4 Reasons You Should Be Eating Breakfast

By: Katherine Brooking, MS, RD
WebMD

Are you one of the nearly 31 million Americans who skips breakfast? Or is your idea of a balanced breakfast whatever you can gobble up while on the go? If so, you may be harming your health before your work day even begins.

You’ve probably heard that breakfast is the most important meal of the day – research suggests that it’s true. Here’s why you should make breakfast an essential part of your AM routine:

Breakfast may help you lose weight. According to recent research, eating a high-protein breakfast may actually help you shed pounds. Studies indicate that dieters who eat high-quality protein as part of their first meal are more able to ward off hunger pangs, reduce cravings and lose fat while maintaining lean muscle mass. One study published in the International Journal of Obesity, for example, found that overweight women who ate eggs for breakfast as part of a reduced-calorie diet lost 65 percent more weight and 34 percent more belly fat than women who started their days with a calorie-matched bagel breakfast.

Breakfast may lower your risk of heart disease and diabetes. Skipping out on your first meal may up the odds that you develop heart disease and diabetes. A study published in the journal Circulation followed more than 25,000 men for 16 years, and found that those who did not eat breakfast had nearly a 30% greater risk of developing coronary heart disease.

Other studies show that eating breakfast can help protect against type 2 diabetes.

Breakfast helps you meet your nutrient needs. A balanced morning meal that has several food groups represented including lean proteins, whole grains and a fruit or vegetable packs in nutrients your body needs to be your best. In fact, studies indicate that breakfast eaters are more likely to meet their overall nutritional needs, including higher intakes of fiber, B-vitamins, Vitamins A and C, calcium and much more.

Breakfast can enhance kids’ performance at school. If you want your child to do her best in school, start her day with a balanced breakfast. Without a morning meal, it can be tough to concentrate and kids (and adults!) are more likely to be irritable and tired. What’s more, studies demonstrate the cognitive benefits of eating breakfast, including better test scores, memory time, and even school attendance.

Cracking Cognition: Moderate Egg Consumption May Boost Certain Brain Functions

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By: Nathan Gray, 09-Jan-2017

Eating eggs can improve aspects of cognition, according to research that also concludes neither high intake of cholesterol or eggs are associated with an increased risk of dementia or Alzheimer’s disease.

12 Drool Worthy Egg Breakfasts You Can’t Say No To

1. Baked Eggs with Sausage and Mushroom

Baked Eggs with Sausage and Mushroom
Unicorns in the Kitchen / Via unicornsinthekitchen.com

Recipe Here

2. Easy Cheesy Baked Oregano Omelette

Easy Cheesy Baked Oregano Omelette
I Knead to Eat / Via ikneadtoeat.com

Recipe Here

4. Persian Spinach and Eggs – Nargesi

Persian Spinach and Eggs - Nargesi
Unicorns in the Kitchen / Via unicornsinthekitchen.com

Recipe Here

5. Roasted Tomato Caprese Frittata

Roasted Tomato Caprese Frittata
Joyful Healthy Eats / Via joyfulhealthyeats.com

Recipe Here

6. Cheesy Wonton Breakfast Cups

Cheesy Wonton Breakfast Cups
The Gourmet RD / Via thegourmetrd.com

Recipe Here

7. Breakfast Casserole with Bacon

Breakfast Casserole with Bacon
Dinner at the Zoo / Via dinneratthezoo.com

Recipe Here

10. Breakfast Hash Brown Cups

Breakfast Hash Brown Cups
Damn Delicious / Via damndelicious.net

Recipe Here

12. Sweet Potato Breakfast Pizza

Sweet Potato Breakfast Pizza
Katalyst Health / Via katalysthealthblog.com

Recipe Here

*Source: Buzz Feed

The World’s Oldest Woman Eats Raw Eggs Every Day

If you were waiting on one more news story to convince you that eggs, yolks and all, are good for you, I have it right here. The oldest woman in the world says she has eggs to thank for her incredibly long life. Emma Morano is the world’s oldest woman—she’ll be 117 on November 27—and she has eaten at least two eggs a day for 90 years. The daily routine came about when she was 20 years old. A doctor recommended she eat three eggs per day—two raw, one cooked—to help with her anemia. 

Morano’s current doctor, Carlo Bava, acknowledges that she has long-eschewed modern nutritional advice, like eating large amounts of fruits and vegetables. But clearly, the last person alive who was born in the 19th century could have done worse than opting for an egg-heavy diet. The trick may be to cut out just about everything else but eggs—Morano isn’t pairing her daily eggs with bacon or toast. When Dr. Bava met her, she’d eat two raw eggs for breakfast, an omelet for lunch, and chicken for dinner. And at this point in her life, Morano has pared down her food intake to just eggs and biscuits. Eggs have the added benefit of being a soft food, which means Morano can easily eat them. You see, while eggs have helped her maintain her vim and vigor, they haven’t saved her teeth. 

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Morano still lives on her own in Northern Italy. As the world’s oldest woman, she has outlived her immediate family. While she isn’t planning a party on November 27, she expects well-wishers to turn up anyway—with some perfectly cooked birthday omelets, we hope.

10 ways World Egg Day will be celebrated across globe

Source: Andrea Gantz, WattAgNet

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October 14 is World Egg Day but in many countries observations will span several days

World Egg Day will be celebrated on October 14, with a wide range of festivals, activities, charitable events and regional campaigns taking place all over the world. All of the activities promote eggs and the benefits of egg consumption.

World Egg Day is celebrated annually on the second Friday of October.

Countries planning World Egg Day activities, according to the International Egg Commission, are:

  1. Bangladesh – The Bangladesh Animal Agriculture Association (BAAS) will celebrate World Egg Day over two days beginning on October 14 with a rally to promote the goodness of the egg. There will also be approximately 5,000 free boiled eggs distributed, each in an individual box. To promote eggs among the consumers, the BAAS will organize the Egg Fest 2016 — a new promotion in Bangladesh and will involve leading food companies, hotels and restaurants showing and selling their egg and poultry produce. BAAS will this year be introducing the “BAAS Award for Egg” during the World Egg Day 2016 celebrations.
  2. The Philippines — World Egg Day will be observed with an organized charity Family Fun Run event in aid of the fight against stunting and malnutrition. The Philippine Egg Board has arranged the day to allow all age groups and fitness levels to participate in the run taking place on October 16. 
  3. Hungary — The Hungarian Poultry Product Board is organizing its 15th Egg Symposium in Hungary on World Egg Day, Friday 14th October. The event will be opened by László Végh, President, Hungarian Egg Producers Association and Katalin Süle, county president, National Chamber of Agriculture. The Symposium will include several presentations, one of which will be given by IEC Director General Julian Madeley speaking on “The Global Egg Market: past, present, future – challenges and possibilities.”
  4. United States — The American Egg Board has been organizing some media outreach events featuring international egg recipes and have been using social media to create a video series featuring “Adventure Egg,” which explores recipes from around the world. Latina Blogger Network has also been partnered with to share egg-citing egg recipes to help celebrate World Egg Day. It has created a School Recipe Challenge by asking the children to send in their favorite school egg recipes which will then be posted and shared through the Twitter-sphere.
  5. Italy — World Egg Day will be observed with some promotional events to celebrate the nutritional power of the egg as one of the highest sources of protein naturally available.
  6. Canada — World Egg Day efforts celebrate Egg Farmers of Canada‘s (EFC) network of partners and champions who help keep communities vibrant and give back by volunteering, fundraising and donating eggs. EFC on October 3 began  counting down to World Egg Day by sharing some of the amazing ways egg farmers help more people benefit from the essential protein and nutrients in eggs. To mark the occasion, a very special video is being released to share just how far reaching the impact of the egg can have on those who need it most. EFC is also working with online influencers and bloggers who will take part in the celebration by sharing what they love most about eggs. 
  7. United Kingdom — World Egg Day is being celebrated under the general theme of ‘Put an Egg On It’ to encourage consumers to experiment with eating eggs in more unusual ways throughout British Egg Week, on World Egg Day and beyond. The hashtag #PutanEggonit has been created to run in conjunction with the campaign and inspire interaction from consumers, caterers, food manufacturers and retailers on social media. There will be a street food event to be held at Hawker House in London to celebrate British Egg Week and World Egg Day. As part of British Egg Week there will also be a series of bloggers showcasing how they interpret the #PutanEggonit theme. 
  8. Argentina — Camara Argentina de Productores Avicolas (CAPIA) is promoting World Egg Day 2016 October 10-14. To celebrate a newsletter is being circulated to many different television programs, radio stations, magazines and newspapers, explaining all about World Egg Day. CAPIA is also distributing materials to educate consumers on how to cook with eggs and is running for the 10th year, the “Egg Gourmet Week.” CAPIA has also donated more than one million eggs through the national Food Bank scheme.
  9. Austria – The country is planning many activities to celebrate and engage all in World Egg Day. A press briefing session was held October 4 with invited journalists with the main topics focusing on Austrian egg quality and standards, labeling issues in gastronomy as well as raising of male chicks in organic egg production. There will be several press releases issued in cooperation with partners and also information sent to retailers. There are scheduled ad campaigns in Vienna including press material and flyers along with eggs to be distributed.
  10. Senegal — There are World Egg Day celebrations planned linked in with the widespread use of social media. World Egg Day will be featured on its Facebook account. There will also be World Egg Day news shared on some coordinated websites.

