food stuff: boiling egg fun

in honor of easter (yesterday), i thought i would put up some tips on hard boiling eggs, thanks to the kitchn. it was only a few months ago that i even realized there was a difference between hard boiling and soft boiling eggs - i'd never even thought anyone would want a soft-boiled egg. check out this post about hard boiling egg fun and this post about a tip to date hard boiled eggs for maximum freshness. here is another tip for getting the perfect hard boiled egg. and finally, what to do with leftover hard boiled eggs.

so, this raises the question: did you hard boil eggs to decorate this year? and after you decorated them, did you eat them? or what is your favorite way to eat eggs?

Spinach Cheese Soufflé

Now that we've hit that part of winter when we begin holding our breaths for spring, we might need some help getting through the dreary days ahead. Try this "incentivizing" cheese soufflé—an indulgent dinner that requires some elbow grease and silent conspiring with God.

Spinach Cheese Soufflé: Preheat oven to 400° F. Generously butter six ramekins or coffee mugs. Separate 6 eggs, and keep the whites in the refrigerator in a large, clean bowl until ready to use. Steam or boil 10 ounces of spinach. Transfer to an ice bath to cool, squeeze out as much water as possible, and then chop finely. In a medium saucepan, melt 4 tablespoons butter over medium-low heat. Sprinkle 6 tablespoons flour over it, stirring constantly for two or three minutes, until it darkens slightly and smells nutty. Slowly whisk in 1-1/2 cups warm milk in increments so as to avoid any clomps forming. Stir constantly until the mixture thickens considerably, about 5 minutes. Now you’ve got béchamel! Whisk in the egg yolks and off the heat. Stir in 1/2 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, a few gratings of fresh nutmeg, the chopped spinach, and 4 or 5 ounces bleu or goat cheese, and let be. In the cold bowl the eggwhites are in, beat them until stiff peaks form. Fold them into the custard mixture. Scoop into the prepared cups using a ladle, filling each an inch from the top. Wipe the rims clean with your finger (this allows the soufflés to rise evenly). Bake for about 20 minutes, until puffed up and golden brown; they’ll be a little bit jiggly in the center. Serve IMMEDIATELY.

i <3 eggs

My mom showed me this fun way to make eggs and toast at THE SAME TIME:


(apologies for the phone pictures, it was an unexpected mad tasty-in-the-making moment)

Ingredients:

• Bread
• Eggs
• Butter
  
• a cookie cutter

Directions:

Warm a griddle or a pan, melt some butter in it. Butter your bread as well. Place the bread on the griddle and use the cookie cutter to remove the center. Crack an egg and drop in the center of the bread. After a minute or two, flip the bread/egg and cook evenly on the other side.

We made it over medium but you could do it however you like... although scrambled would be tough.


Voila! (Sausage or bacon optional)

Low Cal Egg and Cheese Breakfast Sandwich

The Healthy Egg Mc Muffin

Ingredients:

• 1/4 cup egg beaters
• 1 Tbs Simply Smart Milk
  
• 2/3 cup Veggies (Onions, peppers, spinach etc)
• Butter Pam
• 1/4 tsp Light Adobo
• 1 oz reduced fat cheese
• 1 Better Start English Muffin
• 1/4 tsp Turmeric

Directions:

1. Sautee veggies with Adobo and Turmeric seasonings in small frying pan covered with Pam
2. In small cereal bowl mix together Egg Beaters and Milk
3. Once veggies are tender add them to your eggs and mix thoroughly
   
4. Rinse pan and return to heat
   
5. Once dry (either by heat or with paper towel) spray with Pam and add egg mixture cooking it like a omelet
6. Toast English Muffin
7. Once eggs are done to your liking plate English Muffin and make a sandwich with cheese on bottom and your egg omelet on top and enjoy!

