By sheer luck, the majority of my personal training clients have shifted to an early morning schedule. This is a much happier arrangement than I had prior, when my days were bookended with a few clients in the morning and more in the evening. Now, I have an entire stretch of time ahead of me to do anything I like.
The downside (isn't there one to everything?) is that my day often starts at 3:30 A.M. Add to that my commute and multiple client sessions, and my morning equates to a good 6-8 hour workday. While I love getting so much accomplished as the sun rises, there is a steep price to be paid for poor preparation. If I stay up too late watching "just one more" episode of a tv show with my husband, or wait to have "breakfast" until I arrive back home, my energy level takes a nosedive for the rest of the day. And with it, all of my good intentions to manage my blog or other projects. Some people can power nap their way back to positive productivity. Not me. I need a good night's rest and frequent small healthy meals. With poor planning, I accomplish little and nothing, returning from work only to snack and putter around my house in a tired stupor.
When I began researching transportable recipes, I was excited to discover baked egg muffins. Never heard of these? Imagine an omelette in a muffin tin. Problem was, despite my best efforts, the egg muffins always left a residue behind that required a great deal of soaking and scrubbing to clean. Granted, my stubbornness to replace a perfectly good old muffin pan with a non-stick variety might have been the problem. Even so, I wanted something a little more substantial without needing carbohydrates to round it out. Peppers provided the perfect vessel.
As with most of my recipes, this one is adaptable and limited only by your imagination. It can be made with whole eggs or egg whites. With meat or without. Each pepper can hold about four tablespoons of filling prior to adding the egg. Reheat in a microwave or toaster oven, pop them into a thermal container and hit the road!
The downside (isn't there one to everything?) is that my day often starts at 3:30 A.M. Add to that my commute and multiple client sessions, and my morning equates to a good 6-8 hour workday. While I love getting so much accomplished as the sun rises, there is a steep price to be paid for poor preparation. If I stay up too late watching "just one more" episode of a tv show with my husband, or wait to have "breakfast" until I arrive back home, my energy level takes a nosedive for the rest of the day. And with it, all of my good intentions to manage my blog or other projects. Some people can power nap their way back to positive productivity. Not me. I need a good night's rest and frequent small healthy meals. With poor planning, I accomplish little and nothing, returning from work only to snack and putter around my house in a tired stupor.
When I began researching transportable recipes, I was excited to discover baked egg muffins. Never heard of these? Imagine an omelette in a muffin tin. Problem was, despite my best efforts, the egg muffins always left a residue behind that required a great deal of soaking and scrubbing to clean. Granted, my stubbornness to replace a perfectly good old muffin pan with a non-stick variety might have been the problem. Even so, I wanted something a little more substantial without needing carbohydrates to round it out. Peppers provided the perfect vessel.
As with most of my recipes, this one is adaptable and limited only by your imagination. It can be made with whole eggs or egg whites. With meat or without. Each pepper can hold about four tablespoons of filling prior to adding the egg. Reheat in a microwave or toaster oven, pop them into a thermal container and hit the road!
Ingredients:
Tomato-Zucchini Cups:
2 large bell peppers, split lengthwise and seeded
3 large eggs, beaten
4 tablespoon onion, minced
4 tablespoons zucchini, diced small
4 tablespoons tomato, diced small
Sausage-Mushroom Cups:
2 large bell peppers, split lengthwise and seeded
3 large eggs, beaten
4 tablespoon onion, minced
4 tablespoons turkey sausage
4 tablespoons mushrooms, diced small
4 tablespoons tomato, diced small
hot sauce, optional, recommended Valentina Mild Hot Sauce
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Place the pepper halves skin side down onto a non-stick pan. Add one tablespoon of each type of filling. Slowly pour the beaten egg over the filling, allowing the egg to sink to the bottom before continuing to add more, until it rises to the edge of the pepper. Continue this step with the remaining pepper halves. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 40-50 minutes, or until the egg sets. Remove from oven and allow to cool before refrigerating in an airtight container.
Reheating Directions:
Microwave: place the peppers on a microwave safe dish, cover and cook for 30 seconds. Add time as needed.
Toaster Oven: place the peppers on the oven tray. Set to 400ºF and cook for 2-3 minutes or until steaming.
Yield: 2-4 servings per variety
Tomato-Zucchini Cups:
2 large bell peppers, split lengthwise and seeded
3 large eggs, beaten
4 tablespoon onion, minced
4 tablespoons zucchini, diced small
4 tablespoons tomato, diced small
Sausage-Mushroom Cups:
2 large bell peppers, split lengthwise and seeded
3 large eggs, beaten
4 tablespoon onion, minced
4 tablespoons turkey sausage
4 tablespoons mushrooms, diced small
4 tablespoons tomato, diced small
hot sauce, optional, recommended Valentina Mild Hot Sauce
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Place the pepper halves skin side down onto a non-stick pan. Add one tablespoon of each type of filling. Slowly pour the beaten egg over the filling, allowing the egg to sink to the bottom before continuing to add more, until it rises to the edge of the pepper. Continue this step with the remaining pepper halves. Place the pan in the oven and bake for 40-50 minutes, or until the egg sets. Remove from oven and allow to cool before refrigerating in an airtight container.
Reheating Directions:
Microwave: place the peppers on a microwave safe dish, cover and cook for 30 seconds. Add time as needed.
Toaster Oven: place the peppers on the oven tray. Set to 400ºF and cook for 2-3 minutes or until steaming.
Yield: 2-4 servings per variety
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