HG Healthy Makeovers: Egg Mugs

Since I originally started this blog in response to Healthy Girl's use of processed foods in lo-cal, lo-fat recipes, I figure that I'll go ahead and post a few potential non-processed, healthier "makeovers" to some of her more popular dishes.

First off, egg mugs. Looking through the "300 Under 300" book, most of these aren't too bad. They all use egg substitute and I know many people have issues with those, but I've found that the egg subsitutes that I've seen the grocery store don't usually contain any artificial ingredients. They are usually just egg whites and some sort of natural coloring (usually beta carotene), with vitamins and occasionally onion powder added. Substituing a real egg in any of the recipes is going to make the fat and cholesterol content go up a bit but, when I've done the calculations, it's not too much. So it's up to you if you want to continue to use the egg substitute or not. I sometimes prefer it just for convenience since it doesn't require beating.

There are 15 Egg Mug recipes in the "300 Under 300 book". Below, I am going to list them along with any healthy swaps and the pros and cons of the swaps.

• Pizza! Pizza Egg Mug
• Swap the turkey pepperoni for soy pepperoni
• Why?: Most meat-based pepperoni sold in stores is heavily processed with tons of preservatives. I looked up the ingredients for Hormel Turkey Pepperoni and the first two ingredients were BHA and BHT. Did you know these are banned in every country except the U.S.? Ick! Also the sodium level in just about every processed meat is pretty high. Also, the soy pepperoni has less calories: 24 calories vs. 73 calories for 30g.
• The Downside: Unfermented soy products shouldn't be consumed too often due to their link with various health issues. Also, soy pepperoni can be more difficult to find in regular grocery stores and costs a little bit more.
• Swap the "reduced-fat parmesan-style grated topping" for real parmesan cheese
• Why? I don't know about you, but I don't want to go anywhere near "cheese" that they're not even allowed to call "cheese". Yes, there's cheese in it...and it's the first ingredient...but why not just go ahead and use real parmesan cheese? Especially when the difference in such a small amount is barely negligible: 5.7 cal vs 5.0 cal and 0.4g vs 0.3g for 1/4 Tbsp.
• The Downside: Real parmesan cheese doesn't keep forever in your fridge like the "topping" does and is slightly more expensive. But it's usually easier to buy smaller amounts at a time.
• BTA (Bacon, Avocado, Tomato) Egg Mug
• Swap the bacon for veggie bacon or turkey bacon.
• Why? Though bacon is awesome, there's so many things wrong with it: high in saturated fats, loaded with sodium, nitrates and preservatives. Plus, veggie and turkey bacon are alot lower in calories and fat.
• The Downside: Veggie bacon tends to be a bit more expensive than real bacon, and turkey bacon can often be just as loaded with presevatives and sodium as the pork version, so you have to read the label carefully.
• Watch the salsa
• Why? Salsa can be high in sodium and some contain artificial preservatives. Make sure to read the ingredient list to make sure it's all-natural. One of my all-time favorites is Archer Farms Pineapple Peach Salsa....sweet and spicy! Yummm!
• Buffalo Chicken Egg Mug
• Just that pesky cheese "topping" again (see above)
• California Love Mug
• This mug is A-Okay and all-natural! Woo hoo! Dig in guilt-free!
• Crunchy Beefy Taco Egg Mug
• Swap Taco Seasoning Mix for a salt-free seasoning mix or your own spices
• Why? This stuff is loaded with sodium. McCormick brand comes in at 430mg per 2 tsp serving! Admittedly, this recipe doesn't use that much, but that's still alot of salt packed into a tiny serving. Plus, if you use your own spices, you can adjust it to your taste.
• The Downside: Experimenting with your own spices can take a bit of time and salt-free seasonings are sometimes more expensive.
• Swap Fat-Free Cheddar Cheese and Sour Cream for smaller amounts of the real thing
• Why? Aside from the fact that a little fat is actually more condusive to a healthy diet, more "fat-free" products replace the fat with chemical substitutes and/or artificial colors and/or flavors.
• The Downside: You'll have to exercise greater portion control as not to overdo it.
• It's All Greek to Me Egg Mug
• No swaps here! It's all good!
• Chicken Fajita Egg Mug
• See "Crunchy Beef Taco Egg Mug" swaps...second verse, same as the first.
• Denver Omelet Egg Mug
• Watch that ham!
• Why? Ham, like bacon, is another potenially high-sodium, preservative-laden meat. Read the labels carefully, also keeping an eye out for artificial flavorings (usually used to add the "smoke" flavor).
• Veggie Eggs-Plosion Egg Mug
• It's loaded with lots of veggies! Nothing better than that!
• All-American Egg Mug
• Swap sugar-free pancake syrup for smaller amounts of real maple syrup
• Why? Artificial sweeteners baby! It's the devil in a yellow pouch (or pink or blue...pick your poison) Plus the ingredient list is usually a nightmare of chemical/artificial concoctions. If you're lucky, there might be a "natural maple flavoring" tucked in there somewhere.
• The Downside: Real maple syrup is a bit more expensive, but you can use less to get more flavor.
• Swap fat-free American cheese for smaller amounts of cheddar cheese
• Why? Have you read the ingredients for American cheese (not to mention the fact that most American "cheeses" are called "processed cheese product")? Not much cheese involved, but quite a bit of artificial additives. Even moreso in the fat-free version.
• The Downside: Fat and calories are higher in real cheese, but the sodium and carbs are lower than in the fat-free processed cheese.
• Bean 'N Cheesy Soft Taco in an Egg Mug
• Ditto to the previous two Mexican-style egg mugs (see above)
• Eggs Bene-Chick Egg Mug
• Hamming it up? See the Denver Omelet Egg Mug above
• Swap fat-free mayo for a smaller amount of all-natural mayo
• Why? High-fructose corn syrup and a host of artificial preservatives inhabit most name-brand mayo.
• The Downside: Finding all-natural fat-free (or low-fat) mayo can be tricky, but it's out there. Again, if you can't find the fat-free version, just use a smaller out of the regular version.
• Say Cheese! Egg Mug
• There's that bothersome parmesan "topping" again! (see above)
• Lasagna-Like Egg Mug
• Just watch out for that soy! (see above)

And that's it for chapter one of "300 Under 300"! I hope this has been helpful and folks will see that you can do the HG dishes and eat healthy at the same time! It's so simple, but so worth it to get those nasty chemicals out of your life for good! If the expense of the more natural ingredients gets you down, keep an eye out for coupons and sales on the good stuff. You usually won't find them in your local newspaper, but healthy eating magazines and natural food companies' websites will usually have them. Also, if you have a Trader Joe's, Earthfare, or Whole Foods nearby, they will usually have coupons and deals. I know that EarthFare will send out coupons for FREE food at least once a week if you sign up on their mailing list. I get tons of great stuff for free from them. They also have the "Boot Challenge" once every two weeks or so where they challenge you to boot one type of food out of your house and trade it in for it's healthier alternative. This week it's artificial sweeteners, so if you live near an EarthFare this is your chance to swap out that Splenda for stevia...for FREE! You can't beat that!

Happy Eating!