For the Last Time: Are Eggs Healthy or What?

By: Alison Kotch, Thrillist

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Image Source: Laura Hayes/Thrillist

Few foods have bounced around the health spectrum as much as the incredible, edible egg.

Vegetarians with glowing skin and balanced diets often get their protein from eggs; on the other side of the coin, eggs have been demonized since the 1960s for their high cholesterol levels; perfectly splitting the difference is the notion that egg white-only omelets are somehow better for you than the version with yolks.

Last year, though, the US Department of Agriculture dropped some big cholesterol news, saying Americans could ignore that limit, since cholesterol in food doesn’t raise blood cholesterol levels.

In the midst of this cholesterol furor was the affirmation that the saturated fat in meat is still bad for you, and eggs are… kind of like meat? And yet, they’re not, which is why many vegetarians still eat them. Before you reach for steak and eggs at every meal: are eggs now considered healthy, and are they really any better for your body than meat like chicken, beef, and pork?

Eggs are packed with the best kind of protein

There’s a reason why some call eggs the perfect food: at just 70 calories each, eggs are nutrient-packed powerhouses, and one of the best sources of protein humans can eat. Each one contains about 6g , and while that doesn’t seem like much, egg protein has the highest biological value compared to other types, which is a fancy way of saying that egg protein is the easiest for the body to synthesize and use.

So not all protein is created equal. And while seafood can give you plenty of heart-healthy omega-3s, it can also contain high levels of mercury and other contaminants. Commonly consumed pork, beef, and poultry pack powerful protein punches, but tend to be high in saturated fat and don’t offer the nutrient profile of eggs.  

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Image Source: Full Frame Lab/Shutterstock

OK, so eggs are the healthiest (and cheapest) protein source. What else do I get when I eat one?

Egg yolks are full of good fats and 18 vitamins and beneficial minerals, such as thiamin, riboflavin, folate, B12, and B6, making them a great energy source for athletes and non-athletes alike. They also contain antioxidants that can protect you from a ton of diseases — like cancer and hypertension — and their yolks contain carotenoids, organic pigments that give them their yellow color.

But don’t think that’s just an aesthetic benefit: they also have anti-inflammatory properties that are great for your eyes, protecting you against age-related diseases like macular degeneration and cataract formation.

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Image Source:Degtiavora Viktora/Shutterstock

Nutrition aside, eggs are far more sustainable than meat

Even though meat can have a place in a well-balanced diet, it’s clear that we’ve taken that to another level: Americans eat about triple the global average of meat. Aside from the fact that the World Health Organization has linked meat to cancer, one of the best reasons to cut back is the environment.

You don’t have to be one of those tree-hugging people to care. Everyone has a carbon footprint, which is how much your daily activities — including eating — add to the greenhouse gas emissions that cause climate change. Meat eaters have twice the carbon footprint of vegetarians, and even something as small as a cheeseburger has a much larger environmental impact than you might expect. Chickens require much less land to roam freely, and you don’t need to kill them to eat their eggs… which is obviously good for them and more sustainable.

The good news is that most restaurants have already committed to reducing meat on their menus, and we’re eating less meat than we used to. Even though our dietary guidelines will be looked at again in 2020, the USDA’s advisory committee has shown a willingness to adapt to changing science, which could have a huge impact on American eating habits in the future.

Now that the bad rep eggs have had for so long is no cause for concern, go ahead and crack yourself another one… and don’t feel bad about it.

This Is How All Your Favorite Chefs Make Eggs

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Image Source: POPSUGAR Photography / Lizzie Fuhr

Eggs can either be incredibly boring or really exciting. If you’d rather have the latter but you’re 100 percent tired of your go-to plain scramble or omelet, these chef recipes should help. Breathe some new life into your breakfast or brunch routine with these creative takes on eggs from Giada De Laurentiis, Alton Brown, Chrissy Teigen, and more.

Alton Brown: Benedict From Scratch

If you’ve never attempted homemade eggs benedict for fear of the effort, Alton Brown’s benedict recipe will convince you it’s entirely worth it. While he goes as far as making his own English muffins, you could certainly use store-bought bread but make the hollandaise from scratch.

Mario Batali: Baked With Herbs and Cheese

Mario Batali’s eggs in hell recipe is the Italian chef’s take on the traditional Middle Eastern dish shakshuka, pictured above. While his scrambled egg recipe involves truffles (classic Mario), the flavor in this skillet recipe comes from plenty of garlic, jalapeños, chili flakes, parmesan, and basil.

Ree Drummond: Omelet With a Twist

The Pioneer Woman‘s style of cooking usually involves simple ingredients you probably have in your pantry that are used in creative recipes you hadn’t thought of before. Such is the case with her Sleepin’-In Omelet, which is a casserole-like baked egg dish topped with pieces of onion rolls, cheddar cheese, and chives. This is what you’d want to serve if you’re having a group breakfast or brunch, and the best part is you can make it the day before and keep it in the fridge before popping it in the oven to bake in the morning.

Chrissy Teigen: Nontraditional Shakshuka

Another popular take on shakshuka is Chrissy Teigen’s spicy tomato skillet eggs with prosciutto, which you’ll find on page 24 of her cookbook, Cravings. “I always have the ingredients for this divine, painfully simple crowd-pleaser. Sopping the eggy tomato sauce with focaccia *almost* makes me not regret inviting someone into my home/getting out of bed,” the always-hilarious author wrote in the recipe’s intro. Catch a glimpse of the eggs sizzling in the pan from a video Chrissy shared on Instagram.

Giada De Laurentiis: In a Muffin Tin

If grab-and-go breakfasts are your favorite, you’ll love Giada’s mini frittatas recipe. Made in a muffin tin, the egg muffins are full of sliced ham, fresh parsley, and (of course) parmesan cheese. You can make a batch of them on Sunday and have breakfast ready for the whole week.

Gordon Ramsay: Custard-Like Scramble

There’s really nothing like Gordon Ramsay’s scrambled egg recipe. You’ll forget everything you thought you knew about such a basic breakfast and immediately impress yourself with a chef-quality meal. Nothing about Gordon’s recipe is expected, from the tool (pot instead of pan) to the secret ingredient (spoiler: it’s crème fraiche).

Source: PopSugar

USDA guidelines cite eggs as option for schools

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PARK RIDGE, Ill. — Hard-boiled eggs provide a nutrient dense option for healthy snacks and a la carte offerings in schools, according to the final guidelines issued recently by the USDA Food & Nutrition Service under its Smart Snacks Rule.

In a change from its earlier renditions of the rule, this final decision exempts whole eggs from limits on both total fat and saturated fat.

 The final rule’s preamble specifically cites the 2015-2020 Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA) that identifies eggs as “nutrient dense” and includes eggs in its recommended healthy eating patterns. Schools can include hard-cooked or hard-boiled eggs as snacks or menu items, as long as no fat has been added to them.

One large egg contains varying amounts of 13 essential vitamins and minerals plus six grams of protein all for 70 calories, leading to its designation as a nutrient-dense food.

“The ruling makes available a nutrient-dense food to school nutrition programs, one that can help our student population feel full and satisfied,” said Anne L. Alonzo, president and CEO of the American Egg Board. “Multiple studies demonstrate the satiating effects of protein-rich foods like eggs, so the inclusion of hard-boiled eggs to snacks and a la carte menus can benefit students of all ages.”

The Smart Snacks ruling mandates the types of foods sold at schools, during the school day, meet certain nutrition standards, starting in school year 2014-2015. This Smart Snacks in School regulation applies to foods sold a la carte, in the school store and in vending machines. The ruling is designed to encourage children to make healthier snack choices that give them the nutrition they need to grow and learn, and conforms to the provisions of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010.

 “The final rule reflects the efforts of both AEB and the Egg Nutrition Center to promote and provide science-based information about eggs to the discussion regarding the latest DGA,” said Alonzo. “Incorporating eggs in the final Smart Snacks rule not only benefits kids with a practical and flexible solution to promote healthier eating in schools, it’s also a favorable development for egg demand.”

Source: Poultry Times

8 Genius Ways to Cook Like a Diner

You might not realize it, but when you make a simple breakfast of bacon and eggs at home, or a no-fuss tuna melt lunch, you’re aiming for diner-style excellence. You want crispiness on the corners of your sunny-side-up eggs, brown toasty spots on your omelets, and everything served really hot.

Great cooking’s not about fancy sauces and fashionable plates. The efficiency, speed, and intuition of a diner is the stuff great cooking is made of, and I’d pick watching diner cooks busting out orders over a flashy episode of Chef’s Table any day. And as it turns out, it’s not impossible to set up your home kitchen for diner-style glory. Here are 8 tricks for how to do it yourself.

The grill press is every diner cook’s friend. – Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell

1. Get a Flat-Top Griddle

Guess what: you need a big, hot, and flat space for all of it. A two-burner griddle with ridged edges allows you to turn your stovetop into a diner-style cooking surface, with the ridges acting as a grease collector. If you’re making pancakes for the squad, a flat-top griddle allows you to skip cooking it all in batches as you get everyone’s order done at once. With all of that space, you’re going to have some really hot spots and some cooler spots. Ashley Christensen, owner of Poole’s Diner in Raleigh, NC (among other restaurants) and author of the upcoming Poole’s cookbook, says utilizing those temperature differences can make for really awesome breakfast. “These hot and cold spots aren’t usually by design, but a good cook knows how to use them to their advantage, rather than letting them be an impediment,” said Christensen, “Steak, hash browns, burgers all benefit from movement around the griddle.”

