The only thing I hate more than a sink full of dirty dishes is WASHING a sink full of dirty dishes. So this “No Washing Up Ham, Egg & Cheese Bread Bowl” post is dedicated to everyone who hates doing the dishes as much as I do!
“Perfect for feeding an army. You can make ahead, eat it with your hands and I swear, there is not a single dish or pan or utensil to be washed!”
In my next life, I hope to be reborn with slim hands and long, elegant fingers instead of pudgy, midget hands. My friends call me “Baby Hands”. Truly! I do everything I can to avoid “hand shots”, but sometimes it just has to be done.
Enough about my Baby Hands, let’s put the focus back on the food. If I wrote this post like my other posts, it would go on for pages as I ranted on and on about why I think these No Washing Up Ham, Egg & Cheese Bread Bowls are so nifty. So I’m going to do both of us a favour and simply list out the pros and cons!
PROS
1. NO WASHING UP – no pots, no pans, no baking tray, no cutting board, no bowls. These are baked wrapped in foil which you need to do otherwise the bread roll burns before the egg cooks. The only kitchen equipment you’ll use is a knife to cut the top off the rolls. If you’re as lazy as me, you’ll just run a dishcloth along the blade and put it right back in the knife rack!
2. FAST TO MAKE – it will take you all of 4 minutes to assemble 4 to pop into the oven. Possibly 3 minutes. And if you like your yolks really runny like I do, these will be out of the oven in 10 minutes.
3. EAT WITH YOUR HANDS – just like a burger!
4. FEED A CROWD – FAST. You can make loads of No Washing Up Ham, Egg & Cheese Bread Bowls in one go – as many as you can fit in your oven!
5. MAKE AHEAD. Yes, you really can! The only thing is to make sure the bread bowls are properly lined with ham to stop the egg from seeping through to the bread. Just assemble completely and wrap with foil, then leave them in the fridge until you need them. Then pop them in the oven!
6. VERSATILE. Get creative! These are pretty boring – just ham, eggs and cheese. Fill it with whatever you want! The only thing to ensure is that you line the bread with ham so the egg doesn’t soak straight into the bread. I tried making these with bacon once but because it is thicker and not as pliable (especially after you fry it), you can’t mould it into the bowl as well so I struggled to make enough space for even an egg, let alone anything else.7. BUDGET. Ham is cheaper than bacon. And you don’t need to use any fancy bread for this. Just ordinary bread rolls. Even stale is fine. Once stuffed and baked, you won’t be able to tell if they are fresh or stale bread.
8. FOOD ON THE GO. Because you can eat this with your hands, it’s great for on the go! I was munching on this while wandering around packing up the props after taking the photo!
9. GREAT FOR A CAMP OUT. Can you imagine how great this would be cooked over a campfire?? Just place it on the edge of the fire near (not on) hot coals. The foil traps the heat well and it will cook in no time!
10. ONLY 339 CALORIES PER SERVING. Believe it. It’s only 1 bread roll, 1 egg, 1 small slice of ham and 2 tbsp of cheese. Actually, I just realised it’s less than 339 calories because I didn’t factor in that the centre of the bread roll is removed.
11. SO, SO TASTY. Why I haven’t put this as #1 is beyond me!
“This is a great way to use up bread rolls that are slightly stale. Once stuffed and baked, no one would ever be able to tell whether the rolls are fresh or not!”
CONS
1. Eerm….no greens? Though I DID add a sprinkle of parsley on the No Washing Up Ham, Egg & Cheese Bread Bowls. Isn’t that enough?
OK, so perhaps I’m being completely pig-headed by not coming up with more cons. I am the excitable type and can get blindsided. So if you’re the sensible type and can think of more “cons”, leave a comment below and I’ll update the list!
Aren’t my wrapping skills shocking? You should see the presents I wrap! Well, you won’t, because I won’t ever be showing you!
Don’t toss the bread you scoop out! Save it to make croutons or breadcrumbs. Or how about this Chicken and Spinach Bread Bake or this Creamy Bacon, Chicken and Broccoli Bread Bake?
Love to hear what you think, or any other suggestions you might have for other fillings! Just leave a comment below and I’ll be sure to respond :). – Nagi x
MORE BREAKFAST EGG RECIPES
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Frittata – the classic done right!
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Shakshouka – baked eggs made exotic
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No Washing Up Ham, Egg & Cheese Bread Bowls
Ingredients
- 4 bread rolls (soft or crusty)
- 4 small slices of ham , or 2 big ones cut in half
- 4 eggs , at room temperature
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley , finely chopped (optional)
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 180C/350F.
- Cut the tops off the bread rolls.
- Scoop out the centre and reserve (see notes for ideas to use). To be neat, use a small knife to cut a round outline before scooping out the centre.
