These easy mini frittatas are just what you need for a quick nutritious breakfast or lunch! Filled with pecans and veggies, make them ahead to grab and go.
This post was created in partnership with the American Pecan Council. All opinions are our own.
Looking for nutritious breakfast or lunch ideas? Aren’t we all. Many readers have been asking us for quick nutritious recipes for busy mornings and office desk lunches. So Alex and I put our heads together and came up with a new trick: mini frittatas! Basically a muffin made of egg, they’re easy to meal prep and grab as you’re headed out the door. Refrigerate or freeze ’em, and you can eat off them all week. The best part: they’re so tasty! They’re filled with colorful veggies and crunchy pecans for added protein and nutrients.
Why make mini frittatas? So many reasons.
What’s so great about these pecan mini frittatas? Alex and I had never made them before, but they’re now part of our easy breakfast and lunch recipe staples! They’d also work for a fancy brunch. When you’re hangry, they’re the perfect snack. (Or to satisfy a cranky child…or spouse. You get it!) Some great things about mini frittatas:
- They’re easy to make. There’s no sauteing veggies required, so you won’t dirty any pans. Just chop up the veggies and pecans, whisk the eggs, and throw them in the oven!
- You can serve them cold or room temp. A key to office desk lunches and busy mornings: you don’t have to bother with reheating! They taste great at any temperature.
- Store them refrigerated or frozen to grab on the go. They’ll stay in the fridge for 4 days, or freeze for up to 3 months.
- They’re nutritious! Mostly eggs and veggies, pecans bring additional protein and nutrients. Speaking of that…
What’s great about pecans?
Pecans are the star ingredient in these mini frittatas because, well: we love them! Pecans pack a nutritional punch and are the ultimate sidekick for your busy life. The Original Supernut is:
- Nutrient dense. Pecans are a good source of fiber and contain 3 grams of plant-based protein, helping you feel fuller longer. They’re among the highest in “good” monounsaturated fats, and flavonoids and essential minerals (see “Heart smart!” section below).
- Seriously versatile. You can use them in anything, from this frittata to eating them by the handful! See below for a few more tips.
- Heart smart! Scientific evidence suggests that eating 1.5 ounces per day of most nuts, like pecans, as part of a diet low in saturated fat and cholesterol may reduce the risk of heart disease. One serving of pecans (28g) has 18g unsaturated fat and only 2g saturated fat. (Source: U.S. Food and Drug Administration)
To learn more about pecans nutrition, go to AmericanPecan.com.
A few tips: how to make mini frittatas
What are mini frittatas, anyway? They’re basically a muffin made out of eggs! They’re similar to a mini quiche, but quiche has a crust. And who has time to bother with crust? There are a few things to know when you make these mini frittatas:
- They puff while baking, but deflate while cooling. Because they’re made with mostly egg, don’t be surprised when you see these mini frittatas rise well above the baking sheet while baking. The moment you remove them from the oven, they’ll deflate back to the size you see in the photos.
- Roughly chop the pecans into irregular pieces. To get a nice crunch and the visual you see here, don’t chop the pecans into a fine dust. Instead, keep them a bit larger and irregular shaped.
- Liberally butter the tin. You’ll want these frittatas to pop out right away, so liberally butter the inside of the muffin tin and spread it around evenly.
Ways to use pecans in recipes
There are so many ways to use pecans outside of the traditional American pecan pie! Alex and I love making pecan recipes that are savory (like these mini frittatas), or honestly just eating them by the handful. Here are a few other ways we love to use pecans in recipes:
- Glazed pecans: Make glazed pecans by heating them in a hot pan with a little maple syrup! They add the perfect crunch to salads, or eat them by the handful. They’re a nutrient packed treat for kids. Our toddler Larson loves to ask with a grin, “Mama, can I have a pecan?”
- Homemade granola: Pecans are our favorite nut to throw into granola, hands down. They have just the right nutty flavor and lightly crunchy texture. Throw this granola over yogurt, or eat by the handful.
This pecan mini frittata recipe is…
Vegetarian and gluten-free.
Print
Pecan & Veggie Mini Frittatas
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 30 minutes
- Yield: 12 1x
Description
These easy mini frittatas are just what you need for a quick nutritious breakfast or lunch! Filled with pecans and veggies, make them ahead to grab and go.
Ingredients
- ½ cup roughly chopped pecans
- ⅓ cup thinly sliced green onions
- ⅓ cup diced jarred roasted red peppers*
- 8 large eggs
- ¼ cup milk
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon smoked paprika
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- ⅓ cup shredded Parmesan cheese (or shredded cheese of any type)
- Butter, for greasing
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Grease a 12-cup muffin tin generously with butter.
- Roughly chop the pecans. Thinly slice the green onions. Dice the roasted red peppers.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, garlic powder, smoked paprika, kosher salt, and a few grinds of black pepper. Divide the mixture evenly into the muffin cups (fill them about halfway). Sprinkle the shredded Parmesan cheese evenly into each cup. Then top with the green onions, then the red peppers. Finish by adding the pecans, divided evenly between the cups.
- Bake for 20 to 25 minutes until golden brown and puffed. (When you remove them from the oven, they’ll immediately start to deflate and will continue deflating as they cool.) Allow to cool for 5 minutes in the tin, then remove. Eat immediately, refrigerate up to 4 days, or freeze up to 3 months. They work great as an on-the-go breakfast or lunch, and are good at room temperature or cold (don’t need to be reheated).
Notes
*Jarred roasted red peppers are usually available near the olives and other canned vegetables.
- Category: Breakfast
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: Mini Frittatas, Pecan Recipes
More lunch ideas
Outside of these mini frittatas, here are a few more of our favorite lunch ideas:
- Simple Chickpea Salad A 5-minute fast lunch idea! It’s easy to throw together: the perfect plant based desk lunch or quick fix dinner.
- Healthy Banana Bread Muffins These banana bread muffins are lightly sweet and made mostly of oats and bananas! They’re blender muffins so they’re easy to make at home. Throw in a handful of pecans for even more nutrients!
- Pear Sandwich This unique combination of sweet and savory totally hits the spot. Spread bread with cream cheese, then top with crunchy pecans and juicy pear slices.
These mini fajitas look fantastic to me. Scrumptious! Except, I can’t eat nuts. I’ve been trying to transition to a more vegetable-based diet but so many of the recipes feature nuts. Sure, they’re great for protein and all, but they’re not great for me. I’d love to see some vegetarian recipes without them. I am currently substituting sunflower and pumpkin seeds wherever I see nuts, but they don’t have the protein content. Still, I am enjoying your recipes. Simple is all I have time for. Thanks.