Day of the Dead Huevos Rancheros

Name: Day of the Dead Huevos Rancheros
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 2 eggs; 2 corn tortillas; your favorite salsa; Queso fresco; 1 tbsp fresh cilantro; 1 lime; vegetable oil for frying

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I found this super fun skull mold and decided to make all the skull recipes for this Halloween this year (so stay tuned for more!). It’s no secret that I love breakfast, so I started by making an egg dish. I’m calling this Day of the Dead Huevos Rancheros. It’s such an appropriate name for skull eggs! I love how spooky these turned out and plan to make them on the regular between now and Halloween. If savory, Mexican breakfast items are your thing, add this to the Halloween menu.

Why you’ll love this Halloween breakfast recipe

Let’s face it… the skull mold is so cool! And the salsa drizzled over the top adds to the spookiness.
This recipe is classic huevos rancheros. With store bought ingredients, they are easy to put together. Your guests will think you are some kind of gourmet chef.
You can customize the toppings to fit your preferences. I used just a red, smoked salad, queso fresco, cilantro and lime. But you can use whatever you like!

Here’s what you’ll need to make it

Frying Pan – I use a frying pan so I can shallow fry the tortillas.
Tongs – For removing the tortillas from the oil.
Skull mold – The skull mold is key for this spooky take on Huevos Rancheros. Stay tuned, I will be giving one away before Halloween! Watch my instagram for more information on that!
Butter knife – To carefully remove the eggs from the skull mold.
Spoon – Spoon on your salsa to give it that spooky look.
Cooking spray – Be sure to use cooking spray on your skull mold, so the eggs come out easily and don’t break.

Ingredients & substitutions

Eggs – I use farm fresh eggs. You can certainly use any egg, but if you have access to farm fresh, definitely try it! You don’t know what your are missing!
Corn tortillas – You can also use flour tortillas if you prefer.
Your favorite salsa – I used fire roasted Chipotle Mexican Salad. But use whatever you would like!
Queso fresco – You can substitute your favorite cheese.
Fresh cilantro – For garnish.
Lime – For garnish and the lime juice really brings the flavor our.
Vegetable oil for frying

How to make these spooky Halloween meals

Step 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Step 2. Spray skull mold with cooking spray. Crack 2 eggs into one skull.

Step 3. Bake the eggs for 10-12 minutes. 10 minutes will give you a softer yolk.

Step 4. While the eggs bake, fry your corn tortillas in vegetable oil. Pour just enough vegetable oil in your frying pan to cover the tortilla. Flip the tortilla every minute or so, so it fries evenly.

Step 5. Place the tortillas on a plate. Top with your skull egg, then pour your desired amount of salsa over the skull and tortillas.

Step 6. Garnish with fresh lime wedges, queso fresco crumbles and chopped cilantro.

FAQs about cast iron baked eggs

Is it safe to cook eggs in cast iron?

Eggs fall into the category of sticky foods that are not ideal for cast iron skillets that haven’t built up their seasoning yet. While cast iron can become non-stick with sufficient use over time, a newer skillet will almost certainly cause your eggs to stick to its porous surface. This particular skull mold is cast aluminum with a non-stick coating.

Why eggs are better on cast iron?

Not only can you cook eggs many ways in cast iron, you should: the material’s superior heat retention and (especially in baking) heat distribution means better eggs—softer scrambles, crispier fried edges, and fluffier frittatas and stratas—no matter how you cook them.

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