Name: Ricotta Pesto Fried Eggs
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 5 min
Total time: 10 min
Ingredients: 2 tablespoons pesto; 2 tablespoons ricotta cheese; 2 eggs; 2 slices sourdough, or bread of choice; 1 pinch red pepper flakes (optional); Salt and pepper, to season

These 5-minute ricotta pesto fried eggs on toast are perfect for a quick and easy meal, and they work well for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Ricotta pesto fried eggs on toast on a white plate with red pepper flakes, salt, and pepper on top, with a side of homemade pesto.

Eggs are one of my go-to meals. It doesn’t matter if it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner, they are such as versatile ingredient and a great way to add protein to a meal in a matter of minutes. They can be scrambled, boiled, poached, or fried, made into a sandwich, added to salads, cooked into a skillet, or fried up and added to toast for a quick, easy, and healthy meal.

Although eggs are pretty neutral tasting on their own, the combination of pesto and ricotta adds a ton of flavor, and makes a humble fried egg the most delicious topping for toast. So, if you’re looking for a new quick and easy meal, give the ricotta pesto fried eggs on toast a try, because I know you’re going to love them.

Pesto fried eggs on sourdough on a plate with a fork.

Why You’ll Love Them

Quick + Easy – Made with 4 ingredients and ready in 5 minutes, this recipe is perfect for a weekday breakfast.
High in Protein – These pesto eggs contain over 25 grams of protein per serving.
Full of Healthy Fats – The combination of pesto and eggs ensures that these pesto-fried eggs are rich in healthy fats and micronutrients.

Ingredients for pesto fried eggs: eggs, basil pesto, ricotta cheese, and sourdough bread.

Ingredients + Substitutions

Eggs – To ensure this breakfast is packed full of protein, healthy fats, vitamins, and minerals.
Pesto – To fry the eggs and add some healthy fats and flavor. You can make homemade pesto, with pine nuts, fresh basil, olive oil, garlic, lemon, and parmesan, or just grab a jar of store-bought pesto.
Ricotta Cheese – To boost the protein content and ensure the eggs are rich and creamy. If you don’t like ricotta cheese, feta cheese, goat cheese, or cream cheese would also work well.
Bread – I use sourdough bread for my eggs, since sourdough is the healthiest bread, but you can use any style of bread that you like.
Red Pepper Flakes – To add a bit of heat, although optional.
Salt and Pepper – To season the dish, although optional.

Dietary Adaptions

To Make it Gluten-Free: Use gluten-free bread.

To Make it Dairy-Free: Use vegan pesto and omit the ricotta cheese.

Pesto and ricotta cheese in a non-stick frying pan.

Pesto, ricotta, and eggs in a non-stick frying pan.

How to Make Pesto Eggs on Toast

Add pesto to a pan. In a non-stick frying pan on medium heat, add the pesto and heat for 10-30 seconds until it releases its oil, and then spread it out into a thin layer large enough to cook the eggs.
Add ricotta to the pan. Add the ricotta cheese to the pan, spreading it out into a thin layer across the pesto.
Add the eggs. Crack the eggs into the pan, directly on top of the pesto and ricotta mixture, and cook for 4-5 minutes until the whites are set and the yolks are still runny, or until the eggs are cooked to your liking.
Toast the bread. Add the slices of bread to a toaster and cook to your liking, then place them on a plate, and top each slice with a pesto-fried egg.
Serve and enjoy!

You can find the detailed instructions in the recipe card below.

Red’s Nutrition Tip

Eggs are a great source of protein, however, a couple of eggs is not a particularly high-protien meal. Fortunaly, pairing them with ricotta, which is a great source of vegetarian protein, and sourdough bread, which made from high-protein grains, you can easily create a high-protein meal without much effort.

Serving Suggestions

These pesto-fried eggs are a good source of protein, fat, and complex carbohydrates, however, you can add a side to make them a more balanced meal.

To increase the fiber content, serve the fried eggs with a side of fresh fruit, such as berries or sliced apple.
To increase the fat content, serve them with a side of sliced avocado or a sprinkle or parmesan cheese.
To increase the protein content, fry up and additional egg or serve the pesto fried eggs with a side of breakfast sausage or a small bowl of Greek yogurt or skyr.

Fried pesto eggs with ricotta and red pepper flakes on toast on a white plate with a fork.

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