Choline Breakfast in Mom’s Kitchen 07/29/2012
Posted by thetickthatbitme in Choline Diet, Whole Person.Tags: Borrelia, Central Coast, choline, eggs, Food, health, Lyme, Sourdough, tomatoes
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I’m excited to be visiting my parents this week, especially because their kitchen is always filled with fresh fruits and vegetables. I missed the Central Coast’s superior tomatoes!
Tomato and egg sandwich on toasted sourdough.
Choline count: 2 eggs (250 mg) + 1 tomato (12 mg) + sourdough bread (15 mg) = 277 mg of choline
Happy Sunday everybody!
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This week’s choline diet highlights 05/20/2012
Posted by thetickthatbitme in Uncategorized.Tags: breakfast, choline, Coleslaw, Cooking, diet, eggs, health, recipe, Rye bread
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I tried to be good and cook simple, choline-rich meals at home this week. Here are some highlights:
McBreakfast Sandwich
I love making my own version of a fast food breakfast sandwich for several reasons. One, it’s healthier because I can use better ingredients. Two, it’s relatively inexpensive. Three, I don’t have to drive anywhere to get it.
Start with an egg and a slice of Canadian bacon.
Sometimes I use an English muffin or a bagel, but this week I didn’t have those, so I used sourdough, which I actually like better. I also subbed out boring old American cheese for some spicy pepperjack.
Pepperjack on toasted sourdough. They’re big slices, so I just used one and folded it in half.
To drink, I had Treetop orange-pinapple juice, which I water down.
Choline count: fried egg (125 mg) + Canadian bacon (19 mg) + sourdough bread (15 mg) = 159 mg
Rainbow Coleslaw
I grew up on traditional southern-style coleslaw, and when the weather gets hot, I start craving it. I love putting it on pulled-pork BBQ sandwiches. Being that eating cabbage covered in mayonaise (or in my case, Miracle Whip) is not the healthiest way to get one’s veggies, when I make coleslaw at home, I try to make it a little healthier (and more rich in choline). One of the ways to do this is to use broccoli slaw. You can make it yourself in a food processor, or if you’re lazy like me, you can buy it already shredded up in a bag.
In a small bowl, I mix the dressing, which consists of Miracle Whip, sweet pickle juice (I didn’t have any, so I skimmed some out of the pickle relish jar), and horseradish sauce (for a kick). Some people also like to add vinegar (in place of pickle juice) and dijon mustard.
The condiment lineup.
Then I dump the shredded veggies into a big bowl, add a diced tomato, and mix in the dressing. It’s best to refrigerate slaw for a few hours before eating, but I always sneak a few spoonfulls to make sure it tastes right.
Choline count: broccoli, cauliflower, carrot, cabbage, tomato
Ready to refrigerate.
California Sandwich
I’ve been eating a lot of sandwiches lately. Boyfriend brought back several loaves of bread from Eric Schat’s Bakery, including some delicious rye bread, so I used some of it to make this sandwich.
I topped that slice of delicious rye bread with Miracle Whip, horseradish sauce, tomato slices, a fried egg, and half an avocado.
Choline count: fried egg (125 mg) + tomato (12 mg) + 1/2 avocado (9 mg) + rye bread (5 mg) + milk (39 mg) = 190 mg
Chorizo Scramble
Toward the end of the week, I started feeling guilty about eating so much bread, so I cooked up some Mexican chorizo with eggs and topped it with diced avocado and tomato. Cooking for two, I use five eggs and one package (a long link) of chorizo.