2. Meet the Press

When it comes to diner food, the word is “flat.” Line cooks will smash, press, and shove foods to get them closer and closer to being flush with flat top surface, seeking crispiness at all costs. This boosts the crispiness of sausages, grilled cheese, toast, and burger patties. To master that diner-style burger crust, you want to get the patty smashed down onto the surface. A sturdy grill press (a rectangle of metal with a handle) allows you to evenly press down everything. The best ones are heavy for their size. Use it for bacon slices, toast, grilled cheese—anything you need thin and crispy.

3. Use Room-Temperature Butter

Look around the griddle’s border at a diner, and you’re probably going to see a tub of butter. It’s the software of the diner griddle operation, and it’s important for it to be slightly soft. As the butter sizzles melts quickly on the surface of a griddle, its milk solids provide some browning and add some flavor to whatever’s cooking.

It’s also important to have the butter at room temp for the sake of serving. Cold butter on pancakes and toast is just plain wrong—get your butter at room temperature so that it starts melting on contact and enters all of those nooks and pores in a pancake. And let’s not forget that soft butter means easy spreading on toast, or for grilled-cheese sandwiches.

Normally, you’d almost always use unsalted butter in the kitchen, but for breakfast, salted butter is choice. “Salted butter has gone out of fashion a little bit in the cooking world, but one place where I love it is with a diner breakfast,” said Christensen. Use soft salted butter on waffles, pancakes, and toast, and you’ll notice everything’s just a little more savory.

Big all-American omelets demand plenty of pre-prepped mix-ins. – Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Anna Stockwell

4. Flip It Good

Besides a griddle and hefty grill press, the other piece of heavy equipment every diner needs is a huge offset spatula. You can’t maneuver around a griddle the way you can with a frying pan, so the shape, size, and heavy duty metal is a cinch for turning and moving lots of foods on a very hot surface. Need to flip a row of sausages at once before checking on a smashed burger? Tongs aren’t going to cut it—you need a tool with a lot more surface area. The thin edge also makes the tool perfect for scraping and cleaning off your griddle surface.

5. Keep Everything Within Reach

Just like a Michelin chef keeps their mise-en-place easy to access, diner line cooks have pre-prepped ingredients within reach for faster and more efficient (see: better) cooking. That makes all the difference when you’re juggling orders for scrambled, over-easy, and fried eggs, just like diner cooks do. If you’re making scrambles for a crowd, go ahead and tear the lid off of the egg carton for easy access. Keep your omelet mix-in’s on hand and sorted by cook time, and have all bread out of the bag, sliced, and already loaded into the toaster before you start heating up the stove.

6. Do It Ahead

Just like the best grillers, legit diners know that sometimes you need two heat zones—one high, one low. Legit greasy spoon spots like Joe’s always keep a mini mountain of potatoes sizzling and warming on low heat. They’ve boiled their potatoes ahead of time, so when they get an order of “mystery in the alley” (that’s hash browns to everyone else), they’re pretty much ready to go. Keep one of the burners on lower heat, and use that zone to cook items like slow-cooking home fries or delicate scrambles.

Nothing like maple syrup in one of those pourers – Photo by Chelsea Kyle, Prop Styling by Alex Brannian, Food Styling by Katherine Sacks

7. Add the Little Touches

Diners have just as many essential details as a world-ranked restaurant, and while we’re not advocating installing Formica counters, there are plenty of small flourishes that can turn your next breakfast into a classic. Cut buttered toast into triangles, keep half-and-half in a metal creamer, stash syrup in a pourer, and have your hot sauce on hand (bonus points if it’s in a caddy). Serve your pancakes or waffles on a separate plate (though maple syrup and eggs is a winning combo for you, then by all means go for it).

8. And No Fancy Stuff

A diner cook isn’t spending time “plating” up with edible flowers or swoops of sauces. There just aren’t those kind of embellishments happening. A diner plate will have a sprig of curly parsley garnish or some snips of curly kale at best—most diner food is garnished with more diner food. Save the pour-over coffee for when you’re serving a curd-free fluffy French omelet instead of the cheesy and salty goodness of a Western omelet. Keep breakfast simple, let the syrup drip where it may, and it’ll be special.

Then make like a diner cook and do it all over again tomorrow.

Prop Credit: Select props courtesy of Fishs Eddy

7 Must-Try LA Dishes Topped with an Egg

By Jessica Estrada | June 17, 2016 | Food & Drink

Eggs don’t have to be served just for breakfast. From duck egg pizza to yolk-topped gelato, here are seven delectable egg-topped dishes that you can enjoy anytime of day.

1. Breakfast Pizza at Little Dom’s
Little Doms Breakfast Pizza

Why have sunny side-up eggs for breakfast when you can have a breakfast egg-topped pizza instead? Little Dom’s yummy iteration features speck, tomato sauce, and ooey-gooey mozzarella cheese. 2128 Hillhurst Ave., Los Angeles, 323-661-0055

2. Shrimp and Grits at The LobsterThe Lobster Shrimp and Grits

Seafood lovers will dig The Lobster’s shrimp and grits dish. Blue king prawns, Anson Mills grits, and sausage all get covered in a savory shrimp butter gravy. A poached egg serves as the perfect topping. 1602 Ocean Ave., Santa Monica, 310-458-9294

3. Egg Sandwich at Eveleigh
Egg Sandwich Eveleigh

The Eveleigh knows how to do sandwiches right. Their egg sandwich features a fried egg oozing with yolk, a layer of Gruyère cheese, and swipes of Dijon mayonnaise and harissa ketchup, all squished into poppy seed bialy. 8752 Sunset Blvd., Los Angeles, 424-239-1630

4. Brown Rice Bowl at L.P.
Brown Rice Bowl L.P.

At the L.P. rooftop, Sunday brunch (served weekly from noon to 4 p.m.) is all about chef Louis Tikaram’s new Asian-inspired brown rice bowl. The filling dish brings together mixed herbs, white soy and ginger, and brown rice topped with a 63-degree egg. If you want to make it even more exciting, add a couple strips of bacon or a chicken breakfast sausage to the mix. 603 N. La Cienega Blvd., West Hollywood, 310-855-9955

5. Duck Egg Pizza at Love & SaltDuck Egg Pie Love & Salt

Pizza lovers are in for a treat at Love & Salt thanks to chef Michael Fiorelli’s spaghetti carbonara-inspired duck egg pizza. The delicious pie is made in the restaurant’s wood-burning oven and topped with pancetta, panna, potato, rosemary, mozzarella, Parmesan, and a duck egg cracked over it tableside. 317 Manhattan Beach Blvd., Manhattan Beach, 310-545-5252

6. Toasted Meringue Gelato Topped with Candied Egg Yolk at KaliToasted Meringue Gelato Kali

Yes, you read that right. You can even enjoy egg atop dessert at Kali restaurant. Chef Kevin Meehan’s crowd-pleasing toasted meringue gelato is sprinkled with candied egg yolk shavings tableside. 5722 Melrose Ave., Los Angeles, 323-871-4160

7. Croque Madame at Le Petit ParisCroque Madame Le Petit Paris

If you’re craving eggs and an elegant ambiance, head to Le Petit Paris in Downtown LA and order the croquet madame. The French brasserie’s gooey sandwich gets topped with an egg and served with a mixed green salad on the side. 418 S. Spring St., Los Angeles, 213-217-4445

57 cracking ways with eggs

Written by Anna Glover, Olive Magazine

57 (yes, 57!) marvelous ways with the most versatile ingredient we know – eggs. Whether it’s shakshuka, muffins, eggs benedict or a chilli cheese omelette, we’ve got a recipe for everyone.

Breakfast eggs

Despite the obvious fried, poached or scrambled eggs, here are a few other ways we like our eggs in the morning. Whatever you choose, cover it in sriracha (we always do).

1. Breakfast quesadillas

Fry spring onion, pepper, mushrooms and tomatoes in a frying pan, then add beaten egg and scramble. Pile into warmed tortillas with grated cheese, fold over, and fry on both sides until golden and the cheese has melted.

2. Breakfast muffins

Add cooked bacon, peas, ham, cheese… whatever you have lurking in your fridge! These are great for a picnic, too.

Watch our ‘how to make muffin tin frittatas’ video here

3. Eggs Benedict

Usually saved for special occasions, but you can easily make it an ‘everyday’ recipe. Start with a toasted muffin and a poached egg, then add buttered, garlicky greens on top; or ham, mustard and melted cheese. Or even marmite hollandaise

4. 3-ingredient pancakes

Eggs play an important part in these 3-ingredient banana pancakes. They set the pancakes, making them flip-able. They’re flourless, too.

5. Baked avocado with eggs

Breakfast or brunch, our baked avocado with smoked salmon and egg hits the mark. If you’re not a fan of smoked salmon, add a small piece of Parma ham in the baked avocado middles instead. For a vegan option, drizzle the baked avocados with harissa, houmous and some coriander.

6. Eggy bread

AKA French toast for the sweet version. Go down the savoury route and serve stuffed with cheese or baked beans. Or add sugar and cinnamon to the mix, and serve with berries, Nutella, ice cream, chopped nuts, maple syrup, squirty cream… we’re just joking about that last one. Maybe.


