Elastic Waist - Rants and musings on weight, body image, celebrities, fitness, food and other fixations.

EATING 08.11.2008 BY WEETABIX

ten ways to save money by eating more eggs

I went to the store this weekend and actually had a minor blackout when it came to hearing the total. I just mindlessly swiped my credit card and now I'm too nervous to search for the receipt because I honestly don't want to know the damage. This whole recession thing? It's hitting home...specifically my pantry. We're making a concerted effort to shop less, visit the farmer's market every weekend and also, to eat all of our leftovers. But when figuring my cost-per-meal over the last few days, the costs per ingredients really hit home. The cheapest meals are based on few ingredients, and the best grocery bargain, hands down, is the incredible, edible egg.

We already know that these little protein-filled dynamos are a component for staying full longer and have helped aid in weight loss, but sometimes your oeuf oeuvre leaves a little to be desired. Here are ten easy-peasy ideas for incorporating more eggs into your daily plate:

Considering that "scrambled eggs" is such a simple concept, it's hard to believe that so many people screw them up. If you cook them too much, the proteins bind and squeeze out water, resulting in a gross puddle and hard, weirdly-textured eggs, and if you beat them too much, you can create something that is distinctly not eggs. Here's a fool-proof method for making your scramblings and remember, the trick is to pull them off before they're entirely done, because they finish cooking on the plate.
Love poached eggs, but leave them to Sunday brunch because they're scary? Deb's got your back.
Chop hard-boiled eggs into foods for texture, such as in chili or chowder.

Take the Tupperware Party favorite, Deviled Eggs, and kick them up with a little wasabi.
Say ta ta to a boring fritatta (please forgive me for making that pun)!
Leave it to Heidi to come up with an egg salad that actually looks posh.
Keep a bowl of hard boiled eggs in your fridge to grab when you're running out the door, late for work. They'll keep for at least two weeks.
Spaghetti carbonara is pretty much the best thing that ever happened to pasta, and without eggs, it would be nothing. NOTHING!
Real men DO eat quiche, at least if they're clever and know a cheap and satisfying meal when they see one. Check out this delectable offering from San Francisco's amazing restaurant Tartine.
Bring eggs and some sophistication to your dinner table with these bakers.

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3 Comments

said:

I don't mean to be a downer here, but if you do eat eggs, please purchase them from local farms where you know the chickens are treated humanely. Egg factories are some of the most horrendous environments animals are raised in. And just because the carton says "cage free" doesn't mean a damn thing. There are NO regulations for companies to post these kind of statements on their cartons. So, if you do eat eggs, please try to do so responsibly.

August 11, 2008 5:30 PM

canknitian / j @ roadtoambition said:

I used this scrambled egg recipe, and took your advice about plating them a little early, and FINALLY had PERFECT scrambled eggs and just what I wanted for supper. I took a couple of bites, grabbed the pepper from the cupboard and gave it a shake. Unfortunately, it wasn't the big, flaky, cracked pepper I was looking for...but the Montreal Steak Spice. I scraped it off and ate it anyway...and I'm already looking forward to having them again, with pepper this time!

August 12, 2008 6:09 PM

Barb said:

More tricks - place 2 eggs and some cheese in one of those new microwavable plastic baggies for a minute or so, and voila! some of the best eggs ever. (Consistency is somewhere between an omelet and scrambled.) The secret is, again, to remove before they are fully cooked, so they can finish, and be perfect on the plate. Enjoy!

August 21, 2008 11:12 PM

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