Egg Ideas You'll Love: 12+ Recipes & Tips - Shelf Cooking (2024)

What do you do when your eggs are about to expire, and you need to use them STAT? Well, you've got tons of options, and we're about to shell out some of our favorite egg ideas!

Egg Ideas You'll Love: 12+ Recipes & Tips - Shelf Cooking (1)

There's no reason to let perfectly good eggs go to waste. Sure, you could boil them, make egg salad, or whip up a quick batch of deviled eggs, but been there done that, right?

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Beyond the obvious, we've rounded up some of our favorite ways to use eggs! From breakfast to dinner and desserts, there's something for everyone. You ready? Let's get cracking!

TRY ONE OF THESE EGG-SQUISITE BREAKFAST IDEAS

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No, we're not going to tell you to scramble a big batch and call it a day! We won't mention omelets, either. Let's think outside the egg carton for a bit. Here are five fun ways to use up your eggs and make a killer breakfast:

  • Mini German Pancakes – Have you tried our mini German pancakes? They're ready in minutes, barely make a mess, and everyone LOVES them!
  • French Toast Sticks – French toast sticks are a perfect make-ahead breakfast and a great way to use up extra fruit, too.
  • Freezer-Friendly Breakfast Burritos – We've been known to whip up a month's worth of breakfast burritos in an hour! And you can use a TON of eggs in the process, so why not?
  • Egg Muffin Cups – If you're bored of scrambled eggs, try this easy twist on the breakfast staple. Egg muffin cups are as easy as can be!
  • Freezer Waffles – You'll never buy the frozen kind again! Make a quick batch of our delicious freezer waffles.

Pro Tip: Make all these recipes on Saturday morning, and you'll have breakfast for weeks! Get more of our meal prep tips and learn all about the beauty of batch cooking.

EGG IDEAS THAT WILL MAKE DINNER A BREEZE

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So, you need to use up some eggs, and you're also looking for new meal ideas? Well, you can't go wrong with any of these easy dinner ideas:

  • Crockpot Lasagna – This crockpot lasagna recipe calls for six eggs! It's also SO easy and incredibly delicious, so there's that.
  • Fried Rice – No matter how crazy your day is, there's always time to make a quick batch of fried rice! And you can use whatever you have. Toss in a little shredded chicken, shrimp, salmon, or make it vegetarian. Have eggs to use up? Fry them up and toss them all in!
  • Quiche – You can use up a ton of eggs pretty quickly if you make a quiche, but you can also throw in just about any ingredient! Use up those fresh veggies and grab some meat from the freezer.
  • Bibimbap – Bibi, what?! Oh, if you haven't tried it yet, you are in for a TREAT! We've got a bibimbap recipe that's a shelf cooking dream.
  • Baked Italian Sandwiches – Our family LOVES these Italian sandwiches, and they freeze beautifully, so go ahead a make an extra batch. Our other site, Fun Cheap or Free, has the recipe!

If you have a little time for meal prep this weekend, go ahead make extra sandwiches or rice to make dinnertime a heck of a lot easier.

5 SUPER SWEET IDEAS TO USE UP EGG

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If you've got a sweet tooth and a fridge full of eggs to use, you are in luck! These sweets are hard to beat:

  • Ooey-Gooey Bars – In our opinion, this ooey-gooey bar recipe is the best way EVER to use some eggs. Go ahead and make a few batches! They're SO good, you guys. If you have leftovers, we'll take 'em!
  • Cake Mix Cookies – If you have a box of cake mix in the pantry, you're in luck! These cake mix cookies are amazingly delicious and easy–double or triple the recipe to use more eggs.
  • Egg Custard – Have you ever made egg custard? It's so simple! Grab this baked egg custard recipe from Allrecipes.
  • Cinnamon Rolls – These homemade cinnamon rolls from our sister site, Fun Cheap or Free, are EVERYTHING! Need an excuse to make a bunch? If you triple the recipe, you'll use half a dozen eggs. You're welcome.
  • Cupcakes – We like making these adorable cupcakes from Fun Cheap or Free around Easter, but they're good enough to eat all year long!

Is your mouth watering now? Before you go, let's cover a few quick freezer tips! Yep, you can freeze eggs. Keep reading for the deets!

CAN YOU FREEZE EGGS?

