Open-face Egg Salad Sandwiches

Here is the last hard-boiled egg recipe I have for you. Somewhat of a classic, but served open-face to give the illusion that it is fancy.

I remember making egg salad sandwiches all the time when I was growing up. My family LOVED them. I had this very complicated recipe I developed. Eggs, mayo, salt and pepper. Although it was that simple, I wouldn't tell what I put in it. I like to do things like that.

This recipe has a little more than my secret teenager recipe. A few veggies to give it a little crunch and color and some white wine vinegar because I love white wine vinegar.

Real quick, before I finish up, just wanted to write down how to hard-boil eggs. Some might not know how and I am about to be their genius.

Take all the eggs you want to boil and gently put them in a single layer in a big pot. Add enough water to just cover the eggs. Set the pot on the burner, put on the lid and set the heat to high. Once the eggs are bouncing around and the water is boiling, turn off the heat, keep the lid on and remove the pot from the burner. Leave the lid on for 30-40 minutes. You can do longer if you are busy and have to let them sit.

Remove them from the water. You can store them in the fridge. Use the same egg carton they were in before their insides were solidified. But be aware that your fridge is going to smell like a small animal died inside of it. If you aren't interested in an egg-smelling fridge, keep the eggs in an air-tight container.

Also, hard-boiled eggs can keep in the fridge for about a week. They make a great snack thanks to the fact they're packed with protein and they are cheap.



6 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup minced red bell pepper (about 1/4 of a red bell)
1/4 cup minced red onion (about 1/8 of a red onion)
1 tsp white wine vinegar
1/2 tsp lemon juice
1/4 tsp ground pepper
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp garlic salt
A few leaves of romaine or red leaf lettuce

Put the eggs in a medium bowl and squish them with your hands (your kids would love to help with this one). Once the eggs are crumbly, add the mayo, red bell pepper, red onion, white wine vinegar, lemon juice, ground pepper, kosher salt and garlic salt. Mix well and serve on toasted bread with romaine or red leaf lettuce.

Yields 4 servings.

Ham and Eggs Spinach Salad with Honey Mustand Dressing

Eggs are supposed to be good for you, right? Ever wonder what's so good about them? Well, there's a whole lots that's good about them.

Large eggs are about 75 calories per egg. And eggs are quite nutrient dense. In one egg, you get loads of vitamin A (benefits include vision health and skin health) and a good dose of vitamin D. Listen up about the vitamin D. All that milk you drink is completely useless unless you have sufficient amounts of vitamin D. Vitamin D provides for calcium absorption. For a lecture and a talking-to about your vitamin D consumption, consult Remarks from Sparks. She's a bit passionate about the issue.

The egg whites are going to give you the most protein, but the yolk contains almost all the folate (aka folic acid) in the entire egg. 24 of the 25 micrograms. Pregnant ladies, I know I am not the first person to tell you how essential it is that you consume a good amount of folic acid everyday. Also, eggs contain half of the daily recommendation of choline, which is needed in developing that baby you are gestating and needed in breastfeeding after birth. Cholin's benefits include brain development and spinal development.

Eggs not only provide loads of protein, they also have all 8 of the essential amino acids. Because of the essential amino acids, eggs are considered "a perfect protein". Now you could always take a supplement to get those essential amino acids, but wouldn't it make more sense to just eat them?



For the salad:
1 small bag baby spinach
2 Roma tomatoes, chopped
6 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and sliced
1 bunch green onions, chopped
1 lb ham steak, diced

In a large bowl, combine spinach, tomatoes, eggs and green onions. Set aside.

In a large skillet over medium high heat, add the diced ham. Cook until sides are marked. Remove from pan onto a plate and let cool.

Once cooled, add to spinach. Drizzle in honey mustard dressing and toss to combine (you probably won't use all the dressing).

For the dressing:
4 Tbsp honey
4 Tbsp Dijon mustard
3/4 cup vegetable oil
Splash of seasoned rice vinegar
Kosher salt and ground pepper, to taste

In a small bowl, combine the honey and the mustard. Whisk to combine. While whisking, slowly add the vegetable oil and the rice vinegar. Season with salt and pepper.

Avocado and Cilantro Deviled Eggs

Easter is wonderful. It is a celebration of life, both in nature and in heaven. We celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ and we celebrate the arrival of Spring. Like most holidays, there is a lot of tradition and ritual, one of those being colored hard-boiled eggs.

As a child, we colored eggs every year. It was always fun to crowd around the cups of dye and fight over who got the pink or the purple (family of 6 girls and no boys). Once Easter morning came, the eggs had been hidden and we gleefully went to find them. When the egg hunt was over, we were all left with a basket of hard-boiled eggs. Yipee skippy. What does a kid want to do with a basket of hard-boiled eggs? Probably not too much.

Over the next three days, we will embark on a recipe series of what we can do with these eggs. Don't let them become subject to your children as they eat the whites and toss the yolks (because that is what we used to do). I have a few recipes that should be able to help you make those eggs useful.


Recipe number one: Avocado and Cilantro Deviled Eggs. A twist on a classic. They are easy to put together, especially when you already have the eggs hard-boiled. And good news on this one- quite figure friendly. No mayo or sour cream. And you get a boost from the avocado.



6 hard-boiled eggs, peeled
1 avocado
1/2 tsp lime juice
1 Tbsp finely minced red onion
1 Tbsp finely chopped cilantro
A few dashes of Tabasco sauce (I did about 7. I'm spicy that way.)
A few grinds of pepper
1/2 tsp kosher salt

Cut eggs in half lengthwise. Carefully scoop out the yolks and put into a medium bowl. Put egg halves on to a platter and put into the fridge.

With a fork, crumble up the egg yolks. Cut avocado in half and remove the pit. Scoop out the avocado flesh and add it to the egg yolks. With a spoon, mix well, until the yolks and avocado are creamy. Add lime juice and mix well. Add red onion, cilantro, Tabasco, pepper and salt. Mix well to combine.

Remove egg halves from the fridge. Using a small cookie scoop, scoop avocado yolk mixture into the egg halves. Garnish with a single cilantro leaf. Serve immediately, or before the avocado browns.