Nutritional Information 2000 cal diet:
Cals 251 (13%), Fat 5g (8%), Sat Fat 2 (10%), Sodium 678mg (3%), Carbs 34g (11%), Fiber 6g (25%), Protien 19g (30%)

Commentary:
The first time I made this I was so surprised at how good it tasted! I used to HATE the idea of egg beaters. The first time I cooked with them (8 years ago) they left a weird film on my pan and tasted gross. I dont know what they did to their recipe, whoever changed it should get a hi five. Mixed with the right seasonings and veggies it tastes just like real eggs without all the fat, calories and cholesterol of real eggs. This sandwich is a perfect meal to get your day going while providing you with more then 1/4th of all the vitamins and minerals you need for the day and lets not forget it is way filling! If you wanted to bump up the protein add a slice of turkey bacon or your favorite deli meat. I hope you guys enjoy!

rainbow chard gratin

So apparently a gratin is any dish that is delivered to your eaters topped with a brown crust. This definition informs this rainbow chard gratin that I made according to the culinary stylings of Barbara Kafka. (Ed. Note: In retrospect, probably also inspired by this). I'm not going to write out the whole recipe because I ignored most of it and ultimately, ate a tiny ass piece before putting the whole thing in tupperware to be ignored until it went bad.

But I did learn how to be less afraid of chard. All I'd ever done with it before was stuff peppers with it, which was hardly relying on it as a signature flavour. The boiling-for-five-minutes technique was pretty easy, and I'd do it again. I took some okay pictures, but please learn from my example and if you try a similar recipe try not to replace more than half of the ingredients because it'll turn into an EGGY MESS. An EGGY MESS I tell you!

BreakFast Tacos

BreakFast Tacos




Minimum Effort---Maximum Result---Satisfaction guaranteed
Nutritious and Delicious

These take no time at all and will fill you up without slowing you down.

Time: 7 minutes
Makes: 3 tacos (one is enough for me but my man will eat 2)

Ingredients:
• 3 Medium Flour Tortillas
• 3 Small Handfuls Shredded Cheddar Jack Cheese
• 3 Large Spoonfuls of refried beans (you can buy them in a can, I use the fat-free kind)
• 2 Eggs
• 3 egg whites
• 1/2 cup frozen peppers
• 2 teaspoons chilli powder
• 2 teaspoons cumin
• Salt and Pepper to tase

Directions:
1. Place tortillas on a piece of foil and spread 2 spoonfuls of refried beans on each




2. Place a frying pan on stove over medium heat.
3. Spray with cooking spray and add peppers.
4. While peppers are cooking sprinkle a handle of cheese on each tortilla
5. Once peppers are thawed (1-2 minutes) and seasoning
6. When you can smell the seasonings add eggs and egg whites then scramble.
7. Once cooked place eggs on top of tortillas fold in half and serve

If you are running out of the house simply wrap in the foil and go.

Bun’s Breakfast Casserole

Delicious--Easy--Satisfying

Prep Time: 10 Minutes
Cook: 30
Serves 6


• 8 Slices Turkey Bacon cut crosswise into 1/8 inch strips
• 1 Bag(12 oz) has browns
• 1 large white opinion chopped
• 3 teaspoon Tabasco sauce
• 3 Eggs
• 4 Egg Whites
• ¾ cup skim ricotta
• 2/3 cup shredded low fat Swiss
• 3 TBS asiago
• 3 TBS flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• ½ teaspoon red pepper flakes
• Dash of Cayenne





1. Preheat oven to 375 and grease a 7*11 inch pan

2. Cook bacon in a non-stick skillet until crisp. Add the potatoes and onion then cook until potatoes are golden (about 6 minutes). Remove the skillet from heat to let cool.

3. Beat eggs and egg whites in a large bowl. Stir in the ricotta and 1/3 cup of the Swiss cheese, Asiago, flour, salt , black pepper, red pepper, and cayenne. Once well blended stir in the cooled potatoes and bacon. Pour mixture into greased pan. Sprinkle remaining cheese over the top.

