What's in an egg?

After I've started eating healthy, one of the things I do when I crave unhealthy food, is go through its ingredients in my head and ask myself which one am I actually craving.
I will write a more detailed post about this technique in the future.

So I've been craving chewy, moist dough (from cookies or pastry) for the past few days now. After much googling I found out what makes a dough chewy.

And after analysing my craving it seems like my body wants eggs.

So I wanted to see what exactly is in eggs, or why exactly do I want them.

I found this great article explaining what is in an egg - most specifically in an egg yolk. It seems to be mostly fat and vitamins & minerals. The protein seems to be only on the whites. Interesting.
Since I haven't eaten chicken, red meat or dairy in about 2 months, I think it would make sense that I am craving animal fat.

I like the article because it also gives tips on what to look for in egg labels/packages.

Side note: I don't eat paleo, but a lot of my eating habits match paleo. For those who are curious, my diet consists of just avoiding what my CCM Dr. told me to avoid (sweets and foods high in animal fat).

You Will Never Eat Hellmann's Again

Image from Healthy Foodie

I found this Healthy Mayo recipe online and I just loved it!
I had stopped eating mayo years ago because the industrialized one (Hellmann's) is so fat and full of chemical products that my body couldn't take it. So I tried this recipe and fell in love with mayo again.

I have made a few changes to the original recipe, to make it lighter (in terms of oil and salt):

• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp of lemon juice (I just use the bottled one)
• 2/3 cup extra light tasting olive oil

Put the olive oil in the hand blender's jar, then the egg. Wait until the egg settles in the bottom. Add the lemon juice and blend until it has the consistency of mayo.

You can keep this in the fridge for about a week.

IMPORTANT: as explained on the Healthy Foodie's website, you must use a jar that is very narrow. I have tried with a wider jar and it comes out too runny.

Healthy Spring Pancake Breakfast

For the pancakes:
(This is a variation of Mark Bittman's "Every day pancakes" from the book "How to Cook Everything")

• 2 cups whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 cups of almond milk
• 2 tbsp of melted coconut oil

For the frying pan:

• 2-4 tsp grape seed oil (you might need more depending on how unsticky your pan is)

To eat with the pancakes:

• 2 tsp of 100% pure maple syrup
• 1 cup strawberries

Instructions:

1. Mix dry ingredients and wet ingredients separately, then combine. Because we are using whole wheat flour, the mixture will be thicker than regular pancakes. It's OK if there are lumps, just make sure the batter is completely moist.
2. Put about 1-2 tsp grape seed oil in the frying pan and keep it in medium low heat.  
3. Wait until you can feel it warm by putting your hand 5cm (2 in) over the frying pan - unless the oil is already splattering. If it is, don't put your hand anywhere close to the pan! The oil is warm enough already, and you might get burned. Turn the heat down before pouring the pancake.
4. Pour enough batter to make a circle as wide as the palm of your hand.
5. When the bottom is hard enough that you can grab it with a spatula, quickly flip the pancake.
6. The top (now bottom) will be done much faster than the other one. 
7. Repat steps 2-6 to make the second pancake.
8.  Save the leftover batter for another day (I usually freeze it without any problem).
9. Serve the pancakes with the maple syrup and the strawberries.

This recipe yields:
(not counting the frozen batter)

• 2 servings of carbs
• 2 servings of fruit