In a quest to use my new ramekins for something other than mac & cheese, use some herbs, incorporate one of my favorite ingredients AND make something a little special on a day off of work I decided on some baked eggs.

They are simple and satisfying, and really, what more can you ask for in a breakfast?

Baked Eggs:

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Spray ramekins with cooking spray. Crack 2 eggs into each ramekin, pour 1 Tbsp of  1/2 & 1/2 over eggs, season with salt and pepper and 2 tsp minced herbs (I used thyme and rosemary). Place ramekins in a pan and pour hot water around them to about 3/4 to the top. Bake until just set, about 10-15 minutes. Be careful to not overcook, mine were a little too done.

I had seen a recipe in the Rachel Ray magazine and decided it would be the perfect meal to eat 1/2 and save 1/2 for a rainy (or snowy – eek!) day. I changed the recipe a bit based on what I had on hand. I also used bison instead of lamb or beef – bison is a great meat in my opinion – very lean and usually raised naturally. I think it tastes pretty similar to beef so it was a great way to cut-down the fat and calories in this dish.

Moussaka - 8 servings

• 1/2 block cream cheese (I always use neufchatel cheese)
• block of feta cheese (about 1 cup)
• 1 medium eggplant, sliced crosswise
• 3 medium zucchini, sliced crosswise
• 1 medium white onion, chopped
• 1 lb bison meat
• 1 28 oz can diced tomatoes, drain some liquid
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Process the cream cheese and feta together until smooth and set aside.
Sprinkle the eggplant and zucchini with salt, set aside for at least 30 minutes, rinse and bake at 350 degrees for about 30 minutes.

Spray skillet with cooking spray and saute onion until translucent. Add bison (or any type) meat and cook for about 5 minutes, add tomatoes and simmer for 5 minutes.

Layer eggplant and zucchini pieces in a 9 x 13 pan or two 8 x 8 pans. Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese, layer meat-tomato mixture and spread (or plop rather) the cream cheese -feta mixture on top. Bake at 350 degrees for about 20-30 minutes.  Turn on broiler to brown the top at the end.

We absolutely loved this moussaka, the taster included. It will be a great weeknight-dinner in the up-coming weeks!