Friday Pantry Challenge: Egg Salad Three Different Ways

What's for Breakfast:
Pumpkin Oatmeal
Trader O's
Banana
Juice

What's for Lunch:
Egg salad sandwiches
Grapes
Dried fruit

What's for Dinner:
Black Olive, Green Pepper & Basil Pizza
Baked Sweet Potato Fries & Spiced Aioli Sauce
Zookies



Admittedly, Day 5 has been the hardest because we were used to the challenge but the refrigerator was looking more and more depressing. My eldest daughter also came down with a runny nose. Usually I would work to cure that with a tall smoothie and a bowl of berries or other antioxidants. My choices were slim since we have no more fruit and no freezer stash either. I poured a cup of raw milk, found an Airborne tablet in the cabinet and added that to a glass of water and hoped for the best. In many ways, we could probably go a few more weeks on this challenge but in the fresh fruit department we would be compromising our health if I don't head to the farmer's market this weekend! Lesson learned.
I was still determined to be creative and have a good attitude today about eating what we have. After all, people in the Developing World have maybe one or two - if any - choices a day. My whining would be embarassing.

My creativity today included my own "Pumpkin Oatmeal" by adding 1 tablespoon pumpkin puree along with 1 tablespoon organic raisins to a bowl of oatmeal. I sprinkled the top with cinnamon and the result was a yummy different flavor. (If you want to sweeten it, try a drizzle of a natural sweetener like honey or maple syrup and throw in some nuts for good omega-3s.) My hubby is the type who could eat the same granola for breakfast and the identical sandwich for lunch day after day. Not me. I need variety and so does my daughter.

This afternoon I realized that are usual stash of fruit, veggies and whole grain bars that we use for snacks was seriously depleted so Meilani and I used the last zucchini to make Zookies. This is a recipe we got from a friend and it incorporates healthy plus yummy (chocolate!) all into one great little cookie. Our friend's daughter calls them "Vegetable Cookies" because you can see the shredded zucchini inside but that didn't deter us. They taste like a chocolate-chip macaroon with the extra zest of zucchini flavor.

For lunch, I decided to be creative with Egg Salad. Now I know most people hear "egg salad" and think boring, blah and maybe even barf. But when I'm looking at a nearly-empy refrigerator with more than a dozen eggs left I'm thinking Egg Salad = Extra Special. My first version of Egg Salad earlier this week was a twist on my Curried Chicken Salad, a regular on our lunch menu. My classic version of Egg Salad is an Italian Egg Salad. Must be my roots but I tend to gravitate toward oregano, basil and bay leaves when it comes to the spice department. Our Classic Egg Salad includes those things. The new "snazzy" egg salad we made today used the rest of yesterday's "spiced aioli sauce" from our Baked Sweet Potato Fries. The result was a new salad with incredible nuances of flavor. Meilani and I gobbled ours down. (Recipes below.)

Our dinner tonight was a mainstay for Friday nights - pizza! There's something about Friday that just makes me crave pizza. It's also a great chance to use some of the extras from the week for creative ingredients. Since we've been doing The Great Pantry Challenge this week there wasn't much left in our produce drawers in the fridge. We did find green peppers and basil. We also opened our last can of sliced black olives to top off our Veggie Pizza. And, thank you, God, we had just enough cheese. Tomorrow is our grand finale day - we will see what it holds.

A Note from our Nutrition Guy (aka my Hubby)

A lot of people have misconceptions about the healthiness of eggs. Several years back Americans got all up in arms about eggs causing high cholesterol. The truth of it is that God created eggs as a perfect protein. Usually people who have cholesterol issues do not have it because of their consumption of eggs. Not only have studies shown that eggs do not significantly affect cholesterol levels, but the latest research suggests that eating whole eggs (both whites and yolks) may actually result in improvement in a person's blood lipids (cholesterol) profile.
When we buy eggs, we want the freshest eggs possible. The A Choice would be to buy from a local farm. In Fresno, we get our eggs from Simonian Farms in the Valley. There's also a new egg vendor at the Vineyard Farmer's Market on Shaw & Blackstone. These are fresh eggs laid by cage-free chickens who have been fed organic food. The B Choice would be to buy cage-free organic eggs from a grocery store like Trader Joe's or Costco. The difference is these eggs are from a bigger operation where the stress on the chickens could be more. Stressed out chickens do not lay healthy eggs.


