A nutrient-dense foods primer

Eggs are truly one of nature's most amazing foods. When sourced from a healthy, happy hen raised on lush pasture, eating an omnivorous diet like nature intended, these perfectly-wrapped golden gems are nourishing, sustaining, a great first food for babies (yolks only!) -- and they don't even require refrigeration or cooking. Yes, shocking I know! but true.

Of course, sourcing good eggs is what matters most, not how you cook (or don't cook) them before enjoying them. (It's worth mentioning here that we don't recommend eating raw egg whites, but the raw yolks can be added to certain foods and drinks for a nutritious boost.) The picture on the right is from a conventional $1.29/dozen egg from the supermarket. The lack of nutrition in this egg is obvious, as the yolk can barely be called yellow and the white is watery. This is the kind of egg that scrambles into something so uninspiringly pale, it doesn't seem worth eating.

The egg on the left is from a hen eating an incredibly nourishing and delicious diet of fresh grass, clover, earthworms, bugs, table scraps, a little cracked corn, and even the occasional reptile! This diet - combined with lots of sunshine - makes for a yolk that is incredibly rich in vitamin A, as apparent by the deep orange color. Chickens eat lots of greens, which are filled with beta-carotene, convert them to vitamin A, and pass along this amazing nourishment to us. What a miracle of nature!

We recommend certain places for sourcing your nutrient-dense pastured eggs:

Traditional Nutrition Guild
Millport Amish Farm - at Union Square Greenmarket on Wednesdays, across from Barnes & Noble
Evolutionary Organics - at USQ Greenmarket on Wednesdays and Saturdays (the eggs sell out quick!)
Grazin' Angus Acres - very pricey, but delicious (USQ Greenmarket on Saturdays)
Raindance Farm - available through special buyers' clubs currently only in Brooklyn

You can expect to pay from $4-8/dozen for eggs like this, with the price most often right around $4-5. Eggs are delicious for summer breakfasts or light dinners, as omelets or frittatas with fresh herbs or greens, grated raw milk cheese, unrefined sea salt (we recommend Celtic), and of course a bit of fresh or cultured cream blended with the eggs before cooking in grass-fed butter.

So how is this post about eggs a nutrient-dense foods primer? To begin with, eggs are a perfect example of how we can (sometimes) get a lot of information about the benefits and flavor of a food just by looking at it. This comparison reminds us that we need to use our SENSES to pay attention to our food: how it looks, how it smells, how it tastes, and the way it feels in our bodies. Truly nourishing foods are different than your run-of-the-mill grocery store options -- and they offer superior nutrition that's well worth the few extra dollars you may have to spend.