My dear readers, I am very excited to offer you an opportunity to put your new food knowledge into action! My blogging friends over at Real Food Freaks have put together an Egg-cellence Challenge and Essay Contest.
Last month, in January, we learned that not all eggs are created equal, and that it's important to seek out pastured eggs with deep orange yolks - as the color of the yolks are indicative of the nutritional quality of the egg. The bloggers over at Real Food Freaks have also written some egg-cellent posts on the topic as well. I encourage you to check them out:
Egg-cellence Part 2 (questions to ask your chicken farmer) - I highlighted this article in my post, Nourishing News: January 2012
Many of you may not egg-xactly be convinced of the superiority of pastured eggs. Or, it may be difficult on a budget to rationalize spending more on eggs. So, Real Food Freaks is offering an egg-cellent challenge (hehe, I just can't help myself with these puns!) in order to give you some motivation to take the plunge, and see for yourself just how tasty, delicious, and healthy these pastured eggs really are.
The Prize!
What could you win for your labor? EGGS, of course! Delicious, delectable, pastured eggs from Tropical Traditions. FOUR dozen of these eggs will be all yours if you win the contest. So, let's take a look at the challenge.
Rules and Requirements
1) Research your local farmers using the questions from the post, Egg-cellence Pt 2 (you can have up to a 2 hour radius and/or get the eggs at a farmer’s market if you choose). Journal your farmer’s responses so you can remember exactly what was said about the eggs. The other option (if you really cannot find good eggs fitting the criteria in your locality) is to splurge on an order of Tropical Traditions eggs. These are the only eggs that we are aware of nationally that are acceptable. You can get them here. You CANNOT buy store eggs for this part of the challenge (even if the eggs are from a local farmer, because you have no idea how long those eggs have been on the shelf)!
2) Buy one week’s worth of eggs from the researched local farm (for you only if you are on a tight budget). If you can afford it, it would be interesting to see the effect that this experiment has on your family as well.
3) Make eggs each morning for breakfast for the entire week. You can make them anyway you choose. Then journal your hunger or feelings for the entire week.
4) The following week, buy your regular grocery store eggs (any quality) and repeat the process from the week before (any preparation, but be sure to journal hunger and how you feel). Just make sure that you are using the same number of eggs – if you made a three egg omelet the first week, then make a three egg omelet the second week.
5) Write an essay about your experience. This is what you will submit to us for the entry. Be honest. If you went through the entire process and didn’t see a difference — tell us that. But be as specific as possible about the process (what you found or didn’t find locally). We are looking for the following in your essay:
• 500 words or more
• Your experience in researching egg options (with farmer notes)
• Your week one experience with the best farm eggs you could find regardless of price (refer to your journal)
• Your week two experience with grocery store eggs (refer to your journal)
• Your overall impressions, feelings, what you learned (if anything at all) from this challenge.
• Submit the entry to admin@realfoodfreaks.com in a word document no later than February 28, 2012.
6) Your entry essay will be judged on meeting the criteria in #5 and:
• The ability to convey the experience of the challenge in a relatable way
• The amount of local research that you did and whether you met the criteria for ‘local’ – within two hours of your home or using Tropical Traditions eggs if you exhausted those efforts locally.
• Honesty – if you didn’t notice a difference, then say so. It’s ok and it won’t disqualify you. Just be sure to give as many details as possible to explain the process you took.
• Grammar (sorry, see #8 and you will understand why)
7) The winning entry will be posted on Real Food Freaks. If you are submitting an entry essay, you are giving us permission to use your story in the event that you win. This is why grammar will count because we will not change your story at all to keep the integrity of your message. If you are chosen as the winner, and there are errors, we may choose to send it back to you for revisions before we post it online.
8) Entries should be emailed to: admin@realfoodfreaks.com using the email address that we will be able to contact you if you win.
Happy eating!
Happy eating!
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