The Perfect Hard Boiled Egg

Morning snack: Hard boiled egg and strawberries

Lunch: Mac and cheese and steamed broccoli

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I don't pack hard boiled eggs that often because LQ likes to peel her own and it can get a bit messy.  But with LQ's increasingly limited protein options I decided to cook some up.  Hard boiled eggs are funny little things.  Cooking them too long and they turn a bit green, not appetizing and can even get an "eggy" smell.  Or if not cooked long enough the yolk doesn't firm up and they can be a bit runny.  So what to do?

Place raw egg in pot covered with cold water.  Turn the heat to high.  As soon as the water gets a rolling boil cover the pot and turn off the heat source.  Set a timer for 10 minutes.  Once the timer goes off place the cooked eggs in ice water to stop the cooking process.  Tah dah!  Congratulations, you've just made perfectly cooked eggs.

Mac and cheese

Morning snack: green apples and pistachios

Lunch: macaroni and cheese, steamed broccoli and "chicken"

Afternoon snack: Stonyfield yogurt

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I was debating what I should make for LQ, so I asked her.  She immediately said, chicken, mac and cheese, broccoli and yogurt.  How easy was that!  Now the best part, I made mac and cheese from scratch! I love making it this way because I know exactly what is in it.  I know that it contains no preservatives or additives.  And LQ loves it!

Mac and cheese 

Ingredients

1 TBS wheat flour

2 tsp butter

1/3 cup 2% milk

1/8 cup shredded parmesan cheese

1/3 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1 cup whole wheat fusilli 

salt and pepper to taste

Method

Cook fusilli according to the the instructions on the box and set aside.  Over medium to low heat melt the butter and add wheat flour.  Use a whisk to combine until all the flour until it is moist and continue stirring for a couple of minutes.  Add milk and continue mixing with the whisk until the flour breaks up and makes the milk thick.  Once the flour is all broken up add the cheese and continue stirring to make the cheese sauce.  Add pasta.  Enjoy!

**This method works with almost any cheese.  The roux (a.k.a. the flour and butter part) helps to keep the cheese sauce from breaking and thickens it up.