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While we totally think you should make every single recipe from this post, we bet you're also wondering if you can freeze eggs. Well, wonder no more! Here's the skinny on saving your eggs for later:

  • Hard-Boiled Eggs – You can freeze hard-boiled eggs, but you have to peel them and separate the yolks first. When frozen, yolks expand, so for every four yolks you freeze, add either 1/8 teaspoon salt or 1 1/2 teaspoons of sugar. Label so you know which yolks to use for which recipes!
  • Whole Eggs – Want to freeze the whole dang egg? Crack and beat them first, add them to a freezer-safe container, and label with the date and number of eggs.
  • Scrambled Eggs – It's so simple to freeze scrambled eggs! Just cook a big batch, toss them in a freezer bag, then thaw in the fridge overnight before you're ready to use them.
  • Freeze Recipes with Eggs – Just about every recipe we shared here is freezer-friendly! When in doubt, check out this post that has a running list of items you can freeze. And take a peek at our tips for preventing freezer burn, so your leftovers don't go to waste.

No matter how you prep and freeze them, be sure to use your eggs within one year!

DO YOU HAVE EGG IDEAS TO SHARE?

Now you know what to do if you have extra eggs! Whether you freeze them or whip up a few of these recipes, you've got way too many options to let those eggs go to waste.

What's your favorite way to use up eggs before they go bad? Leave us a comment or join the conversation in our Shelf Cooking Facebook group!

Egg Ideas You'll Love: 12+ Recipes & Tips - Shelf Cooking (6)

Looking for more tips and tricks?

  • Learn how to make the perfect hard-boiled egg.
  • These shelf cooking tips will save you major time and money.
  • Grab our favorite leftover rotisserie chicken recipes. They make meal prep so easy!

Break an egg, peeps!

Egg Ideas You'll Love: 12+ Recipes & Tips - Shelf Cooking (2024)

FAQs

What are the 100 ways to make an egg? ›

So the story goes that the 100 folds in a chef's hat represent the 100 ways to cook an egg, but is this true? Well, let's see... there's scrambled, over easy, over medium, over hard, poached, shirred, soft boiled, hard boiled, pickled, baked, sunny side up; in an omelette, quiche, or frittata; etc, etc, etc.

What is the healthiest egg to cook? ›

Boiled Eggs

Boiled eggs do not incorporate any fats or oils during the cooking process, so they are a nutritious and convenient source of protein.

What is the egg rule? ›

FDA's Egg Safety Rule requires those transporting eggs to maintain an ambient temperature of 45 °F beginning 36 hours after laying of the eggs.

What is the unhealthiest type of egg? ›

In fact, caged hens are 7.77 times more likely to produce eggs that harbor salmonella. Definitely not the best eggs to buy. Cage-Free Eggs: Sounds good, right? But this just means the hens are not in tiny cages; they're still kept in a coop or small enclosure.

Are eggs bad for cholesterol? ›

One large egg has about 186 mg of cholesterol — all of which is found in the yolk. If your diet contains little other cholesterol, according to some studies, eating up to an egg a day might be an OK choice. If you like eggs but don't want the cholesterol, use only the egg whites.

How many eggs can you eat a day? ›

For most healthy adults, it's safe to eat 1–2 eggs a day depending on how much other cholesterol is in your diet. If you already have high cholesterol or other risk factors for heart disease, it may be best to eat no more than 4–5 eggs per week.

Can you eat 2 week old hard-boiled eggs? ›

The FDA recommends consuming hard-boiled eggs within a week, and two weeks is well past that deadline. Since spoiled hard-boiled eggs can make you sick, it's best to be safe and toss out any leftover hard-boiled eggs that have been in the fridge for more than one week.

What can you do with a 100 year old egg? ›

Uses. Century eggs can be eaten without further preparation other than peeling and rinsing them – on their own, or as a side dish. In central China, they are sliced into pieces and drizzled with black vinegar and served as a side dish.

What lays 100 eggs at a time? ›

Mosquitoes generally lay 100 eggs at a time. Eggs are very hardy; they stick to the walls of a container like glue and can survive drying out for up to 8 months— even over the winter in the southern United States. It only takes a very small amount of water to attract a female mosquito.

What do the 100 folds in a chef's hat represent 100 ways to cook an egg? ›

In the early days, the number of pleats in the chef's hat represented the number of recipes a chef knew for a given food item, like egg or chicken. Having a hat with 100 pleats meant he knew 100 recipes to prepare with an egg. The same applied to the height of the hat. The taller the toque, the more a chef knew.

What is a 100 year old egg called? ›

Century eggs, 100-year eggs, 1000-year eggs, and millennium eggs are all names for the boldly odored, colored, and flavored preserved eggs that originated in China. Typically they are made using duck eggs, but they can also be made with chicken or quail eggs.

Will eggs hatch at 100? ›

Incubator temperature should be maintained between 99° and 100°F. The acceptable range is 97° to 102°F. High mortality is seen if the temperature drops below 96°F or rises above 103°F for a number of hours. If the temperature stays at either extreme for several days, the egg may not hatch.

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