10 minute meals with eggs

Eggs are a hero ingredient when it comes to quick dinners. They’re filling and healthy too… so even if you only have 10 minutes to prepare a meal, you can still eat well if you’ve got eggs in the fridge.

7. Avocado egg on toast

This is a go-to 10-minute meal for cookery writer Anna Glover. It’s super quick, there’s minimal washing up, but it still tastes pretty special. Just toast rye bread and mash half a ripe avocado with a fork on top. Add a squeeze of lime or lemon, season, and top with a poached, fried or even boiled egg. Sprinkle with chilli flakes, sriracha or a pinch of sumac.

8. Poached eggs with asparagus  

Classic breakfast eggs, but they make a great dinner too. To take this dish to the next level, wrap blanched asparagus with parma ham and grill for a minute to crisp up while your eggs are poaching. Serve with sourdough for a more filling meal.  

9. Indian scrambled eggs

Raid your store cupboard and spice up your scramble. Lightly toast ground cumin, coriander and garam masala in a tsp of ghee or butter, then add your beaten eggs and swirl in the pan until scrambled. Stir in some chopped coriander and red chilli just before serving. Serve with roti or paratha if you have some in your cupboard.

10. Baked egg mushrooms

These look super impressive, but it’s very easy. Grill Portobello mushrooms with a drizzle of oil and sprinkle over some thyme. When they’re just turning soft, crack an egg in the middle and grill again until the white is set. Scatter with some more chopped thyme, serve on toast, or with a salad and a dollop of ricotta or crème fraiche.

11. Broccoli, poached egg and chorizo salad

Warm salads are a great way to transition from summer to winter. You could add whatever greens you like here – kale, broccoli, green beans, chard, or just whatever is in season. Just remove any woody stems, blanch the greens then drain well.

Fry chorizo in a little olive oil until golden and crisp, then add in the wilted greens, some sliced spring onions and a few handfuls of watercress or spinach. Toss in the chorizo oil, a dash of sherry vinegar, tip onto a plate and top with a poached egg. Add a pinch of paprika to serve, if you like.

12. Courgette omelette

A quick and easy way to cook courgettes. Fry crushed garlic and grated courgette in some olive oil before scooping out of the frying pan. Add the beaten eggs with some seasoning, a pinch of chopped dill, or mint, and swirl around the pan to make a thin pancake.

Once it’s set around the edges, add the courgette to the middle and fold the omelette over. Add some cheese in there too, if you’re feeling indulgent.

13. Beetroot and egg salad

Thanks to the convenience of pre-cooked vacuum packed beetroot, this classic salad can be ready in 10 minutes. While the eggs are hard boiling, dice cooked beetroot and toss with a drizzle olive oil, sherry vinegar, finely chopped shallot and dill. Peel and chop the eggs and toss through the beetroot with a handful watercress or spinach. Serve with rye bread.

14. Grilled cheese on toast with egg and ham

More like a no-fuss croque madame, but still tastes so good. Spread crusty bread with Dijon mustard, then top with a slice of ham, and a slice of gruyere or ementhal cheese. Grill until the cheese is bubbling then top with a fried egg.

15. Quick egg fried rice

Fry chopped spring onion and frozen peas or sweetcorn in a drizzle of groundnut oil in a hot wok. Add a pinch chili flakes and crushed garlic if you like. Add a pack of cooked rice and stir through, breaking up any clumps of rice with a wooden spoon. Pour in a couple of beaten eggs and stir-fry to scramble the eggs. Season with soy sauce and sesame oil before serving.

16. Easy egg-in-the-hole

Egg in the hole is one of those meals you cook for kids, but adults secretly love it too. Fry buttered sourdough bread on one side, then flip in the pan. Cut out circles in the toast for the egg to fit into. Crack the eggs in, and keep cooking until the whites have set.


Healthy recipes using eggs

17. Baked eggs with spinach

Surprisingly filling, and very low cal. You could make individual ones of these, and bake in mini ramekins. Serve with toasted bagels or rye if you’re not on a health kick.

18. Tuna and egg lunch box

Tinned tuna is always a bit of a plain ingredient, but paired with slices of hard boiled egg, a spinach salad and a wholegrain mustard dressing, your lunchbox salad is healthy and tastes great. Add some cooked barley, freekeh or bulgar wheat for a more filling lunch.

19. Frittata

Another filling meal that’s low cal – great for people on the 5:2 diet. Fill your frittata with spring onion, red pepper and long stemmed broccoli, or sweet potato, green beans and feta. You’ll find some great frittata recipes here.

20. Shakshuka

Stewed, subtly spicedtomatoes and roasted red peppers with eggs gently cooked in sauce. It’s a one-pan and a healthy meal that’s ready in 30 minutes. The perfect midweek and meat-free meal. 

21. Boil ‘em

Bit of an obvious one, but so many people get it wrong. Follow our foolproof method to nail the perfect boiled egg, then watch our video of how to peel a hard boiled egg.  


Omelettes 

22. Chilli cheese omelette

Chilli? Check. Cheese? Check. What could me more warming and comforting? Gooey melty cheese – eggs are just the carrier of all things delicious here.

23. Soufflé omelette

Whisking the egg whites to peaks and then folding in the egg yolks means you get an even lighter, fluffier omelette. What’s not to love about that?

24. Mushroom omelette

A bit of a posh meal for one, where shitake mushrooms, spring onions and ginger are paired with sticky, sweet ketcap manis for an Asian inspired 20 minute eat-straight-from-the-pan-it’s-so-good dinner.


Scrambled

25. Colombian eggs

Chef Dan Doherty shares his favorite way to eat scrambled egg, from his book Duck and Waffle. These are brunch eggs if ever we’ve seen them.

26. California scramble

Packed full of good-for-you ingredients like watercress, chilli, tomatoes and avocado – plus it’s ready in 15 minutes.


Other eggcellent ideas

27. Scotch egg

If in doubt, deep-fry. Always deep-fry. Click here for all our scotch egg recipes

28. Put them in a curry

This is the stuff dreams are made of. Make this Bombay egg and potato curry for friends and everyone will ask for the recipe.

29. Stick them on a crumpet

Egg, bacon, cheese, crumpet. Eat. Then take a nap. Click here for our bacon and egg crumpet melts recipe.

30. Nasi goreng

Similar to fried rice but drizzled with sriracha and packed with veg. This Indonedian recipe comes topped with a runny poached egg for richness.

31. Squash and pancetta squeak with poached eggs

No one will turn their nose up to squash and pancetta squeak – even if you are using up yesterdays leftovers! A poached egg takes this to the next level.

32. Ratatouille with poached eggs

Healthy, but hearty; the way we love good-for-you dishes. Packed with veg and served with crusty bread, it makes the best weekend brunch for friends.


12 meals that are made so much better by adding an egg

33. Gammon and chips

Who wants tinned pineapple when you can have a fried egg? Exactly. That’s what we thought.

34. Pizza

No thin-crust veg pizza is complete without a runny egg. Try our kale fiorentina pizzas for a slice of heaven.

35. Crack them on top of tarts

Nothing will get people to the table quicker than mentioning brunch tarts. We’ve taken smoked bacon, eggs and cheese, and baked them in puff pastry. You’ll be asking where these has been all your life.

36. Soy sauce eggs on ramen

Hard-boiled eggs with their shells lightly cracked and drowned in a soy sauce pickle to give a marble effect when they’re peeled. Popular in ramen, but we can think of lots more ideas for them.. including canapés.

37. Deviled eggs

Nearly as retro as a prawn cocktail, but deviled eggs are making a comeback and it’s all about the toppings. Sweet pepperdew peppers, pate, chorizo, crayfish tails, caviar… these can be as fancy or as straightforward as you like.

38. Spaghetti carbonara

Any Italian would turn their nose up at carbonara with cream in it. The creaminess is simply from the eggs and cheese, plus that delicious pancetta fat… if you’ve got eggs and pancetta in your fridge, you’re half way there to making carbonara.

39. Rosti

‘Loving your leftovers’ means wanting to eat it again, not avoiding it every time you open the fridge! Rostis are the perfect leftover food, especially when served with an egg. 

40. Pilaf

Any pilaf, any time. Just #putaneggonit. Try our buttery mushroom and spinach pilaf here. 

41. Croque madam

The French are on to a good thing. How to make cheese, ham and bread better? They put an egg on it!

42. Full English

How have we got to number 42 and NOT mentioned the full English breakfast?

43. Egg sandwich

This is a winner, any way you want to serve it. Fried egg with red or brown sauce, egg mayo, boiled egg, cress and celery salt… let the debate commence.

44. Put in a salad

Try our BLT salad with a poached egg, or hard-boiled quails egg salad with sweet and sour dressing – the options are endless.


Use leftover egg whites or yolks

Watch our ‘how to separate an egg’ video here

45. Mousse

That classic dessert we still can’t get enough of. There are loads of ways with mousse here. Most of them involving lots of chocolate.

46. Hollandaise

Asparagus just feels naked without lashings of hollandaise. Unless you cover them up in Parma ham clothes, of course.