- Line the bread bowl with a layer of ham. Try to use one whole piece if you can because then there is less chance of egg seeping through and being soaked up by the bread.
- Crack in an egg.
- Top each with 2 tbsp of mozzarella cheese and a sprinkle of parsley (optional).
- Put the top back on each roll. Wrap with foil and place in oven to bake for ~15 to 25 minutes. Take a peek at 20 minutes to check them. 20 minutes = runny yolks. 25 minutes + = just cooked yolks. (See notes for more information)
- Remove from oven, unwrap and serve immediately.
Recipe Notes:
a) Your oven. Mine is a fan forced oven which cooks food faster than normal ovens.
b) How many you are making - the more you are making, the longer it will take.
c) How thick the bread bowl walls are. The thicker the wall, the longer it will take for the heat to get to the centre of the bread to cook the egg. I made mine quite thin - about 1cm/1/3".
d) The type of bread you are using. A dense bread like a sourdough will take longer. I used soft standard bread rolls.
e) Whether the eggs are at room temperature or are cold, straight out of the fridge.
Nutrition Information:
WATCH HOW TO MAKE IT
No Washing Up Ham, Egg and Cheese Bowls recipe video!
Would love to know if anyone has tried these overnight in the crockpot?????
Hi Arlene! I think the bread will get very soggy in a crockpot. Sorry! 🙂
You are probably right. Guess I’ll need to bake in the oven and then keep warm in the crock pot. Thanks
Hi,
Made this the other morning for breakfast it was great. Put in a bit of hot salami as well and it was good. One question i did have, i like my egg yolks runny, just at the point before they turn yellow and set hard. With this i found that the very top of the egg had gone yellow and hard and the bottom was a little underdone.
Any suggestions?? i didn’t foil it, i wonder if that was the problem?
Hi Ricki! Yes, not wrapping in foil would have been part of the reason because there it sort of creates a mini oven in itself, distributing the heat better throughout the roll whilst also protecting the bread of burning 🙂 I’m glad you loved it though! And salami? Can’t go wrong adding that into anything!! 🙂
Hi Nagi,
Really impressed by ur receipe will try out soon just wanted to confirm can i do a thin layering with lettuce and then sausages and then the filling part is this ok pls suggest i am new to cooking as we dnt eat ham or salmon
I’m so glad you like the look of this! I would worry that lettuce and sausages isn’t enough to “seal” the bread to stop the egg soaking through. What I would suggest is buttering the inside of the bread (helps seal it more) and using a double layer of lettuce (making sure there are no tears in it). I presume you are using crumbled cooked sausages?
I made these this morning and they were delicious! My only comment is that it took much longer than 15 minutes (at 350F) to even start cooking the egg. I had mine in the oven for about 30 minutes. My husband loved them! Thank you!
I’m so glad you both loved them!! Yes, I’ve definitely gotten feedback that the cooking time varies, so many factors affect it. 🙂 I listed a bunch of them in the notes to the recipe. Thank you for coming back to let me know you loved it! N x
These look lovely! I’m just about to try these with turkey and cheese with my egg. Has anyone tested the freeze-ability of this recipe? I would love to be able to make these ahead of time and warm them up on the go.
oooh, turkey is fabulous with this! Unfortunate it can’t be frozen because the egg whites become rubbery 🙁 Sorry to burst the bubble!
You can freeze these if you scramble the egg instead of breaking it in whole.
You are absolutely right Lorri! 🙂
This looks delicious do u think it would be good on a camp fire?
Hi Kathy! Being a camping lover, I think I’d have to say that it won’t work very well on the camp fire. Reason being that the heat is not as evenly regulated so you’ll probably end up with a burnt roll before the egg cooks inside. The closest I can think of is using a cash iron pot, making a hole in the ground, filling it with coals, putting the pot in and placing a rack to elevate the bread bowls in the foil. Lid on, more coal on top and on the sides = camping oven 🙂 I haven’t tried this with that method but I have made all sorts of things this way, from roast chicken to even cakes! 🙂
These look delicious! Planning on making them for a brunch this week. The only concern is whether the eggs are cooked completely through or not? I have a pregnant friend that can’t consume raw eggs, so I’m wondering if I need to find a substitute for her. Thanks so much!
Hi Alexis! I like my yolks runny 🙂 Just leave it in for an extra 3 to 5 minutes to be 100% sure the yolks are properly cooked through (I just take a peek a prod the yolk to make sure!)
THANKS FOR THE RECIPE! Just tried this out and it turned out great. Even took a few pics! https://instagram.com/p/4KMOGuJqY0
I’m SO GLAD you loved it!! I was just on your IG – looks AWESOME!! 🙂
Hey there! That’s a really good recipe! I would like to prepare this for my upcoming practical examination, it’s part of a major exam. And the criteria is that we need to have flour in all of our recipes. So is there anything flour-related that I can add in? Other than making the bread from scratch , that is. Thanks in advance !
