You might be surprised to know that as a scientist, I have had several discussions on this very (seemingly) simple question. I firmly stand by my assessment that it was indeed the chicken, but that's another topic for another day. At any rate, I dont' really care which came first- whether the free range (pasture fed) chicken that produced the eggs we received from Holistic Farms in our FFM bundle this week or the cafe au lait colored eggs because the fact remains, they are delicious!
I've been somewhat of an organic, free range, locally produced egg skeptic but I really can't remember why having now tasted these eggs. Perhaps it was my biased judgment that organic eggs were "too expensive." The $3+ a dozen was certainly off putting when I knew I could get eggs for 89 cents a dozen. But really, what's "too expensive" for good quality, good taste, responsible farming practices? As a culture we have been misled to believe that food should be cheap. The only way that food is cheap is because we have made it that way by abandoning sustainable and responsible farming techniques and have grown accustomed to tomatoes year round and bananas in North America- where, I for one, have never seen a banana tree actually grow. I'm sure most of you have seen the recent food documentary called "Food, Inc" and if you haven't, you should. If you are reading this blog you probably are an organic and local supporter already so I don't plan to belabor the point but I think it is important to mention. I may not be able to personally afford a diet consisting entirely local, organic and responsibly farmed products seeing as how I am a graduate student (though I sure wish I could!). But I think we can all make smarter choices about what we are putting into our bodies. In order to afford better food, we have cut down our meat intake to about 1-3 meals a week on average and embraced some creative vegetarian options which I will be highlighting soon. My meat and exercise loving husband was skeptical at first, but now he is fully convinced you can get a well balanced and protein rich food from things other than meat. In turn we have become healthier, wealthier and hopefully more wise. After all, maybe if more people cut out the cable package or downgraded our data plans for our cell phones that we convince ourselves are necessities, we would get back to what's really important- being healthy and warm and happy.
As soon as I got the email about the contents of this weeks package, I immediately knew what I would do with some of the spinach, eggs, cheese and sausage buns. I hope you enjoy this recipe!
I've been somewhat of an organic, free range, locally produced egg skeptic but I really can't remember why having now tasted these eggs. Perhaps it was my biased judgment that organic eggs were "too expensive." The $3+ a dozen was certainly off putting when I knew I could get eggs for 89 cents a dozen. But really, what's "too expensive" for good quality, good taste, responsible farming practices? As a culture we have been misled to believe that food should be cheap. The only way that food is cheap is because we have made it that way by abandoning sustainable and responsible farming techniques and have grown accustomed to tomatoes year round and bananas in North America- where, I for one, have never seen a banana tree actually grow. I'm sure most of you have seen the recent food documentary called "Food, Inc" and if you haven't, you should. If you are reading this blog you probably are an organic and local supporter already so I don't plan to belabor the point but I think it is important to mention. I may not be able to personally afford a diet consisting entirely local, organic and responsibly farmed products seeing as how I am a graduate student (though I sure wish I could!). But I think we can all make smarter choices about what we are putting into our bodies. In order to afford better food, we have cut down our meat intake to about 1-3 meals a week on average and embraced some creative vegetarian options which I will be highlighting soon. My meat and exercise loving husband was skeptical at first, but now he is fully convinced you can get a well balanced and protein rich food from things other than meat. In turn we have become healthier, wealthier and hopefully more wise. After all, maybe if more people cut out the cable package or downgraded our data plans for our cell phones that we convince ourselves are necessities, we would get back to what's really important- being healthy and warm and happy.
As soon as I got the email about the contents of this weeks package, I immediately knew what I would do with some of the spinach, eggs, cheese and sausage buns. I hope you enjoy this recipe!
Egg "Salad" Sandwiches
*This isn't so much a cut and dry sort of recipe. Add your favorite toppings and there are no exact measurements. Perhaps that's why I'm a better cook than I am a baker- in my everyday job, measurements have to be precise and exact, but at home I can just be creative and cook to what tastes "right"! This quantities I have given are for one sandwich.
1 Sausage Bun (Source: our FFM bundle!)
2 free range eggs (Source: Holistic Farms, see link above)
2-3 slices of grass fed Blue Gouda Cheese (Source: Mayfield Creamery)
1-2 spinach leaves (Source: our FFM bundle!)
Garlic Aioli- just finely chop some garlic and mix it with either store bought mayo or homemade!
Thinly sliced onions (I like to use yellow or vidalia onions but use whatever you like)
Butter
Lightly butter sausage bun and grill until warm and toasted (I used my grill pan!). Warm some butter in a non stick skillet and cook eggs to your preference (I basically fried mine). **IMPORTANT*** In my opinion, when you cook eggs you should always S&P them while they are cooking. Shmear the garlic aioli on the bun and layer onions, cheese, spinach and eggs. Enjoy!
*This isn't so much a cut and dry sort of recipe. Add your favorite toppings and there are no exact measurements. Perhaps that's why I'm a better cook than I am a baker- in my everyday job, measurements have to be precise and exact, but at home I can just be creative and cook to what tastes "right"! This quantities I have given are for one sandwich.
1 Sausage Bun (Source: our FFM bundle!)
2 free range eggs (Source: Holistic Farms, see link above)
2-3 slices of grass fed Blue Gouda Cheese (Source: Mayfield Creamery)
1-2 spinach leaves (Source: our FFM bundle!)
Garlic Aioli- just finely chop some garlic and mix it with either store bought mayo or homemade!
Thinly sliced onions (I like to use yellow or vidalia onions but use whatever you like)
Butter
Lightly butter sausage bun and grill until warm and toasted (I used my grill pan!). Warm some butter in a non stick skillet and cook eggs to your preference (I basically fried mine). **IMPORTANT*** In my opinion, when you cook eggs you should always S&P them while they are cooking. Shmear the garlic aioli on the bun and layer onions, cheese, spinach and eggs. Enjoy!