I have always loved egg salad. I used to go in and request it at Jason’s Deli even though it wasn’t on the menu and they would sometimes make it for me, depending on the location. Eggs and I have had a rocky relationship in the past, and I realized after learning more about eating healthy, that I was more affected by the stuff the chickens ATE than I was the egg itself. After I changed the type of egg I buy, I now have way less issues with eating them.
According to Natural Grocers, where we do most of our shopping, they only sell the best quality eggs. Even their bronze standard is high compared to most other supermarkets. The eggs we buy are in their gold standard, which includes the following:
- Chickens not given anti-biotics or hormones
- Chickens never caged
- Chickens not fed animal byproducts or ionophores
- Chickens treated humanely
- Chickens feed labeled non-GMO
- Pasture based (think free-range on steroids) with 108 sf per chicken
- Enhanced outdoor time (no less than 6 hours a day)
And I opt for eggs from chickens who are NOT fed SOY. The brand of eggs I like the best is Jeremiah Cunningham’s “Cayote Creek Farm” World’s Best Eggs (Soy-Free). They are a little over 6 bucks per box, but worth it if you are standing downwind of someone who is sensitive to any other kind of egg. I write “Heather” on the box and let my kids and hubby eat a little less strict type of egg if we don’t have a coupon or end up buying a different type (all of the eggs at Natural Grocers are good – just not as good as these).
Wondering why I avoid soy? Here’s a snip from the Natural Grocer’s Website (and no, they didn’t pay me to mention them – although I’d love it if they did, since I’m their biggest fan):
Our soy-free hens are fed 100% Organic Soy-Free Feed freshly milled by Coyote Creek Organic Feed Mill.
The consumer demand for soy-free eggs is due to concerns about possible carcinogenic effects related to soy and to increasing cases of soy allergies. Many food scientists and medical professionals claim soy may cause or contribute to the growth of cancer, and Cornell University’s Program on Breast Cancer and Environmental Risk Factors warns women who are at risk for breast cancer to limit their soy intake. Though the effects usually diminish during egg production, some consumers prefer to avoid soy altogether.
They say you are what you eat. I would venture to say that a chicken’s eggs are what they eat, too. This means you should feed your chicken organic, soy-free feed which has no animal byproducts, or you’ll be eating GMOs, soy, and eggs that are tainted with meat a chicken should never have ingested. Really, it does make a lot of sense. Even if a chicken won’t ever understand it.
Without further ado…
My recipe for Egg Salad (which changes all the time – you can mix it up however you like it, it’s so versatile). I’m sure that’s what you are here for, not all this preachy health-nut stuff, right?
- 4 soy-free organic eggs, boiled and chopped
- 1.5 tbsp of non-GMO avocado-oil Chosen Foods mayo
- 1 tbsp stone ground country mustard
- few pinches of Hawaiian red salt
- freshly ground pepper to taste
- 1-2 small shallots, chopped
- 1 TBSP large capers, chopped/ and a splash of the juice
- splash of lime or lemon juice
- splash of Cholulla hot sauce
- sprinkle of Hungarian Hot Paprika for garnish
- 1 tsp chopped microgreen shallots (can sub with other fresh herbs)/and more to garnish
- Boil and chop eggs after they cool a little.
- Add all ingredients except the paprika and shallot microgreens for garnish.
- Stir and mix into a smooth, creamy mixture.
- Serve on salad, crackers, toast, or sandwich bread.
- Refrigerate for up to 4 days if you have leftovers.
I love pickle in egg salad, too. Lately my favorite pickles are fermented brine pickles from Russia. I got some at a Russian grocery store in Houston when I was visiting my in-laws a while back and now that they are gone, I’m really missing them. I use capers and pickles interchangeably in both chicken salad and egg salad. Sometimes, I use both! Another great thing that an Egyptian man in Arkansas taught us: use julienned pickles on falafels with Egyptian hot sauce. They make falafels really pop.
Another thing I have to mention, since this is a “healthier version” of egg salad, is that I used Chosen Foods avocado-oil mayo in my egg salad. I found out about them at a food conference I attended recently, and they were nice enough to send me samples of their mayo in the mail. Technically, that makes them a review item, even though the item came as a gift after the conference – with no strings attached. However, I have been in LOVE with the flavored mayo they sent. I’ve been using it on my veggie lettuce-wrap burgers at home and it tastes better than the fry sauce or Freddy’s sauce they use at the fast food joints. In fact, I’m craving a veggie burger with this sauce on it right this minute…
Check out their site for ingredient information. Trust me, you want some of this in your life if you love mayo like I do. I bet this would taste good in egg salad, too, but I didn’t use it in this version. I used their plain mayo. They also have a black garlic that is delicious. It has the slight flavor of mushroom soup and garlic mixed together. I just LOVE it.
You don’t have to stop with just the egg salad being healthy. What you serve it on can also be a better option!
The crackers I served my egg salad on were Simple Mills Almond-Flour Crackers. Back before I got my cancer diagnosis in August, I had offered to do a review for Simple Mills, but the products they sent were brownies and pizza dough. Honestly, with as many nut-butter brownies as we eat around here, we don’t really use their brownie mix any more. I buy their crackers at Natural Grocers ALL THE TIME because we are gluten free for the most part, and I use alternative flours like almond, hazelnut, chick pea, teff, and buckwheat instead of wheat. I really like the Simple Mills brand of crackers. Their rosemary ones are yummy, as are the sea salt “plain” version. If you are looking for a good gluten-free cracker (to make any snack healthier), look no farther.
And that, my friends, is enough preaching for today. As you can tell I’m passionate about food… and I’m so glad I’ve been able to find things I can eat that help me meet my goal of NEVER having a cancer repeat again. I eat more eggs than I do meat. About every other day or every three days, I have eggs in some fashion. I was thrilled to find a healthy way to make egg salad – it makes me feel normal. I eat a lot of stuff that doesn’t (like this morning’s nasty vegetable sludge shake). Comfort foods like egg salad are a nice treat.
Just ask the musical chickens in Aunt Terry’s band what they think about healthy eggs:
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Disclaimer: I was sent a few bottles of mayo and possibly a box of crackers (I don’t remember) in exchange for my honest opinion about a couple of these products. All opinions are mine and this post was not sponsored in any other way.