Eggs Q&A

Two common myths about eggs have been recently answered by Lori Bongiorno, author of the book Green Greener Greenest: A Practical Guide to Making Eco-smart Choices a Part of Your Life.

Here they are. We hope it helps clarify some of your questions!

"Myth: Organic eggs are healthier.  

Fact: They certainly can be, but it all depends on the chicken’s diet. Organic eggs come from hens that are fed a 100-percent organic diet. However, what really matters when it comes to nutrition is whether the hens were raised on pasture. Studies, such as those conducted at Penn State University and by Mother Earth News, found that eggs from chickens that ate grass and insects contained higher levels of omega-3 fat, and vitamins E, A, and in some cases D.

If you want eggs from hens that are raised on pasture or spend a lot of time outdoors, then you’ll have to find a farmer you trust at your local farmer's market.

Myth: Egg substitutes are simply eggs (or egg whites) without the shells.

Fact:  Most products have added stabilizers, thickeners, vitamins, carotenes, and, sometimes, spices, according to Marion Nestle, author of What to Eat. She also points out that they cost about twice as much as real eggs. (A pound of egg substitutes weighs slightly less than a dozen small eggs.)  

Of course, if you can’t eat egg yolks for health reasons or have no use for them, egg substitutes are a good option, and most products only have a tiny percentage of additives. Just read the labels before buying."

Source: Environmental journalist Lori Bongiorno shares green-living tips and product reviews with Yahoo! Green's users.

Classic French

Vilac is a French toy manufacturer that has created high quality toys since 1911. Their toys are pieces of art! Check out these pull toys made of wood and leather. All finishing materials are non toxic and safe for young children. Cleaning is simple, wipe with a damp cloth and dry with a towel.
Classics that last for generations.

By Vilac

Happy Mother's Day!

My mother is no longer with us, but this is still her day as far as I'm concerned. Imagine I'll always feel like that...it's a day of remembering for my sister and me. We often celebrated Mother's birthday at the same time as it was also in May, on the 16th. And you'll love this: her first name was May! And she had a sister named June. And another sister named Fannie. Well OK, so maybe that one didn't work out so well....Fannie was also born in May. Anyway, my family always had a double remembrance in May. This is one of my favorite photos of my mother. As you can see, she was a really good sport about wearing those ridiculous paper hats that come in the Christmas poppers. We liked this photo so much we even put it in her funeral program. It really pleased my dad, who had never seen it before.

In honor of Mother's Day, I thought it might be fun to give you Mother's (really old) recipe for her very favorite lunch/brunch: Eggs Benedict. The two of us went out to lunch a lot and if Eggs Benedict was on the menu, she'd order it. Her eyes would light up when the plate was put in front of her. She was fussy about it too. It had to be perfect hollandaise or her nose would crinkle just a little. As she grew older, she no longer made it at home for herself, but I still have her recipe to share with you. Nothing fancy, only plain and simple Eggs Benedict. Just the way she liked it. Perhaps you could add a little fresh fruit or a lovely fruit salsa to add another element on the plate.

The dish begins with an English Muffin. Now every layer of this dish is important and Mother introduced me years ago to Wolferman's English muffins. Have you heard of them? They are hands down the best, unless you make them yourself and even then, maybe not. So I started my dish with those. (I loved having an excuse for a new order... their flavors are wonderful and I was completely out of them.)

And then, of course, you brown some lovely Canadian bacon to put on top of your buttered muffin (Nobody said Eggs Benedict was a health food.) Next, poach two eggs. Perfectly. You know, the way Julia Child says to do them. Put those on top of the Canadian bacon and top with Mother's Hollandaise Sauce, which is perfection itself and so light it almost floats away. I've never made hollandaise any other way. After you taste this, you won't either. Some things just don't need improving.


Mother's Hollandaise Sauce

Ingredients:

2 large egg yolks
1 tablespoon cold water
Pinch of salt
1 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
Dash of hot sauce
Dash of Worcestershire sauce

Method:

In a medium heatproof bowl set over (but not in) a large saucepan filled with 2 inches of simmering water, whisk the egg yolks with the cold water and salt until warm to the touch. Slowly drizzle in half of the melted butter in a thin stream, whisking constantly until incorporated. Continue whisking in the melted butter until the sauce is thick and emulsified. Whisk in the lemon juice, hot sauce and Worcestershire and serve warm. Serves 2.

Make ahead: The sauce can be kept warm over the hot water bath off the heat for 30 minutes. Whisk occasionally and reheat over hot water.

Week 5- Baking

We had our midterm this week in baking. We have only covered two chapters so far- quick breads and yeast doughs. The yeast doughs chapter, however, is very lengthy and contains a massive amount of information. I have read, reread, and reread again and again this chapter. Last week, the quiz was completely fill in the blank. It told us to list the three types of yeast as well as any additional information we could tell about them, with more points being given for more information. Then we had to list the ten steps to making a yeast bread. I flew through it since I had read, reread, and reread more. Apparently others didn't do so well. So far, I have over 100% in the class and I'm fairly confident that it will still be around that number after midterms are graded. There were only two questions that I wasn't 100% confident in the answers, but through the process of elimination I am pretty sure I got them right. Even if I did miss them, though, I know that I got the 10 point bonus question correct.

Once the midterm was over, the recipes for the week were passed out. We made peanut butter banana muffins, chocolate almond bread braid, cocoa bread, and chocolate chip bread. We each had to make a batch of the chocolate chip bread and then our team chose to split up the rest of the recipes. I made the cocoa bread since I have made a ton of muffins and I have also made bread braids at home before *different than the ones that we did in class, but still the same concept.* I ended up helping finish off the bread braid just because I am a girl and have experience in braiding. I decided to do more of a french braid instead of the classic look that most of the people were giving their loaves. Yes, I am aware that our loaf came out a bit...phallic. It was not intentional, as hard as that may be for some of you to believe. I did, however, take advantage of this accidental, humorous mistake and take a funny photo but I will leave you to email me if you would like to see that one.




