EGG-CELLENT, EASY RECIPES
Remember when eating more than the occasional egg was kind of a no-no?
Times have certainly changed. The pendulum has slowly swung the other direction, with many nutrition experts now saying eggs are good for us even though their golden yolks are high in cholesterol.
“They’re actually great, and have been great for some time,” says registered dietitian Andrew Wade of Case Specific Nutrition.
It’s just that studies linking eggs with increased risk for coronary heart disease and stroke have been hard to get rid of. In reality, Mr. Wade says, many of those studies weren’t studying eggs so much but heavier breakfasts that happened to include eggs along with fatty meats, fried potatoes and buttered toast.
“Our understanding has changed as we’ve revisited it,” he says, with experts looking at the two different types of cholesterol — low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or “bad” cholesterol, and high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or “good” cholesterol — instead of just total cholesterol.
The American Heart Association, for instance, now says healthy adults can enjoy one egg or two egg whites per day and easily remain within the daily cholesterol limit.
Generally speaking, the more cholesterol in your diet, the greater the risk of cardiovascular disease. But barring a genetic issue, eggs can be part of a healthy, balanced diet if eaten in moderation. They’re a good source of inexpensive, high-quality protein — a dozen large cagefree Grade A brown eggs cost $2.99 at Whole Foods, and many grocery stores are substantially cheaper — and they’re also relatively low-cal, with just about 78 calories per egg.
Eggs also are rich with antioxidants like selenium, contain essential vitamins
like D, B6 and B12, and boost the body with minerals such as zinc, iron and copper.
So while you probably don’t want eat six eggs a day, six or seven a week is absolutely supported and encouraged, according to Mr. Wade.
“They bring a lot of value, and pack a punch,” he says.
Eggs are so beloved that there’s even a National Egg Day, which was yesterday. But really, any day is cause for celebrating them. They’re easy to find now that the COVID-19 pandemic panic buying has eased, are budget friendly, can keep in the fridge for up to five weeks and can be ready at a moments notice. Also, they are so dang versatile when it’s time to cook them.
My favorite way to eat hard-boiled eggs is to mash them with yogurt or mayonnaise and curry powder to make a creamy salad for sandwiches. Eggs also can be stirred into soups to create a feathery broth, fried and topped on avocado toast, scrambled with salsa and stuffed into a breakfast burrito or used as a leavening agent in baking.
Tossed with hot pasta and grated cheese, eggs make the classic Italian carbonara sauce rich and creamy. There’s no better use for egg whites than to whip them with sugar until stiff peaks form, then fold them into flour to create a light and airy angel food cake.
When it comes to choosing eggs, remember that there’s no nutritional difference between cage-free, freerange and conventional eggs. It also doesn’t matter much what color they are either. That just denotes the breed of chicken and not the quality.