Just in Time for Easter...Eggs are Back!

Despite the biological anomaly, most of us associate Easter with a bunny delivering eggs. And this year there is good news about eggs! For many years nutritionists have urged consumers to limit their consumption of whole eggs because of the high cholesterol content.  New research, however, is showing that cholesterol in food does not translate into higher blood cholesterol. (High blood cholesterol levels increase your risk of heart disease. It turns out that saturated fat is the biggest culprit in increasing blood cholesterol.)

Eggs are a convenient and inexpensive source of high quality   protein. They are rich in the amino acids that are essential for human growth and tissue maintenance.  This means that egg protein is considered to be of high biologic value.

In addition, eggs provide several key vitamins such as A, B12, and D. Egg yolks are one of the richest sources of choline, a vitamin involved in brain function, maintaining cell membranes and liver health. Whole eggs contain the carotenoid pigments lutein and zeaxanthin, which are important for healthy vision.

Eggs are a breakfast staple, but they work well for other meals and snacks also.

•  Consider an egg salad sandwich for lunch or add sliced hard boiled eggs to your green salad.
  
  
• Use egg salad as a dip for raw vegetables or crackers at snack time.
  
  
•  Hard boiled eggs are a perfect away from home protein snack because the shell stands in for packaging – just peel and eat! (Note that hard boiled eggs should be packed with a freezer gel or kept in the refrigerator.)
  
  
•  Omelets, soufflés, stratas, quiches or frittatas make great entrees. With any of these, you can combine eggs with fresh or cooked vegetables (even leftovers!) for quick and wholesome meals.
  
  

 Visit the Egg Nutrition Center for recipe ideas.