23 Sep I've Eaten More Hard Boiled Eggs in the Last Three Months….

than I can even keep track of these days.

My increased consumption stemmed from the need to eat more protein on a daily basis. In looking at my options, I decided that in addition to my daily almond consumption, my protein bites needed to be quick, portable and require little to no preparation. The weekly hard boiled egg party began.

Every Sunday afternoon, I take out one of the best gifts I’ve ever received-an egg cooker. This one appliance makes perfect hard boiled eggs-every single time. No wrestling with the peel, no disappointment with a half cooked yolk, no ripped or torn whites… just pure perfection.

I know, I know–you don’t eat eggs because of the cholesterol, right? See the American Heart Association recommendations for eggs below.

One egg contains about 213 milligrams of dietary cholesterol. The daily recommended cholesterol limit is less than 300 milligrams for people with normal LDL (bad) cholesterol levels. An egg can fit within heart-healthy guidelines for those people only if cholesterol from other sources — such as meats, poultry and dairy products — is limited. For example, eating one egg for breakfast, drinking two cups of coffee with one tablespoon of half-and-half each, lunching on four ounces of lean turkey breast without skin and one tablespoon of mayonnaise, and having a 6-ounce serving of broiled, short loin porterhouse steak for dinner would account for about 510 mg of dietary cholesterol that day — nearly twice the recommended limit. If you’re going to eat an egg every morning, substitute vegetables for some of the meat, or drink your coffee without half-and-half in the example above. And remember that many other foods, especially baked goods, are prepared with eggs — and those eggs count toward your daily cholesterol limit. People with high LDL blood cholesterol levels or who are taking a blood cholesterol-lowering medication should eat less than 200 mg of cholesterol per day.

If your cholesterol is something you are concerned about (which, let’s face it, we all need to be concerned about our cholesterol), please take a look at everything else in your diet-eggs are most likely not the culprit for an increased cholesterol level.

For more egg nutrition, egg safety, egg research, recipes and egg trivia, go to the Egg Nutrition Center or the American Egg Board.