Curried Egg Salad

6  hard-boiled eggs, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
1 teaspoon curry powder (I use the Frontier Indian Curry powder from Whole Foods, which is a salt-free, all-natural blend)
1 small zucchini, finely chopped (about 1/2 cup)
1 tablespoon parsley, minced
3 tablespoons dried cranberries or raisins
1/4 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
1 cup mayonnaise

1. Boil eggs. Meanwhile, chop zucchini and combine with salt, pepper, curry, parsley, cranberries and pecans.
2. Chop eggs.
3. Blend eggs with mayonnaise and add spice-vegetable mixture. Serve on your favorite bread.



Italian Egg Salad

6 hard-boiled eggs, finely chopped
1 cup celery, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon basil (dried or fresh)
1 teaspoon chopped bay leaf
1 tablespoon fresh parsley

1. Boil eggs. Meanwhile, chop celery and combine with salt, pepper, oregano, basil, bay leaf and parsley.

2. Chop eggs.
3. Blend eggs with mayonnaise and add spice-celery mixture. Serve on your favorite bread.

 
Spiced Egg Salad

6 hard-boiled eggs, finely chopped

1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
1 teaspoon cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1 tablespoon cilantro or fresh basil, finely chopped
1 cup mayonnaise

1. Boil eggs. Meanwhile, chop celery and combine with salt, pepper, cumin, coriander and cilantro.

2. Chop eggs.
3. Blend eggs with mayonnaise and add spice mixture. Serve on your favorite bread.

Dorina's Curried Chicken Salad Sandwiches

I recently checked a cookbook out of the library called Raising the Salad Bar by Catherine Walthers. It's a whole book of inventive salads - and not just leafy greens with stuff added on top but also creative pasta salads, chicken salads and even whole grain salads. It's a great find for foodies like me who love to shop at local farmer's markets and incorporate lots of fresh veggies in everyday fare. I was especially drawn to the Curried Chicken Salad recipe but since I didn't have half the ingredients at home I decided to make up my own. This can be used for traditional sandwiches or put in wonton cups or small crostini toasts for a fancy appetizer. This salad is not spicy hot but is very flavorful.

Ingredients:
4 boneless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon lemon pepper
2 teaspoons curry powder (I use the Frontier Indian Curry powder, which is a salt-free, all-natural blend)
1 small zucchini, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
2 tablespoons scallions, chopped
2 tablespoons parsley, minced
1/4 cup dried craberries
1/2 cup pecans, coarsely chopped
1 1/2 cups mayonnaise

1. Sprinkle chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Boil in 1 cup water for approximately 20 minutes until cooked through. Set aside to cool.
2. In a large bowl, combine all the other ingredients and blend.
3. Finely chop the chicken and add in with vegetable mixture.
4. Spread chicken salad on bread for sandwiches.

Recipe of the Week: Falafel sandwiches with Yogurt sauce & Cucumber-Tomato Salad

We've been experimenting with some protein-packed vegetarian meals. These Middle Eastern pita sandwiches are hearty for the family and light on the budget. Chickpeas or garbanzo beans are a great source of energy and they're very inexpensive to buy. You might try out the bulk section at your local grocery store or find them with canned beans. This fresh salad uses summer produce straight from the garden or farmer's market.

Ingredients:
Falafels:
2 15-oz. cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed (can use dried, soak overnight)
1 egg
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon parsley, chopped
1 teaspoon cilantro, chopped
1 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
2 cloves garlic
2 cups panko bread crumbs
olive oil

Yogurt Sauce:
2 cups plain yogurt
salt, pepper, paprika to taste

Cucumber-Tomato Salad:
1 small cucumber, cubed
1 small tomato, cubed
1/2 small onion, chopped
1 teaspoon olive oil
1 teaspoon parsley

1 package whole wheat pita bread

Directions:
1. In a food processor or blender, combine chickpeas/garbanzos, egg, lime and lemon juice and spices. Pulse until blended but do not overmix or the mixture will turn runny like hummus.
2. Spread out panko breadcrumbs in shallow dish.
3. Form bean mixture into small footballs or patties. Press onto breadcrumbs until coated on both sides. Refrigerate if soft for about one hour.
4. Heat olive oil in a skillet. Brown patties on both sides.
5. Meanwhile, mix yogurt sauce. Sprinkle lightly with salt, pepper and paprika to taste.
6. Combine cucumbers, tomatoes and onions in a bowl. Mix in parsley and olive oil.
7. Slice open pita breads. Add browned falafel to each pita bread and serve.
8. Allow guests to add yogurt sauce and cucumber mixture to pitas or serve on side.

