The versatile egg salad

A salad: 

"A dish of various mixtures of raw or cooked vegetables, usually seasoned with oil, vinegar, or other dressing and sometimes accompanied by meat, fish, or other ingredients."

I realize that for some, the thought of eating only veggies for a meal is boring but for others, the thought of eating only veggies for a meal is satisfying.If you love veggies, you are probably smiling right now thinking of veggies whereas those who have yet to appreciate veggies, are cringing at the thought of eating those crunchy, tasteless food stuffs. 

Plants are Mother Earth's best sources of vitamins and minerals so consider them to be the most delicious way that you can take a multi-vitamin. 

What's not to love about a salad? The beauty of a salad is that YOU can create a meal that leaves you and your tummy happy. 

Essentially it is a plant-strong meal but you can dress it up however you want. 

As a 22-year lacto-ovo vegetarian, you'd think that I eat a lot of salads, soups and stir fry's since I don't eat meat (which is true) but why should salads be limited to only those who choose to not eat meat? 

Well, that's just silly! 

The only two things that differ from me and Karel when we eat are sometimes our protein choices are different and so are our portions. 

Both of us our plant strong athletes because we both need plants to be healthy and to perform well as endurance athletes. 

Here are a few delicious salad ideas using my versatile egg salad recipe (pictured above): 

(On the side of the salad are roasted yellow and purple potatoes. I cut into quarters, tossed in olive oil, salt, pepper and paprika and roasted in the oven at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown on edges.  We LOVE potatoes.)

Basic Trimarni egg salad

6 hardboiled eggs (3 whites, 3 whole)
2 stalks celery - chopped
Small handful baby carrots - chopped
1/4-1/2 cup chopped onions
1/2 cup cooked corn
1/2 cup peas
1/2 cup chickpeas
1/2 cup chopped red peppers
1-3 spoonfuls 0% Greek yogurt
Salt, pepper, parsley- any other seasonings that you like

1. Mix together and refrigerate for 30 minutes before serving. 

For meat eaters: 
Keep (or omit) the eggs, add chicken or tuna fish

For vegans: 
Omit the eggs and add crumbled firm tofu and use veganaise instead of yogurt.
Optional, add cooked lentils and beans.

For non-veggie lovers: 
Omit the eggs and the yogurt and add 1/2 - 1 cup of your favorite store-bought salsa for a veggie-packed salsa to serve with chips or on a baked potato. Add a little spicy mustard, hot sauce or horseradish for an extra kick.
(Veggie lovers can still enjoy this delicious salsa idea)

There are so many variations of this egg salad. Start with the eggs (or tofu) and finish with the Greek yogurt, veganaise or olive oil based mayo and have so much fun creating your own delicious salad!

Happy Eating!

Oakley Women contract and kiwi avocado salsa

Ladies - how do you use your training gear? Do you put it on and go out shopping? Do you wear it to events? Do you worry about sweating in your training gear?

Let's be honest - you can absolutely care about how you look during exercise (it's true - if your race outfit matches your bike, you will bike faster! : )
but most importantly, you should care about how you feel during exercise. Sweating, laughing, legs-shaking, stretching.....when the workout is done you feel accomplished and worry more about what you got out of the workout than how you look in front of a mirror or around others.

If this does not pertain to you, likely you will not want to fill out the Oakley Women contract.

I have seen SO MANY amazing contracts posted by active women via social media and I couldn't wait to fill out my own contract. As an Oakley Women ambassador, I have learned how amazing it feels to not only feel great in your active wear but to also use it appropriately.

"My gear is for running, not running errands. My gear is exercising, not socializing. It's not carpool chic or grocery store casual. It was made for more than that. It was made for me." - Oakley Women
That's right Oakley Women - you nailed it!!!

We are not putting on clothing for a fashion contest or model search. We need clothing for sweating, for pushing our bodies and for finding out what we are made of.

I will use my gear to run across finish lines, not to stand in shopping lines.

What will you use your gear for?

If you are an active woman, ...sign your own contract and let everyone know how you use your training clothing and be entered to win a prize pack! Check out the Oakley Contract page and share #oakleywomencontract on twitter, instagram & Pinterest.

And after you fill out your contract - check out my delicious kiwi avocado salsa from my latest Ironman column.

(Pic on left from Ironman website, pic on right - my delicious homemade salsa)

 

ARTICLE HERE