From the American Egg Board, here are three easy ways to enjoy outdoor fall fun – eggs in a sandwich, to go! Note that when including eggs in a tailgate, hike or picnic, they should always be packed in a cooler on ice. Do not allow cooked eggs to remain at room temperature for longer than one hour, including preparation and service time.

Egg White & Turkey Wrap
Makes 12 wraps

Ingredients

24 oz. turkey sausage
36 oz. frozen or liquid egg whites
12 slices provolone cheese
1 1/2 cups bruschetta tomato topping, prepared
9 oz. (6 cups) spinach leaves, chopped
12 tomato wraps

Preparation

In a large sauté pan, cook turkey sausage until fully cooked, breaking into small pieces as it cooks. Set aside and keep warm.

For each sandwich, cook three egg whites or 3 ½ ounces liquid egg whites in a spray-coated 8-inch nonstick sauté pan. Add in turkey sausage crumbles. Cook egg whites until firm and opaque throughout, with no visible liquid egg remaining.

To assemble wraps, cover center with scrambled egg whites, 2 ounces (⅓ cup) and turkey sausage crumbles, 2 tablespoons prepared tomato bruschetta, one slice provolone and 3/4-ounce (½ cup) chopped spinach leaves. Grill or fry wrap over medium heat just until cheese melts and heated throughout.

Hard-Boiled Egg and Blue Pimiento Cheese
Makes 12 servings

Ingredients for Blue Pimento Cheese

8 oz. aged white cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 tsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 clove garlic, minced
1 tbsp. minced shallots
1/4 tsp. white pepper
8 oz. Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
1/3 cup red peppers, diced and roasted

Directions for Blue Pimento Cheese

Combine cheddar, mayonnaise, Worcestershire sauce, garlic, shallots and pepper in a mixer and whip until well combined and fairly smooth (about 2 minutes). Slowly stir in the Gorgonzola and roasted red peppers and mix just until combined. The cheese spread will be chunky. Chill.

Additional Ingredients

12 slices peppered bacon, thick cut
12 hard-boiled eggs, peeled and sliced
3 cups baby arugula
12 whole-grain bagels

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350° F. Place strips of peppered bacon on parchment-lined baking sheet.
Bake until bacon is crisp and browned, about 15 – 18 minutes. Cut in half and keep warm.

Toast bagel. To assemble, cover bottom half of bagel with 3 tablespoons blue pimento cheese, then top with 2 half slices of bacon, ¼ cup baby arugula and a sliced, hard-cooked egg.
Cover with toasted bagel top.

Philly Quesadilla
Makes 12 servings

Ingredients

2 tbsp. olive oil
12 oz. (2 cups) red bell pepper, thinly sliced
12 oz. (2 cups) onion, thin sliced
2 tbsp. garlic, minced
1 tbsp. basil, dried
Salt and pepper, to taste
1 lb., 14 oz. Philly steak slices (12, 2.5 oz. slices) frozen
24 large eggs
2 tsp. salt
1 1/2 tsp. lemon-pepper blend
24 slices provolone cheese (0.75 oz. ea.)
12 flour tortillas (8- to 9-in. size)

Preparation

Grill peppers, onions and garlic in olive oil until soft and lightly browned. Sprinkle on basil. Add salt and pepper to taste. Toss; keep warm.

Grill steak slices on hot grill until thoroughly cooked, about 2 to 3 minutes; keep warm.
Blend eggs, salt and lemon-pepper. Cook and scramble eggs in small batches, as needed, until firm throughout with no visible liquid egg remaining. Keep eggs warm.

For each sandwich, layer 2 slices cheese, 1.5 oz. onion mixture, 2.5 oz. cooked meat slices, and 1/2 cup scrambled eggs on half of one side of tortilla. Fold tortilla over; grill or cook on Panini press until cheese is melted. Cut in half to serve.

Did you know that the average American gets 24% of their total daily calories – or more than 500 total per day – from foods they call a “snack?”

“Snacks” sometimes have a negative image, as the source of unnecessary or poor quality calories. But it doesn’t have to be that way. Some people prefer to eat in a small-meal, snacking format throughout the day, rather than the more traditional pattern of three meals a day. And when eating in this way, it’s extremely important to think about the quality of the food eaten – making sure the snack is balanced with fiber, protein and/or healthy fats.

With that in mind, below are a few smart snack options from Daisy Cottage Cheese that will give your shoppers the nutrients and energy they need:

• Cottage cheese and berries. With 13 grams of protein per ½ cup, Daisy Cottage Cheese delivers the goods. Topping cottage cheese with the berries is an excellent combination of nutrients and fiber to fuel your customers throughout the day. To add a different flavor and texture, spread the mixture on top of whole wheat crackers.

 

• Hummus and Veggies. This is a favorite combination. The fiber, fat and protein in the hummus complements any veggie perfectly. To make it super simple, point your shoppers to bags of baby carrots so there’s no peeling, cutting or slicing.

