South Beach Phase 1: Breakfast or Snack Recipe

South Beach, Phase 1 recipes include lots of eggs for breakfast. I don’t love eggs but I like quiche. Quiche is delicious because of its rich egg custard and flakey pastry crust. Wheat pie crust is definitely not on the Phase 1 list of approved foods, but these spinach packed frittatas are low carb and perfect for breakfast. They can be made in advance and reheated as needed. The flavors are reminiscent of spanakopita with lots of spinach, onion, garlic, feta and parsley.

Recipe: Spanakopita Egg Mini Fritattas

Yield: 12 servings, 57 calories per serving, 1.4 gm carbohydrate,

Preheat oven to 350F. Microwave 2 cups of frozen chopped spinach with 2 tablespoons of water for 4 minutes. Let drain in a mesh colander. Microwave 1/2 cup of chopped onion with 2 teaspoons of olive oil for 1 minute.

Combine cooled drained spinach, onions, 5 eggs, 1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese, 1/2 cup feta cheese, 1 tablespoon dried parsley, 1 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes, a few grinds of black pepper.

Pour into non-stick cupcake pan, prepped with olive oil spray. Fill to 3/4. Bake for 20 minutes in preheated oven.

Nutritional Facts per My Fitness Pal

1 mini frittata

57 calories

Carbs: 1.4 gm

Fat: 3.6 gm

Protein: 4.8 gm

If you have time, serve these with Canadian bacon and/or a bowl full of greens, cucumber and cherry tomatoes. Drizzle salad with olive oil. They would be great in a packed lunch or as an afternoon snack.

If you like quiche you can modify most recipes to reduce the fat and of course skip the crust. You might find inspiration on my Pinterest Board Quiches.

Here’s a recipe from MyBajaKitchen for crab quiche.

Weigh in tomorrow; stay tuned.

I’ll tell you how I feel in Phase 1. Onward