4. Bake 30- 35 minutes until cheese is melted and golden.

COMMENTARY: You can replace the bacon with your favorite veggie breakfast meat or 3/4 cup sun dried tomatoes.

Workout Queen's Bacon, Egg and Cheese

I'm all about low cal, low fat food, but I still like to grub...so for breakfast, I sometimes dream about eating a bacon, egg and cheese...and STILL can, even when it's low cal.

Ingredients:

• 3 egg whites
• Pam olive oil cooking spray
• one slice of American cheese (or any you prefer)
• 5 slices of turkey bacon (or however many you'd like)
• one tortilla, medium size

Directions:

1. spray your pan with Pam until it's just lightly covered
2. break three eggs, leaving only the egg whites in the pan

3. allow the egg whites to cook until they no longer stick to the pan
4. Flip the egg whites to allow them to cook on the opposite side
5. put pieces of cheese on the egg whites as it cooks

6. check the eggs for a cooked consistency, then fold the eggs over to make a half-moon shape

7. add 3 strips turkey bacon to the pan, while egg whites continue to cook
8. as soon as cheese starts dripping out, the eggs should be done.
9. take eggs off the heat
10. add the remaining strips of turkey bacon

11. cook turkey bacon until they are brownish around the edges, or until your liking
12. put egg whites in tortilla, add turkey bacon strips, wrap it up and ENJOY!

I usually have this breakfast on the weekend before I work out. It is easily digestable, and is REALLY low in calories, as well as fat. You can go to the supermarket and check out the nutrition facts on the turkey bacon, but usually it's about 60 calories for 5 slices. After I eat this I feel full and ready to go workout. It has a good balance of nutrients, and there is no guilt for having all that food at once. I even ate a banana before cooking. So, make those gluttens eating REAL bacon, egg and cheese's feel guilty when you're munchin' on the same but saving on all that FAT!! Enjoy!

Mini Bacon & Egg Pastries with Cheddar

I like this recipe alot, I made it last Sunday morning for breakfast. I got it from Whitnee's cookbook called 'Brunch,' and I wanted to make it seeing how she is obsessed with brunch. Unfortunately I would never have the time to make all the dishes I'd like to in order to have a proper brunch, but this is a great start. These pastries are very tasty and filling, they have also have a nice flaky crust. They're pretty easy, so don't get discouraged because it's a bit of a small process, quick however.

This recipe makes 12 Pastries. You'll need a muffin pan and...

• 1 box Pillsbury prepared pie dough (much easier than making crust from scratch for a simple dish)
• All-purpose flour (for rolling)
• 2 tbsp whole-grain mustard (I bought Grey Poupon and it was great)
• 12 slices of lean bacon, cooked and diced (I used Turkey bacon, MMmmm)
• 12 small eggs
• Pepper
• 1 Cup of Cheddar Cheese
• 2 tbsp parsley
  

Preheal the oven to 350F. Lightly grease a standard 12 cup muffin pan.

I used a single Pillsbury pie crust to roll out 10 pastries, if you don't want to waste 2 of them that are in the package.

Unroll the Pillsbury dough and roll the dough thinner to about 1/4-inch thickness on a lightly floured counter and cut 12 circles approximately 5 inches in diameter. I had to find the perfect small bowl that was 5 inches wide. Use dough cutouts to line the cups of the muffin pan, gently pleating the sides of the dough as you ease it into the molds.

Place 1/2 teaspoon of the mustard into the base of each pastry shell and top with a little of the bacon.

Break an egg into a cup, spoon the yolk into the pastry shell, then add enough of the egg white to fill the pastry shell about two-thirds full. Do not overfill. Season to taste with salt and pepper and sprinkle the grated cheese evenly over the tops of the pastries.

Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until the egg is set and the cheese is golden brown. Serve topped with parsley flakes.

MMMMmmm... Nom Nom.

They smell wonderful. You will surely enjoy these...

Peace.