A sweet note

47. Custard tart 

Portuguese custard tarts, English egg custard – any set custard will make us happy. We dare you to try and eat just one…


A few more favourite egg recipes

48. Bacon and egg picnic tart

49. Baked mushroom, potato and cheese hash

50. Huevos rancheros

51. Egg and ham baked in croissant cups

52. Poached egg on green beans with ravigote

53. Classic tortilla

54. Omelette with chorizo and parsley

55. Tenderstem broccoli, chorizo with poached eggs

56. Chargrilled asparagus and fennel salad

57. Ham egg and asparagus tart


7 Extraordinary Ways to Prepare Eggs

Source: theRachaelRayShow

Eggs may be humble, but this inexpensive ingredient packs a protein punch and can be prepared in a million delightful ways. Read on for 7 delicious recipes starring eggs!

No. 1: Chilaquiles with Chorizo, Black Beans and Eggs

This delicious pile of yum is kind of like breakfast nachos with eggs, tortilla chips, black beans and chorizo.

No. 2: Poached Eggs with Bacon, Avocado and Lime Mojo

This elegant and flavorful option features poached eggs and a Cuban-inspired spicy mojo sauce served on a bed of crispy bacon on a toasted baguette, with avocado and lime sprinkled above. Delish!

No. 3: Stuffed French Toast

Anne Burrell makes sandwiches of white bread, grated Gruyere, and a pre-cooked filling that includes tomato, bacon onion and more, then dips them in an egg mixture and grills. She tops with a sunny side up egg and chives – beautiful!

No. 4: Eggs in Purgatory

This warm, comforting spicy egg dish from Scott Conant is a cheerful option. Scott makes a complex, spicy red sauce, which he pours into serving dishes and adds poached eggs. He tops with parmesan cheese and then cooks in the oven under the broiler.

No. 5: Brekky Bagel Sandwich

This quick and easy breakfast is super inexpensive — most of the ingredients – oil, eggs, deli meats, cheese and bagels — are probably already in your pantry or fridge! Curtis Stone takes it to another level, however, by including a Sriracha aioli – yum!

No. 6: Green Migas Deviled Eggs

For this deviled egg, Rach adds the equivalent of pico de gallo (finely chopped tomatoes, onion, jalapeno and cilantro) to her egg yolks, then adds a whole ripe avocado, green hot sauce, and grated garlic. Rach pipes it into her egg whites then tops with green onion slices and crushed tortilla chips.

No. 7: Fresh Egg Rolls

Jason Roberts makes an amazing egg roll – which is actually made out of eggs! Those avoiding grains will love his ingenious method of using ultra-thin omelets as the “wrapper” for the egg roll. He fills the wrapper with a flavor-packed mix of cabbage, ginger, cilantro and fried garlic – umm we want these right now!

Watch Rach make her Deviled Eggs below:

6 Recipes for the Perfect Breakfast Flat Breads

Written by: Kristin Yovino

Add some excitement to your morning meals by preparing flavorful breakfast flat breads. Flat bread is a versatile bread that can be sweet or savory, and pairs well with a myriad of breakfast toppings, including cheese, bacon, fruit, tomatoes, and eggs. Whether you’re craving a hearty flat bread breakfast pizza or simply want a slice of cinnamon flatbread, these 6 recipes will appease any morning appetite. Say sayonara to boring breakfasts; your morning meal’s about to get a mouth-watering makeover!

1. Breakfast Flatbread with Prosciutto and Tomato

Breakfast flatbread with prosciutto and tomato

Breakfast flatbread with prosciutto and tomato | Source: iStock

Williams-Sonoma’s breakfast flatbread with prosciutto and tomato is a simple, yet stunning, dish that features tomatoes, eggs, prosciutto, and cheese. Feel free to personalize this morning meal using ingredients you have on hand; the more fresh veggies and zesty spices you add, the better this dish will taste! If you don’t want to grill the dough rounds, you can pre-bake them, one at a time, in a preheated 500 degree oven for about 4 minutes.

 

Ingredients:

Flatbread Dough:

  • 1 tablespoon packed fresh yeast or 1¾ teaspoons quick-rise yeast
  • 1½ teaspoons sugar
  • 2 cups bread flour
  • 1½ teaspoons fine sea salt
  • 2 teaspoons olive oil
  • 1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour, or as needed

Toppings:

  • ¼ cup olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 1½ cups shredded fresh mozzarella cheese
  • 2 ripe heirloom tomatoes, thinly sliced, drained on paper towels
  • ¾ cup ricotta cheese
  • 12 thin slices prosciutto
  • 6 fried eggs
  • Freshly ground pepper

Directions: To make flatbread dough, in the bowl of a stand mixer, combine 1 cup warm water and the yeast. Let stand for 5 minutes, then stir to dissolve. Add the sugar, bread flour, and salt. Fit the stand mixer with the paddle attachment and mix on low speed until a batter forms. Add the 2 teaspoons oil. Gradually add enough of the all-purpose flour to make a soft dough that does not stick to the bowl. Remove the paddle attachment and attach the dough hook. Knead the dough on medium-low speed, adding more flour if needed, until smooth, 5 to 7 minutes. Lightly oil a large rimmed baking sheet. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface. Divide the dough into 6 equal portions and form each into a taut ball. Place on the baking sheet, smooth side up, and loosely cover with plastic wrap.

Let stand in a warm spot until the dough doubles in bulk, about 1 hour. Prepare an outdoor grill for medium-high heat. Line another baking sheet with parchment paper. Oil the parchment paper, then dust with flour. Lightly oil both sides of an additional 6 sheets of parchment paper. On a lightly floured work surface, shape 1 ball of dough into a flat disk. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough into a very thin round about 10 inches in diameter. Transfer to the baking sheet, dust with flour, and top with a sheet of oiled parchment. Repeat with the remaining dough. Have a rimmed baking sheet ready. Brush and oil the grill grates. In batches, slide the dough rounds onto the grill. Grill until brown grill marks appear on the undersides of the ground, 15 to 30 seconds. Flip the dough and grill the other sides until marked. Transfer to the baking sheet. 

Place a baking stone in the oven and preheat to 500 degrees Fahrenheit. In a small saucepan, heat the ¼ cup oil and the garlic just until small bubbles form around the garlic. Strain the oil into a bowl and let cool. Discard the garlic. Brush each flatbread with some of the garlic oil. Place on a pizza peel or rimless baking sheet. Sprinkle with ¼ cup mozzarella cheese and top with a few tomato slices. Dot with about 2 tablespoons ricotta. Slide the flatbread onto the baking stone and bake until the mozzarella is melted and bubbling, about 4 minutes. Depending on the size of the baking stone, you should be able to bake 2 flatbreads at a time. Transfer each flatbread to a plate. Drape 2 prosciutto slices over each flatbread, and top with a fried egg. Using a pizza wheel, cut into wedges. Grind pepper over each flatbread, drizzle with garlic oil, and serve.

2. Apple Bacon Breakfast Flatbread

diced apples

Diced apples | Source: iStock

Containing three cheeses, bacon, raspberry preserves, and apples, Pillsbury’s recipe creates a sweet and salty breakfast dish that will please your palate and wake up your tastebuds. The recipe for apple bacon breakfast flatbread yields 12 servings.

Ingredients:

  • 1 can refrigerated seamless dough sheet
  • 12 slices bacon, chopped
  • 4 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • ¼ cup red raspberry preserves
  • 1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
  • 1 large apple, peeled, chopped
  • 1 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Directions: Heat oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit. Spray 15-by-10-inch nonstick pan with sides with nonstick cooking spray. Unroll dough in pan; press dough to edges of pan. Bake 8 to 12 minutes or until golden brown. Meanwhile, in a 10-inch skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat 5 minutes or until crisp. Drain on paper towels; set aside. Spread cream cheese over partially baked crust to within ½ inch of edges. Spread preserves over cream cheese. Top with pepper jack cheese, bacon, apple, and cheddar cheese. Bake 5 to 10 minutes longer or until thoroughly heated and cheese is melted.

3. Breakfast Turkey and Egg Flatbread

Cook bacon to use it to make delicious flat breads

Bacon cooking | Source: iStock

Get your day off to a healthy start by preparing Butterball’s breakfast turkey and egg flatbread. Protein-packed eggs and turkey bacon pair well with nutrient-rich avocado, creating a nutritious breakfast dish that will keep you feeling full all morning. If you’d like to make this dish even healthier, skip the store-bought flatbread and make The Lean Green Bean’s whole-wheat flatbread instead.

Ingredients:

  • 2 slices turkey bacon
  • 1 light version of store-bought flatbread
  • 2 tablespoons white cheddar and sage spreadable cheese
  • 2 eggs, scrambled
  • 8 thin slices ripe pitted peeled avocado

Directions: Cook turkey bacon according to package directions. Cool slightly and crumble; set aside. Spread flatbread evenly with cheese. Top with scrambled eggs, bacon, and avocado slices. Serve.

4. No-Bake Fruit Pizzas

No-bake fruit pizza

No-bake fruit pizza | Source: iStock

For a breakfast dish that’s filled with sweet flavors and healthy ingredients, make Two Healthy Kitchens’ no-bake fruit pizzas. Whole-wheat flatbread is covered in the sauce of your choice, fresh fruit, almonds, granola, and sweet spices. Rather than cutting your pizza into wedges, feel free to fold it like a quesadilla or roll it like a burrito for a great grab-and-go breakfast.

