious how the potato (and the muffin) tasted once reheated.
Thank you!
Jeanne
Freezing will work! Reheat them for 1-2 minutes in the microwave.