Friday's Tip: Egg-cellent Advice

A Tip  Today's post is all about the glorious, wonderful, incredible, edible egg.  I feel sorry for my egg-eschewing friends, since these little guys are really quite an amazing package:

• They are the perfect protein.  Really, there is nothing better nutritionally.
• They are the cheapest animal protein you can buy, even if you get organic eggs.  Let's say you buy a dozen eggs at $4.00, and you eat 2 at a time--that's a whopping $.67 per meal.  Thankfully, I can get local, pastured eggs cheaper than that.  Serious Eats recently confirmed my suspicion that eggs taste like eggs regardless of how footloose and fancy-free the chickens are, UNLESS they're pasturized (and then they suck).  
• At about 70 calories per large egg, they are an excellent low-calorie, low-fat, high-protein snack, particularly if you are cutting calories, hungry, and don't want to sabotage your weight-loss goals.  Protein is very filling!  I've been keeping boiled eggs in the fridge just for this purpose, and they really do the trick.

Here are some tips to help you get the most out of these little powerhouses:

1. Fresh eggs are desirable for baking, particularly if you need to separate white from yolk.  Less fresh eggs taste the same, but the white deteriorates with age and is less separable.
2. Older eggs are preferable for boiling, since the peels will come off easier.  Boiling, in fact, is an excellent use of eggs on the verge of passing their Best By date.
3. Not sure if your eggs are fresh?  Fill a large pot or bowl with water, and put them in.  If they sink, they're good; if they float, very delicately but decisively throw them out (the reason they float is that they have begun oxidizing).
4. Don't pay more for egg-shell color, which is determined by chicken color and does not affect taste or quality; instead, pay more for eggs from humanely-kept chickens!
5. How to hard-boil eggs with energy efficiency in mind: Fill a pot with cold tap water.  Place eggs in.  Sprinkle liberally with the cheapest salt you own (egg shells can crack, and the salt fills the cracks to keep the insides from leaking out).  Cover (optional step, but it helps them boil faster so saves energy).  Bring to a full rolling boil.  Cover if you haven't already and turn off heat.  Let sit 12 minutes.  Uncover and add a tray's worth of ice cubes.  Let sit 10 minutes.  Remove from water and place in fridge.  N.B.  This process takes less than 30 minutes, but requires you to hang out in the kitchen.
6. Secret ingredient to boil fresh eggs to help with peeling: 1 teaspoon baking soda. (h/t Summer Tomato for this excellent video--I always buy farm-fresh eggs and was losing lots of white when peeling.  This trick seriously works!)
7. Secret trick to separate eggs: Do it when they're cold and the whites are at their firmest, and then bring to room temperature to bake.
8. Have extra egg whites?  Eat them within 2-3 days, or freeze them in ice cube trays and store till ready to use in freezer.
9. Have extra egg yolks?  You can freeze them, too, but you need to liberally sprinkle them with sugar OR salt so that they keep their consistency--if you plan to make a lemon curd or flan with them, for instance, choose sugar.  You have to have a plan in mind for them to know which to choose.
10. Finally, don't be afraid of the cholesterol or other bad press eggs have gotten.  They are a great food for everyone but truly a dieter's friend. 

Here are some recipes that I recommend, all of which are easy and yummy:
A lowfat Egg Salad.
A lowfat version of Eggs in Purgatory.
My current favorite dessert, Lemon Curd Tart with Olive Oil.
A great use for summer's cherry tomatoes, Cherry Tomato Frittata (I use only half the parmesan, and then add hot sauce).