It’s almost Easter and hard-boiled eggs are being colored everywhere!!  Just how many hard boiled eggs can you eat?  What else can you do with all of the leftover hard-boiled eggs?  Of course, you can eat them with a little salt and pepper, or you could enjoy them in one of these egg-cellent recipes. 

Hard-boiled eggs are a great way to add a lot of nutrition to your diet.  One large hard-boiled egg has only 77 calories, and provides more than 6 grams of protein, and has only a trace of a carbohydrate.  Also adding eggs to your diet provides good fats to your body, which aids in keeping your heart healthy!

Keep in mind that all of the vitamins and nutrients of an egg are found in the yolk.  Eggs are considered to be one of the top superfoods!!

Deviled Eggs are definitely a Southern favorite; try some of these other traditional southern recipes, made with a twist!

Rich and Creamy Deviled Eggs

12 large hard-boiled eggs, peeled

1/3 cup nonfat cottage cheese

1/4 cup low-fat mayonnaise

3 tablespoons minced fresh chives or scallion greens

1 tablespoon sweet pickle relish

2 teaspoons yellow mustard

1/8 teaspoon salt

Paprika for garnish

Halve eggs lengthwise with a sharp knife. Gently remove the yolks. Place 16 yolk halves in a food processor (discard the remaining 8 yolk halves). Add cottage cheese, mayonnaise, chives (or scallion greens), relish, mustard and salt; process until smooth.

Spoon about 2 teaspoons yolk mixture into each egg white half. Sprinkle with paprika, if desired.

Serves 24, each serving contains; Calories 34, Fat 2g., Cholesterol 71mg., Carbohydrates 1g., Protein 3g., Fiber 0g., Sodium 85mg., Potassium 31 mg.

Egg Salad with Capers and Olives

(I am a huge fan of capers and green olives, but not so much the black ones, so I use green ones or no olives in this recipe)

1/4 cup minced red onion 

1/4 cup minced red bell pepper 

1/4 cup finely chopped pitted kalamata olives (about 8 olives) 

1/4 cup light mayonnaise 

2 tablespoons minced fresh parsley 

2 tablespoons drained capers 

2 teaspoons prepared mustard 

1/2 teaspoon salt 

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 

8 hard-cooked large eggs, finely chopped 

Place ingredients in a medium bowl, and toss gently to combine.

Serves 4, each serving contains; Calories 228, Fat 17g., Protein 13g., Fiber 1g., Cholesterol 429mg.

English Muffin Egg Pizzas

4 English-muffins 

Olive oil 

8 tomato slices 

4 hard-cooked eggs, sliced 

Grated mozzarella 

Oregano 

Kosher salt 

Toast English-muffin halves and place on a cookie sheet. Drizzle each with olive oil, then layer on tomato slices, hard-cooked egg slices (1/2 an egg each), and a little grated mozzarella. Sprinkle with oregano and kosher salt. Broil 5 minutes or until the cheese melts.

Serves 4, each serving contains: Calories 272, Carbohydrate 28g., Cholesterol 217mg., Fat 12g., 

Fiber 2g., Protein 12mg., Sodium 380mg. 

Cobb Egg Salad

3 tablespoons nonfat plain yogurt

3 tablespoons low-fat mayonnaise

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1/8 teaspoon salt

8 hard-boiled eggs 

1 ripe avocado, cubed

2 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled

1/4 cup crumbled blue cheese

Combine yogurt, mayonnaise, garlic powder, pepper and salt in a medium bowl.

Chop the boiled eggs, you can chop chunky or fine depending on your taste. Gently stir in avocado, bacon and blue cheese.

Serves 4, each ¾ cup serving contains; Calories 257, Fat 18g., Cholesterol 200 mg., Carbohydrates 9g., Protein 15g., Fiber 3g.

Tuna Salad Sandwiches with Pickles

1 6-ounce can tuna, drained 

2 tablespoons pickle relish (dill or sweet) 

1 hard-cooked egg, peeled and finely chopped 

2 tablespoons mayonnaise 

1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley 

Kosher salt and black pepper 

8 slices white bread 

In a small bowl, gently combine the tuna, relish, and egg.  Add the mayonnaise and parsley and combine. Season with ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper.

Divide the salad among 4 slices of bread and sandwich with the remaining slices. Cut in half and serve.

Serves 4, each serving contains; Fat 7g., Cholesterol 18mg., Sodium 380mg., Carbohydrate 14g., Fiber 1g., Sugar 2g., Protein 13g.

Roasted Asparagus with Garlic-Lemon Sauce

2 bunches asparagus, (about 2 pounds), trimmed

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

1/8 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons low-fat mayonnaise

2 tablespoons shredded Parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons water

2 anchovy fillets, minced (optional)

1 small clove garlic, minced

1 tablespoon lemon juice

2 chopped hard-boiled eggs

Preheat oven to 425°F.  Toss asparagus with oil and salt in a large bowl. Spread on a baking sheet and roast, stirring once halfway through, until tender, 15 to 20 minutes.

Combine mayonnaise, Parmesan, water, anchovies, garlic and lemon juice in a small bowl. To serve, drizzle the asparagus with the sauce and top with hard-boiled egg (if using).

Serves 4, each serving contains; Calories 89, Fat 4g., Cholesterol 4mg., Carbohydrates 10g., Protein 6g., Fiber 4g., Sodium 282 mg.

Salmon Salad with Vinaigrette

1 pound green beans, trimmed 

1/4 cup red wine vinegar 

2 tablespoons Dijon mustard 

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil 

1 tablespoon minced shallots 

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt, divided 

1/4 teaspoon black pepper, divided 

4 (3-ounce) salmon fillets 

4 cups mixed salad greens 

1/4 cup vertically sliced Vidalia or other sweet onion 

2 hard-cooked large eggs, sliced 

Preheat grill to medium-high.

Place beans in large pan of boiling water; cook 2 minutes. Drain and plunge beans into ice water; drain.

Combine vinegar, mustard, oil, shallots, 1/8 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in small bowl, stirring well with whisk; set aside.

Using a mister, spray both sides of each fillet with olive oil; sprinkle with 1/8 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Place fish, skin side up, on grill rack; cook 8 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with fork, turning after 4 minutes.

Arrange 1 cup greens in each of 4 bowls; top with onion, egg slices, and beans. Top with salmon; drizzle with dressing.

Serves 4, each serving contains;  Calories 271, Fat 13g., Protein 26g., Carbohydrates 13g., Fiber 5g., Cholesterol 160mg., Sodium 355mg.