Ingredients:

Crust:

  • Whole-wheat flatbread (or pita bread or tortillas)

Sauce Options:

  • Natural peanut butter or nut butter
  • 100% fruit jelly or jam
  • Reduced-fat cream cheese
  • Non-fat Greek yogurt

Toppings:

  • Fresh fruit
  • Dried fruit
  • Sliced or slivered almonds
  • Granola
  • Mini chocolate chips
  • Cinnamon

Directions: To assemble pizza, spread the flatbread with sauce of your choosing. Add desired toppings and cut into wedges.

5. Cinnamon Flatbread

making dough

Making dough | Source: iStock

Looking for a sweet grab-and-go breakfast? Prepare Food.com’s cinnamon flatbread, which is light, warm, and nutty. We suggest topping your flat bread with a cream cheese spread, your favorite jam, or the National Honey Board’s honey cinnamon peanut butter.

Ingredients:

Dough:

  • 2 cups spelt flour
  • 1 teaspoon baking powder
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 2 tablespoons sugar
  • ¾ cup milk

Brushing:

  • 1 egg yolk
  • 1 tablespoon milk

Topping:

  • 2 tablespoons packed brown sugar
  • ½ teaspoon cinnamon
  • ⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions: Preheat oven to 480 degrees Fahrenheit, and place a baking tray inside. Mix all dry ingredients for the dough in a bowl and add the milk. Mix with slightly floured hands until dough is formed. Knead dough for 5 minutes with slightly floured hands. Let rest dough for about 10 minutes. On a slightly floured working platform roll out the dough with a rolling pin. It should be thin. Place the dough on baking paper.

Mix egg yolk and milk. Brush the dough with this mixture. Mix brown sugar, cinnamon, and cayenne pepper. Sprinkle the dough with this mixture. Put dough on the baking tray in the oven and bake for about 5 to 10 minutes. The bread should be done within 5 minutes and will be soft. For crispier flatbread, let it bake for up to 10 minutes. During baking, the bread will develop several bubbles. Take the cinnamon flat bread out of the oven and let cool on a cooling rack. Cut into pieces and serve.

6. Microwave Flatbread Breakfast Pizza

flat bread

Flatbread | Source: iStock

Pizza lovers, rejoice! Thanks to The American Egg Board’s recipe, you can now eat a slice of pie for breakfast! Flatbread, eggs, sausage, and cheese create this microwave flatbread breakfast pizza, which yields 1 serving and only takes a few minutes to make.

Ingredients:

  • 1 egg, beaten
  • 1 tablespoon milk
  • ½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
  • 2 tablespoons fully-cooked breakfast sausage crumbles
  • 1 (6-inch) flatbread, warmed
  • 2 tablespoons finely shredded cheddar cheese or Italian blend cheese

Directions: Beat egg, milk, and seasoning in 2-cup cereal bowl until blended. Add the sausage. Microwave on high power for 30 seconds; push cooked edges toward center. Microwave an additional 15 to 45 seconds, or until egg is almost set. Cut egg into 4 or 5 pieces; arrange on flatbread. Top with cheese. Microwave an additional 10 to 15 seconds to melt cheese. Serve immediately.

Bringing the humble egg out of its shell

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If you have an egg you have a meal. Eggs allow us to conjure all kinds of culinary magic. Eggs make a meal of something that otherwise might seem too slim or too simple. Whether it’s dipping a buttered soldier into a runny yolk or crowning a simple plate of roasted ratatouille or humble lentils with a crisp edged, cheery yolked fried egg. Eggs make a meal.

I once cooked for Prince Charles who, I was told, takes an egg with almost every meal – a wise man. I carefully poached one and sat it on top of his plate of spring risotto. I think of that meal every time I poach an egg, which actually isn’t that often as John, my husband-to-be, is the head poacher in our house.

I keep a little bowl of eggs next to our cooker. They come in all shades of blue, cream, brown and ivory but mostly I find myself reaching for the blue-shelled ones. They remind me of a still-life painting, most of all the Cedric Morris cover of Elizabeth David’s classic, An Omelette and a Glass of Wine.

The bowl gets emptied a couple of times a week when we haven’t planned a meal or made it to the shops. We make French-style curdy herb omelettes, we softly scramble them, we spike them with chilli and wrap them in tortillas with spicy black beans for a hearty brunch and we fry them until crisp-edged for quick suppers with leftover fried potatoes and veg and a couple of spoonfuls of good chutney. It goes without saying that organic, free-range eggs should be used whenever possible. The sunnier the egg, the happier the eater.

Roast shallots and greens with baked eggs

This is a light, bright, late-spring brunch of baked eggs, courgettes, artichokes, sweet caramelized shallots and bright greens, all doused in the sunshine-mellow yellow of saffron.

Serves 4
8 banana shallots
2 tbsp olive oil
Sea salt
4 small or 2 large courgettes, cut into 1cm coins
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 heads of spring greens, washed and finely sliced
4 cooked artichoke hearts, halved
A pinch of saffron, soaked in 50ml boiling water
4 eggs

To serve

A small bunch of parsley, chopped
A small bunch of mint, chopped
A dollop of natural yogurt
Chilli flakes (optional)

1 Peel the shallots, then slice them in half from root to tip. Warm the olive oil in a heavy-based, shallow pan that can go in the oven. Add the shallots and a big pinch of salt and lightly brown them on both sides. Keep the heat moderate. Set the oven at 200C/400F/gas mark 6.

2 When the shallots are soft, push them to one side and add the courgettes and garlic to the other side of the pan, cook for a few of minutes until the courgettes begin to turn golden. Then add the greens, artichokes, saffron water and another pinch of salt, and cook for a minute or two until the greens have just wilted, then transfer the whole pan to the oven.

3 Bake the vegetables for 15 minutes to allow the shallots and courgettes to roast and soften. Remove the pan from the oven and make four small, shallow hollows among the vegetables, then crack an egg into each of them. Return the vegetables and eggs to the oven for 4-5 minutes, until the whites are just set and the yolks are still runny. Serve with some chopped mint and parsley, a dollop of yogurt and a sprinkle of chilli flakes, if you like.

Lentils, herbs and a fried egg
Lentils, herbs and a fried egg Photograph: Issy Croker for the Guardian

Lentils, herbs and a fried egg

This has become a staple quick dinner in our household. When I have a little longer, I cook the lentils from scratch but in a fix a tin of puy lentils works extremely well.

The lentils have an agrodolce (sweet from the currants and tart from the capers) which I love. It’s a quick and simple way of layering up the flavour without too much faff. The egg crowns the lentils and the just-right yolk dresses the lentils once it’s broken into the bowl.

Serves 4
A splash of olive oil or coconut oil
1 red onion, peeled and finely chopped
½ tsp each of cumin, coriander, turmeric, cinnamon, chilli powder
Salt and black pepper
2 x 400g tin of puy lentils or 600g home cooked lentils
2 tbsp small capers
2 tbsp currants
4 eggs

To serve

A handful of soft herbs, chopped
A few handfuls of rocket
A dollop of natural yogurt

1 Heat a frying pan on a medium heat with a little oil. Once hot add the onion and fry for 10 minutes until soft. Add the spices and fry for another minute.

2 Add the lentils and 50ml of water and cook for 5 minutes until warm.

3 Fry the eggs in a little olive or coconut oil and season well. Sometimes I fry them until the edges crisp up, sometimes I flip them over easy, but I always keep the yolk runny.

4 Finish the lentils by stirring in the capers and currants, then pile the lentils on plates, top with an egg, a spoonful of yogurt and a scattering of rocket leaves and herbs.

It starts with an egg …

Ten meals with four simple ingredients:

Turkish flatbreads
Top gently charred flatbread with creamy plain yogurt, finely chopped mint and parsley, sumac and a fried egg.

Healthy herby quinoa
To warm, cooked quinoa add cooked peas, pesto, crumbly goat’s cheese and a gently poached egg.

Black bean bowls
To warmed, tinned black beans add mashed avocado, spicy salsa, finely chopped coriander and a fried egg.

Charred summer veg
To golden, roasted courgettes add chopped roasted peppers from a jar, finely grated lemon zest, chopped parsley and a fried egg.

Hearty late-spring salad
To warm, boiled potatoes add blanched asparagus, lemon juice and zest, chopped watercress and boiled eggs.

Chilli baked eggs
To tomato sauce add chopped chillies, sliced garlic, coriander. Crack in eggs, bake at 180C/350F/gas mark 4 for 10 minutes.

Dosa-spiced avocado and scramble
Mash an avocado with mustard seeds, lemon juice and zest, add chopped green chilli and scrambled eggs.

The best egg sandwich
Fill good, toasted bread with capers, chopped dill, Dijon mustard and finely hopped celery mixed with roughly chopped soft-boiled egg.

Miso mushroom broth bowls
To a bowl of miso broth add sliced mushrooms, cooked noodles, shredded pak choi or greens, coriander and a poached egg.

Brown rice with garlicky greens
Add to a bowl of warm brown rice some sautéed greens, lemon juice and zest, gently fried garlic and a poached egg.

Written by: Anna Jones, the Guardian

A Genius Way to Upgrade Your Fried Eggs

Written by Food 52

You’ve probably heard by now about the joys of frying your eggs in a sloshy pan of a little too much olive oil—the crispy edges and luscious middles you get, the adrenaline of spooning hot oil over a delicate protein, the control it affords you as you determine which corners need more cooking and aim your spoon.