 

• Hardboiled eggs and an orange. Whole eggs offer around six grams of protein per egg while the orange offers a few grams of fiber, in addition to a variety of vitamins and minerals. Together they’re very satiating and help “bridge the gap” to give a little dose of energy between meals.

 

• Nut butter and apple. This pair is like cookies and milk; nut butter is a perfect partner to the apple. The duo makes an ideal combination of protein, fat, and fiber. For those with nut allergies, sunflower seed butter works just as well.

 

• Trail mix. For the ultimate in on-the-go snacks, try homemade trail mix. Premade mixes are available, or you can encourage your shoppers to get a little creative and have better control of their nutritional intake by mixing up their own favorite combinations of nuts along with a little dried fruit. A 2:1 ratio of nuts to dried fruit works well.

Remind your customers that the key with snacking is that the snacks are purposeful, instead of mindless, and that they include the satiating combination of protein, fiber and healthy fats.

Supermarket RDs, check your in-box this week for the Fall 2015 Shopping for Health Newsletter. You will find promotion ideas, nutrition updates, recipes and photographs, and other shopper outreach tools for your in-store use.

This edition of the quarterly SFH newsletter includes sections of information from Daisy Cottage Cheese, the Tri-Lamb Group, Tyson Foods and Vestcom.

Shopping for Health would love to have your feedback on the materials provided, or know how you might use the information. Please comment here or send a note to nancy@shoppingforhealth.org.

One of the highlights of Shopping for Health 2015 in Napa was a fabulous dinner in the caves of Clos Pegase Winery, sponsored by Tyson Foods and prepared by their chef, Ashley Zulpo.

The supermarket dietitian guests in attendance saw first-hand how everyday Tyson convenience products like packaged Grilled & Ready Diced Chicken, Jimmy Dean Cooked Sausage and Hillshire Farm Lunch Meat can be transformed into an elegant meal.

Here is the complete menu, as created by Chef Zulpo. Some of our favorite recipes from the dinner follow*. For more ideas on cooking with these and other Tyson protein products, visit http://www.tyson.com/Meal-Ideas-And-Recipes

AMUSE BOUCHE COURSE PLATED*
Ham & Cucumber Toast Rye bread, avocado mash, black forest ham, cucumber ribbons

AMUSE BOUCHE FAMILY STYLE COURSE
Chicken Endive Tacos Endive, diced grilled chicken, red onion, italian parsley, roasted red pepper sauce

SOUP COURSE*
Italian Wedding Soup Turkey sausage, chicken broth, fresh spinach, escarole

SALAD COURSE
Garden Salad, Meyer Lemon Vinaigrette Sping greens, cucumbers, tomatoes & carrots

DOUBLE ENTREE
Lemon-Herb Chicken Grilled Chicken Breast, Italian parsley, thyme, basil, Meyer lemon sauce
Rosemary Sausage Skewers Hardwood smoked chicken sausage, rosemary, red wine mushroom sauce

SIDES SERVED FAMILY STYLE
Roasted Brussel Sprouts
Butternut Squash Parmesan Zucchini
Assorted Artisan Breads & Olive Oil

DESSERT COURSE
Frangipan Tart with Caramelized Pears & Shiso Syrup
Served with whipped cream and a florentine crisp

Ham & Cucumber Toast
Featuring Hillshire Farm Naturals Black Forest Ham Lunch Meat
Serves: 15 pieces

Ingredients:
1 (8oz) package Hillshire Farm Naturals Black Forest Ham Lunch Meat
15 slices (2×3”) thick rye bread, toasted
1 ripe avocados, mashed
½ tablespoon tahini
1 lemon, juiced to taste
1 teaspoon olive oil
To taste kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
3-5 mini cucumbers, shaved lengthwise on mandolin
½ cup white wine vinegar
½ cup sugar
½ cup water

Garnish:
2 shallots, halved/thinly sliced
To taste Asian rice seasoning
To taste Crushed red pepper flakes

Instructions:
• Combine avocados, tahini, lemon juice and oil in a mixing bowl; season with salt and pepper, refrigerate.
• Combine vinegar, sugar and water in a small sauce pot. Bring mixture to a boil, make sure sugar is dissolved. Pour hot liquid over the cucumbers and cool in an ice bath.

To build the toasts: spread avocado mash on rye toast, 2-3 ribbons of pickled cucumbers, 1 slice of ham, shallots and garnishes.

Chicken Endive Tacos
Featuring Tyson Grilled & Ready Diced Chicken
Serves: 14 Tacos

Ingredients:
1 (22oz) bag Grilled & Ready Diced Chicken
6 heads Belgian endive, core removed/cleaned/leaves only
¼ cup small diced red onion
¼ cup Italian parsley leaves
1 cup fresh arugula
To taste olive oil
To taste kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
1 cup crumbled goat cheese

Red pepper sauce
2 red bell peppers, roasted/peeled/seeded
1 teaspoon white balsamic vinegar
2 cloves peeled garlic
2 tablespoons natural sliced almonds, toasted
½ teaspoon cumin seeds, toasted
¼ teaspoon caraway seeds, toasted
¼ cup olive oil
1 cup plain yogurt

Instructions:

• Blend all ingredients for the red pepper sauce minus the olive oil and yogurt, in a food processor or blender. While the blender is going, pour in the oil slowly until the color starts to change. Remove from the blender and combine with the yogurt, refrigerate.
• Toss onion, parsley and arugula with olive oil, salt and pepper.
• To build the tacos: layer 3-4 pieces of chicken into the endive leaf, drizzle with sauce and top with salad and cheese.

