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A 1980s-era commercial for Philadelphia Cream Cheese, rather disingenuously, stated that their product, ounce for ounce, had half the calories of butter. Following this proclamation, and in tones generally reserved for a very different sort of act, the announcer throatily exhorted that we “spread it on” as a butter knife massaged a layer of luxurious, alabaster cheese across a piece of bread to a depth that could have reasonably hidden Rambo from the Vietnamese army. The fact that one doesn’t generally apply butter in amounts sufficient to cement together a bagel, two slices of tomato, some capers and a generous portion of lox was not touched upon. When this was suggested to me some time later by my parents, I was broken-hearted. How could something as purely good as cream cheese be party to something so sorted?
Now, decades later, I am happy to say that I have returned to the field of honor to defend a dairy product who has been sorely misused by those to whom had been entrusted the duty to protect her. I present the cheese that should have been: Vitamin C and Calcium Fortified Cream Cheese – C4.
There are a number of ways of adding calcium to your diet. The easiest, of course, is to drink more milk and eat more leafy green vegetables. However, this Instructable is not about easy - it is about honor. We will be adding the calcium and vitamin C to our CC using (mostly) homemade calcium ascorbate, also known as “buffered vitamin C.” What’s more, the calcium portion of this will come from egg shells, an ordinarily ignored part of the groceries we purchase. Farmers add calcium to the diets of chickens to support the amount needed to create the shells for the eggs the hens lay. The cost of the calcium is passed on to the consumer who buys the eggs, a consumer who, 99 times out of a hundred, throws away this calcium after eating the eggs.
Egg shells are over 90% calcium carbonate (CaCO3), a very common form of calcium present in animals and plants. While you could eat CaCO3 and gain some benefit from it, it’s gritty and not terribly bio-available, meaning a significant potion of the calcium will simply "pass through" without being used by your body. A more efficient means of getting this calcium is to mix the carbonate with citric acid from … well, citrus fruit. This is much more bio-available and tastier, but it still, in my opinion, falls short. After all, citric acid, though nice and tangy, doesn’t have much going for it, nutritionally. However, if you mix your eggshells with ascorbic acid, well not only is the calcium bio-available, but it comes wrapped in healthy vitamin C! Mix it in cream cheese, add some additional flavors, and it’s not only great tasting, it's great for you, so … spread it on!
For this instructable you will need the following:
Ingredients:
Cream cheese (organic, if possible)
Egg shells (from organic eggs - seriously. Factory farming renders the eggshells of eggs unfit for human consumption)
Ascorbic acid (NOT buffered vitamin C – I got mine from a homebrew shop)
Lemon juice
Dill (dried)
Garlic powder (yeah, I know, but it’s easier than fresh for this recipe)
Salt
Pepper
Distilled or purified water
Tools:
Scale capable of working in .5-gram increments (optional, but very helpful)
Measuring spoons
Children’s medicine dropper (with children’s medicine, or free from a pharmacy - just ask)
Funnel (optional)
Coffee filter or paper toweling
Means of blending ingredients (i.e. food processor, whisk or fork)
The total cost of this project is quite low. The ascorbic acid is arguably the only thing the average person might not have, and it costs a few of dollars, tops.
WARNING:
Although the levels of vitamin C and calcium used in this recipe are not dangerous, keep the unused portion of the calcium ascorbate out of reach of children, and keep it well-labeled. Drinking the entire mixture straight would upset your stomach and, if you're taking calcium supplements at the same time, could result in hypercalcaemia, which would be unpleasant. If you have impaired kidney function, talk to your doctor before adding calcium to your diet.
UPDATE: I've done some further reading on salmonella, and I've got some additional advice. When prepping your eggshells, I now strongly recommend that you heat them prior to grinding. The USDA recommends that eggs (and presumably their shells) be heated to at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit (internal temperature). Annecdotal evidence supports the idea that salmonella should be less prevalent on organic or free range eggs, but annecdotal evidence also supports the idea of putting raw egg and flour on third-degree burns, which is just nuts. The Wikipedia article states that salmonella is killed after being heated to 167 Fahrenheit for 10 minutes, however the links used to support this claim make no reference to this temperature or duration. For this reason, I tend to favor the 200 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 30 minutes suggestion I made in this instructable. This will certainly destroy some helpful amino acids, but that's not why we're using eggshells in this Instructable.
I would also suggest that this instructable only be used in food for adults for both of the caveats mentioned above: hypercalcaemia and salmonella. Children are more susceptible to both of these conditions - especially salmonella. I can't imagine there are many people giving cream cheese to infants, but obviously don't give them our modified CC either.
I don't mean to sound alarmist here. We've all eaten fragments of eggshell or undercooked egg before, and chances are we've had no ill-effect. The above information is just here to help you make an informed decision about this project, one that I hope will include further research on your own part.
Now, decades later, I am happy to say that I have returned to the field of honor to defend a dairy product who has been sorely misused by those to whom had been entrusted the duty to protect her. I present the cheese that should have been: Vitamin C and Calcium Fortified Cream Cheese – C4.