Your own hand is more viscerally and immediately connected to cooking than in just about any other form, including black magic and Searzalls.

Canal House's Pimentón Fried Eggs

But, with olive oil-fried eggs being a near-perfect, near-instant food, had you ever thought to tinker? I hadn’t, but Christopher Hirsheimer and Melissa Hamilton at Canal House had. They toss a half teaspoon of smoked paprika into the oil as it sizzles. That’s it.

But this teeny, micro-upgrade accomplishes a number of things: The heat of the oil toasts the ground spice, deepening its flavor. The smokiness infuses and unleashes into the oil to season the eggs as you splash over them. And the oil itself, now richly flavored and the color of brick, is justifiably a sauce—you’re encouraged to dunk bread in it (and in the yolk, too, of course).

And when you’re out of smoked paprika or not in the mood, there are as many variations as your spice drawer and your imagination will allow. I tried a series of colorful and delicious renditions on our shoot day—turmeric, then za’atar, then chile flakes—and we couldn’t decide our favorite. I could also see this being a lovely way to use up fresh herbs like sage or thyme, or alliums like garlic or shallots or ramps.

You don’t have to worry much about any spices or herbs burning in the sizzling oil, because before you know it, the egg is done, and so is your breakfast. Food52er mikeficus, who sent this tip to me, likes to serve it with, as he says, “a mound of Virginia ham.” I love the idea of stirring in a little wine vinegar or lemon juice at the end to brighten the sauce.

I did have one last question: the mess. I tested a lower, slower variation on the technique on Facebook Live, to see if I could minimize the (colorful) spattering on the stovetop. In case you don’t feel like watching the 34-minute comedy of errors, I’ll spoil the ending: The lower the temperature, the less spattering, but also the harder it was (for me) to get the whites to cook through without also overcooking the yolk.

So I recommend committing to the spatter and just cooking the things medium-high, as Canal House intended. The best way to cook the bundle of contradictions in a whole egg (runny yolks=food porn, runny whites=anathema), much like its forebears: as hot as possible.

Eggs are rich in vitamins, health benefits

By Gillan Ritchie
Poultry Times Staff
gritchie@poultrytimes.com

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GAINESVILLE, Ga. — An egg a day may keep the doctor away as well as other things such as high cholesterol and cardiovascular disease. In January, it was announced that the 2015 Dietary Guidelines for Americans removed the daily limit on cholesterol. The 2015 DGA also recommends now including eggs in all three recommended health eating patterns.  

“The U.S. has joined many other countries and expert groups like the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology that do not have an upper limit for cholesterol intake in their dietary guidelines,” Dr. Mitch Kanter, executive director of the Egg Nutrition Center, said in a press release.

According to the 2015 DGA, eggs fit within the Healthy U.S.-style, Healthy Mediterranean-style and Healthy Vegetarian-style diets. One egg is packed with nutrients — it can have varying amounts 13 essential vitamins and minerals with high-quality protein and the antioxidants lutein and zeaxanthin. Eggs are only 70 calories each and are a good source for vitamin D; the vitamin is a necessity for building strong bones.

Eggs have several other health benefits according to James McIntosh with Medical News Today in addition to the ones already listed.

Strong muscles

Protein found within the eggs keeps the body’s muscles working while slowing the rate of muscle loss.

Health brain

There are vitamins and minerals found in eggs that help brain cells, the nervous system, memory and metabolism function regularly.

Energy production

Eggs contain vitamins and minerals that help produce energy in cells for the body.

Immune systems

Vitamins such as A, B12 and selenium — which are all found in eggs — help keep the immune system healthy.

Lower risk of heart disease

Consuming eggs will help keep the immune system healthy. If the immune system is healthy, then the risk of heart disease is lowered. Choline is important because it helps break down the amino acid called homocysteine, which is linked to heart disease.

Healthy baby development during pregnancy

The nutrients found in eggs helps prevent birth defects such as spina bifida in babies during development.

Healthy eyesight

Lutein, zeaxanthin and other vitamins promote healthy vision. The nutrients also help prevent macular degeneration, which is an eye condition that is the leading cause of age-related blindness.

Weight loss and maintenance

According to researchers, the protein found in eggs can help people stay energized and fuller for longer. The feeling of fullness helps prevent unhealthy and unnecessary snacking.

Healthy appearance

Certain vitamins and minerals found in eggs can help promote healthy skin and prevent the breakdown of body tissue.

Eggs have minerals and nutrients that are essential to a healthy and balanced diet. Here is a list of nutrients and vitamins that can be found in eggs.

Vitamin A

This vitamin helps maintain the skin, the immune system and vision.

Vitamin B2 (Riboflavin)

Riboflavin, more commonly known as B2, helps with energy metabolism, red blood cells, the nervous system and vision.

Vitamin B12

Vitamin B12 is similar to B2 in regards to its function.

Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid)

B5, or pantothenic acid, helps with mental functioning and energy metabolism.

Vitamin D

This vitamin is widely known; it keeps bones and teeth strong while aiding in the absorption of calcium.

Vitamin E

Vitamin E is vital to the reproductive and nervous system while keeping muscles healthy.

Biotin

Biotin assists in energy metabolism and helps maintain skin, hair and the immune system.

Choline

Choline was mentioned earlier in the article; it helps break down homocysteine but Choline also assists in fat metabolism and liver function.

Folic acid

This vitamin is essential during pregnancy because it aids in blood formation and tissue growth.

Iodine

Iodine is important to the thyroid gland function as well as the nervous system.

Iron

Iron helps transport oxygen through the body and assists in the production of red blood cells.

Lutein and zeaxanthin

As stated previously, lutein and zeaxanthin are essential vitamins for maintaining healthy vision and protecting against age-related blindness.

Phosphorus

Like vitamin D, phosphorus helps maintain strong bones and teeth. In addition, phosphorus aids in energy metabolism.

Protein

Protein is vital because it builds and maintains muscles, organs, skin and tissue. It also produces antibodies, enzymes and hormones.

Selenium

Selenium helps maintain the immune system, aid in thyroid gland function and protect cells from oxidative damage.

According to NCC, the consumption of a whole egg “may have a positive effect on the function and composition of HDL cholesterol in adults with metabolic syndrome.” Eating three eggs a day will help keep HDL low in triacylglycerol and higher in phosphatidylethanolamine, a component found in yolks.

“Taken together with previously established benefits of egg intake on HDL profiles, these findings further support the notion that eggs serve as a functional food to reduce cardiovascular disease risk in individuals with metabolic syndrome,” Catherine Andersen, lead study author and Ph.D. candidate at the University of Connecticut said in a press release.

In short, researchers are encouraging people to eat at least one egg a day. Incorporate eggs into a healthy, daily diet by frying, hard cooking, poaching, scrambling or baking.

9 Low-Carb Breakfast Egg Muffins Under 300 Calories

Reinvent your morning routine with a genius kitchen hack: the muffin pan. This plus a couple of eggs and tasty ingredients are all you need for easy breakfast egg muffins. And, get this: You can freeze these pre-portioned bites, so all you have to do is thaw, and pop in the microwave to reheat. Try out these low-carb recipes at 300 calories and 15 grams carbohydrates or less per serving.

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1. Spaghetti Squash Egg Cups | MyFitnessPal’s Original Recipe
Spaghetti squash is a yummy way to fit veggies in for breakfast. Green onion gives these egg cups their flavor, but you can personalize this dish with your favorite spices instead. Serve with a side of sauteed spinach to increase the fiber, vitamins and minerals content of your meal. Recipe makes 4 servings at 2 squash cups each.

Nutrition (per serving): Calories: 288; Total Fat: 18g; Saturated Fat: 7g; Monounsaturated Fat: 7g; Cholesterol: 389mg; Sodium: 424mg; Carbohydrate: 13g; Dietary Fiber: 1g; Sugar: 3g; Protein: 19g

2. Easy Cheesy Crustless Quiche | MyFitnessPal’s Original Recipe
Crustless quiche is the more manageable cousin of a full-on quiche recipe. This easy version packs plenty of breakfast veggies (think: onion, bell peppers, tomatoes, spinach) and cheese into a portable egg cup. Recipe makes 6 servings at 2 quiches each.

Nutrition (per serving): Calories: 237; Total Fat: 15g; Saturated Fat: 6g; Monounsaturated Fat: 2g; Cholesterol: 367mg; Sodium: 413mg; Carbohydrate: 8g; Dietary Fiber: 1g; Sugar: 1g; Protein: 15g

3. Spicy Spinach & Mushroom Egg Cups | Show Me the Yummy
Spicy and savory spinach and mushroom are perfect in these delightful egg cups. Awaken your senses by drizzling hot sauce on top! Recipe makes 6 servings at 2 cups each.

Nutrition (per serving): Calories: 125; Total Fat: 6g; Saturated Fat: 1g; Monounsaturated Fat: 3g; Cholesterol: 124mg; Sodium: 131mg; Carbohydrate: 6g; Dietary Fiber: 2g; Sugar: 3g; Protein: 13g

4. Mini Ham & Cheese Quinoa Cups | Iowa Girl Eats
Ditch your fork and knife, and enjoy this bite-sized meal instead! These quinoa cups combine ham, zucchini and sharp cheddar cheese for a convenient breakfast or snack. Recipe makes 7 servings at 4 mini cups each.

