Protein-a-luscious: A Fancy Pants Breakfast

Finished nests just out of the oven

If you know me you know I am a breakfast junkie, I am a believer in high protein breakfasts for kids. I think they act better, think better and grow better. With good for you foods in the early hours of the day their brains function much better than with sugary or even no breakfast. Some kids just don't like eggs so this is for kids who don't like eggs.  Call them nests!
I saw this recipe on Simply Recipes and I instantly loved the concept. The original recipe called for Gruyere cheese but I happened to have a cheddar and jack blend so I went with that. I have changed this recipe, I upped the servings and added a few tips of my own, enjoy!

I like making a few extra smaller puffs (as we call them) ones without egg just to snack on! So snack on and on....

My daughter said it was the best breakfast EVER!

I can't wait to start experimenting with some other ideas using this technique stay tuned.


The Bird is in the Nest (wink wink)


Egg Nests originally from 

La cuisine est un jeu d'enfants

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 eggs

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup grated Cheddar / Jack
Pepper or Paprika (optional)

Preheat the oven to 450°F with a rack in the middle. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper or non stick silicone mat.
Separate the egg yolks from the whites. Keep each individual yolk in half of a shell on a rimmed plate or small bowl. (this way you don’t have to dirty four little bowls making for an  easier clean up.)

Yolks awaiting to be deposited in the white nests

Place the egg whites and salt in a very clean mixer bowl. Beat the egg whites with a whisk attachment in a mixer (or using a hand mixer), start on low speed working your way up to high speed, until stiff peaks form. Do not over beat the eggs here, you'll want them silky not chunky.

With a rubber spatula gently fold in the grated cheese, doing your best not to deflate the egg whites.

Create four equal mounds (or more) of the egg white mixture on the lined baking sheet. Form the mounds so they look like nests, using the back of a spoon make indentations in the centers.

Place nests in the oven for 3- 4  minutes until firm but not browned. After 3 minutes, take the pan out of the oven and gently add an egg yolk to the center of each nest. Return the baking sheet to the oven and cook for 4 more minutes. Sprinkle with a small amount of salt.

Serve immediately.

Unbaked nests with cheese

Tip* Make sure your egg whites are yolk free, free of any fat, the yolk will cause the whites to misbehave. 

Getting Into the Green (sorry, it's not about money)

Getting our kids to eat their veggies can be tough, even kids who like veggies can have a hard time eating the proper amount.
They are always on the run and need lots of good energy foods.
A few months ago I picked up a book called The Raw Detox Diet for myself. I was feeling a bit sluggish and needed a good inner scrubbing! One of the healthful things the author suggests to have every day is something that is brilliantly named Green Lemonade. She says in the book that it can become addicting, I thought ACK how could kale juice become addicting? I gave it the benefit of the doubt and I started juicing this green lemonade every morning. I had a juicer from my obsessive days of drinking carrot juice (that is a whole other story in itself) when ones hands turn a strange shade of rust it is time to step away from the carrots. Back away from the carrots...and I did.
Anyway back to the story, so I juiced: Kale, apple, ginger, lettuce, lemon and guess what? I LOVED IT, I loved it so much I offered it to my 5 year old, telling her it was called, green lemonade. She loved it too. The lemon cuts the "green" taste and the apple adds sweetness. If you have a finicky kid try adding agave nectar to sweeten it up, agave has a low glycemic index and is better for you than sugar.

So what's your point Jen? My point is is that if you call something as bizarre as kale juice and lemon something a kid can relate to they are much more likely to try it. Now it is possible that your child may not like it but you can experiment with the lemon, add more apple and bingo you have a perfect veggie in a cup all you need is a straw!

Recipe for

Green Lemonade

adapted from Natalia Rose The Raw Food Detox Diet

For juicing try to buy organic especially when juicing the peels.

for kids cut this in 1/2 and add ice to dilute and you can drink the rest.

Warning: this can be intense so start small and work up, I do double this recipe in the am for myself.

Tip:

Ginger does not have a long shelf life so I wash and cut my ginger into coins and store it in the freezer. You can toss it in to most the juicers or thaw it a bit in the microwave.

1 apple, cut peel on

1/2 lemon, cut, peel on

1/2-1 head Romaine lettuce, washed

1 large kale leaf or more if desired If using Dino Kale use 2 or more)

1/2 inch ginger, peel on

Juice all ingredients as machine suggests, drink and enjoy.