Alpha’s Egg Salad

Most egg salad recipes call for raw onion.

I hate raw onion.

So this is my recipe, to my tastes. Celery to provide a little crunch, dill pickles for flavor. Garlic dill pickles are especially nice.

6 hard boiled eggs, large
1 large stalk celery
1-2 dill pickles (or 4-6 slices of the ‘stacker’ sandwich dill pickles)
Mayo to taste (start with a heaping spoonful)

Chop your eggs, yolk and all, and finely dice the celery and pickles. You may use relish instead of pickles if you wish. Put everything together and stir until the yolks blend into the mayo and it’s well mixed. Chill until serving.

This salad is very good on crackers. A little bland, but you can always add additional seasoning if you want.

Simple Egg Salad

This is a base recipe. It’s good as it is, but you can always add more. The texture is nice on crackers or toast, or just eaten with a fork.

The typical egg salad has eggs, mayo, raw onion, and relish. I don’t care for raw onion in my egg salad, but I still like a little crunch. So I went with another solution.

• 6 hard boiled eggs
• 1 kosher (or garlic) dill pickle (or 5-6 “stacker” slices- the lengthwise ones)
• 1 rib of celery, washed and trimmed
• 1-3 Tbs mayonnaise

First, shell and slice the eggs. I slice mine lengthwise, then turn and slice across the width. Put them in a bowl.

Dice the pickle and celery finely. Add to the bowl.

Drop a tablespoon or two of mayo into the bowl and stir. The yolk of the eggs will mostly disintegrate into the mayo and turn everything yellow and creamy. If it’s as creamy as you like it, stop there. If not, add more mayo and stir again.

Easy tuna salad: Add one can (drained) or small pouch of tuna. Stir to combine.

Easy potato salad: Dice 3-4 medium potatoes, boil in salted water until tender. Drain, then add to the salad and stir to coat.

This can be easily  upgraded by adding in bacon, cheese, and/or fresh herbs.

The Fritatta

This is one of the easiest ways I know of to use up leftovers. You’ll need an oven safe skillet for this- your standard 10 inch cast iron is best.

You need 4-6 cups of vegetables and starches. Choose a variety. Possible selections include:

• 1 onion, diced
• leftover grilled onions
• corn, cut off the cob
• baked potatoes, cut into thin chunks
• a cup of already cooked rice
• bell peppers, diced

…and on and on. I usually end up going through my leftovers for good candidates, then adding enough fresh ingredients to fill out the batch.

You’ll also want something a bit meaty (though it doesn’t have to be meat), such as:

• cooked beans
• sliced mushrooms
• leftover chicken, cut into chunks
• pepperoni slices, cut into quarters

You don’t need much, but it should already be cooked (unless it’s mushrooms, those don’t have to be)

You’ll need:

• Oil or butter for cooking
• a cup or two of shredded cheese
• 8-10 eggs
• 1/4 cup milk
• Salt, pepper, and some other spices

Heat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Warm up the pan to medium high heat and cook your raw veggies first in a little oil or butter and a bit of salt until they’re tender. Add in anything that’s already cooked at that point and cook it until it’s all hot, and then add your seasonings.

Season it HEAVILY. It should be just salty enough that you’d eat it, but if it were any more, you’d send it back. Same with your other spices.

Once it’s all cooked and seasoned, spread the ingredients evenly in the pan and sprinkle the cheese on top. Let it just begin to melt while you beat the eggs and milk together.

Pour the eggs over the veggies as evenly as you can. Wait until a few bubbles come up through the eggs, then pick up the whole pan and place it in the oven. Careful not to spill!

Bake 15-20 minutes, until you can stab it with a butter knife halfway between the center and the edge and the knife comes out clean. Let it sit a few minutes before serving. Can be eaten hot or cold.