Nutrition (per serving): Calories: 197; Total Fat: 7g; Saturated Fat: 3g; Monounsaturated Fat: 2g; Cholesterol: 76mg; Sodium: 433mg; Carbohydrate: 14g; Dietary Fiber: 1g; Sugar: 2g; Protein: 18g

5. Broccoli & Cheese Mini Egg Omelets | Skinnytaste
Every bite into these mini egg omelets fills your tastebuds with cheesy broccoli goodness. Shredded cheddar and grated aged cheese give this dish it’s salty, nutty flair. Pair with yogurt, fruit and a cup of coffee or tea for a nutrient-dense morning meal. Recipe makes 4 servings at 2 omelets each.

Nutrition (per serving): Calories: 180; Total Fat: 9g; Saturated Fat: 3g; Monounsaturated Fat: 3g; Cholesterol: 196mg; Sodium: 337mg; Carbohydrate: 5g; Dietary Fiber: 3g; Sugar: 2g; Protein: 18g

6. Freezer-Friendly Vegetable Egg Cups | Averie Cooks
Soft, yet dense and chewy, these portable egg muffins are a great way to sneak in veggies and protein for even the pickiest eaters. Frozen peas and frozen corn provide crunch to each bite and require less prep time. Recipe makes 6 servings at 2 cups each.

Nutrition (per serving): Calories: 172; Total Fat: 10g; Saturated Fat: 4g; Monounsaturated Fat: 2g; Cholesterol: 258mg; Sodium: 266mg; Carbohydrate: 10g; Dietary Fiber: 2g; Sugar: 4g; Protein: 13g

7. Egg & Toast Cups | Cooking Light
Whether you’re making a fancy brunch appetizer or a no-hassle, one-pan breakfast, egg & toast cups are a tasty option. These adorable cups are sprinkled with flavorful bacon and chives, but you can also substitute shredded cheese, sliced mushrooms or chopped onions — the possibilities are endless! You can easily double this recipe in the same amount of time by switching to a 12-cup muffin pan. Recipe makes 6 servings at 1 cup each.

Nutrition (per serving): Calories: 183; Total Fat: 9g; Saturated Fat: 4g; Monounsaturated Fat: 3g; Cholesterol: 195mg; Sodium: 344mg; Carbohydrate: 14g; Dietary Fiber: 2g; Sugar: 6g; Protein: 12g

8. Egg & Bacon Mini Casseroles | MyFitnessPal’s Original Recipe
Make a grab-and-go breakfast using egg, spinach, bacon, cheddar cheese and leftover bread. These mini casseroles bake up as complete meals that you can quickly reheat for breakfast. Recipe makes 6 servings at 2 mini casseroles each.

Nutrition (per serving): Calories: 300; Total Fat: 20g; Saturated Fat: 7g; Monounsaturated Fat: 8g; Cholesterol: 206mg; Sodium: 538mg; Carbohydrate: 14g; Dietary Fiber: 2g; Sugar: 4g; Protein: 17g

9. Sausage Egg Breakfast Muffins | Healthy Recipes
Make an egg muffin meal out of a classic breakfast combo: sausage and eggs. These meaty muffins are easy to make and easy to eat. Pop one in before a workout, after a workout, with dinner, for breakfast or at work; these bites can be conveniently eaten anywhere, anytime. Recipe makes 8 servings at 1 breakfast muffin each.

Nutrition (per serving): Calories: 207; Total Fat: 14g; Saturated Fat: 5g; Monounsaturated Fat: 6g; Cholesterol: 225mg; Sodium: 398mg; Carbohydrate: 1g; Dietary Fiber: 0g; Sugar: 0g; Protein: 17g

Anatomy of an Egg

Did you know? May is National Egg Month! It’s a great time to celebrate all things eggs — egg dishes can be meals all by themselves or can complement any meal or celebration. Eggs are a good source of protein and other nutrients. We cracked one open to boil it all down for you!

Anatomy of an Egg v2 (003)

Source: bestfoodfacts.org

Get Even Fluffier Scrambled Eggs with This Unexpected Ingredient

(Image credits: Kimberley Hasselbrink; Kelli Foster)
Source: thekitchn.com

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I’ll skip the thick, flat, dense eggs, thank you very much. Instead my favorite scrambled eggs involve a plate piled high with large, soft yellow curds that spring back with the lightest touch and practically melt in my mouth; the kind of eggs that are fluffy and almost cloud-like.

A quick splash of milk or cream certainly makes for tender eggs, and might even give them some fluff, but there’s another ingredient that does the job even better.

Fluffiest Scrambled Eggs
The scrambled eggs in front are made with a splash of seltzer. They have larger curds that are lighter and airier than the eggs in back (made with a splash of milk).

It’s All About the Bubbles

It’s seltzer! Yes, carbonated water. It’s my regular drink of choice throughout the day, and as it turns out, a surprisingly useful ingredient when it comes to making scrambled eggs. Just a splash of seltzer makes for the fluffiest scrambled eggs you’ve ever tasted.

You know those tiny bubbles that fizz and pop — the ones that dance on your tongue and make seltzer such a fun drink? Well those bubbles are also what make seltzer such a smart ingredient to cook with. Seltzer’s power is all in its bubbles. When used in cooking, these bubbles create pockets of trapped air that expand when heated, which ultimately result in the eggs tasting lighter and airier.

When adding seltzer to your eggs, about one tablespoon of the fizzy stuff for every two eggs is enough to get the job done. It’s enough to give your eggs a giant cloud-like lift without making them watery or runny. If you typically use milk or cream to give your scrambled eggs a boost, try swapping them for a spoonful of seltzer next time.

When it comes time to eat, you won’t actually even taste the seltzer; the eggs don’t pick up any of the effervescence that comes with carbonation. I recommend sticking with plain seltzer and saving the fruity flavors for drinking. The biggest difference you’ll notice is where it counts

5 Mistakes to Avoid When Making Frittatas

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(Image credits: Karen Biton-Cohen)
thekitchn.com

Frittatas are one of the most versatile dishes. Suitable from breakfast through dinner, they can be made right before mealtime or well in advance. They’re delicious hot or cold and also the ideal canvas for all those end-of-week veggies.

While a fluffy frittata isn’t terribly difficult to pull together, there are a couple missteps that could prevent this one-pan meal from reaching its potential. Here’s what you need to know to make sure that isn’t the case.

1. Using the wrong type of pan.

While you might love that pan with a plastic or wooden handle, or often reach for a nonstick pan when making scrambled eggs and omelets, those aren’t going to work for a frittata. Unlike other egg preparations, frittatas utilize two cooking methods: They start off on the stovetop and then finish off in the oven, which means they require cookware that works for both.

Follow this tip: An oven-safe skillet should be your go-to cookware for frittatas; a well-seasoned cast iron skillet is ideal. Not only can it go from the stovetop to the oven, but a well-seasoned skillet also has a natural, nonstick patina that helps to distribute the heat evenly during the cooking process. Stainless steel also works well, but usually requires a little extra oil or butter to prevent sticking.

2. Not cooking the vegetables before adding the eggs to the pan.

Despite the time the frittata cooks on the stovetop and in the oven, it’s important to cook any vegetables before pouring the eggs into the pan. This is especially important when using veggies with a high water content, like mushrooms, zucchini, peppers, and spinach. If you skip pre-cooking them, that excess liquid can make for a watery frittata that steams rather than bakes when it’s placed in the oven.

Follow this tip: All veggies really benefit from at least a quick sauté before the eggs are added to the pan. This will allow firm vegetables (like potatoes) to soften, and softer vegetables with a higher water content (like mushrooms and spinach) to release excess moisture. Use this time to add in a bit more flavor. Minced garlic, a dash of chili powder, or a few shallots can be cooked with the vegetables for an added boost of flavor. Also, don’t be shy with the butter or oil. If you want that frittata to crisp up and come out of the pan easily, you’ve got to use some fat!

3. Forgetting to add milk or cream.

Dairy, like milk or cream, is a crucial component of frittatas. This is the ingredient that gives frittatas their signature light, fluffy, and super-luscious texture. Without this important addition, frittatas cook up flatter and a bit more dense.

Follow this tip: After whisking the eggs together, be sure to whisk in some milk or cream. As a rule of thumb, use 1/4 cup of dairy for every six eggs.

4. Misunderstanding the stovetop process.

While frittatas do have some cook time on the stovetop, this isn’t where the bulk of the cooking takes place. Too much time on the stovetop, or too high of a flame, and the frittata will easily get too much color or burn on the bottom.

Follow this tip: Cook the frittata on the stovetop, keeping the heat at medium-low to low, just until the edges have set, which takes about a few minutes. In terms of temperature, think of this as if you were cooking scrambled eggs. Low to medium heat will allow the eggs to set without them obtaining any color.

5. Giving it too much time in the oven.

The very best frittatas have a texture that’s light, fluffy, and springy. But leave it in the oven too long and you’ll quickly find yourself with a frittata that’s dry, rubbery, and crumbly.

Follow this tip: Cook the frittata in the oven just until the center is no longer jiggly and the edges are golden-brown. For extra reassurance it’s done, you can place a sharp knife into the center of the frittata. If raw eggs run into the cut, bake for another few minutes; if the eggs are just set, pull the frittata from the oven and let it stand 5 minutes before slicing.