The peanut butter banana muffins were alright. The texture was perfect- moist and tender- but I thought it lacked flavor. I think it could have used more banana flavor and maybe the addition of some kind of spice. It could just be that I'm not a big peanut butter and banana combination girl. For the photo I cut out a flower of butter and topped it with a white chocolate center followed by a peanut butter chip to really set it off. I also added a walnut "leaf" which is kind of hard to see in the photo.




The cocoa bread was more like a muffin to me. It was good, don't get me wrong, since I am a chocoholic, but it wasn't what I was expecting texture wise. We had a little trouble since the tops began to get a little too dark before the center was cooked all the way through. To remedy this, we placed parchment paper over the tops of the loaves while they finished cooking.




I did like how the chocolate chip bread came out. It was a fluffy bread texture but it was sweet which was a different experience. I have had cinnamon raisen bread before but this was a whole different thing. I noticed that when others followed the recipe exactly and put in their chocolate chips when the recipe told them to, the chocolate began to melt because of the warm water used to dissolve the yeast. This turned their bread brown all the way around. I decided to completely make the dough and knead it to the right consistency, and THEN knead in the chips. This is what the book has said to do- to make any additions at the end so they hold their shape and integrity. This worked much better, and even though they still melted a little, it was nowhere near what others experienced.


After baking, I attended a luncheon that had been set up for those that made the President's list and I received a certificate recognizing that achievement. I am working extremely hard to make sure that I maintain this achievement and earn the award again this quarter.

Visiting Italy, Via the Written Page

At a weekly tea break, my co-workers and I had a light bulb moment. We're all so obsessed with food, why not read a light-hearted food-themed book for the book group? Every Day in Tuscany by Frances Mayes was floated around. Done!

We had to have food, right? I don't know if the book wasn't an excuse to eat all this! All supplied by our host: grapes, organic olives, and bread. All that was missing was a picnic blanket and outdoor setting. After a long workday, we settled for a conference room, where we overlooked skyscrapers, but dreamt of rolling hills and lush vineyards.

My biggest struggle (and that of many trying to pursue a vegan lifestyle): cheese. I wish I could say I have will-power, but in communal settings like this, I don't. I hope vegan cheese improves - fast. I can't relate when vegans say they don't miss anything (and think they are lying).

A Toscana wine, and my book (thank you library!) A co-worker surprised us with the charming mini ceramic planter keepsakes that say "Tuscany." In the book, Mayes talks about how they repair ceramic planters with wires. Not tossing something broken away but repairing it - what a refreshing thought!


She references twice disparaging remarks from tourists - one about her husband's car (saying they think he'd drive something nicer), another about Mayes' house (that the tourist's house is much bigger). Such a typical attitude - and one I cannot understand - that bigger is better, and that brands are everything.

While there are endless gems in the book, I want to share with you my favorite passage, which so many of us can relate to:

"Time--that's what it takes for the slow tomato sauce, stirred until reduced to an essential taste of summer sun, for tying lavender in bunches and hanging them from beams to dry, for learning the imperfect tense, for checking the reddening of pomegranates every day as they ripen, ripping open the leathery skin to reveal the juicy red hive within, sprinkling the fruit over a salad of field greens and toasted walnuts. Living well in time means taking back time from the slave-masters - obligations, appointments, the dreary round of details that attack like leeches in a stagnant pond. During intense periods of work, restoration projects, family crises, health scares, I want to wake up at first light, pull on hiking books, and set off for an hour while the birds are still practicing their doxologies.

Wasted hours-they are mine; I meant to use them before they slipped through the hourglass."

Spice Crusted Tofu

Tofu is a very versatile ingredient, and loaded with good vitamins, minerals and proteins.
We tested a recipe that was absolutely delicious! Well, just take a look at the picture...

Spice-Crusted Tofu
Servings: 4 portions

- 3 tablespoons pine nuts
- 1 tablespoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon ground cumin
- 1 teaspoon ground coriander
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse kosher salt, or to taste
- Freshly ground pepper, to taste
- 1 14- to 16-ounce package extra-firm tofu
- 3 tablespoons boiling water
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
- 4 teaspoons honey
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

Toast pine nuts (see Tip below). Set aside to cool. Mix paprika, cumin, coriander, salt and pepper in a small bowl. Drain tofu and pat dry with paper towels. Cut crosswise into 8 slices, 1/2 inch thick. Dredge the tofu liberally with the spice mixture, coating all sides. Mix boiling water, lemon juice and honey in a small bowl.
Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat; swirl to coat the bottom. Add tofu and cook on one side until brown and crusty, 4 to 5 minutes; flip and cook for another 3 minutes. Add the honey mixture to the pan (it will bubble up and evaporate very quickly) and shake to coat the tofu. Serve immediately, sprinkled with the toasted pine nuts.

Tip:
To toast nuts & seeds on the stovetop: Toast in a small dry skillet over medium-low heat, stirring constantly, until fragrant and lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes.

Source: Eating Well

Portable Water Bottles with Filter. How Convenient!

Bobble is a portable, reusable water bottle with its own carbon filtering system. One of Bobble’s carbon filters represents 300 plastic water bottles since the filter lasts up to 2 months or 150 liters.

What's more, bottles are made from recycled material, and are BPA, Phthalate and PVC-free.

Made by Bobble.