Which came first: the chicken or the egg? If you were to ask me, I would definitely have to go with my good friend, the egg. There’s so many different ways to eat eggs, which adds a great deal of variety to our seemingly bland food rotation of peanut butter and jelly, pasta, and grilled chicken Eggs are without a doubt one of the most underrated foods in the world, especially for college kids like ourselves…Here’s why:
They’re Cheap!
Let’s face it—we all are under tight budgets here in State College. I know I much rather spend my money on a new pair of shoes or a nice dinner out with my friends than on a grocery bill. Nothing ruins my day more than I look at my bank account and see a hefty chunk of my money surrendered to the crippling hands of Giant or Walmart. Here comes in the good ol’ egg. A carton of a dozen eggs ranges from two to four dollars, depending on the type of eggs you prefer. That’s 16 to 33 cents per egg! Not even Ramen can beat that price!
They’re Healthy!
Kris Gunnars of AuthorityNutrition considers eggs a “superfood”. Gunnars outlines the laundry list of nutrients eggs contain on the website, including vitamin A, folate, pantothenic acid, vitamin B12, riboflavin, phosphorus, and selenium (just to name a few). Eggs are an energy-dense food, coming in at “77 calories, 6 grams of protein, and 5 grams of heathy fats” per egg (“10 Proven Heath Benefits of Eggs”, Gunnars). Eggs are often the subjected to the bad reputation of “being bad for blood cholesterol”, but it’s time to silence the critics. This is simply NOT TRUE! Eggs are high in cholesterol (212 miligrams per egg), but this does not necessarily resonate equally in the body with blood cholesterol. Eggs, in fact, are proven to raise good cholesterol—our HDL cholesterol. This is the cholesterol that lowers risk for cardiovascular diseases. In most healthy people, eggs do not adversely raise blood cholesterol at all!
They’re Easy to Cook and Taste Great Throughout the Day!
Aside for the obvious breakfast preference, eggs are also a viable option for both lunch and dinner. Scrambled, sunny-side up, omelets, hard-boiled, and (if you’re from the New York metropolitan area like myself), breakfast sandwiches with Taylor ham, egg, and cheese: it’s hard to deny the egg’s overwhelming presence in the most important meal of the day.
Egg, avocado, and toast. What a classic.
Moving on to the middle meal of the day, you can enjoy your eggs as a sandwich topper, in the form of an egg salad, or even as a topping in your chef salad. And lastly, for dinner, eggs are fantastic in quiches and even in ethnic foods, like fried rice! Hungry late at night and need some brain food to power you through some late-night studying? You can quickly whip up some scrambled cheesy eggs. Case closed. Can’t get much easier than that.
They’re Vegetarian-Friendly!
Eggs are a vegetarian-friendly food; this being said, many of my vegetarian friends rely on eggs for their protein fix. Filled with Protein! As mentioned before, a single egg contains 6 grams of protein. This is 13% of the RDA for an adult woman! Men, teenagers, and pregnant women require more protein, but the point is, eggs contain a substantial amount of protein. Moreover, eggs contain vital nutrients that vegetarians may be lacking because of their abstinence from meat and poultry. If you’re expecting your vegetarian friend to stop over for dinner, know that the eggs you whip up will be a hit!
If you’re feeling adventurous, check out some of these egg-static recipes (Sorry, bad joke—at least I tried): http://manhattan.spoonuniversity.com/2015/01/31/eggs-food-need/
To check out some of the additional health benefits of eggs, check out Kris Gunnars’s post: http://authoritynutrition.com/10-proven-health-benefits-of-eggs/