Italian Wedding Soup
Featuring Jimmy Dean Fully-Cooked Turkey Sausage Links
Serves: 6

Ingredients:
2 boxes Jimmy Dean Fully-Cooked Turkey Sausage Links, cut into thirds
1 (32 oz.) box unsalted chicken stock
½ cup diced yellow onions
2 cloves peeled garlic, minced
1 stalk celery, diced
1 cup escarole, hand-torn/packed
1 cup spinach, packed
1 teaspoon chopped fresh oregano
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1 egg
To taste kosher salt and fresh cracked pepper
Garnish shredded parmesan cheese

Instructions:

• Sweat onions, garlic and celery in a stock pot until aromatic.
• Stir in the chicken stock and bring to a boil, reduce heat and let simmer for 15 minutes, add sausage, escarole, spinach and herbs.
• Whisk in a small amount of the hot soup into a bowl with the egg.
• Add egg back to the soup and whisk until the egg looks creamy and not scrambled. Season with salt and pepper.
• Garnish with cheese.

Did you know that the Affordable Care Act will require restaurants and similar retail food establishments – including supermarkets that sell prepared foods – to offer nutrition information? The mandatory date for compliance is now December 1, 2016.

This includes hot buffet food and food from your store’s salad bar, as well as self-service foods intended for individual consumption, sandwiches from the deli counter, pizza by the slice and things like bagels, donuts, muffins and rolls offered for individual sale. In short, any food that is eaten either on premise, while walking away or intended to be eaten shortly after purchase.

You may be working now to make certain that your chain is in compliance with these new regulations. From the 2015 SFH conference, here are some of the must-dos, as presented by Vestcom:

• Establishments are permitted to declare calories either on a printed menu, on signs adjacent to the food, on a sign attached to a sneeze guard or on a single sign or place card.
• The following statement must also be on all forms of menus or menu boards: Additional nutrition information available upon request.
• These nutrients must be made available: total calories, calories from fat, total fat, saturated fat, trans fat, cholesterol, sodium, total carbohydrate, fiber, sugars, protein.
• You must add the following statement to help shoppers understand the context of calories in the daily diet: 2,000 calories a day is used as the basis for general nutrition advice, but calorie needs vary.
• Very Important! You must maintain documentation of the methodology used to determine nutrient content, as well and the recipe and ingredient information for each item. The FDA can ask your retailer to provide this information at any time in order to demonstrate compliance.

Check this blog space in the coming weeks for ideas on how to implement the new federal requirements into your store’s marketing and wellness plans.

For more detailed information on specific requirements, review the Vestcom presentation at www.shoppingforhealth.org/conferences/Napa2015.

Dietitians know the value of protein to the diet, but do you also recognize the value of protein products to your store?

At the 2015 Shopping for Health conference, researchers from Tyson Foods discussed protein as the “perfect pairing” between consumer trends and science.

Retail RDs and others have done a good job in communicating to consumers the importance of protein in the diet. Protein is more satiating than carbohydrate or fat; at least 18 grams of protein are recommended to achieve satiety. And consumption of protein consumption plays an important role in promoting muscle protein synthesis in adults and elderly. The optimal rate of muscle protein synthesis is achieved with an intake of 30g of protein per meal, ideally evenly distributed throughout the day.

Today, four of the five top growth categories in supermarkets contain protein. They are:

• Specialty nut butters – up 20%
• Refrigerated spreads – up 17%
• Dried meat snacks – up 14%
• Refrigerated entrees – up 12%

And over half of total lunch and dinner dollars come from high protein items across the store:

Tyson speakers listed several trends that will continue to shape consumer food choices, and discussed how the company is leading the way in developing protein products that meet these needs:

• Changing Family Portrait – With single parents, multiple generations living together and people living on their own, American households have a new look. Packaging of food products is one example of responding to the various needs of shoppers.
• Consumers Always Connected – Technology is a shopping tool for many, as consumers can easily research recipes, ingredients, nutritional information, sales opportunities and more, right from the grocery store.
• Convenience = Value for many busy consumers. They are willing to pay more for convenience products that reduce meal prep and eating time.
• Eating for Individual Preferences, Restrictions and Diets – One dish may have to appeal to family members who have differing needs and preferences – gluten free, low fat, no sodium, for example.
• Seeking Simplicity and Freshness – More and more, shoppers want to know the source of what they eat, and to understand the technology that delivers their foods.

To review this presentation in full, visit www.shoppingforhealth.org/conferences/Napa2015