Park Ridge, IL — Children in schools (K-12) across the country gave EggPops—hard-boiled eggs on a stick—high marks for fun and flavor. The surprisingly simple, yet wholesome, protein-rich EggPops scored well with school nutrition professionals too. This past spring, the American Egg Board (AEB) fielded a student survey with EggPops in a select number of schools nationwide. “Our goal was twofold—first we wanted to gauge student acceptance, and second, it was important to hear from school nutrition professionals about whether EggPops would fit in their operations,” explained John Howeth, AEB senior vice president, foodservice and egg product marketing.
Dip, dust or don’t
Putting the hard-boiled eggs on a stick adds an element of fun. The stick makes the eggs easy to eat and dip or dunk in sauces or spice mixes, so children can choose to add a flavor or not. This fits neatly into the customization trend within foodservice—being able to individualize foods to one’s own taste preferences. “The students were very receptive – enjoyed having different options,” reported one school nutrition director. “We already offer hard-boiled eggs on our salad bar, but they are served plain. Everyone loved having a dip or flavoring on them.”
Survey results showed a general preference among younger students, those in pre-K through 2nd, for plain EggPops. As students got older, different flavoring options became more appealing. Topping options offered to students during taste tests ranged from salt-free spice mixes for dusting to ranch dressing, sweet & tangy sauce, bacon bits & mayo and sriracha mayo for dipping. Customizing topping flavors for EggPops gives schools flexibility to cater to local taste preferences or current food trends and to vary offerings by grades.
Ease & versatility
Prepping EggPops for school meals is quick and easy. All that’s required are 4½ to 6” lollipop sticks and an assortment of toppings. Many of the schools testing EggPops used or made toppings from products they already had on hand. Furthermore hard-boiled eggs fit into federal guidelines for healthy school meals with just 70 calories per egg. Eggs provide students with a familiar, vegetarian source of natural, high-quality protein, as well as varying amounts of 13 essential vitamins and minerals.
While EggPops seem like a natural choice for breakfast, school nutrition directors indicated they’d also fit nicely at lunch or as a snack offering. “We do plan to serve EggPops for breakfast for the 2015-2016 school years, as both a meal and an a la carte item,” said an East coast school nutrition director. “We will offer two different flavors each time it is offered. At lunch, we’ll offer the EggPops as a protein option on our salad bar.”
School nutrition professionals interested in finding out more about EggPops are encouraged to go to AEB.org/SchoolNutrition and download the EggPop brochure. Or to find a supplier of hard-boiled eggs, check out the Egg Product Buyers’ Guide at AEB.org/ BuyersGuide.
To request further info or EggPop photos, please contact Kitty Kevin at 815-398-6860 or kkevin@quietlightcom.com
About Incredible Edible Eggs
Available in refrigerated, frozen, liquid or dried forms, as whole eggs, yolks, whites or value-added egg products to meet preparation specifications, there’s a REAL Egg to suit any requirement. For more information about including real eggs in school meals or to find a supplier of real eggs, visit the American Egg Board’s website at www.aeb.org.
About the American Egg Board
The American Egg Board (AEB) is the U.S. egg producers’ communications link to foodservice organizations. AEB works to educate the foodservice industry about the functionality and nutritional benefits of REAL Eggs. To assist chefs and foodservice operators, AEB develops resource materials and makes egg product experts available to answer technical questions. Visit www.aeb.org for more information, formulation tips, assistance and functional egg background.
Source: Incredible Edible Eggs