One thing that you can do to make eating a paleo template is to be prepared. For me, preparedness can be a double edged sword. I'll take the time to prepare snack foods to take to work in case I get hungry between meals, but then I'm simply not hungry between meals. Of course, if I don't prepare, I get hungry or "hangry" as the case may be. This happened to me recently and I found myself with 4 hard boiled eggs that needed to be eaten. I happened to have some paleo mayo in the refrigerator and remembered that Quick & Easy Paleo Foods by Julie & Charles Mayfield had an Egg Salad recipe that looked quite tasty.
Even though I hadn't planned to make this salad, I had all of the ingredients except for the pitted black olives. This was sad as the introductory paragraph to the recipe says the olives bring something special to the salad.
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| Imagine Apple Cider Vinegar in this picture as well. |
The introductory paragraph also talks about the scalability of the recipe, which is great as I had four hardboiled eggs and the recipe calls for twelve. Even an English major can divide by 4.
I really need to have a talk with my photographer as she dropped the ball on this one, but there is minimal chopping and as this is pretty much a measure and mix recipe. My preparedness made this super easy for me to throw together as I'd chopped a bunch of onions that just needed to be minced down, I had paleo mayo ready, and the eggs hard boiled as well.
How do I hard boil my eggs? I use a egg cooker. The one I have is called an Egghead and I've had it for so long, it appears it's no longer made. Why don't I boil water or put them in the oven as I've seen many do on pinterest? Because this is far quicker and easier, in my opinion. They come out perfect every time and I can make perfect soft boiled eggs in it as well.
Ok, back to the salad. I had some Boston lettuce on hand, so I decided to make egg salad wraps with them.
And a little closer up...
Accessibility & Cost of Ingredients: You should be able to find everything you need to make this recipe at you "big box" grocery store. My "big box" has actually started carrying pastured eggs. Miracles can happen. Of course, you'll have to buy the components of paleo mayo and make some yourself, but that is easy and quick to do.
Preparation & Cooking Time: This truly was an unplanned blogging opportunity, so I failed to set a timer. Also, the fact I had many of the ingredients at least partially prepped, I wouldn't have an accurate time anyway. The stated time in the book is "15 minutes active hands-on time" and a total time of 15 minutes. I'd say that 15 minutes is about right to assemble the salad, but doesn't include the time it takes to make the mayo or hard boil/cool the eggs so plan accordingly.
Clean Up: Everything I used to prepare this recipe went into the dishwasher, well except the egg cooker base obviously.
The Paleo Review: Thumbs Up! Even without the black olives, this recipe packed a lot of flavor. I loved the brightness that the apple cider vinegar brought to the salad. It's simple and clean tasting.
I can imagine that the black olives would make a great addition to the salad, but I'm not going to let not having them on hand stop me from enjoying this dish.
This is going on my personal Quick & Easy Cheat Sheet for sure.
I've not seen where the Mayfield's have posted this recipe anywhere online, so you'll have to buy the book to enjoy it!