Choline count: 2 eggs (250 mg) + chorizo (58 mg) + tomato (12 mg) + 1/2 avocado (9 mg) = 329 mg
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Eat Your Eggs, Benedict! 04/22/2012
Posted by thetickthatbitme in Choline Diet, Whole Person.Tags: Anaplasmosis, benedict, Borrelia burgdorferi, Borrelia hermsii, choline, diet, eggs, HBO, inflammation, Lyme, mushroom, recipe, salmon
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If you know my story, you know that when I was diagnosed with B. hermsii and Anaplasmosis, my doctor put me on a high-choline diet. Why choline, you ask? Choline is a B vitamin that aids in the transmission of nerve impulses from the brain through the central nervous system–this process is essential to functions like memory and muscle control. Since Borrelia like to attack the central nervous system, choline is especially important for people with (past and present) B. hermsii and B. burgdorferi infections. People who eat diets high in choline have also been shown to have lower levels of inflammation (like inflammation of the joints in Arthritis) than people who don’t. You can read more about choline here.
Enter the Benedict. It is by far my favorite egg-based dish, and I enjoy making it at home just as much as I do eating it for brunch in a fancy restaurant.
"Eggs" Benedict Talley (Mehcad Brooks) from HBO's True Blood. Photo via hbo.com.
One large poached egg has 100 mg of choline, so if you eat two, you get about half of your recommended daily amount (425 mg for women, 550 mg for men). Add to that other high-choline foods like smoked salmon (129 mg), Canadian bacon (39 mg), portabella mushrooms (39 mg), spinach (35 mg), asparagus (23 mg), avocado (21 mg), and tomato (6 mg) to get your choline fix!
Here are my top five Benedicts:
1. Old Fashioned but Fried
for those mornings (or afternoons, or evenings!) when I’m feeling traditional, yet lazy
I learned this simple recipe from my mother, and it
Image via firsttimerscookbook.com
brings back all kinds of fond childhood memories. A toasted whole-wheat English muffin, topped with pan-fried Canadian bacon and over-easy eggs (make sure they’re still a little runny, because that’s the best part). The hollandaise sauce I usually make with one of those sauce packets you can find in the grocery store (next to the gravy packets). It’s easy–you only need to add milk and butter–and, in my opinion, it tastes better than the from-scratch hollandaise recipes I’ve tried. Because of the butter and bacon, this is a slightly fattening meal, so I balance it with a side of boiled asparagus, which tastes delicious with the hollandaise sauce and adds 23 mg of choline to this meal!
Choline count: eggs 200 mg + Canadian bacon 39 mg + asparagus 23 mg = 262 mg of choline
2. Crab Benedict
for when I’m feeling crabby or rooting for the Terps
I’ve never made this one at home, but I’ve had it at Toasties Cafe, and it is delicious!
Image via Yelp.com.
Choline count: eggs 200 mg
3. Portabello Mushroom Benedict
for the fungus-lovers amongus
If you’re looking for a meatless meal or just craving these yummy mushrooms, this is the Benedict for you. Check out Jackie Dodd’s recipe at TastyKitchen.com, which also includes spinach, tomatoes, and Sriracha for a kick!
Image via TastyKitchen.com
Choline count: eggs 200 mg + portabello mushrooms 39 mg + spinach 35 mg = 274 mg of choline
4. Tomato Avocado Benedict
because I’m a California girl
My mouth was watering as I scrolled through SoupBelly.com’s deliciously illustrated recipe for this west-coast Benedict. If you want to make it even more California, use sourdough English muffins.
Image via soupbelly.com.
Choline count: eggs 200 mg + avocado 21 mg + tomato 6 mg = 227 mg of choline
5. Eggs Hemingway
for when I’m feeling literary
This one may seem a bit fishy, but I assure you it’s delicious and packed with choline. It’s also called Norwegian Benedict. Here’s a recipe at food.com that includes not only salmon but spinach, too!
Image via Wikipedia.
Choline count: eggs 200 mg + smoked salmon 129 mg + spinach 35 mg = 364 mg of choline
Now that I’ve made myself really hungry, I’m going to go make my own Benedict. Hope you enjoy these eggcellent (sorry, I couldn’t resist) high-choline meals!
THE TICK THAT BIT ME 