Side Dish suggestion: Couscous

Cooking Club: Sandwich Soiree

We host a monthly Cooking Club at our house with 10 couples/families. Each month we pick a different theme and all bring ingredients. The ladies generally do the cooking and the men help with the eating and cleaning. Kids pitch in too or cook up their own concoctions in my daughter's pretend kitchen. This afternoon we had a "Sandwich Soiree" and shared decadent sandwich recipes. We thought we'd share some of the healthy ones with you...

TODAY'S MENU:
Italian Paninis
Healthy BLT with a Twist
Spinach Salad with Pears and Goat Cheese
Chocolate-Strawberry Ice Cream Sandwiches

ITALIAN PANINIS
1 loaf sourdough bread, sliced
1 package Italian pepperoni
1 package provolone cheese, sliced
Olive oil

1. Assemble sandwiches with cheese and pepperoni on inside.
2. Brush outsides of bread with olive oil.
3. Grill on panini pan, sandwich maker or George Foreman grill until golden brown and grill marks show. Serve.

HEALTHY BLT WITH A TWIST

1 loaf oatmeal flax bread made in breadmaker (recipe to follow)
2 tomatoes, sliced
2 avocadoes, sliced
Baby greens
1 package turkey bacon, fried
1 bottle goddess salad dressing

1. Slice bread and vegetables.
2. Spread goddess dressing on bread.
3. Assemble sandwiches with tomatoes, avocadoes, turkey bacon and greens.
4. Cut into quarters and use toothpicks to hold them together. Serve.

Dorina's Oatmeal Flax Bread

in the bread maker

1 1/4 cups water
3 tablespoons raw honey
3 tablespoons raw milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup uncooked oatmeal
1 cup Bob's Red Mill unbleached all-purpose flour
2 cups Bob's Red Mill white whole wheat flour
1 package active dry yeast
2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
2 tablespoons sunflower seeds or other seeds (add later)

1. Add all ingredients to your bread maker in order.
2. Select the Whole Wheat setting on your bread maker and begin.
3. When bread maker beeps before the end of the last kneading, add the sunflower seeds.
4. Remove bread from bread maker and cool on rack.

SPINACH SALAD with BLUE CHEESE, BOSC PEARS & POPPY SEED VINAIGRETTE

1 package/bunch baby greens lettuce
1 container blue cheese
1 bosc pear, thinly sliced

3 tablespoons grapeseed oil
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon pomegranate juice or lime juice
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon rosemary
1 teaspoon poppy seeds

1. Assemble salad with baby greens, blue cheese and pears.
2. Add oil, vinegar, juice, salt and rosemary to a small mason jar and shake.
3. Pour vinaigrette over salad and toss. Serve.

Double Chocolate Strawberry Ice Cream Sandwiches

For cookies:
10 ounces bittersweet (not unsweetened) or semisweet chocolate, chopped
1/2 cup plus 2 teaspoons whole wheat pastry flour
3 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup organic evaporated cane juice
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, room temperature
3 large cage free eggs
1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6 ounces (1 cup) semisweet chocolate chips or grain sweetened chips

1 container strawberry organic ice cream (Or, make your own if you feel inclined. We mix up raw milk, strawberries and honey in our Vitamix blender and then freeze it for a healthy strawberry ice cream treat.)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Melt bittersweet chocolate in double boiler or in a glass bowl on top of a small pot of boiling water. Whisk until smooth. Set aside to cool.
3. In a mixer, blend butter, evaporated cane juice and eggs until light and fluffy. Add vanilla.
4. Add dry ingredients, including cocoa powder, baking powder, salt and whole wheat pastry flour.
5. Mix just to blend. Add chocolate chips.
6. Use 1/4 cup to scoop portions. Form into balls and flatten onto parchment paper.
7. Bake approx. 15 minutes until little cracks form on top. Cool.
8. Scoop large spoonful of softened ice cream on one cookie and press another on top. Wrap in plastic wrap and freeze to hold shape or serve right away.