Oh my!! For an exam? Hmm….let me think. How about using a cheese sauce? I have a Nachos Cheese Sauce on my blog which has 1 tbsp of cornstarch in it. Does that count? You could pour some of the cheese sauce in before cracking the egg in. 🙂
Instead of just cracking an egg, use a frittata recipe. It usually calls for some flour and baking soda in the mixture. Little more work, but it will solve the flour problem.
I’m going to surprise my husband with this in the morning adding a side of bacon roses!!
*Gasp* Bacon roses? That’s soooo adorable! Your husband is one LUCKY GUY!! N x
Use smoked Turkey! Like deli sliced sandwich meat
That would work perfectly!! 🙂
husband is making these as I type so excited on two levels , love the site and looking forward to trying more yummo recipies
Thank you Cath! Lucky you, getting hubby to make these for you 🙂 Hope you are sitting back with your feet up!! 🙂
Is it possible to use deli turkey instead of ham? I am not a huge fan of ham, but these sound amazing!
Absolutely Nicole! You can use any thinly sliced meat or even smoked salmon. Anything that will essential “seal” the bread bowl so the egg doesn’t leak through into the bread. 🙂
Excuse me,
I am Muslim and I can’t eat ham but is there another ingredient that I should put in instead of ham? I’m cooking this for Mother’s Day. This food really looks delicious :).
Hello! How about smoked salmon? Otherwise if you want to make it vegetarian, a few comments down there are instructions for how to use spinach or kale leaves instead. 🙂
What a fantastic idea. The smoked salmon would be awesome.
Hi Nagi, sorry but I am new to your website, and when you say place it in the oven to bake, is that at 180 Celsius (355 Fahrenheit)?
Hi Thomas! So sorry for the delay responding 🙂 Yes it’s 180C/355F. I tend to round it to 350F. 🙂
Is there a way to make these in a toaster oven or on the stove? Our oven is broken right now and I want to try these soooo bad!
Hi Nikol! Oh no, I’m so sorry to hear that! These won’t work in a toaster oven, they will burn before the inside is cooked 🙁 And I have no idea how to cook this on a stove! Sorry to be of no help. Hope you get your oven fixed soon!!
I was able to cook these in a toaster oven, but first put them in the microwave for 1 minute to cook the egg slightly then put them in the toaster oven to crisp the outside of the roll
That’s a wonderful tip Roberta! Thank you for sharing it!
I’m late on this, but I’ll bet you could pop these in a Crock Pot or Nesco roaster. You might be able to stovetop by using a Dutch oven lined with bricks, but at that point you might as well head outside and do them in a fire, I think.
Hi Katie! I have to agree with you – when bricks start to get involved!!! 🙂
Saving this so I can make it for dinner tonight… And tomorrow… and the next night and probably breakfasts as well. They look so tasty and delicious and I can think of loads of things to add variety
Hi Sarah! I know, right?? Once you’ve made it once, you won’t need the recipe either, it’s sooo easy and as you say, filling options are endless!! 😉
I am so making these with Portuguese sausage instead of ham. My foster mom loves that spicy sausage. Mother’s Day brunch here I come!!
Hi Victoria! Sausages will be fabulous with this! The only thing is…you need to figure out a way to stop the eggs from leaking into the bread. The ham is what does that in this recipe! So if you prefer to use sausages, I suggest lining the inside of the bread with spinach or kale leaves (see comment below for how to do that!) and perhaps an extra slice of cheese. 🙂 Hope that helps!! Your mom is one very lucky lady that you are making such an effort to make a version of this using what she loves. 🙂
are there any vegetarian substitutions for the ham that you believe would keep the egg from soaking? this recipe looks amazing, and i’m hoping to make it for my mom this sunday on mothers day.
Hi Stephanie – absolutely!! If your mother eats seafood, then smoked salmon is the best non meat alternative. Otherwise, kale and spinach leaves works great, as well as an extra layer of cheese for protection! Have a read of my response to the comment a couple below – I’ve provided directions on how to do this. Happy mother’s day for your mom! Spoil her ROTTEN!! N x
If you coat the inside of the roll with butter or a bit of cooking spray it helps to keep the egg from soaking in.
Also very yummy if you put artichoke dip in place of the egg or scramble up the egg w/ cheese and veggies and make it kind of like a quiche. 🙂
I love it, quiche in a bread roll. You know, you’ve inspired me, I might have to post a bread bowl QUICHE!! 🙂
tried these last week they were very good
I’m so glad you enjoyed it Wilma!! Thank you for coming back to share your feedback 🙂