Living alone has it’s perks — — — the house is easier to keep clean, there is more freedom to travel and visit friends and family, the entire bed is mine, I have sole control over the remote, I can play piano any time of the day (or night), and I don’t have to serve full and well-balanced meals every day, if I don’t want to.
Of course, there are plenty of drawbacks to life alone, but in this season of life, I am very content and at peace.
One big change in life since losing my husband is that inconsistent mealtimes leave me lacking protein, and some times running out of energy. Over the past few years, I have too frequently picked up pricey egg bites at the local coffee shop, just to make it through work and errands. When I decided to purchase a sous vide machine, egg bites were my top priority to master.
Much like omelettes, egg bites can come with many different ingredients. I have found a few different recipes though, that end up being made weekly. One of my favorites is this savory version, with a little touch of the Mediterranean. They are loaded with protein, flavor, simple to make in advance, and even easy to take along to work or on errand day.
Being relatively new to sous vide cooking, I use a stockpot that fits 6 quarter-pint canning jars in the bottom.
While the water is heating to 170℉ blend the eggs, cottage cheese, cream, and seasonings in a smoothie glass. Thoroughly spray the jars (I use avocado oil spray), put cheese, bacon, and sundried tomatoes in the bottom of each jar. Then pour in the egg mixture. Screw on the lids, and gently lower into the water. Set the timer for 55 minutes. That’s it!
Here are some tips for simplifying and guaranteeing perfection every time:
- Don’t blend the eggs too long. You definitely don’t want lots of foam in each jar.
- Preheat the water on the cooktop to speed up the process, but make sure you turn off the heat before connecting the sous vide “stick” to the stockpot.
- Since you already have hot water, it is only practical to prepare a second batch!
- Don’t skimp on the spray oil.
- Do not crank the lids too tightly — doing so could cause jars to crack.
- Canning jar tongs, or whatever they are called, are super helpful.
- If the seasonings settle to the bottom of the blender glass, just make sure you divide it up between the jars.
- Use a chopstick to stir ingredients together in the jars, if you want to. I like having all the gooey cheese in one place.
Savory Sous Vide Egg Bites
- Total Time: 1 hour 5 minutes
- Yield: 6 egg bites 1x
Description
Single servings packed with protein and flavor.
Ingredients
6 eggs
1/3 cup cottage cheese
2 Tbsp heavy cream
1/2 tsp ssalt
1/2 tsp dried baasil
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1/4 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp dry mustard
a generous grating of nutmeg
6 Tbsp shredded smoked gouda cheese
4 strips bacon, browned, drained, and chopped
2 Tbsp sundried tomatoes, finely chopped
Instructions
Preheat water in a stockpot. Remove from heat, install sous vide stick and set temperature to 170℉.
While getting up to temperature, blend the eggs, cottage cheese, cream, and seasonings just until combined. Thoroughly spray 6 quarter-pint jars. Divide bacon, cheese, and sundried tomatoes evenly in the bottom of each jar, and cover with lid. (Do not tighten too much!)
Gently lower into hot water, and set the timer for 55 minutes. When the time is up, remove jars to a cooling rack. After about 5 minutes, remove lids, slide a knife around the edge of each jar, and invert onto a plate. Serve immediately, or cool completely and refrigerate.
Notes
Get a second batch ready to cook, since you already have hot water.
Notice that each jar contains one egg, which helps for figuring out serving size.
If you have a stockpot with a wider footprint that fits additional jars, the batch is easy to double. I have never tried stacking jars.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 55 minutes