There are a number of ways of adding calcium to your diet. The easiest, of course, is to drink more milk and eat more leafy green vegetables. However, this Instructable is not about easy - it is about honor. We will be adding the calcium and vitamin C to our CC using (mostly) homemade calcium ascorbate, also known as “buffered vitamin C.” What’s more, the calcium portion of this will come from egg shells, an ordinarily ignored part of the groceries we purchase. Farmers add calcium to the diets of chickens to support the amount needed to create the shells for the eggs the hens lay. The cost of the calcium is passed on to the consumer who buys the eggs, a consumer who, 99 times out of a hundred, throws away this calcium after eating the eggs.
Egg shells are over 90% calcium carbonate (CaCO3), a very common form of calcium present in animals and plants. While you could eat CaCO3 and gain some benefit from it, it’s gritty and not terribly bio-available, meaning a significant potion of the calcium will simply "pass through" without being used by your body. A more efficient means of getting this calcium is to mix the carbonate with citric acid from … well, citrus fruit. This is much more bio-available and tastier, but it still, in my opinion, falls short. After all, citric acid, though nice and tangy, doesn’t have much going for it, nutritionally. However, if you mix your eggshells with ascorbic acid, well not only is the calcium bio-available, but it comes wrapped in healthy vitamin C! Mix it in cream cheese, add some additional flavors, and it’s not only great tasting, it's great for you, so … spread it on!
For this instructable you will need the following:
Ingredients:
Cream cheese (organic, if possible)
Egg shells (from organic eggs - seriously. Factory farming renders the eggshells of eggs unfit for human consumption)
Ascorbic acid (NOT buffered vitamin C – I got mine from a homebrew shop)
Lemon juice
Dill (dried)
Garlic powder (yeah, I know, but it’s easier than fresh for this recipe)
Salt
Pepper
Distilled or purified water
Tools:
Scale capable of working in .5-gram increments (optional, but very helpful)
Measuring spoons
Children’s medicine dropper (with children’s medicine, or free from a pharmacy - just ask)
Funnel (optional)
Coffee filter or paper toweling
Means of blending ingredients (i.e. food processor, whisk or fork)
The total cost of this project is quite low. The ascorbic acid is arguably the only thing the average person might not have, and it costs a few of dollars, tops.
WARNING:
Although the levels of vitamin C and calcium used in this recipe are not dangerous, keep the unused portion of the calcium ascorbate out of reach of children, and keep it well-labeled. Drinking the entire mixture straight would upset your stomach and, if you're taking calcium supplements at the same time, could result in hypercalcaemia, which would be unpleasant. If you have impaired kidney function, talk to your doctor before adding calcium to your diet.
UPDATE: I've done some further reading on salmonella, and I've got some additional advice. When prepping your eggshells, I now strongly recommend that you heat them prior to grinding. The USDA recommends that eggs (and presumably their shells) be heated to at least 160 degrees Fahrenheit (internal temperature). Annecdotal evidence supports the idea that salmonella should be less prevalent on organic or free range eggs, but annecdotal evidence also supports the idea of putting raw egg and flour on third-degree burns, which is just nuts. The Wikipedia article states that salmonella is killed after being heated to 167 Fahrenheit for 10 minutes, however the links used to support this claim make no reference to this temperature or duration. For this reason, I tend to favor the 200 degrees Fahrenheit for at least 30 minutes suggestion I made in this instructable. This will certainly destroy some helpful amino acids, but that's not why we're using eggshells in this Instructable.
I would also suggest that this instructable only be used in food for adults for both of the caveats mentioned above: hypercalcaemia and salmonella. Children are more susceptible to both of these conditions - especially salmonella. I can't imagine there are many people giving cream cheese to infants, but obviously don't give them our modified CC either.
I don't mean to sound alarmist here. We've all eaten fragments of eggshell or undercooked egg before, and chances are we've had no ill-effect. The above information is just here to help you make an informed decision about this project, one that I hope will include further research on your own part.
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Signing UpStep 1Prepare the eggshells
It takes about one or two egg shells to make this recipe, but I tend to do more than that at a time in the interest of efficiency. First, wash your eggshells, to remove any raw egg. If you have hard-boiled your eggs, then this step is unnecessary. Allow the clean eggshells to dry. Some people advocate drying your eggshells in the oven at 200 degrees Fahrenheit for half an hour to kill any bacteria (see my update on page 1 regarding salmonella). This will probably also destroy any amino acids present in the eggshell, but to my mind, that’s not a deal breaker. After drying (or heating) your eggshells, you will need to grind them. You can use a food processor or even a rolling pin for this, but the best tool (I’ve found) is a clean (!) coffee grinder.
The picture here shows before and after, i.e. unground and ground eggshells.
The picture here shows before and after, i.e. unground and ground eggshells.
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Cream cheese plus SCIENCE!
I'm in awe.