Eggs on My Mind

As tribute to Diane at The W.H.O.L.E Gang, I'm blogging about EGGS, the Secret Ingredient of the Week! I love eggs, especially free-range, pasture-fed, happy chickens. Mine are from a local farmer who does not supplement the bugs with soy, which keeps me soy-free and happy!

Eggs are one of the cheapest protein sources around. They are fairly low in calories at about 75 a pop. The best nutritious part of the egg is the yolk! It is high in vitamin A, some B vitamins, vitamin D, vitamin E, all the fat, and good cholesterol, calcium, iron, phosphorus, and zinc. Eggs are rich in choline, which is essential for cardiovascular and brain function, as well as the health of your cell membranes. Egg yolks are also one of the richest sources of a phospholipid called phosphatidylcholine (try saying that three times fast!), which helps prevent the accumulation of cholesterol and fat in the liver. Eggs also contain lutein and zeaxanthin, both of which are among the most effective supplements for eye health (reducing your risk of macular degeneration). Eggs are a superfood!

As far as cooking goes... Eggs are so versatile -- they can be scrambled, poached, stir-fried, fried, boiled, made into omelets, quiches, egg-drop soups, etc. The list goes on and on!

As you can probably tell, I eat alot of eggs -- especially now that I have found eggs from chickens that do not egg soy. Below is one of my favorite recipes in the universe! I usually eat eggs for breakfast, but this works for a simple dinner for two or more (just vary the ingredient amounts). One of my favorite quick breakfast recipes is to heat up some homemade beef or chicken stock until boiling and then add two eggs until they are mostly cooked. Once you make homemade stock, I swear you can't go back! The stock is rich in nutrients (see Weston A. Price Foundation for details), plus the eggs make an efficient, lasting breakfast.

My Japanese Egg Scramble
My wonderful mom used to make this dish for me for my birthday. Obviously you can tell that this is a special recipe for me. I suppose if you don't have Asian parents, you may not appreciate the beauty of this recipe, but oh well... Try it anyways! This is a soy-free, gluten- & wheat-free real food recipe. I don't eat much pork anymore, so you can substitute chicken thigh meat instead.

A few cups of spinach, cleaned & cut up into bite-size pieces
1.5 C of pork (or chicken thigh meat), chopped into bite-size pieces
1 C of black fungus (you can find this thin, fresh mushroom at an Asian grocery store)
5-6 eggs
olive oil
sesame oil
salt & pepper to taste

Sautee the pork in a some olive oil and a little sesame oil in a large pan. Sesame oil is very strong in taste and smell, so you don't need alot! Cook until pork is mostly done. Add spinach and black fungus. Cook until the spinach is wilted and just about done. Set all items on plate.

Scramble up eggs in a bowl. Salt & pepper eggs. Using a little olive oil and sesame oil again, scramble eggs in the heated pan. When most of the way cooked, add back in pork, fungus, and spinach mixture. Mix well. Salt and pepper some more to taste. Enjoy!