One Egg Too Many, One Bug Too Many

I'm a person who 'watches cholesterol', so have eggs only a couple of times a month for breakfast. But, our market had a 'buy two cartons and get one more free' sale so I walked away with three cartons of eggs.....now, what to do with them! Usually that will imply custards and some baking. However, sometimes it is just enjoyable to have regular ole' poached eggs on shredded wheat. Or fried eggs in a nest of hash-browns.
To make the best hash-browns, I bake the potatoes the day before, let them cool in the fridge, and then shred them the next day. Then I pan-fry them in a heavy cast iron skillet until they are crispy brown.

Speaking of fried potatoes, hashbrowns are different from 'Home Fries' which can be made from raw potatoes, cut into large cubes or chunks and usually cooked with onions, peppers, herbs and spices. We also make 'Potato Pancakes' by shredding raw potatoes that are mixed with onions, eggs, flour, milk, baking powder, herbs and seasonings. The mixture is spread out in a pan and fried until crisp. I've also used this mixture and baked it.

My sister taught me to put eggs with shredded wheat - the large ones work best. However, I've used some of the spoon-sized, and added fried celery and onion to the poached eggs. With a cold glass of orange juice, this is a hearty meal.

When I was at our organic food market the other day they had a promotional on a drink called a micronutrient fruit juice drink. Free samples were given, so I took one home. The focus is "get a green routine", and the blend included micro-nutrients beta-carotene, vitamin c, iodine, manganese and potassium. It looked impressive, and I checked out the ingredients: apple juice, peach, mango, strawberry and banana purees, Spirulina, soy lecthin, ascorbic acid, wheat grass, barley grass, wheat sprouts, Jerusalem artichokes, lemon bioflavonoids and Nova Scotia Dulse (a sea vegetable that is a natural source of essential vitamins, ions, sea salt, and roughage.) This super-drink was then flash pasteurized, bottled with an expiration date, like milk, and has to be stored in the refrigerator.

When I opened the bottle and poured it into a little glass, it looked like swamp water, as if it could start bubbling any minute! So, I called Rahmat over to try it (he'll eat anything), and after he furrowed his brow at the awlful color he took a swig. His face brightened and relaxed and he said, "That's GOOD!" So, I shook it up again and poured a small glass, and you know, it is good. Odwalla puts out this 'Super Food', a pureed super-blend of Washington state orchards, meadow-grasses, and the seaweed in the North Atlantic. However, when I researched the company, and this drink, I learned that it suffered a serious setback - E. coli bacterial poisoning in '96. All the contaminated products were recalled, and now flash pasteurization is used to purify the blends. (Any time a food product is packaged 'raw', like some types of honey, there can be risk factors.)

There is a wide assortment of exotic fruit drinks prepared by Odwalla containing passion flowers, pomegranates, mangos, and a colorful array of berries, carrots and other vegetables. I can see why they can become an ADDICTION - just smoothe, nutritious, heavenly beverages. (flickr photo by peefy)