A no-oil cooking method creates wonderfully crispy breakfast taquitos filled with eggs, sausage, cheese, and assorted veggies. They reheat quickly in the morning for a delicious, portable, grab-and-go breakfast.
No matter how good our intentions, it seems like most mornings end up in a mad dash for the door. My husband believes the best breakfast solution on those busy mornings is a peanut butter and jelly sandwich and a cup of coffee on his drive to work. Shudder. Sorry, I’ve never been a peanut butter and jelly girl. Peanut butter, yes. Jelly, yes. But for some reason I cannot bring myself to put them together. Weird, I know.
These taquitos are my answer for a wholesome make-ahead breakfast for busy mornings. Absolutely perfect to have on hand for kids to quickly reheat for breakfast before school or a yummy after school snack. They are a breakfast version of my Baked Chicken Taquitos that are very well loved in this house. When my guys were younger, I used to bake up batches of those taquitos and keep them in the fridge to soothe their appetites at all times of the day and night. Young male athletes are always hungry – fact.
Another wonderful thing about them is that they freeze beautifully. See below for the full freezer instructions.
To stick with the healthier theme here I used Jennie-O Turkey Breakfast Sausage but feel free to sub any type of bulk sausage you like. This recipe is all about freedom of choice.
Cook and crumble 1/2 pound of breakfast sausage in a non-stick skillet. When it’s thoroughly cooked, transfer the sausage to a double layer of paper towels to drain while we work on the remaining ingredients.
Wipe any grease from the pan and coat it with non-stick cooking spray so we can cook our veggies. I used what I had on hand – diced red bell pepper and cremeni mushrooms. I REALLY wanted to add some fresh baby spinach but alas, I had none in the fridge. So I went spinach-less. I’ll add it next time.
After the veggies have softened, add 8 whisked eggs. Cook and stir over medium-low heat until the eggs have set up. Season with a little salt and peppa.
Add a handful of chopped cilantro, unless you’re one of those people who despise cilantro. If you want to add spinach, you could add it here.
Remove the pan from the heat and add the cooked sausage and some shredded cheese. I used sharp cheddar but this would be fabulous with a variety of different cheese – jack, Swiss, gouda, goat cheese. I’m thinking I need to do this again very soon with spinach and goat cheese. Yum.
I use the smallest flour tortillas I can get at my local store. They’re 6″ in diameter and they work perfectly. To make them easier to roll, warm the whole stack of 16 tortillas in the microwave for about 20 seconds.
Add a couple of tablespoons of the filling across the tortilla, closer to one end.
Fold the end over the filling and roll that baby up, very tightly.
Transfer the taquitos to a rimmed baking sheet that you’ve lined with foil and sprayed generously with non-stick cooking spray. Place them seam side down to keep them rolled tightly. Spray the tops and sides with more cooking spray.
Bake them in a preheated 400 degree oven for 8 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and use tongs to flip them over. They should be nicely browned . Return the pan to the oven and let them go for another 3 minutes. They cook quickly so watch them closely.
They bake up perfectly crisp.
I like to double the recipe and freeze a batch for later. To flash freeze the taquitos I placed them on a baking sheet – being sure to leave space around each taquito – and popped the baking sheet in my overly full freezer. Leave them for at least two hours or more, until they are completely frozen. Once frozen, transfer them to a zippered plastic storage bag and store them in the freezer. Flash freezing them in this manner assures they won’t stick together when they freeze, making it easy to grab just one or two from the bag to reheat. For full instructions on how to reheat them, see the printable recipe below.
You can put anything your little heart desires in these breakfast taquitos. Pretty much anything goes here. Use what you have on hand and customize them to your liking. Sneak in veggies like zucchini or asparagus. Sub ham for the sausage. Make one version for the kids and another for Mom and Dad.
They’re fast, easy, and fabulously tasty.
Crispy Baked Breakfast Taquitos
Ingredients
- 8 large eggs whisked
- 1/2 pound bulk breakfast sausage I used Jennie-O Turkey Breakfast Sausage
- 1 small red bell pepper diced
- 3 or 4 cremeni brown button mushrooms, rinsed, drained, and chopped
- 1/3 cup chopped cilantro optional
- Salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
- 1 heaping cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- 16 small 6" flour tortillas
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Generously coat a foil-lined, rimmed baking sheet with non-stick cooking spray.
- Cook breakfast sausage in a 12" non-stick skillet until crumbled and completely cooked through. Transfer to a double layer of paper towels to drain while you prepare other ingredients.
- Wipe skillet clean, coat with non-stick cooking spray and place over medium heat. Add diced red bell pepper and cook, stirring for a couple of minutes until softened. Add chopped mushrooms and cook for another minute. Lower the heat to medium-low and add whisked eggs to the veggies. Cook, moving the eggs around with a wooden spoon until eggs are set up. Season to taste with salt and pepper and toss in the cilantro (if using). Remove pan from heat and add cooked, crumbled sausage and shredded cheese. Stir to combine and set aside.
- Warm the entire stack of tortillas in the microwave for about 20 seconds just to soften them slightly. Lay a tortilla on a cutting board or other work surface and place a couple tablespoons of the egg and sausage filling down the center of the tortilla. Sprinkle with some of the cheese. Roll the tortilla tightly and place seam side down on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining tortillas. Coat the tops of the taquitos with additional non-stick cooking spray.
- Bake at 400 degrees for 8 minutes. Pull baking sheet out of the oven and use tongs to flip each taquito over to brown the other side. Return to the oven for an additional 3 minutes or till nicely browned on both sides.
- Optional Add-Ins:Add 1/2 cup roughly chopped fresh baby spinach with, or instead of cilantro, and cook until spinach is wilted. Proceed as directed.
- You can add or substitute a variety of different veggies like zucchini, summer squash, asparagus, tomatoes. Anything you like in an omelet would be great here. Try it with different cheeses like jack, Swiss, Gouda, or goat cheese.
- To Flash Freeze Taquitos:Place on a baking sheet, leaving space around each taquito, and place baking sheet in the freezer for at least 2 hours or more until thoroughly frozen. Transfer frozen taquitos to a freezer safe plastic storage bag and store in the freezer.
- To reheat frozen taquitos - place desired number of taquitos on a paper towel lined microwave safe plate and cook on HIGH for 30 seconds. Turn taquitos over and cook an additional 15 to 30 seconds until warmed through.
Amy @ The Blond Cook says
January 9, 2015 at 1:55 pmValerie, these breakfast taquitos look delicious! I’ve never been a big breakfast eater but I could eat on these all day!
Liz says
January 10, 2015 at 4:27 pmI’d take these over a pb and j 100% of the time! They look wonderful!
Eveline says
March 4, 2015 at 2:17 amOh wow these look amazing! I’m not sure if I can handle this in the morning, but it would be a good lunch meal too. Thanks!