In search of something different yet not too weird for a special breakfast/brunch, I came up with this spinach egg roll after a thorough search through many internet sites and a lot of tinkering and adjusting in the kitchen. The egg roll is really just a baked omelet with stuff in it--easy and quick to do. Nonetheless, the egg roll looks good dressed up on a fancy plate for brunch, and it slices nicely to serve multiple people. With a little onion powder and grainy Dijon mustard in the egg mixture, the omelet is far from boring. Fresh spinach, green onions, smoky tasting bacon bits, and sharp cheddar cheese meld together in the filling. The egg roll makes a fancy and delicious addition to the brunch table with minimum fuss. Go for it!
Spinach Egg Roll -- Serves 6+
8 eggs
1/2 cup of low-fat milk
1-2 tablespoons of grainy Dijon mustard (use 2 if you really, really like mustard)
1 tablespoon of dried minced chives
1 teaspoon of onion powder
1/4 teaspoon of lemon pepper
1/4 teaspoon of salt
1/4 cup of flour
1/4 teaspoon of baking powder
3-4 hand fulls of fresh spinach (2-3 cups)
2-3 chopped green onions
2-3 tablespoons of bacon crumbles
1 1/2 cups of shredded cheddar cheese, divided
Garnishes (optional--chopped onions, tomatoes, bell peppers, parsley, etc.)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and line a jelly roll pan (10 x 15-inches) with aluminum foil or parchment paper. Coat the foil/paper with non-stick cooking spray. In a large bowl, whisk together the eggs, milk, mustard, chives, onion powder, lemon pepper, and salt until well blended. Whisk in the flour and baking powder. Pour the egg mixture into the prepared pan and bake it in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until puffed and set. Remove the egg from the oven and sprinkle the spinach, green onions, bacon crumbles, and 1 cup of cheese evenly over the top. Use a knife to separate the egg from the sides of the pan and then slip the knife under a short edge of the baked egg to separate the egg from the foil/parchment. Using the foil/parchment to help you, and peeling it away as you go, carefully roll the egg and filling ingredients, from a short end, as you would a jellyroll. Just tuck any errant spinach or other filling ingredients back into the roll as you go. Don't worry too much if the egg roll cracks a bit. You can hide the cracks with a bit of melted cheese. Place the egg roll, seam-side down, on a serving dish and sprinkle the top with the remaining cheese. Or, if you'd prefer, pop the egg roll back in the oven for a few minutes before placing it on the serving dish. The additional oven time will speed the cheese melting process. Garnish the egg roll, if you'd like. To serve the egg roll, use a sharp knife to cut it crosswise into slices.
Spinach Egg Roll