Avocado Egg Salad, and the Benefits of Eggs
Today I am three weeks post hamstring surgery. On one hand it feels like time has flown by. On the other hand, time has really dragged. The first two weeks were almost all excruciatingly painful. Now the pain has started to subside, however I still can’t put pressure on the right glute/leg. And according to the PT/surgeon, it might be another 1-5 weeks, or 4-8 weeks total before I can drive or go back to work full time. Which one???
At PT today we started passive range of motion exercises, meaning my PT can move my leg for me, in addition to isometric quad, adductor and abductor exercises. I just finished icing with my trusty ice machine. That thing is wonderful and I’m glad we opted to purchase it instead of renting it. I’m a bit concerned as I want to get back to work, however I’m not entirely sure when I can drive again. My hope was in another week or two. I don’t want to push things and cause further injury, but I’ve never had to take time off from work either. I feel like I’m letting my stores and athletes down because I haven’t seen them. I’m sure they are just fine, but maybe missing their PowerBar goodies. I feel a bit guilty because I just have to sit during the day (well, really perch to the side) while my co-workers are hard at work. That being said, I wouldn’t wish this on anyone. I would gladly be working and running if I could.
Since I’m not able to do very much, preparing food is a bit difficult. When I got back from NY, Brett helped me clean out the fridge. Yes, he had left some things in there for the 2 weeks that I was gone, and they were pretty gross. Looking through it, I realized I had a dozen eggs that needed to be eaten. While I was in NY, my mom made me egg salad and it was delicious. So, I decided to make egg salad with avocado. It’s always good to sneak more healthy fat into your diet.
Before you say “wait, eggs have too much cholesterol,” yes, they do have cholesterol, but no they aren’t bad for you. Years ago it was believed that eggs cause high cholesterol because they contain cholesterol. It was proven that this isn’t the case after all, and in fact, they are quite good for you. Well, the caveat to that is, if you already have high cholesterol, or have diabetes, having more than a few eggs each week can be harmful, so talk to your doctor first. For those not in those categories, here are some good qualities about the “incredible, edible egg.”
Eggs:
- A great source of protein and can be called the perfect food/protein due to their amino acid profile-6g of protein per egg
- Contain numerous vitamins and minerals including Vit. A, Vit B(‘s), Phosphorus, Choline, Biotin Potassium and many others
- Only 70 kcal and 5g of fat per egg
- In 70% of people, eggs don’t raise cholesterol-talk to your doctor to see if you’re in the other 30%
- Eating eggs can increase your HDL, or good cholesterol
- Eggs contain lutein, which is a powerful antioxidant that helps protect your eyes
- Contain Omega-3 fatty acids-you can also buy the eggs that were raised on or fed additional omega-3 fatty acids-this reduces your risk for heart disease
- They are yummy and inexpensive
When looking at the egg aisle of the grocery store, there are a lot to choose from. White, brown, cage free, organic, Omega-3 fortified, free-range, pastured, conventional etc. The best eggs are the ones from your local farmer or your own backyard. But, if you aren’t in the position to have chickens or live near a farm, chosing the Omega-3 fortified is a good choice. I have heard some people say that even chickens that are cage free and free-range are kept inside away from the outside. I don’t have the evidence of this, but since we can’t buy our eggs from a farmer, I’ll choose the Omega-3 fortified.
With my 8 Omega-3 fortified eggs in my fridge, I made Avocado Egg Salad. The avocado makes the egg salad extra creamy. Still, I used just a bit of greek yogurt and mayo. My hunch is you could omit the mayo or even the yogurt all together. I wanted to keep it a bit truer to the real deal as I was too tired to have to make something else 🙂
Avocado Egg Salad: (Serves 4)
- 8 eggs
- 1 small, or 1/2 a large avocado mashed
- 1/8 c of plain greek yogurt
- 1/8 c of light mayo
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- spices to taste-I used salt, pepper and onion powder-just a few sprinkles of each
- Place the eggs in a saucepan and cover with cold water.
- Bring to a boil and immediately remove from the heat.
- Cover and let the eggs stand in hot water for 10-12 minutes.
- Remove, peel and chop into a bowl
- Add the mashed avocado, yogurt, mayo, mustard and spices. Stir and serve on a bed of greens, a whole wheat wrap, whole grain bread or crackers.
Nutrition:
- 232kcal
- 6g carbohydrate
- 17g fat
- 14g protein
- 2g fiber
Nutrition with Whole Wheat Bread:
- 385kcal
- 31g carb
- 19g fat
- 23g protein
I am so happy to hear how your healing is progressing. Great combination, avocado and eggs! I will be trying this Cristina It sounds so delicious and I love eggs I eat them everyday.