Basic Scrambled Eggs

Ingredients:

• 2 eggs for one serving or 2 1/2 egg per serving (round up!)
• 1 Tbs milk per serving
• 1/2 tsp salt per serving
• 1/3 tsp pepper per serving
• enough EVOO to coat skillet

Directions:

• combine eggs and milk in bowl and beat until eggs are frothy and evenly mixed. DO NOT add salt and pepper!
  
• heat EVOO in medium skillet on medium
• when oil is hot add eggs
• start stirring when eggs start to set
• remove eggs from heat when eggs are done to your liking sprinkle with salt and pepper

Comments:
Simple right? Not! Scrambled eggs come in all shape and sizes and various degrees of tastiness. My number one mistake with making perfect scrambled eggs and trying to multi task while cooking them. If you want to make sure everyone loves your eggs save them for last and pay attention to them. Eggs do not have to be brown to be cooked throughout. Also play around with how you stir your eggs. The more you stir the smaller the pieces, so if you find yourself stirring a lot to avoid browning the eggsn lower your heat. You can add just about anything to this recipe to make a tasty scramble dish. Remember veggies and meat should be in the skillet before you add eggs, cheese should be added in the middle and salt and fresh herbs should be added at the end. Play around with this recipe and let me know what variations you tried and what tricks you come up with to make your eggs tasty. I hope you enjoy!

Classic B-Style Breakfast

Summer Squash Frittata, Baby Cakes and Turkey Sausage

Summer Squash Fritatta
Serves 4-6
Ingredients:

1. 8 large eggs
2. 1/2 bag of frozen pepper slices or 2 medium fresh peppers
3. 1 medium summer squash
4. 1 small diced onion
5. 1 Tbls chopped garlic
6. 2-3 spring onion stalks coarsly chopped
7. 1 cup of your favorite shredded cheese (jack, cheddar, mozz)
   
8. 1 Tbls dried savory
9. 1/2 Tbls dried marjoram
10. 1/2 Tbls chili powder
11. 1 tsp salt
12. 1 tsp pepper
    
13. 1/3 cup of milk
14. 2 Tbls EVOO
    

Directions:

1. preheat oven to 400deg
2. chop 2/3 of the squash into small bite sized pieces and set aside
   
3. using a cheese grater grate the remaining squash and set aside
4. beat the eggs and milk in a large bowl until well mixed and set aside
   
5. in medium OVEN SAFE 10" skillet heat 1 Tbls EVOO, onions and garlic over medium heat
6. once onions start to turn translucent add peppers and all seasonings
7. when peppers are thawed add all of the squash
8. mix cheese into eggs
9. once most the liquid produced by the veggies has been cooked off turn heat to medium and stir veggie mixture from skillet into the bowl of eggs and cheese
10. place the skillet back on the stove and add reminaing EVOO making sure to cover bottom and sides
11. add egg and veggie mixture to the skillet and let sit for a bit
12. when you see a steam vent appear place skillet in oven for 7-10 mins checking to see if the top of the center has cured (will still be a bit jello like in the center but will have a layer of cooked egg)
13. once it is about 75-80% done turn oven to broil
14. remove the frittata very carefully from the oven once golden brown spots appear on the frittata (approx 2-3 mins)
15. transfer frittata to your serving plate by placing plate upsidedown on top of skillet and flipping it
16. cut with pizza cutter and enjoy!

Serve with McCain Baby Cakes and Turkey Sausage

Commentary:
Dont get intimidated by the frittata! It is worth it! You can really add whatever leftovers you have from the week in this dish. Frittatas are the casseroles of breakfast time. The key to the amount of eggs to use is the size of your skillet and the ammount of filling. If you want to use less eggs load up your frittata with more veggies. Grate a potato or squash to make each bite more filling and for a cruch add slightly over cooked hashbrowns rightbefore you put it in the oven. I hope you guys find a love for breakfast after your first frittata experience! Let me know if you have any questions and how your frittata turns out.